Dan Ray

The numbers are in! In data entry and reporting alone, Flow reduces NTS costs by a whopping 81% and saves them $144k per year. But my favorite part was a statement by a member of their inside sales team: "Flow is the difference between sanity and rage." Saving you $144k per year? That's solid ROI. Saving your sanity? That's priceless :) DM me if you want to get a trial of Flow set up. We believe in leading with value, so we'll set up whole system with your data at no cost or risk to you.

12

2 Comments

The 2024 State of Sales Report from Salesforce just dropped and there's a ton of cool data point to check out. I mention a few interesting points in the clip below including: Who the heck are the 36% of you who would NOT leave their current job for better pay? 😂 😉 You can download the full report here: Link: https://lnkd.in/ePEWegNV

183

50 Comments

I recently talked to a company in the mfg space. Top rep? A conversation, 1/16 calls. The rest? 1/60 calls. The difference? Top rep sources more prospects & tries them more often. That's it. He saves more prospects from ZoomInfo & he's more creative about getting ahold of them (in this case its as simple as more attempts per contact...) This is what says where traditional SDR teams are getting it wrong. In traditional cold calling/outbound... You took a list, put it into a dialer and made dials until conversations slowed down. At which point, you'd add more people to the list. And so you may call people six, seven, eight, nine, ten, twenty times. I set the limit and connection cell to 20 attempts per contact and the maximum number per day to three. So how many SDRs out there are trying their prospects three times per day? You as a fractional SDR can go in and have more conversations than their existing reps... Doing nothing different besides just calling the same prospects that they're already calling more times per day. Because inevitably someone might not pick up in the morning, But they may pick up in the afternoon of the same day. But what most companies do is... "Oh, I called them on Monday, so I have to wait four days because, in my sequence, the next call task isn't until Thursday. " And then reps end up getting behind on their sequences anyway. And all the tasks pile up, And then they just have to blow through them. Simplify it. How many hours per day are you logging on the dialer? Three? Ok. How many conversations are you having per hour? This many. How many conversations are turning into a meeting? Got it. That's what people should be focused on, Not how many steps are in my sequence. And is it call or is it call, email, email, email, call, LinkedIn, No, none of that matters. It is: - build list - call - follow-up. That's the order of operations.

15

3 Comments

That's so true, but sometimes, it's easy to lose focus on why it matters and the business benefits when the dialogue becomes very technical. Always have it as the driving part of your customer dialogue from the start, and then it's easy to continue building a strong business case and credibility.

3

Common trend I'm seeing right now Sales is missing targets... trying to align around a way to drive expansion revenue targets Leadership gets fired No one's sure what is really going on The root cause - the serviceable addressable market is smaller than you think You oversold your SAM, probably because product/positioning fell behind Now you're stuck Solution - lock in your ICP Get thought leadership, partners, ABM aligned around those deals Win the deals you can actually win Then flood product with a playlist of Gong calls showing the gaps in product market fit

21

10 Comments

Sales leaders need to put an end to this MADNESS. Here's a strategic seller who was put on a PIP after hitting 166% of his $1.2M quota because he didn't hit the required "activity metrics.” There’s a better way to lead: It's simple... Stop treating knowledge professionals like factory workers. Specialized knowledge, building networks, and embracing tech innovation are more important growth levers than measuring activity inputs. This is especially true for strategic sellers. If you're leading sellers who have to engage with multiple executives at large companies and you're scrutinizing their "activity metrics,” I suggest you do an audit of your management style. Here are 3 great places to start: 1. WHO DO YOU WORK FOR? The average tenure of a VP of Sales is 17 months (down from 26 mos in 2010, per Gong). You’re in a high-pressure position, so it’s a good time to think about who you *truly* work for if this trend has any chance to reverse. Instead of thinking of your board and C-Suite as your bosses, what if you flipped the model on its head? This is known as Inversion Thinking. Instead of: “What do I need to show people at the top to keep my job?” Ask: “What can I do to help the people below me reach their full potential?” 2. WHAT IS THE MEASURE OF SUCCESS? Is the team you lead given a revenue quota or something else? Businesses need revenue to survive and grow… Not more meetings on the calendar. So why over-index on activity inputs if the important outcomes are being surpassed? This is known as Linearity Bias, the assumption that a change in one quantity produces a proportional change in another. More calls, emails, and meetings ≠ more revenue. Instead of chastising reps who are over quota but under activity, try deconstructing their unique approach and giving them a platform to share it with the rest of the team. Viewing sellers like this as “lucky” will limit your growth and tenure. 3. HOW MUCH TRUST DO YOU HAVE? “We had 2 reps put in their notice this week, and I know 2 more who are about to resign.” This was verbatim from a Strategic Account AE I spoke with last week at a Series D startup. Why? Because their senior sales team must participate in 2 cold call blitzes each week in addition to 80 outbound outreaches. “We feel like glorified SDRs. 1,000 calls have produced 10 meetings, a 1% return.” They’re fed up and burned out…so they’re leaving. If a tenured seller leaves tomorrow, what’s the cost of finding, vetting, onboarding, and training a new seller? What's the cost of lost momentum with existing pipeline? If you’re leading with activity and not strategy, I guarantee you don’t have trust in your sales team. As we enter the 2nd half of 2024, I encourage you to think differently. The era of 17 months tenure, <40% quota attainment, and 63% of sellers experiencing burnout doesn’t have to continue. You can be the change. 🐝 Strategic sellers, there's a better way: https://buff.ly/3noPjbn

730

155 Comments

This is absolutely key in sales! The Pareto Principle strikes again: 20% of leads generate 80% of the business. Focus on those 20% winnable, high-value deals. This strategy is the real smart and successful sales mantra. Prioritising the right opportunities not only maximises efficiency but also drives significant growth. #SalesSuccess #ParetoPrinciple #FocusOnWhatMatters #SalesMantra #BusinessGrowth

11

2 Comments