From hockey stick growth to flat on your face, it hurts and Collin Stewart can tell you firsthand. He had one customer before he left his full-time job, the problem was he still had one customer 18 months later. In his first endeavor this entrepreneur built what he thought everyone needed and kept showing them and expecting them to say how great it was, but they didn’t. “I was building my idea. I wasn’t building what the customer’s wanted.” 

The lesson, it’s all about the customer, what they need and want.

 Rapid-Fire Mentions

• Book: Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard Rumell
• Podcast: Acquired FM
• Advice to CEOs:  Lead with relationships and real value. Outbound still works, but only if your product-market fit is strong. If you’re early-stage, skip the pitch and focus on helping first.

 Connect With

• Collin Stewart: LinkedIn | Website
• Collin’s book: The Terrifying Art of Finding a Customer
• Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

When CEOs struggle to connect with customers, teams, or investors, it's rarely a strategy problem, it’s a storytelling problem. In this episode of Sales Talk for CEOs, Alice Heiman sits down with Jeff Abracen, Founder of Disruptive Influence and storytelling coach to tech leaders, to uncover why a great story is a terrible thing to waste.

Jeff shares how he turned a high school “disruptive influence” label into a superpower for transforming leaders into magnetic storytellers. With a focus on the Disruptive DNA framework, Jeff teaches CEOs how to own the stage, captivate their audience, and get results, whether it’s on LinkedIn, in a boardroom, or at a major conference.

🔑 What you’ll learn:

• How to use storytelling to increase sales, alignment, and executive presence
• The Disruptive DNA Framework: Differentiate, Narrate, Activate
• Why preparation, not memorization, is the secret to confidence and clarity

Jeff doesn’t just talk about storytelling, he lives it. You’ll hear actionable advice and real coaching examples from working with SaaS founders and technical executives. If you’re a CEO or founder who needs to inspire action, this episode will help you turn information into influence.

Mentioned in the Rapid-Fire:

• Book Recommendation: The Creative Act: A Way of Being by Rick Rubin
• Podcast Recommendation: Diary of a CEO
• Advice for CEOs: “Facts tell, stories sell. Get into people's hearts before you worry about getting into their minds and their wallets.”

Connect with:

Jeff Abracen: LinkedIn | Disruptive Influence

Request the Disruptive DNA framework: DM Jeff on LinkedIn and mention this podcast

Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

There are two key ways to get in front of the people most likely to buy from you and Alice believes you may be overlooking them. 

The first is something she talks about all the time. So if you haven’t started expecting your team to do it, now is the time. 

Referral selling. Yes, you get a few referrals here and there but why not make it a regular occurrence. Alice explains briefly in this episode but for more details listen to episode 147 For more on this listen to episode 147 https://aliceheiman.com/use-the-power-of-referrals-to-close-more-deals/ You must train your team to ask for referrals and then expect them to do it by measuring it and reporting on the results. 

But Alice shares another great way to get in front of the right people, one that is tried and true and has been working and continues working, events. And in this episode she talks about a very specific type of online event, a Round Table. You invite your target audience and they reason they attend is because they will get to share and learn. Rather than a webinar with talking heads, you invite your target audience to share about something that is happening in their marketplace. Not only are great ideas shared, they all get to meet each other and network. As Alice exclaims, “It’s a win, win, win, win.” 

Win 1 - You win because you get in front of the right people

Win 2 - You win again because you have the right people to follow up with

Win 3 - They win because they share and hear all the ideas shared

Win 4 - They win because they meet people in their industry they might not have otherwise

Alice explains that she discovered an unexpected side benefit of holding the round table. She had no idea all of the conversations she would have from responses to the invitations. She had so many conversations with people who couldn’t attend. Just what salespeople want, conversations with people who can buy. 

Alice shares the example of a round table she did recently where she invited CEOs to share, “What CEOs need to know to win in this market.” She’s done 2 others since then and shares those below. 

You can gather those most likely to buy at a round table and have a win, win, win, win, too. 

Here are the insights from 3 of the Round Tables Alice has held recently.

