Outbound Squad’s Post

The unhappy path to quota: ⛔️ Work account list from top to bottom ⛔️ Work a ton of smaller deals ⛔️ Waste a lot of time chasing unqualified deals The happy path to quota: ✅ Work accounts most likely to engage ✅ Work a balance of large and small deals ✅ Invest all your energy into qualified deals This starts with territory planning. Play the odds and invest energy in accounts with the highest likelihood of closing. Sales leaders, provide guidance for reps so they spend time on the right accounts. Here's a 3-part strategy you can use for QBRs later this month and next: 1/ Analyze every deal worked in the last 6 months: ↳ What are the top two industries where you win the most? ↳ For the closed/won deals, what persona(s) was the first meeting with? ↳ What personas mobilized the deal internally? ↳ What use cases/solutions did you sell the most of? ↳ For the closed/lost deals, what made them a bad fit? ↳ What size were these companies? ↳ Were there patterns in specific department headcount or growth? ↳ What triggers did they have in common? 2/ Make a list of closed/lost deals to re-approach: ↳ Timing was bad ↳ Contract renewal dates are coming up ↳ Missing features or capabilities ↳ Didn’t get access to power ↳ Lost to a competitor ↳ Lost to no-decision 3/ Add your accounts into Sales Navigator, and run these searches: ↳ Accounts with prospects who are past employees of current clients ↳ Accounts within industries where you have the most success stories ↳ Accounts with newly hired executives that match your personas ↳ Accounts with good emails/phone numbers of your ideal personas ↳ Accounts with ideal triggers (hiring, etc.) ↳ Accounts where you have intro opportunities through teamlink ↳ Accounts where your leadership has connections ↳ Accounts where you have 1st-degree connections ↳ Accounts with contacts in your local geography ↳ Contacts who follow your company on LinkedIn ↳ Contacts you’ve had past interactions with on LinkedIn ↳ Contacts who are newly promoted into a leadership position ~~~ A proper territory strategy goes narrow and deep—not wide and shallow. Future efforts should be informed by your org's past successes. Use this list as a cheat for your next QBR. What would you add to the list? #Sales #Prospecting #Outbound

Sales Navigator Users! Do you maintain a saved Lead List for your Top 5 existing customer accounts? These are the individuals who have already committed to your product or service, not prospective clients Why is this crucial? While the instinct of sellers may often push them towards chasing the next deal, there's immense value in nurturing relationships with established accounts and the individuals within them Here's why staying connected matters: ✅ Referral Potential: Existing customers are valuable sources for referrals. Watch their LinkedIn interactions for potential leads ✅ Testimonials and Recommendations: Request testimonials or LinkedIn endorsements to enhance credibility ✅ Networking Opportunities: Monitor clients' industry event attendance for chances to reconnect and gather referrals ✅ Company Changes: Stay updated on clients' job or organizational shifts for potential new accounts and connections. ✅ Identifying Additional Opportunities: Engage with clients to uncover new organizational needs you can address. In Sales Navigator, regularly create and review these Lead Lists. Dedicate at least once a week to peruse any surfaced Alerts Even spending just 20 minutes a week on this can yield significant benefits in the future Remember, gardens start with seeds! #LinkedIn #SalesNavigator #ConnectionMatters David J.P. Fisher Becky Brown Anil Rao Allison Bastow Leslie Sutton Ariadna Zarate Delgado Angela Clendenin Hanne Berg Chad Schumacher

Your pipeline should have a pipeline too... Thought I should provide some more context to this quote from my last post. First off, I use the terms pipeline and funnel interchangeably. They are both metaphors used to describe warm prospects that are somewhere in your sales cycle. However when most people think of pipeline, they're thinking of qualified pipeline, which usually means at least one meeting has taken place and the AE has accepted the deal into their funnel. It's now out of the BDRs hands. BUT there is a whole lot of work that goes into getting an account to that point, which also needs to be tracked. A BDR is lucky if they connect with a prospect that has an active need and are searching for a solution. This isn't as common. Most of the time, they are connecting with prospects who may have a need, but either don't know it yet, or aren't prioritizing solving it. The work that's done to move one of these colder accounts to a stage where there is active need and readiness to book the first meeting, is what sets great BDRs apart from good BDRs. One of the biggest challenges I ran into while leading a BDR team was getting data on what happens to accounts between the first connect and first meeting booked. This is the BDR's funnel, and it needs to be tracked closely. Shoutout to my leader/mentor who helped me solve that problem. The BDR's funnel are the accounts that show interest or need, but aren't ready to book the first meeting. Most BDRs will create a follow up task for sometime down the road, but by the time they reach back out, the prospect doesn't remember the value built on that first phone call. No perceived value = no meeting. BDRs should be working their funnel weekly to continue to build value and close on meetings, just like an AE works their funnel to close deals. #bdrs #saassales #salespipeline #prospecting

