Get answers from sales leaders
Roee Zelcer
TikTok Head of Sales, Products & Services • February 10
This is a very important question and one that not everyone will see eye to eye with me on this. But personally, it has never failed me up until now. There are a few elements that are common to candidates that have been proven to be successful: The first is tenacity. It is that inner hunger to learn new topics or master new skill sets. One who always finds ways to be proactive and push boundaries. When talking to candidates, I always look for a potential team member whom I will need to restrain rather than one I will need to nudge forward. The second is communication skills. A great seller is someone who you talk to and immediately comes off as connectable and relatable. Someone who has a clear understanding of the person in front of them. The third aspect would have to be very strong social and emotional intelligence. This goes hand in hand with having a client first mentality. A great candidate is one who will give the client the true sense that he puts their interest above anything. Earning that trust is key to building a long-term, healthy relationship.
...Read More4745 Views
Upcoming AMAs
Brian Tino
AlphaSense Director of Strategic Sales, EMEA • January 26
Good question! Taking a sales function up market in an existing business can be one of the most challenging but lucrative transformations of an organization. Often in the early days of your business and go-to-market motion you'll tend to focus on smaller, more nimble customers to validate your product-market fit and refine your go-to-market approach. During this phase, your supporting business structures of product development, finance, legal, security & compliance, etc. will mold to fit the requirements of your business at that point in time. Wayne Gretsky famously said, "I skate to where the puck is going to be, not where it has been." So, when it's time to go up-market, one of the most important things you need to do first, is help your supporting business structures evolve to meet you where you are headed, not where you are. To do that... 1) Be clear on your objectives - what does success going up-market look like in the next 90 days. Advice: be modest in your expectations, as it usually takes longer than you would have initially anticipated, and focus on the next 90 days at a time 2) Identify the gaps & be explicit about the resources you need - within your existing supporting business structures, what is required for them to evolve to meet you where you are headed? * Product development - are they prepared to adjust the product roadmap to the needs of larger clients? what is the mechanism for recieving, triaging, and prioritizing those requests? * Finance - are your finance policies & systems prepared to be flexible to more customized payment terms? do you have a process for completing vendor set up forms? * Legal - do you have the resources to negotiate MSAs, DPAs, security terms, etc? do you have proper policies & documentation in place to ensure compliance with GDPR, CCPA, etc? * Security & compliance - do you have the necessary policies & procedures? do you have the certifications required by the new market you are serving (ISO 27001, SOC2, FedRamp, etc.) ? do you have a process for completing security questionnairs & audits? 3) Up-level your team - going up-market can sometimes mean you need different skills, experiences, and roles within your sales organization to best support your larger clients. Begin to as yourself questions like: * Does my existing team have experience selling into larger organizations? or do I need to recruit additional talent? * Do we need to re-segment our accounts into new territories and books of business to create better alignment? * Does our current structure support a more mature selling motion? or do we need additional resources (customer success managers, accounts managers, solutions consultants, etc.) to take it to the next level? * How do we develop the skills of our team and implement a more mature sales motion with concepts like territory & account planning, champion building, business case generation, etc? 4) Join as many customer conversations as you can - by getting in the field yourself, you are able to develop an intimate understanding of the common objections & gaps within your offering or go-to-market motion, and you can provide your reps more relevant direct coaching
...Read More1918 Views
Maria White
Cornerstone OnDemand Vice President Sales Enablement and Education • April 7
Better Together - Collaboration with other departments and Sales Enablement If you have not already started to build out councils with your core heads of department this will allow for set times for you all to meet to collaborate on the enablement priorities and build out RACIs to outline who is responsible during each phase of each project. Below are three steps that can help you start one 1. Meet with all the key department heads that you need to collaborate with to effectively manage or funnel all the information that is required for sales enablement to build strategy and enablement for the field. Explain what your organization is responsible for and how you can partner together 2. Schedule regular cadence with one representative from each group and form your sales enablement governance council - this allows each head of the department to delegate someone to represent that group in any or all projects that require you all to work together. 3. Keep it documented, share the successes, take input and build together The above is the most efficient to build credibility, trust and collaboration with your department heads, remember they will be talking to the sales leaders in other meetings just like you so building your collaboration and trust will help you all partner better together for the benefit of the sales and the organization.
