I’m not that great at sales myself (not really), but I am a student of it.
A few things I’ve observed about human behavior, negotiation, and good and bad sales processes in SaaS:
- Customers that expect a discount really expect a discount. It’s easier to mark up the pricing a bit. The amount of energy it takes to stick to a “no discounts” policy once you pass transactional pricing is … high. Once you are in “Contact Me” land, just assume you have to provide some sort of discount. So increase your prices accordingly so you land where you need to end up.
- Context is critical. It saves a lot of time if a prospect knows that pricing is fair. Transparent pricing on your website has pros and cons for bigger deals, but it does save a lot of time. So consider making as much pricing transparent as possible if you do smaller deals as well as larger ones, and/or if you want the fastest sales cycles. Simple, clear calculations of pricing also help a lot. No one wants to be ripped off. And having context helps a prospect figure out what is fair, much faster.
- Urgency is a critical part of a salesperson’s toolkit. And this is a tough one to master. One of the top ways to drive up sales is to increase the % of deals that close. And one of the top ways to do that is to close deals faster. That takes risk out of deals. But in reality, there’s little urgency for most buyers. The world won’t end if I wait a quarter to buy your SaaS product. But the best sales leaders still find a way to create that urgency, through adding value, getting trials going, discounts, offers, services, etc.
- If a prospect inbounds and already knows a lot — it’s your deal to lose. So, be cool. If a prospect comes in, already knows your product and has smart questions on how to deploy it — don’t blow it. That deal has a very high chance of closing. Don’t play games. Don’t send break-up emails if the deal doesn’t close in a week. Mediocre sales reps bring the wrong tools into deals. Very high-quality leads should be nurtured especially thoughtfully. They will close. If not this week, then at some point. And if you blow it — they will go to your competitor. Don’t blow it.
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How do you sell against the competition or become a market leader in a very crowded space?
SaaStr’s CRO Confidential podcast host Sam Blond chats with the CRO of Apollo, Leandra Fishman, about just that. Leandra has over 30 years of experience leading large sales and revenue teams. This hypergrowth platform raised $100M at a $1.6B valuation in a challenging fundraising environment.
Apollo is a next-gen sales tool that combines sales intelligence and execution workflows with AI. When Sam was at Brex in 2018, the tech stack usually consisted of Salesforce, ZoomInfo, Gong, and Outreach. Today, that tech stack would be different because of AI-enabled companies like Apollo.
How did Apollo become a market leader in a hypercompetitive space?
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This edition of the SaaStr Daily is sponsored in part by Stripe
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Stripe Sessions brings together business leaders and builders to discuss the most important internet economy trends. In 2024, we’re focusing on what’s possible—and what’s inevitable—as technological advancements change the world and the global economy with it.
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Yes. Get better at it, get over it, and hire folks who know how to do it.
Boy sales is hard. It’s being told No a lot. It’s having literal, or virtual, doors shut on your face.
Sales in part is figuring out how not to be a pest — yet still be a pest.
It actually doesn’t get that much easier over time, either.
Yes, once you have a brand, and inbound leads, the engine gets more established. But then you raise the quotas, and sales is still hard. And then, the easy accounts are already in play for the SDRs. So outbound gets harder, too, later often.
- So first, find great salespeople. People that can push through all the NOs. That can make prospects love them, and your product. Also the best outbound sales folks and the best AEs and VPs know how to mostly not cross the line to pest. Sometimes they still cross the line. But the best ones know the playbook and know generally not to cross it. Because it doesn’t get them the sale. You need to be a bit of a nudge to be good in sales — but not a constant nudger. The line is fine.
- And second, value them. The best ones are worth so, so much. Don’t overpay them as a % of the revenue they bring in. But if they bring in a ton — make sure they make a ton.
- And third, give them a career path. All those NOs? One incentive to push through is the chance for a promotion.
- And fourth, treat outbound as a science and an art. One to get better and better at. Do endless generic emails work? Not really. Does a perfectly tailored outbound email work, at just the right time? Sometimes. Yes, sometimes.
- And get rid of mediocre salespeople. It’s just too hard for folks that can’t take 99 NOs. And turn the 100th into a Yes. If they can’t close, if you smell too much fear, if they give you 99 excuses why they can’t close a deal — move on.
Outbound is tough. Done wrong, it just annoys people. Done right, it always works. Yes, even in 2024.
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Sales is hard. And not only is it hard, but you shouldn’t be closing every deal you are in. Why? Well, if you’re closing every deal you are in, you’re not being invited to the deals where your product has competition. Where it has gaps. You aren’t being invited to where you’ll want to be to grow, if you magically close every deal you are in.
And closing every deal you are in is also generally a sign you the company itself isn’t doing enough marketing.
Still, the best sales reps close so much more than mediocre ones. And what you hear a lot from the mediocre ones are … excuses. And these excuses generally are true, so it can be confusing to hear them. But it’s part of the job of sales to try to push past them, to position your app as a real solution to their problem, even if not a perfect solution. So I thought I’d put together a list of the common ones. Hear them a bit from a rep, that’s fair.
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The most important tips and best practices for founders when building out their first sales team:
1. Get sales experience yourself first
Close the first 10-20 customers yourself to understand the sales process
This will give you critical insights to effectively train and manage your first sales reps
2. Structure compensation to incentivize early sales reps
Consider letting new reps take home 50-100% of what they close in the first 1-3 months
This helps them “eat” and get motivated, before scaling back to a more standard 20-25% commission
3. Hire sales reps you would buy from yourself
Since no one has heard of your product yet, each lead is precious
Hire reps that you would personally trust to sell your own product
4. Hire at least 2 reps to start
Having a “control” group allows you to better understand what drives success
5. Provide hands-on training and support
Be available to help your first reps all day, as they learn the product and sales process
Formal training processes can come later, but initial on-the-job learning is key
6. Prioritize smarter, more experienced reps
The learning curve will be steep, so more capable reps are better
7. Use a simple “round robin” lead distribution
Split leads evenly between reps at first, to keep things simple
8. Hire reps with some relevant SaaS experience
Look for reps who have sold products at a similar price point before
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This edition of the SaaStr Daily is sponsored in part by Cisco
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First, there’s probably something there if they raised $5m. That’s never as easy at it sounds. It means the early traction looks good, or the team looks strong, or both. At least, usually.
But of course that’s not everything in the early days especially.
So how you can do your own diligence as the first senior sales exec going in? It’s likely too early to judge based on revenue and a Google Search.
I’d suggest a quick 2 part test:
#1. Decide if the CEO is literally a 10/10 and ideally the CTO
If you aren’t sure the CEO is truly great, and ideally, the CTO, then ask around. Ask folks that worked with them before. You want at least some of them to say they were the best they’d ever worked with.
and
#2. Ask to join a customer call and listen to a few Gong calls and see if you really believe you can level up things
Way too many sales execs don’t do this. A great rep might fail in one environment but succeed in another. You gotta listen to some calls, and ideally join 1 or 2, and then be honest. Can you do it — there? Is it the right selling environment for you? Often, it isn’t. No matter how attractive the other parts of the role may be.
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