“These are my top 25 accounts. Don’t touch these. The middle 50, you can work on them, but keep me in the loop with all contact. Those bottom 25, you can have them.” Typical statement by an AE to a BDR at the start of the year? Perhaps. It’s a lousy situation for three reasons: It creates unnecessary frustration between individuals and lowers job satisfaction for those making their first move into sales (i.e., your organization’s future talent pipeline). Poor communication internally creates a poor buyer experience at a time when this is already in crisis. It’s a colossal waste of a company’s resources. If you feel that there could be a disconnect between AEs and BDRs in your organization, then this article is for you. Happy Friday! https://lnkd.in/dQDNU4Vi #numentum #businessdevelopment

As an Account Executive, I've "swiped left" on the MAJORITY of accounts last month. I said "no, not right now" and you should too! I swiped left / said no to 148 accounts in January alone! Here is a small sample of the type of accounts I'm prospecting/targeting with a mid-to-high 5 figure ACV. 🏢 ACCOUNT # 1: SaaS Fortune 1000 Company 🏢 ACCOUNT # 2: Life Sciences Fortune 2000 Company 🏢 ACCOUNT # 3: SMB Professional Services Company Why did I swipe left / not spend time prospecting them? 1️⃣ I'm not saying no forever, I'm saying no right now. 2️⃣ There are no relationship or other compelling signals present. 3️⃣ My company's "usual" signals are not strong enough. Example: one account popped up because they the CRO subscribed to our newsletter. To me this signal is too weak to spend a good chunk of my time on this account. 4️⃣ For the Top 10 Accounts I did select & prioritize, I am required to go super deep following our SPEAR Selling methodology. I don't have time to divert and dilute my efforts on my Top 10. In summary, this sounds blunt but it's a fact: ✅ I have a number to hit. ✅ My time is my most valuable asset. ✅ Not every account on my list is equal. ✅ I can't prioritize accounts that don't prioritize me. So what about you? Tell me about the last account you swiped left on / said no to spending your time on. Leave a comment below. And, if you found this post valuable: ♻ Repost 🤝 Follow/connect for more like this

As traditional channels and approaches have become less effective and more expensive, experimenting and introducing new practices is extremely important. It is the only way to find out what works for your company, otherwise, you can lose out to your competitors quickly. #b2bsales #competition #revops

Pipeline generation and management came up in at least 84% of my customer calls last year (thanks KAIA for confirming!) - and we expect this focus to continue in FY25. Every BD, Sales, and Growth leader wants more confidence in their coverage to satisfy revenue targets heading into FY25. Outreach's platform delivers clarity on leading indicators through the entire sales cycle (through closing/forecasting) but AT MINIMUM, sales leaders should be using our Teams Performance Reporting to manage the BASICS of pipe gen: - Outbound consistency - Balance in influence to deal (Power vs Practioner) - Sense of urgency (response time) - Meeting conversion outliers - Task decay (reps aren't finishing out the Sequence) If you don't have a tight upper funnel, you won't get enough at-bats, and you'll become reliant on an unrealistic close rate. Get a refresher on our Team Performance report for your best chance at predictable pipeline.

How I gain my prospects trust in the first 2 minutes of a sales meeting. I meet with sales leaders CROs and VPs. I need to establish credibility immediately, or I am laughed out the room. Here's how I prep before every meeting: 1. I head to the company website and Ill then start learning about what they do and gain a deep understanding of their product or service they provide. 2. Review their customer success stories, this helps me understand their ICP - stakeholder and company. 3. Review pricing page - are they PLG or selling enterprise top down deals. 4. From website navigate to their LinkedIn page, look at funding, size of their sales team and about info. Following this 10 minutes of work, I am ready to take control of any meeting. >>> Example: ‘’Really appreciate your time today Gautam. Having reviewed your pricing page it appears like you have historically been PLG. Following your recent sales team expansion and the fact we're talking today, it would make sense you're now pivoting to a top down Enterprise GTM motion. I assume you’re still going after tech heavy companies but now 1000+ user plus selling your new Express Prospecting service. I guess you're now having to change your ICP to CRO’s/VPs of Sales as opposed to account executives. Is this about right?'' >>> Now start discovery: ''Okay, how are you reaching these kinds of personas….?’’ The above should help you position yourself as a credible, intelligent, and consultative. So next time you’re prepping for a sales call: Prepare and then take control of the meeting - prove your credibility quickly. #SalesTips #BusinessDevelopment #CredibilityBuilding #aiSDR