...Read More1440 Views
George Cerny
Iterable VP, Growth Sales, B2B2C Sales & LATAM • November 15
Since nearly everything is quantified in sales, OKR's can sometimes come across as redundant and inconvenient to manage to the uninitiated. But OKR's are an amazing vehicle to drive focus on the core strategic initiatives that will generate greater success, and gain cross-functional alignment, visibility and support in achieving these goals. There are two major benefits IMO opinion in defining Sales OKR's: 1. Clarity - the process of defining Objectives and Key Results, if applied with rigor and assistance from someone truly knowledgeable in the process, can provide immense clarity into what you're looking to achieve and how to achieve it. The question was about the output, but let's not overlook how valuable the process can be to get really crystal clear on the Objectives that will have an outsized impact on team results. 2. Cross-functional alignment - OKR's are a company initiative, not a Sales initiative. This means it's a common language across departments, that can be used to unite teams in a shared mission, and increase visibility in what other departments can do to help each other out in achieving their objectives. There are few other tools that are as impactful as a supporting team attached to one of your KR's having to read out progress each week to their leadership. Every sales person wants more support from the company to sell. If it's possible to define exactly what that support is, who it's from , and tie it to a KR... drumroll please... you just got the support you needed via OKR's! So what defines good Sales OKR's? First step is in accurately defining the highest priority Objectives, that if achieved, would have a greater impact on Sales than anything else this quarter. A couple nuances to address: 1. Typically there are top line company objectives that are rolled out first, and then all departments (including Sales) localize their objectives to support some or all of the overall company objective. This is important to call out, as this exercise of connecting Sales goals to Company goals helps define the focus of OKR's. 2. The localizing of company objectives should generally just change the wording of the Objectives to ensure they align, but the big rocks that sales should focus on are typically in the following categories * Building a High Performance Sales Culture (hiring, ramping, setting a high bar for execution, focus on improvement of the culture) * Building Pipeline * Deal Execution - win rate, competitive win rate, utilizing resources more effectively to improve results, closing bigger deals/more deals * Executing new strategies to increase deal size, improve velocity, or open up new markets to increase TAM. Under those big rocks, you'll need to define the KR's that get you there. They need to be measurable, a stretch but achievable, and simple to track. This is harder than it sounds - but the process of refining these helps you gain that clarity. This is where you can really lean into intentionally setting up cross-functional goals, and align the support of the company to help Sales achieve their Objectives. A few examples: * If the goal is getting more customers in an industry - one KR could be to sign up 3 current referenceable customers for case studies. This aligns sales and marketing to build assets so you have more stories and social proof to help you sell into this industry. You could then have an additional KR on how many net new customers you are closing that quarter in that industry. * If you're looking to increase ACV as part of a Deal Execution objective, often there is a KR related to selling add-on products. You could align with the Product & Solutions Engineering teams to produce more assets, custom demo environments, or a new Guru card to improve sales' ability to sell this feature. Paired with an attach rate goal, this can be a powerful combo. * If there is a Culture objective, and you have a Culture survey in your org, addressing one of the key items that has been flagged by the team is a great way to show commitment towards improving the environment. For example there could be a new tool that addresses a major gap or point of friction for AE's. Setting roll out dates with RevOps that map to improved productivity is motivating to the team. While every company is different, sales Objectives are going to generally fall into one of 4 major categories outlined above. These need to be mapped to the company Objectives, and then it's important to lean into the benefits that the OKR process provides when defining KR's. Clarity in how to hit your Objectives. Visibility across the org of the key strategies you're leaning into the hit your Objectives. Cross-Functional alignment to get all teams rowing in the same direction to achieve shared Objectives.
...Read More1080 Views
Brandon Love
Salesforce Regional Sales Director • October 12
I often hear a few common concerns from enterprise prospects. These usually revolve around worries about the price, potential risks, getting locked into a single vendor, and status-quo objections. Cost Worries: When prospects bring up cost concerns, I like to highlight the value our solutions bring. I show them how our offerings are designed to solve specific issues and bring tangible returns. Plus, I work closely with our financial experts to offer flexible pricing options and demonstrate the long-term benefits of their investment. Mitigating Risks: It's only natural for enterprises to be cautious about adopting new tech. To address this, I point to our track record of successful implementations, backed by glowing customer testimonials and case studies. I also stress how adaptable and scalable our solutions are, fitting seamlessly into their existing setup and future growth plans. Avoiding Vendor Lock-In: Some prospects worry about being stuck with a single vendor for the long haul. I reassure them by emphasizing our focus on interoperability and open standards. I highlight our wide range of integrations and partnerships, underlining the flexibility and freedom our solutions offer. This way, they know they can integrate with other platforms and technologies if they need to. Validating with Proofs of Concept: Given our emphasis on proofs of concept aligned with the customer's future goals, prospects often want to see real results. I suggest starting with a smaller pilot project or proof of concept that's tailored to their specific needs. This hands-on experience helps build trust and confidence in our solutions, often leading to broader adoption. By addressing these concerns with a mix of personalized value propositions, strong case studies, and adaptable implementation strategies, we can show how our solutions align with the prospect's big picture vision while easing worries about cost, risk, and vendor lock-in. This approach ensures that our tactical opportunities lead to long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships with our enterprise customers. Status Quo Resistance: Another common objection we encounter is a hesitancy to disrupt the status quo. Many enterprise prospects are comfortable with their current processes and systems, even if they may not be fully effective. To tackle this, I approach it as an opportunity for growth and improvement. I share success stories of similar organizations that made the leap from their familiar routines to our solutions, showcasing the positive impact it had on their operations. By highlighting the potential for transformative change, we can overcome the inertia associated with maintaining the status quo and inspire prospects to embrace innovative solutions aligned with their strategic vision. This approach empowers them to envision a future state that not only meets their immediate needs but also positions them for long-term success. By addressing these concerns with a mix of personalized value propositions, strong case studies, and adaptable implementation strategies, we can show how our solutions align with the prospect's big picture vision while easing objections about cost, risk, vendor lock-in, and status quo resistance. This approach ensures that our tactical opportunities lead to long-term, mutually beneficial partnerships with our enterprise customers.
