The Martell Method w/ Dan Martell

Raise your hand if you’ve heard that one before (or have been the one to say it).

I hear some spin on that one multiple times per week.

Usually from a jaded SaaS founder who went “all in” with Facebook only to burn through their Amex card with nothing but a stack of air miles to show for it.

There’s a reason that Facebook is such a polarizing channel in the SaaS world.

Do it right, and Zuck & co will help you scale with a steady flow of well-targeted leads.

Do it wrong, and you’ll do nothing but stuff bills into Zuckerberg’s back pocket.

The good news is, it doesn’t come down to blind luck.

And if you execute the 5 strategies in this week’s video, you’ll be well to slashing your marketing costs and winning the facebook game.

At a high level, here’s how we’re going to make Facebook ads work for you:

1. Define Target
2. Brand Awareness Campaign
3. Retarget Specific Pages
4. Emails
5. Best Customers

Those last four strategies are all designed to dial in your targeting, reduce ad cost, and serve the right type of ad to the right audience at the right time (aka the holy grail of advertising)…

… but it all starts with defining your target.

If you’re not being specific enough with who you want to reach, you won’t find traction on anychannel (Facebook is no exception).

But as long as you’re clear in WHO you serve, Facebook (and its 70,000+ data points) are just begging to introduce you to those you’re the most ready to help.

Give it a watch here, and if you have any facebook advertising tips that have worked for you, I’d love it if you can share it in the comments.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Revenue Retention Cheatsheet™ - Stop The Bleeding & Scale Your Marketing With Confidence - http://bit.ly/2ThRH5V

Exclusive Download: The Weekly Sync™ – Run Your Weekly Team Meetings Following This Structure Easy, Fast & Productive

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During Flowtown’s peak, I had TWELVE people reporting to me.

That was on top of my own workload that I was responsible for delivering on.

Talk about overwhelm.

I was literally inundating myself with reports/metrics/managers that didn’t necessarily serve the growth of the company.

Rule of thumb:

If you need your hands and toes to list all the people reporting to you, you’re doing it wrong.

When working with my clients inside SaaS Academy, I recommend that a founder has no more than 7 people reporting to them.

That’s it.

This helps prevent “metric shock’ while still giving you instant visibility on the metrics that are vital for your growth — and holding the right people accountable to generate those outcomes.

In this week’s video, I lay out the 6 Core Business functions you need to have someone reporting on — as well as the key metrics that they need to obsess over.

At a high level, the core functions you need to have someone reporting on are:

1. Product
2. Engineering
3. Marketing
4. Sales
5. Customer Service
6. Ops & Finance

Of course, these are broad categories with literally hundreds of metrics you can track for each.

But after 20 years of building, investing in, and advising SaaS companies, I believe there are only a handful of metrics that are absolutely critical for the growth of your company.

Watch this week’s video to make sure you have a pulse on them.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Trial Converter Campaign™ – Design You Messaging Protocols And Double Your Trial Conversions Within 3 Months

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Nothing makes me facepalm harder than getting an email from a SaaS company with a subject line that says…

“Dan, your free trial is about to expire”

*grabs an ice pack for my aching forehead*

If you’re using email marketing as a notification tool (and not as a 24/7 salesperson who doesn’t take holidays or call in sick after a Black Mirror binge fest)…

… then you’re missing a huge opportunity to convert more trial users.

Worse… you’re asking your trial users to invest attention, while offering absolutely no value in return.

Not cool.

On the flipside, email automation can be the most effective and leveraged way to fix a lagging trial to paid rate.

If you’re not converting at least 10% of trial users, chances are you’re NOT sending the right emails — in the right order.

I shot this week’s episode to fix that.

Give it a watch to see the seven types of emails you absolutely NEED to be firing into your automation software to close more trial users.

