158 (Sell): Conquering the chaos at the end of your deals (Todd Caponi, Founder, Speaker, & Workshop Leader @ Sales Melon)

FOUR ACTIONABLE FOUNDER TAKEAWAYS Your first customers should come from the founder Avoid steering the discovery conversation in a preferred direction, let the conversation flow naturally and meet the customer where they are. If the conversation is going well and the customer acknowledges the problem and believes in your solution, consider bringing them on as a pilot customer. If you're not ready to solve the big problem yet, launch a customer advisory board. Offer a small amount of equity to early advisors who can help develop your product to the point where it can address a significant issue. PETER'S PATH TO PRESIDENT’S CLUB Co-Founder @ Atrium Founder @ Modern Sales Pros VP of Product @ Monster Founder @ TalentBin (Acquired by Monster) RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

1 Aug 202427min

FOUR ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS Gauge your prospect’s enthusiasm by asking where they fall on a scale from one to ten, providing more insight than a simple yes/no question. Ask your prospect what they discuss in internal meetings to tailor your pitch to resonate with their executive team. Avoid showing too much software to prevent prospects from associating the product with unnecessary features and higher costs. Recap previous conversations and then ask the executive what you might have missed, ensuring you address their specific needs while demonstrating your product. STEVEN'S PATH TO PRESIDENT’S CLUB SVP of Sales @ ZoomInfo VP of Sales @ ZoomInfo Director of Sales @ ZoomInfo Manager, Enterprise Sales @ ZoomInfo RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

30 Jul 202439min

FOUR ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS Eat the frog by committing to prospecting first thing in the morning. Handle objections differently with a ledge (ledge > disrupt statement > ask). Handle ‘existing solution’ objections by offering value to keep the other guys honest. Get past gatekeepers with respect, giving specific value, and providing social proof. PATH TO PRESIDENTS CLUB Head of Growth @ NeonPixel CEO @ Phone Ready Leads CEO @ Student of Sales VP of Sales @ Booshaka RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

29 Jul 202431min

FOUR ACTIONABLE LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS Use calendar color coding to audit your time and ensure you're focusing on important tasks consistently Always be recruiting (ABR) - Regularly connect with potential talent on LinkedIn to build relationships before you need to hire. Designate specific days for different tasks - Monday for one-on-ones, Tuesday for outbound, Wednesday and Thursday for deal reviews, and Friday for forecasts. Run outbound days, have reps target top C-level prospects and maintain a 45-day forecast with outreach tasks. PATH TO PRESIDENT’S CLUB Regional Director Mid-Market Sales @ Navan Manager Commercial Sales @ Navan Manager Growth Sales @ Navan Enterprise Account Executive @ Navan RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

25 Jul 202438min

FOUR ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS Explore two types of impact with your prospect: hard metrics (e.g., hours spent, money lost) and soft impact. Address pain points in other departments to accelerate deals and improve win rates. Turn situations into problems by asking questions that highlight known pain points with competitors. If ghosted late in the deal cycle, offer to email the next key contact directly to prompt a response. PATH TO PRESIDENT’S CLUB Account Executive @ Webflow Account Executive @ SafeGraph Account Executive @ Procore Technologies RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

23 Jul 202439min

FOUR ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS Call your below-the-line org. contacts to gather intel that you can bring up when having above-the-line conversations. Try to get a direct referral to your target persona, next best would be “permission to mention X’s name”, next best would be using the information from X’s conversation when contacting the target. Use “[X] said we should speak” as a simple, attention-grabbing subject line for the target persona. Document all your conversations in your CRM notes at the prospect AND account level for easy recall in future outreach. PATH TO PRESIDENT’S CLUB VP of Sales @ Orum Account Executive @ Teamable Software Head of Sales @ Neptune.io Manager, Sales Development and Operations @ CloudVelox [Acquired by VMware] RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

22 Jul 202433min

To celebrate the launch of our book on cold calling "Cold Calling Sucks (And That's Why It Works)" we've dropping this special playbook edition that covers (almost) everything there is to know on how to cold call. From handling objections to organizing your calendar, this episode has got it all. Pre-order a copy of our cold calling book and get it FIRST when it launches on August 14th, 2024

19 Jul 20241h

FOUR ACTIONABLE LEADERSHIP TAKEAWAYS Sales leaders need to stop observing from the sidelines and actively participate in deals as player-coaches, even if they are CROs. Giving candidates extensive preparation materials for role plays allows for a more accurate evaluation of their abilities. Replaying specific parts of a role play multiple times can effectively demonstrate a candidate's coachability. Hiring decisions should be unequivocally positive or negative, avoiding the temptation to settle for average candidates. PATH TO PRESIDENT’S CLUB VP of Sales @ Chameleon Senior Director of Sales @ Drift Senior Director of Sales @ Litmus Sales Manager @ Litmus RESOURCES DISCUSSED Join our weekly newsletter Things you can steal

18 Jul 202438min