...Read More1943 Views
Jessica Holmes
Adobe Director, Adobe Sales Academy • August 30
Moving from a Manager to a Director means that you have the skillset to not only take action on tasks or initiatives given to you, but to be the one that provides the strategy and vision that creates the initiatives and tasks. Being proactive in identifying risk or future problems, thinking through possible solutions and what is best for your business, employees and customers, is key to moving from managing to directing. As a Director, you become more concerned with the broader business outcomes and how your team(s) impact those outcomes, as well as you take ownership in providing insights to the business to influence and determine the strategy. You can start to build these skills as an individual contributor. Don't wait for a leadership opportunity to learn when to speak up and provide information that can help the business, don't wait for someone to call on you to help solve a problem. Be proactive, think broader than your job, and be willing to do work that you're not compensated for to achieve the overall business goals.
...Read More1040 Views
Marleyna Mohler
Attentive Sr. Director of Inside Sales • May 17
Staying up to date: It’s important to pick a medium that you like for content. Whether it is Linkedin, podcasts, email newsletter, or chat based slack groups, you want to make sure you are setting yourself up for success. If the content goes unread or unlistened to, you won’t build a consistent learning habit. Personally, I find the most value in content forums where you can engage and ask follow up questions, hear multiple opinions on a particular matter, and even reach out the the original writer for a 1-1 chat! Another underutilized source of knowledge for industry trends is content from Sales Development technology vendors. It’s imperative that they stay on the cutting edge, so following a few top vendors on Linkedin will allow you to see what future the tools are preparing for. Avoiding the noise: There can be a great amount of value in public best practices. That said, there is risk in assuming that something that works for someone else will also work for you, or for implementing changes to something when you are already seeing above-average results. For example, if your content is getting a 20% reply rate, you may not want to adopt the “best practice” that moved someone else's team from a 10% to 15% reply rate. Having your own benchmarks and running your own A/B tests can help you determine where you should be altering your SDR motion, and where you should keep yours in place. Then, you can proactively search for interesting ideas to test in areas you are performing below benchmark.
...Read More1206 Views
I always recommend that candidates study the job description carefully. Take a look at the qualifications and skills/experience that the hiring manager wants. Do your best to come up with examples/stories to showcase those desirable skills/experiences in the interview. If you have time, it never hurts to connect with someone who is doing the role today and pick their brain on what they like, don't like, and do to succeed in the role. You should be able to find them on LinkedIn. This type of insight is invaluable as you will be learning from someone who is doing the job you want. If you're talking to a cross-functional partner that you're not as familiar with, get curious. For example, I really appreciate it when candidates take the time to ask me, "how can I make your life easier in this role? how can this role help contribute to your team?" This type of question is a launchpad and invitation to discuss future collaboration opportunities. Remember it's just as important for you to evaluate if this role or company is a right fit for you as it is for the hiring manager and company to evaluate if you are a right fit for them. So be sure to throw in one or two questions to help you evaluate your decision as well.
...Read More1346 Views
Shahid Nizami
Braze APAC Vice President of Sales • January 10
In today's world it is relatively quite easy to make a very well informed decision when assessing a new role in a different company. These are some of the things I look at and advise my mentees to do too : * If it's a public listed company, look at their financials to figure out their year on year growth. * Check out websites like RepVue which give you a very good understanding about how sales reps in that company are doing * On LinkedIn, check out the trend on their headcount,especially in sales, is it increasing consistently or not. * Check out analyst reports and websites like g2.com to see how the product is rated by their customers. * Check websites like Glassdoor to understand about the culture of the company you are considering * If possible speak with a few customers and partners of the company as well.
...Read More2194 Views
Eric Martin
Vanta Head Of Sales • November 29
First off, congrats on the big gains in ARR & ACV, and also for putting some key processes in place. Like many of my other responses, let me say here that "It depends." We should find some time to chat about your situation. At Vanta, we had a repeatable sales playbook from the early days, but we didn't implement a formal sales methodology when we were around 200 employees (and had a GTM org of around 100 employees). Why did we do it? Not because we were struggling (sales were humming), but because our newly hired CRO had seen firsthand how adopting a sales methodology early better enables a GTM org to scale for the long run. We ended up hiring Force Management to lead us through Command of the Message (CoM) training and it was worth every penny. For those unfamiliar, many of the fastest-growing sales teams today use CoM. Besides bringing a new structure to our GTM motion, our in-person training and onboarding with Force Management also served to realign the entire company around our core values and mission. Once again, to answer this question well for you and your company, I think I need a bit more context. I'd love to hear what sort of "hard data" have you presented, and what do you mean by "plateaued"?
...Read More758 Views