In the episode, I go deep into the specific details of how to nail each one, but at a high level, the seven emails you’ll be sending are:

1. Welcome Email
2. Training
3. Case Study
4. Tips and Tricks
5. Offer to Help
6. Make an Offer
7. Celebrate or Learn

All of them are supercritical, and it’s hard to imagine a brag-worthy trial conversion rate unless you implement the whole stack…

But if I were to single one out, I urge you to make sure that you’re making an offer.

“Your trial is about to expire” is not a selling proposition that compels people to act…

… and if you’re using lazy “default-type” emails in your onboarding sequence, you’re gonna get “default-type” conversion numbers.

Give this video a watch to give your automated emails a massive upgrade, and then let me know in the comments if you’ve tested another type of email in your onboarding process that has proven successful.

Would love to learn ;)

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Rocket Demo Builder™ – Never Give a Boring Software Demo Again

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A Mclaren F1 tops out at about 650 hp.

A “street legal” Camry screams its way to 200.

Both have engines. Both have 4 wheels. Both are technically “cars”.

So what accounts for the difference in velocity?

Simple:

The Mclaren F1 is engineered for speed. While the Camry is happy to just cruise along.

The same can be said about your B2B sales process.

Some software businesses are “engineered” to max out at 10 or 15k MRR…

… while others boast a speed velocity that allows them to scale 10x that – fast.

In this weeks’ video, I talk about the 5 steps that fuel your speed velocity — allowing you to close bigger deals, faster… and engineer record-breaking revenue numbers month after month.

At a high level, here’s how to engineer your way to a higher sales velocity:

1. Measure Sales Velocity
2. Increase Quality of Leads
3. Grow Your Deal Size
4. Decrease Your Sales Cycle
5. Know Your Numbers

Of course, it all starts with measuring your velocity. (Pearson’s law for the win) ;-)

If you don’t know it (no judging)…

…  I give you the quick and dirty formula in the video.

From there, you can start pulling the other 4 “levers” to predictably engineer a faster sales velocity, and blow past your previous MRR record.

Mclaren F1 or a Camry.

Your call ;-)

Watch the video and them drop me a comment letting me know what your sales velocity currently clocks in at, and what steps you plan to implement right away to close bigger deals faster.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: The Business Playbook Templates™ – A Collection of Procedures and Reference Documents to Run Your Business on Autopilot

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If you’re feeling like you’re in a rut and spinning your wheels around your next “big move” inside your SaaS company…

I’m gonna make you a little promise, k?

If you watch this week’s video and follow through on the 3 questions… your company will look drastically different by this time next quarter.

Why am I so confident making that prediction?

Simple…

I believe in the power of the right question at the right time to bring instant clarity to your company’s next big move.

This has proven true in my own companies, as well as the companies of the founders I coach inside SaaS Academy.

If you haven’t joined me in SaaS Academy yet, consider this your best way to get some free Dan Coaching :-)

Combined, these questions will inspire powerful decisions in the areas of scaling and strategy…. and the team you rely on to execute it.  

I encourage you to watch the full episode, but at a high level, the 3 questions are built around:

1. The 10-Fold Test (Scale)
2. The New Owner Question (Strategy)
3. The Hireback Question (People)

The third question might come as a punch to the gut if you’ve been feeling like things just aren’t syncing up with some of your team members.

Hopefully, it will give you the clarity and confidence to make a big decision today that will move you and your company towards your goals faster…

… and with far less speed bumps along the way.

Watch the full episode here… and then share your answer to ANY of the three questions in the comments below.

Look forward to seeing what comes out of it :-)

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Revenue Expansion Maximizer™

Watch:
How To Evaluate The Right Pricing Model For Your Software Startup 
Value Based Pricing: How To Use a Pricing Axis To Grow Your SaaS Company's Revenue 

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When I was 25 and building my first company, Spheric, I closed an enterprise level deal with Procter & Gamble.

Not only was it an “arrival point” for my company…

But in the negotiations, I actually got P&G to fund an entire slate of new integrations and features, while we retained the IP.

Pretty cool, right?

Thing is, none of that would’ve been possible had I made the mistake that most founders make…

Sharing pricing on their website.

