Sales tactics that you can steal + how to validate demand before building a product & understand how to create value for your target customer w/ Kalev Kaarna. Ep 146

Jan 23, 2024

Kalev Kaarna, Mentor at Creative Destruction Lab, shares insights on VC support for startups, early sales tactics, and the 'Sell-Demo-Build' strategy. He discusses the importance of coaching for founders, building a sales strategy, and the unique accelerator model that fast-tracks startups to major markets. The conversation also covers leadership evolution in growing companies and a career break to develop an AI bot for coaching startups.

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Introduction

00:00 • 2min

Exploring the Role of VCs in Adding Value to Startups and Sales Strategies for Early-Stage Startups

01:40 • 2min

Exploring the Role of a Startup Coach in VC Teams and Innovative Investment Strategies

03:25 • 2min

Innovative Accelerator Model and Effective Sales Strategies

05:41 • 26min

Navigating Leadership Evolution in Growing Companies

31:13 • 14min

Discussion on Career Break, Startup Sales, and AI Bot Development

45:03 • 5min

Kalev Kaarna is a Mentor at Creative Destruction Lab and recently became ex-VC at Superangel where for the past 5 years Kalev operated as an investor and startups coach two in one.

Kalev has specialized in propelling early-stage software and deep-tech startups to significant growth, with a keen focus on AI/ML, robotics, logistics, mobility, and SaaS B2B sectors. His prowess in guiding startups through initial challenges, especially in the Nordics and Baltics, is marked by his success in leading Superangel's accelerator program, where 33 startups collectively raised €40M.

A firm believer in the power of effective pitching and building investor trust, Kalev combines his extensive intrapreneurial and research experience with a personal philosophy centered on leadership and personal coaching for founders. His journey, marked by both successes and failures, underlines his profound understanding of the entrepreneurial ecosystem and his dedication to shaping the future of tech startups.

This episode is brought to you in cooperation with Tartu sTARTUp day!

Join the 3,500 people taking part at this year's most startup minded business festival on January 24-26 by securing your ticket here www.startupday.ee

On this episode we talk about:

VC, Startup Coaching and Why and How Superangel Combined These
How Can Startup Founders Benefit from Coaching
Critical Early Sales Lessons for Startups
The “Sell-Demo-Build” Strategy
How to Build a Sales Strategy
How a Founder Must Grow Faster than Their Company

Book references from our conversation:

"Running Lean: Iterate from Plan A to a Plan That Works" by Ash Maurya.

"Demand-Sided Sales" by Bob Mesta.

"The Mom Test" by Rob Fitzpatrick.

"Clear Leadership" by Gervase R. Bushe.

"The Jolt Effect" by Matthew Dixon and Ted Mc

"The Almanack of Naval Ravikant" by Eric Jorgenson.

"Obviously Awesome" by April Dunford.

"Sales Pitch" by April Dunford.

“Tech Powered Sales” by Justin Michael and Tony Hughes

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