CEO to CEO: What You Need to Know to Win in This Market

CEO to CEO: What is Actually Working in B2B Lead Generation Now

CEO to CEO: How CEOs Are Rethinking Hiring GTM Talent: Insights from the C-Suite Roundtable

Connect with Alice Heiman: 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/aliceheimanWebsite: https://aliceheiman.com

Imagine if your sales team could rehearse complex deals before ever meeting the buyer, just like elite athletes pre-game. That’s exactly what Daveed Gartenstein-Ross (CEO) and Alix Berry (COO) of ExpertTheory make possible.

In this episode, Alice Heiman dives into how ExpertTheory helps companies simulate real-world sales situations through AI-powered, custom-built games. These immersive experiences go far beyond traditional training, replacing static roleplay with dynamic, scenario-based learning that strengthens team performance, decision-making, and competitive strategy.

Connect with

• Daveed Gartenstein-Ross: LinkedIn
• Alix Berry: LinkedIn
• ExpertTheory: Website
• Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

What happens when a seasoned marketer reimagines everything she knows about agencies, on a beach, notebook in hand, while her kids play nearby? Brittany Trafis, CEO and co-founder of Soarion Digital, shares how she built an AI-powered agency that challenges everything about traditional marketing models.

In this episode, Brittany walks Alice Heiman through the rapid sales growth of Soarion: from early experiments to real client results, through founder-led sales and how boldly saying “the agency model is broken” helped them break into a noisy market as they prepare to scale.

Rapid-Fire Picks:

• Book: Multipliers by Liz Wiseman
• Podcast: Business Wars
• Advice to CEOs: Don’t get lost chasing what’s next, focus on timeless principles. Technology evolves, but people still crave connection and community. Stay grounded in what doesn’t change.

🔗 Connect with Brittany & Alice

• Brittany Trafis: LinkedIn | Website
• Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

If you’re still posting jobs and hoping A-players apply, you’re already behind.

In this high-impact episode, Alice Heiman sits down with Jamie Crosbie, founder of ProActivate and TEDx speaker with over 1 million views on The Power of Your Mindset, to reveal what every CEO needs to know to hire top revenue-generating talent.

Most hiring processes are built for convenience, not performance. That’s why companies end up with B-players or worse, just to fill a seat. Jamie shares exactly how CEOs can stop mis-hires before they happen and build bench strength that supports real growth.

If you’re a CEO of a B2B company under $100M, this episode is your blueprint for hiring right, every time.

📚 Rapid Fire Favorites

• Book: The Pivot Year by Brianna Wiest
• Podcast: Sales Talk for CEOs
• Advice to CEOs: “Proactively protect and grow your #1 asset, your people.”

🔗 Connect With

Jamie Crosbie: LinkedIn | Website

Jamie’s TEDx Talk: Liar, liar, life on fire: Breaking through your lies to your truth

Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

In this episode of Sales Talk for CEOs, Alice Heiman sits down with Paige McPheely, CEO of Base, to explore how she turned a niche remote executive assistant service into a tech-enabled platform that now supports top leaders across the country.

When Paige and her co-founder first launched, they were fueled by referrals, so much so that they had a waiting list of eager clients. But as demand surged, they hit a breaking point: the referrals kept coming, but they weren’t the right fit. It forced a strategic shift from a referral-dependent business to a focused outbound sales approach.

Today, Paige leads a lean team that gets most of its customers not from ads or cold outreach, but from storytelling. By consistently showing up on LinkedIn, YouTube, and in conversations like this, Base now plays the long game, building trust with CEOs long before they’re ready to buy.

✅ Learn how Paige:

• Transformed referral overload into an effective outbound sales strategy
• Uses LinkedIn and storytelling to fill the funnel with high-intent buyers
• Bundled software + services to create a sticky, high-value offering CEOs trust

This episode is a must-watch for CEOs who need to stop doing it all themselves and start allowing the right support, like an exceptional EA. to help them lead more effectively.

📚 Rapid-Fire Picks

• Book: The Lion Trackers Guide to Life
• Podcast: Founders
• CEO Advice: Be authentic and stop trying to do it all alone. Getting help, whether through an EA, software, or support network, isn’t a luxury, it’s a strategic advantage. Give yourself permission to invest in the support that helps you lead more effectively.