In this week’s video, I dive into the 5 reasons why you’ll want to consider hiding your pricing … and how you can leverage that position to close bigger deals while having the flexibility to serve your customers in a more impactful way.

At a high level, here are the 5 reasons you’ll want to hide your pricing:

1. Complex Deals
2. Discounting Difficulties
3. Big Different Than Small
4. Enterprises Just Want to Buy
5. Could Make You Look Cheap

At the end of the day, If it’s your goal to serve Fortune 500 companies and high-level enterprises, you NEED to retain the ability to structure deals appropriately.

Showing your pricing not only destroys all leverage right off the bat…

… but it can actually kill your credibility by making you look like a cheap, consumer-level solution.

Even worse… a potential game-changing client may sign up for a free trial (or lower tier) without you even having a chance to craft a better package and close a bigger deal.

Give this episode a quick watch, and then let me in the comments if you’re coming up against resistance to hiding your pricing.

I’ll reply back with my thoughts :)

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Watch: 
ADHD as a Superpower
How To Get To Sleep When Your Mind Is Racing

Resources:
Miracle Mornings: https://www.miraclemorning.com
Concentration Music App: www.focusatwill.com
Be Focused Timer: https://xwavesoft.com/be-focused-pro-for-iphone-ipad-mac-os-x.html

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At 8 years old, I got diagnosed with ADHD.

I felt broken.

Burdened by a “brain’ that would surely screw me out of any type of meaningful contribution in the world.

Every day was a crapshoot.

Without knowing how I’d “show up” on any given day, setting goals (and pursuing them) felt like a fool’s game — and when I’d inevitably fail, it only supported my belief that I was messed up beyond repair.

Over the next decade, I spiraled into a deep depression…

… culminating in a tipping point where if I didn’t learn how to turn my “curse” into a superpower, it would literally kill me.

This week’s video is all about my “homemade” prescription for how I naturally turned ADHD into my superpower… and ultimately a catalyst for my legacy as an investor and entrepreneur.

While I don’t endorse a medication-free approach to ADHD, I encourage you to test any combination of these “ingredients” to see what moves the needle for you.

And of course… make sure to consult with your physician ;)

At a high-level, the 9 ingredients of my “natural” ADHD meds are:

1. Nutrition
2. Sweat Every Day
3. 8 Hours of Sleep
4. Morning Routines
5. 30 Minute Pomodoro Window
6. Energy Management
7. Music
8. Block Time
9. Build a Team

The first 8 can literally be implemented this week — and stack upon each other to exponentially increase your ability to focus, be productive, and move your mission forward with confidence.

Number 9 will take a bit more time, but I believe is where ADHD truly becomes a superpower.

When you literally can’t will yourself to focus on certain tasks, it works as a forcing function to get support and leverage other people’s skills faster than you otherwise would’ve.

Whether you’re looking to get off ADHD meds… or simply have a mission that your brain feels incapable of keeping up with, it’s my hope that these 9 steps help serve you in an incredible, life-changing way.

Give it a watch here.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Weekly Sync™

Did you know that there’s a multibillion dollar industry dedicated to doomsday prepping?

Even crazier…

Reid Hoffman was quoted in the New Yorker, estimating that about 50% of Silicon Valley billionaires have acquired some level of “apocalypse insurance”.

Now whether you buy into that idea or not, there is a type of doomsday in the software world you absolutely NEED to be prepared for.

It’s this:

What would happen to your product (and company) if your developer disappeared overnight?

Or put more bleakly, would your company pass the “bus” test?

Meaning… if your entire dev team got hit by a bus tomorrow, would you have the systems, processes, documentation, and contingency plans to keep on ticking?

Or would the doomsday clock hit midnight on your entire SaaS company?

Putting too much power into the hands of a single developer (or even an entire dev team) is a dangerous place to be.

Especially for a non-technical founder.

And unless you’ve taken clear steps to “prep” for that possibility, you’re essentially letting a small handful of people hold your entire company hostage.