🚀 10 Proven Tips to Shorten Your Sales Cycle and Keep Deals Moving! 🚀 Are you tired of deals getting stuck in the pipeline? 🎯 Qualify Leads Early Don't waste time on prospects who aren't a good fit. Establish clear qualification criteria and focus on leads that have the highest potential to convert. 💡 Provide Value Upfront Share insights, resources, and solutions that address your prospects' pain points. Show them you understand their challenges and can offer real value. 📞 Prioritize Personal Connection Don't rely solely on emails and chat. Pick up the phone or schedule a video call to build rapport and trust with your prospects. 🗓️ Set Clear Next Steps At the end of every interaction, define clear next steps and set a specific date and time for the next touchpoint. Keep the momentum going! 🎁 Offer Tailored Solutions Customize your proposals and presentations to address each prospect's unique needs. Show them you've listened and understand their specific situation. 🤝 Involve Decision-Makers Early Identify and engage with all the key decision-makers from the start. Avoid surprises and delays later in the process. ⏰ Create a Sense of Urgency Highlight the cost of inaction and the benefits of moving forward. Use time-sensitive offers or limited availability to encourage faster decisions. 📊 Leverage Social Proof Share case studies, testimonials, and success stories from similar customers. Show prospects that others have successfully solved their challenges with your solution. 💬 Anticipate and Address Objections Proactively address common objections and concerns. Have compelling responses ready to keep the conversation moving forward. 📈 Measure and Optimize Track your sales cycle metrics and continuously look for ways to improve. Test new approaches, learn from your successes and failures, and refine your process. By implementing these tips consistently, you'll be well on your way to shortening your sales cycle and closing more deals faster. Remember, every interaction counts, so make the most of every touchpoint! 💪 #SalesHacks #ClosingDeals #SalesAcceleration #RevenueBoosters #SellingSmarter

🚀 10 Proven Tips to Shorten Your Sales Cycle and Keep Deals Moving! 🚀 Are you tired of deals getting stuck in the pipeline? 🎯 Qualify Leads Early Don't waste time on prospects who aren't a good fit. Establish clear qualification criteria and focus on leads that have the highest potential to convert. 💡 Provide Value Upfront Share insights, resources, and solutions that address your prospects' pain points. Show them you understand their challenges and can offer real value. 📞 Prioritize Personal Connection Don't rely solely on emails and chat. Pick up the phone or schedule a video call to build rapport and trust with your prospects. 🗓️ Set Clear Next Steps At the end of every interaction, define clear next steps and set a specific date and time for the next touchpoint. Keep the momentum going! 🎁 Offer Tailored Solutions Customize your proposals and presentations to address each prospect's unique needs. Show them you've listened and understand their specific situation. 🤝 Involve Decision-Makers Early Identify and engage with all the key decision-makers from the start. Avoid surprises and delays later in the process. ⏰ Create a Sense of Urgency Highlight the cost of inaction and the benefits of moving forward. Use time-sensitive offers or limited availability to encourage faster decisions. 📊 Leverage Social Proof Share case studies, testimonials, and success stories from similar customers. Show prospects that others have successfully solved their challenges with your solution. 💬 Anticipate and Address Objections Proactively address common objections and concerns. Have compelling responses ready to keep the conversation moving forward. 📈 Measure and Optimize Track your sales cycle metrics and continuously look for ways to improve. Test new approaches, learn from your successes and failures, and refine your process. By implementing these tips consistently, you'll be well on your way to shortening your sales cycle and closing more deals faster. Remember, every interaction counts, so make the most of every touchpoint! 💪 #SalesHacks #ClosingDeals #SalesAcceleration #RevenueBoosters #SellingSmarter