🔗 Connect with:

• Paige McPheely: LinkedIn | Website
• Base HQ: Website
• Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

In this episode of Sales Talk for CEOs, Alice Heiman sits down with Todd Caponi, sales historian and author of The Transparency Sale, to explore the forgotten history of sales and why understanding it could completely change how your company grows revenue.

We’ve moved from serving buyers to selling at all costs and it’s hurting your sales team, your customer relationships, and your bottom line. Todd takes us back to the early 1900s, when trust, service, and even high school sales classes were the norm.

What CEOs will learn:

• How sales was once respected, admired and taught in schools
• When and why we moved from service to high-pressure tactics
• What today’s sales orgs can learn from 100-year-old best practices
• Why “buyers know more now” isn’t new and never was

Todd brings powerful historical context, rare quotes, and practical examples that challenge how modern sales is built.

🤝 Connect With…

Todd Caponi

• Website: toddcaponi.com
• LinkedIn: Todd Caponi
• Podcast: The Sales History Podcast
• @SalesHistorian https://instagram.com/saleshistorian/
• The Transparency Sale on Amazon: https://amzn.to/2BxenrF
• The Transparent Sales Leader on Amazon: https://www.amzn.com/1646870646

📘 Preorder Todd Caponi’s New Book - The Four Levers of Negotiating

Out January 27, 2026

Learn how to stop discounting by default and start leading pricing conversations with clarity and confidence.

Todd’s Four Levers, Volume, Payment Timing, Commitment Length, and Deal Timing, help sellers create win-win outcomes without racing to the bottom.

Alice Heiman

• Website: aliceheiman.com
• LinkedIn: Alice Heiman

When Wesley Portegies left the pharmaceutical world to work in automotive, he didn’t expect it to lead him back, but it did. Armed with a new perspective, he returned with a mission, disrupt how pharma companies communicate with doctors.

In this episode, Wesley shares how he co-founded MedComms Experts with no outside funding, no traditional sales team and still built a multi-million dollar agency. He reveals how they landed their first client (Baxter), grew through inbound leads and referrals, and structured the business so sales happens through trust, not tactics.

Bio: "Wesley is an entrepreneur who founded his first company at 19 and has built multiple successful businesses, with over 15 years’ experience in the medical industry. In 2012, he launched MedComms Experts in Zurich, later expanding to the US, now employing 50+ professionals. An MBA graduate and active MAPS contributor, Wesley is a strategic, innovative leader recognized for building strong teams and driving industry innovation, and currently serves as Chief Strategy Officer at MedComms Experts."

📚 Wesley’s Rapid-Fire Picks

• Book: Shoe Dog by Phil Knight
• Podcast: Diary of a CEO
• Advice to CEOs: “Hold up high standards consistently, people notice the difference.”

🔗 Connect with Wesley & Alice

• Wesley Portegies: LinkedIn | Website
• Wesley’s Podcast: Transforming Medical Communications
• Alice Heiman: LinkedIn | Website

People don’t trust ads. Or brands. Or even experts.Brian Miller joins Alice Heiman to explain how CEOs can cut through the noise and earn trust, fast.

In this episode:

• Why the trust recession is killing your pipeline
• The 3-part message that builds instant engagement
• How to make your talk (or pitch) follow the hero’s journey
• The #1 reason your message doesn’t spread and how to fix it

Key takeaway: If people can’t repeat what you do, they won’t talk about you.

Shownotes

Get his new book: https://keynotedesignbook.com

The 10 Questions Every Speech Must Answer (and the order you must answer them in):

1. Will this be worth my time?
2. Is this urgent?
3. So, what is this talk really about?
4. Why should I listen to you?
5. Do I already know how to solve this problem?
6. So, what should I do instead?
7. How do I start?
8. Is this really worth it?
9. Can I go now?
10. Wait, what was this all about again?

🔗 Connect with Brian Miller:LinkedIn: Brian Miller - Clarity Up

Instagram

YouTube Podcast

Company Website

🔗 Connect with Alice Heiman: LinkedIn: Alice Heiman Website: aliceheiman.com