… if they jump ship to another company

… if they run into an illness or life crisis of any kind

… if they win the lotto max

You’re done.

This is me going on record to say that 100% of SaaS companies need some form of development apocalypse insurance.

And I recorded this week’s video to show you the 6 steps I take to safeguard the companies I advise.

At a high level, the 6 step “prepper’s guide” comes down to:

1. Cloudbase Repository
2. Centralized Access Control
3. Documentation Reviews
4. Pay for Code Reviews
5. Succession Planning
6. Continuous Integration

It’s not sexy — and will take some upfront time and cash investment…

But won’t you feel SO much more confident building your product knowing that nothing short of an actual apocalypse can shut you down?

I think so. I bet your team and investors will as well ;)

Give the video a watch, and then let me know in the comments what you plan on implementing to safeguard one of your company’s most important assets.

Here’s that episode link one more time.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Revenue Expansion Maximizer™

Nightmare scenario:

You just spent 30 mins delivering an amazing product demo.

The guy on the other end of the Zoom call is all hot and bothered.

Loves your solution. Sees the value. Wants it yesterday.

So you go in for the close…

Only to find out that the person you just cancelled lunch plans for doesn’t have the budget or the authority to make the decision… and will have to “get back to you.”

Shoot me now.

Reality is, that scenario plays out all the time, and highlights the single most important criteria you need to look for when evaluating an enterprise SaaS sales person.

In a complex web of end users and decision makers… can your salesperson pull a Liam Neeson and hunt down the actual buyer?

Sure, it sucks if that opening scenario happens to you every now and then…

But when it happens to that enterprise sales person you just hired on a six figure base salary…

Well, that’s just downright crippling.

In this week’s video I breakdown the 6 key steps for evaluating one of your company’s most important early hires.

At a high level, here’s what you’re looking for to make sure you get a massive ROI on your enterprise SaaS sales person:

1. Navigating decision hierarchies in large organizations
2. Finding the buyer ASAP
3. Articulating your value prop
4. Handling objections
5. Can they position you?
6. Knowing how to deal with IT

I also share a really cool technique inspired by Chet Holmes (Ultimate Sales Machine) for testing whether or not your potential new hire will crack under objections.

It’s a super effective filtering mechanism for weeding out potential hires before they bloat your overhead and blow the sale.

Give it a watch now and let me know in the comments if you a) currently have a sales person on payroll and b) what criteria/evaluation process has worked well for you.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Rocket Demo Builder™

If nobody’s pushing back on your pricing…

That’s a problem.

You might be thinking:

“But Dan.. isn’t it a good thing that everyone’s saying YES to my price without resistance? Why would I want to rock that boat?”

Simply put:  

Without pushback, you’re leaving profits on the table and making your team complacent.

Two things that you literally can’t afford to be doing in the early days of growing your SaaS company.

If hearing this adds even more anxiety to your pricing decisions, let’s take a deep breath.

I’ve got you covered.

In this week’s video, I break down the 3-Step formula for nailing down the PERFECT pricing level that maximizes your profits, keeps customers happy, and creates a forcing function for you and your team to focus on creating massive value.

1. 10x value
2. 5% more
3. 20% pushback

The 3 steps all build on top of each other to produce the coveted 10-5-20 rule.

But if there’s ONE thing you pull from this week’s video to start adding immediate profits, it’s this:

For the next 10 customers you talk to, raise the price of your software by 5%.

And then please… whatever you do… play it cool when they say “yes”.

Don’t kill the vibe by acting surprised ;)

The key here is to test the upper limit that your market’s willing to pay for your solution. And then keep testing until you find that line of resistance.

Might make you sweaty palmed at first. But do what you can to stick it out.

You owe it to your team, your product, and your bottom line.

Give the full video a watch and then let me know how your next prospect responds to that 5% increase.

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Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. (Get the free 3 videos to grow your business here.) He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter@danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

Are you an entrepreneur? Get free weekly video training here:
http://www.danmartell.com/newsletter

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell