Predictable Prospecting's Podcast

Sometimes old school sales people forget the importance of data. Nothing can help shape and guide the sales process better than having the right types of data. I have a wonderful guest today, who challenges the sales status quo and the ideas of what types of data are important and how to apply that data to the sales process. Then we dig even deeper into the data side of sales.

Jason Vargas works in the trenches as the Managing Director of Sales Development at Datanyze. If you aren't familiar with Datanyze, you should check them out. Especially, if you are doing business development. They specialize in helping to find data for tracking, analytics, prospecting and more. Jason is on the rocketship of data analysis, and it shows as he shares new insights and more with us.

Episode Highlights:

• Identifying the rights types of companies and accounts to target
• Segmenting by other methods besides demographics
• Leveraging technology data or technographics
• Prioritizing segments by how sophisticated their sales methods are
• Finely tuning who we want to go after and target
• Maximizing everyone's time by prequalifying accounts
• Focusing on the pre sales conversation instead of finding prospects
• Focus on the first meeting and taking that meeting to close
• Offloading the data finding process including accurate phone numbers
• Customization is important with large companies
• Automation and sales templates can save time with small companies
• Utilizing a database for mass personalization
• Having reps record and transcribe a call to use for an email template
• Hitting send and transforming a prospects day
• Metrics for outbound 20 emails and 20 phone calls
• Focusing on quality over volume
• Patient and persistence persuasion
• Outreach and finding out where people are on the ladder
• Startups should not have sales territories, but account profiles
• Looking outside the box and leveraging technology, process, and people

Resources:

• Datanyze
• Jason on Twitter @jasoncvargas
• [email protected]
• Jason on LinkedIn
• The End of Solution Sales - Harvard Business Review

The number one problem most sales people say they have is lack of pipeline. Yet, lack of pipeline is usually a symptom of other issues. The three key issues that affect lack of pipeline are having the wrong mindset, using the wrong narrative, and executing the wrong activities.

Today, I speak with LinkedIn's most read author of B2B selling content. Tony Hughes is a sales improvement consultant and bestselling author. His new book Combo Prospecting: The Powerful One-Two Punch That Fills Your Pipeline and Wins Sales is available for pre-order and will be released in January of 2018. In our conversation, we attack the myths around prospecting and lead generation. Tony also shares some wonderful actionable tips that you can implement right away.

Episode Highlights:

• Treating predictable prospecting as a process.
• Separation of roles that actually work in large organizations.
• How sellers need to generate their own pipeline.
• Everyone in the organization needs to be prospecting and looking for referrals.
• Getting to a point where the sales process is a habit.
• After engaging with a client ask for a referral.
• Lead with why the conversation should matter and add value.
• Help, help, help and then ask.
• Ask is this email helping a prospects challenge? If no, don't send.
• Speak to prospects at the level of a peer.
• Combo sell with phone, email, social, etc. using the right narrative.
• Buyers are interested in what is going on in their industry, provide value.
• Try to reach a range of people within an organization with the right narrative.
• More focus on customer experience and human engagement.
• Embracing technology and the way you sell. Being politely persistent.

Resources:

• Combo Prospecting: The Powerful One-Two Punch That Fills Your Pipeline and Wins Sales
• Tony Hughes on LinkedIn
• Tony's Keynote Speaker Website
• RSVP Selling
• Tony on Twitter @rsvpselling
• Cracking The Sales Management Code : The Secrets to Measuring and Managing Sales Performance

As an Executive Coach and Consultant, Bryan Franklin has helped multiple businesses pass the one billion mark in revenue. His newest venture, OutboundWorks, is the marriage of the traditional SDR role and the future of sales -- Artificial Intelligence, or as Bryan calls it, Augmented Intelligence. In this episode we're talking all about using automated tools in the sales process: How to implement them, how they'll affect relationships with prospects, and what it means for the future of sales.

Episode Highlights:

• Bryan Franklin's background and coaching track record
• What is Outbound Works?
• The future of selling: Augmented Intelligence and account-based selling
• Automating good habits
• Where does Bryan Franklin sit in the pipeline?
• Bryan's process for Implementing an automated tool
• Will automation replace outsourcing?
• The future of automation and the phone
• Does automation mean the end of human relationships?
• Working with marketing
• Bryan's ideal client profiles

Resources:

• OutboundWorks
• Connect with Bryan Franklin by visiting his website, sending him a message on Linkedin, or by following him on Twitter

As we march down the sales pipeline, the more information we have the easier it is to connect the dots in the sales process. Having more information and better data makes us more strategic, scalable, and consistent.

You are going to love today's podcast because my guest is David Hoffeld, and he is all about the science of selling. He is the author of The Science of Selling: Proven Strategies to Make Your Pitch, Influence Decisions, and Close the Deal, and he is the CEO and Chief Sales Trainer of the Hoffeld Group which offers science-backed sales training, coaching, and consulting. We are delighted to have him on our show today, because we love science, data, and research.

Episode Highlights:

• David tried to translate years of research on behavioral science and data into his book
• He became obsessed with science and the sales process and his numbers increased dramatically
• Incremental commitments guide customers through the sales process
• Architecting choices of buyers that will be made contextually
• Heuristics or mental shortcuts our brains make when we make choices
• Six commitments the brain makes for a sale to happen
• Aligning how you sell with how the brain makes buying decisions
• Higher perceived risk with one option as opposed to several options

Resources:

• The Science of Selling: Proven Strategies to Make Your Pitch, Influence Decisions, and Close the Deal
• Hoffeld Group
• LinkedIn David Hoffeld
• Twitter @DavidHoffeld
• YouTube Hoffeld Group

As much as every SDR loves using technology and programs to help them connect with prospects, no one likes to spend valuable time filling out endless online forms and getting crushed by an avalanche of pre-set tasks.

Our guest today is Matt Bertuzzi, VP of Sales and Marketing Operations at The Bridge Group and author of Lighting Sales Ops, a book about how to make SalesForce work for you. We're talking all about the top issues SDRs and managers face when using CRMs like SalesForce, and how you can tweak small points of conflict in the pipeline to reduce friction and close deals.

Episode Highlights:

• What inspired Matt Bertuzzi to write Lightning Sales Ops
• The issue every CRM faces
• Encouraging leaders to lean into new tools and thought processes
• Breaking down the concept of leads versus context and accounts
• How to reduce the amount of effort and friction in the pipeline while maximizing impact
• Eliminating "clicks" and letting the system do the work

Resources:

• SalesLock
• The Success Community
• The ButtonClick Admins
• Lighting Now Group
• Lighting Sales Ops by Matt Bertuzzi
• Follow Matt on Twitter @mattbertuzzi

How many times per day do you pick up your cellphone? We all do it -- mindlessly scrolling through our social media news feeds when we get a free minute, glancing over at every chime and vibration our phone makes throughout the day. While this behavior isn't unusual, it's definitely not beneficial. New research has shown that even these small interruptions are adding up to be huge distractions, sucking up tons of valuable time in the workday and leaving us feeling stressed and overwhelmed.

Today's guest, Jill Konrath, is a recognized sales consultant and speaker whose new book, More Sales, Less Time is all about getting more done in the time that we already have!

Episode Highlights:

• An overview of Jill Konrath's past books
• What can More Sales, Less Time teach us?
• Fighting distraction: How you can get at least one hour of your day back
• Escaping the email trap
• Taking a break and getting more done
• How to leverage trigger events

Resources:

• Unroll.me
• DiscoverOrg
• InsideView
• Lead411

Books by Jill Konrath:

• Selling to Big Companies

• SNAP Selling

• Agile Selling

• More Sales, Less Time

Visit Jill's website for free ebooks and other resources

Our guest today is Alea Homison, Vice President of Sales Strategy at GLG Group. What makes Alea different from some of our other guests is that she is actively working on the frontlines of sales every single day, training members of her team on the newest practices in sales enablement. She's here today to discuss her work with GLG, her unique 3-stage hiring process for new SDRs, and her advice for curating the best sales environment possible.

Episode Highlights:

• Alea Homison's role and her unique process for training and new employees
• GLG as a case-study for selling a service
• Sales enablement and the SDR team
• Alea's 3 stage hiring process
• Creating a positive team culture
• Why daily role-playing with your team is the best thing you can do
• Hyper-personalizing your messaging
• Alea Homison's top advice for SDR's beginning to work with sales enablement

Resources:

Connect with Alea Homison on Linkedin or email her at [email protected]

Have you ever said "no" to a client and walked away from a deal? Maybe you knew that your services weren't a good fit for their pain, or that they weren't ready to hear the solutions you presented.

