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Interview With Sara Beam
Ashleigh and Kasey talk about competition, call centers, and coaching with Sara Beam the Founder and CEO of Virago Ventures, a full service sales enablement optimization and strategic marketing company.
SHOW NOTES
Sara’s Sales Story
-After finishing her Business Management degree, Sara accepted a position at a prominent third-party Verizon retailer. It was commission only, so after 8 months she moved on to work at a new inbound call center that sold tv, phone, and internet.
-She worked her way up to a Supervisor position within that company and was there for a total of around 4 and a half years, quitting to make the move to LA.
-In LA she became the first outbound sales rep and had the opportunity to build their sales process from the ground up, eventually becoming the Sales Director, and has worked for a few different startups since.
-It was this experience that inspired her to start a company working with smaller businesses to develop their sales process.
Competition and Motivation
-Both Kasey and Sara aren’t motivated by competition against colleagues. When Kasey was in sales each boss attempted to motivate her by pitting her against someone else on her team, but it has the opposite of the intended effect. She’d rather compete against herself.
-Sales is also a difficult environment to be working in because of how visual it is. If you’re not performing well, everyone knows it and it took a long time for Sara to get used to and accept that.
-Process is such an important part of getting through these slumps. It keeps you motivated by giving you something to believe in and rely on when you don’t have much else.
B2B vs B2C
-You’re a lot more likely to come across B2C call centers because they make less money off of each transaction so it’s all about volume. There’s no benefit from having a more consultative process.
-There is crossover though, Kasey’s first phone sales job was cold calling realtors. It operated like a call center in the sense that she was only allowed a single call and had to have billing information within the first 12 minutes, but it was outbound B2B sales.
-The call center’s repetition forces you to have a very dialed in, formulaic process that Sara has used throughout her career.
Learning and Coaching
-Sara offers one-on-one coaching for people in sales environments with little to no training. If you’re struggling don’t be afraid to contact a resource outside of your company.
-You can also approach your director and manager and ask them if they could provide more training or help you to find someone that can provide it.
-Joining different groups or communities and finding like minded people that you can connect with and will support you is also a great option for learning more.
-Google is also a viable option if you’re having trouble with something.
Resources
-Virago Ventures
-Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/othersideofsales/message
Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/othersideofsales/support
View all episodes
By Ashleigh EarlyAshleigh and Kasey talk about competition, call centers, and coaching with Sara Beam the Founder and CEO of Virago Ventures, a full service sales enablement optimization and strategic marketing company.
SHOW NOTES
Sara’s Sales Story
-After finishing her Business Management degree, Sara accepted a position at a prominent third-party Verizon retailer. It was commission only, so after 8 months she moved on to work at a new inbound call center that sold tv, phone, and internet.
-She worked her way up to a Supervisor position within that company and was there for a total of around 4 and a half years, quitting to make the move to LA.
-In LA she became the first outbound sales rep and had the opportunity to build their sales process from the ground up, eventually becoming the Sales Director, and has worked for a few different startups since.
-It was this experience that inspired her to start a company working with smaller businesses to develop their sales process.
Competition and Motivation
-Both Kasey and Sara aren’t motivated by competition against colleagues. When Kasey was in sales each boss attempted to motivate her by pitting her against someone else on her team, but it has the opposite of the intended effect. She’d rather compete against herself.
-Sales is also a difficult environment to be working in because of how visual it is. If you’re not performing well, everyone knows it and it took a long time for Sara to get used to and accept that.
-Process is such an important part of getting through these slumps. It keeps you motivated by giving you something to believe in and rely on when you don’t have much else.
B2B vs B2C
-You’re a lot more likely to come across B2C call centers because they make less money off of each transaction so it’s all about volume. There’s no benefit from having a more consultative process.
-There is crossover though, Kasey’s first phone sales job was cold calling realtors. It operated like a call center in the sense that she was only allowed a single call and had to have billing information within the first 12 minutes, but it was outbound B2B sales.
-The call center’s repetition forces you to have a very dialed in, formulaic process that Sara has used throughout her career.
Learning and Coaching
-Sara offers one-on-one coaching for people in sales environments with little to no training. If you’re struggling don’t be afraid to contact a resource outside of your company.
-You can also approach your director and manager and ask them if they could provide more training or help you to find someone that can provide it.
-Joining different groups or communities and finding like minded people that you can connect with and will support you is also a great option for learning more.
-Google is also a viable option if you’re having trouble with something.
Resources
-Virago Ventures
-Lean In by Sheryl Sandberg
Send in a voice message: https://anchor.fm/othersideofsales/message
Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/othersideofsales/support