In this episode we're joined by founder and host of SalesTuners, Jim Brown. As a sales coach who specializes in every stage of the sales pipeline, Jim is an expert in client relations. He's here to discuss his unique method of using upfront contracts: beginning a relationship by telling the client that either party has the right to walk away from the conversation!

Episode Highlights:

• The meaning behind the SalesTuner brand
• Learning through failure
• Qualification versus disqualification
• Creating an "upfront contract" with your prospects
• How to prepare for a team call
• Getting a client to close: Jim's number one question to ask a client
• Self-diagnosing problem areas
• Funnel math

Resources:

Want more from Jim Brown? Connect with him Linkedin, follow him on Twitter, and check out the SalesTuner podcast!

Download the SalesTuner workbook for free by visiting http://www.salestuners.com/roadmap

Building sales pods is the latest fad to hit sales departments worldwide, but is it really the best way to set up your team? In this episode we're chatting with Tito Bohrt, CEO of AltiSales and Chief of Sales Staff at AppBuddy, about his unique concept of architecture of the sales organization. Bohrt walks us through his philosophy on POD and round robin factory models of organization, and when the best time to use each is!

Episode Highlights:

• Introducing Tito Bohrt
• Defining the POD and the round robin factory models
• When to use each type of organization model
• Client success stories
• When is the best time to implement a new organizational structure?
• Account based selling, prospects, and the POD and farming models
• Being pleasantly persistent

Resources:

• "Sales Pods - Nice in Theory, Not so in Practice" blog post by Tito Bohrt

The tech stack Tito Bohrt uses when building early stage sales teams::

• CRM: Salesforce
• Lead Research: Linkedin Sales Navigator, ZoomInfo and Hunter.io
• Sales Automation: Outreach.io
• Phone system: Outreach.io + Jabra Headset
• Pipeline Management: GridBuddy
• E-Signatures: Rightsignature

Why does he use these products?

• Salesforce: Good to start with this from day 1. There's no better CRM, and switching CRMs later can be costly
• Linkedin Sales Nav: The most up to date employees and titles to help you find Buyer Personas at your ICP
• ZoomInfo: The best source for direct lines, lots of accurate emails as well.
• Hunter.io: Good tech to help you guess emails if you don't find them on ZoomInfo
• Outreach.io: Allows the tracking of all KPIs for SDRs and has the dialer integrated. This is a must have for SDR teams at every B2B company. Very superior to SalesLoft when it comes to analytics and customizations
• Jabra Headset: Likely the best sound quality, but also pricey. If on a budget, any USB headset (even those for gaming) will be good enough.
• GridBuddy: GridBuddy gives you an excel-like interface to make sales reps lives easier and allowing sales leaders to capture all the data they need for accurate forecasts and analyzing KPIs. This is another must have if you are a data-driven company (and you should be).
• Rightsignature: All the e-sig capabilities you need for an affordable price.

Want more from Tito Bohrt? Connect with him on Linkedin or send him an email: [email protected]

How many of us keep track of calls and personas using a process that feels way too complex and doesn't deliver the desired results? Today we're joined by Anthony Iannarino, international speaker, sales leader, and best-selling author. His new book, The Only Sales Guide You'll Ever Need, is an absolute must-read for anyone who wants to sell more and sell better. In this episode we're talking all about the dangers of automating your sales process, and the research and science that backs up Anthony's methods for creating an effective and lucrative sales process.

Episode Highlights:

• Understanding sales by using the OODA Loop
• Why successful prospectors have the mindset of a competitor
• When asking for a referral goes wrong: Why we can't rely on technology to do our work for us
• "Automation is marketing, not selling": Why you can't automate intimacy
• Creating value for multiple personas
• Getting into an efficient sales rhythm

Resources:

• The Only Sales Guide You'll Ever Need by Anthony Iannarino
• Boyd by Robert Coram
• Robin Dunbar's Research
• Check out Anthony's website for daily blogs and his YouTube channel for daily videos
• Want to see Anthony speak? Follow his schedule with Outbound Conference