Enterprise Sales Development (CIENCE)

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Ron Nelson, Account Executive at Oracle and formally at Comparably. Ron shares his experience starting as an SDR and working his way up to leading a team of 27 SDRs at Information Builders. He also shares unique insight and management perspective from his previous roles to build different types of teams. Listen as he discusses his strategies on producing content and communicating tone in sales. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN How he started as an SDR and the transition to a manager role His process from what he’s learned to build his own team and how he coaches and trains once he finds people who have the skill sets or potential How he reincorporated what he learned being an SDR and SDR leader when he returned to sales His strategies for producing content and communicating tone, and how he took reins and partnered with marketing How he takes his experience as an SDR manager into the culture-building approach at Comparably What he would tell enterprise sales development leaders in regards to hiring and sourcing The biggest misses that he sees around culture and enterprise sales development and what he looks for in people who need help with this QUOTES “In sharing that knowledge, we’re all learning and growing and developing quicker. We’re learning from one another’s mistakes, and we’re learning from one another’s successes.” -Ron Nelson [05:25] “One of the main things that I see that’s problematic is managers rescheduling one-on-ones. And then that’s the message you send to the SDRs. That this is not important. It’s not a priority. You have to make that a priority.” -Ron Nelson [10:27] “This is really fun what we do. I enjoy what we do. And I want to hire people that have that same mindset.” -Ron Nelson [17:25] “If you’re sharp, if you’re polished, you got great tone, you sound like a professional, then you’re already going to stand out from half of the people that are picking up the phone.” -Ron Nelson [23:13] “It’s one thing to get the title. It’s another thing to actually be good at the role.” -Ron Nelson [38:48] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:28] Meet Ron Nelson [01:58] Entering Sales Development to Manager [06:52] His process with building his team and developing skill sets [11:33] Transitioning back to sales [16:04] His management approach [18:22] Strategies to produce content and communicate tone [26:59] Using what he’s learned at Comparably [31:45] What he tells enterprise sales development leaders with sourcing SDRs [34:42] Misses that he sees among culture and enterprise sales development [39:50] How to contact Ron CONNECT Ron Nelson on LinkedIn Oracle website Comparably website CIENCE website CIENCE on LinkedIn CIENCE on Facebook CIENCE on Twitter CIENCE on Instagram Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Rakhi Voria, Vice President of Global Sales Development for IBM where she oversees over 350 SDRs. She came to IBM after several years at Microsoft, where she played a key role in building out their digital sales force, growing the team to 2,000 sellers, and the global business unit to over $8 billion in under three years. Rakhi brings her perspective to discuss how IBM defines sales development and integrates personalization. She also talks about how she builds a sales force on a large scale and what she’s learned combining inside sales with incubation. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN What she has seen during her time at Microsoft and IBM and what she thinks has been different for her than others going through other spaces What she’s learned combining inside sales with incubation and the one thing she would tell herself building something of that scale How IBM defines digital sales development and their inclusion of the word “digital” Where she starts and prioritizes when she builds a sales force How she’s integrated personalization at IBM and how they develop nurture journeys How IBM defines sales development, maintain accountability and manage the team without traditional metrics How the pandemic has affected Service-Level Agreements (SLAs) and communication Her passion for creating more diverse places and inclusion and what she would tell women who are interested in the enterprise space QUOTES “Corporate’s interesting because there’s so much you can learn in a startup, because there’s so much agility, and there’s the ability to make decisions in a swift and fast manner. But I think what you get in a corporation is you really learn how to deal with efficiency and scale and process and structures and tools in a way that you don’t.” -Rakhi Voria [04:11] “Even though you’re in a startup within a corporation, the risk may be lower, but I think the expectations are just as high.” -Rakhi Voria [07:38] “I think what we’re seeing in the industry is that customers want us to meet them on their terms. They want us to make it personal and to keep making it better.” -Rakhi Voria [15:06] “We’re only reaching out to clients when we think that we have something that will benefit them. I think gone are the days where you sort of take the ‘spray and pray’ approach. It’s more of ‘What can we do to get clients to want to come to us?’” -Rakhi Voria [18:38] “There’s no point in putting so much effort into getting people in the door if you’re not going to foster an environment where they can thrive and succeed.” -Rakhi Voria [41:13] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:27] Meet Rakhi [02:14] What she’s seen in the industry [05:17] What she’s learned combining inside sales with incubation [08:52] What is digital sales development [14:35] Integrating personalization at IBM [21:47] How IBM defines sales development [30:16] How she manages the team without traditional metrics [35:06] How the pandemic has affected SLAs and communication [40:19] The blending of personal and business communications [43:18] Her passion for creating more diverse places and inclusion [49:21] How to contact Rakhi RESOURCES Salesloft IBM Products General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) CONNECT Rakhi Voria on LinkedIn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Enterprise Sales Development with Isabella Yani Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Tibor Shanto, an author and expert consultant. Tibor discusses how he bases what he does with objective-based selling and how his methodology and formula is suited to playing the probabilities of volume-based research. He shares how he creates feedback looks and how he balances executing activities with coaching and leveling up. He also talks about his podcast, The Monday Morning Breakfast For Champions Podcast. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN How Tibor base everything he does around objective-based selling His prospective methodology and formula that is suited to playing the probabilities of volume-based research How he creates feedback loops, how far he goes to gather the information and follow up Why professional interruption should be moved to the top of the original messaging The difference between what sellers and sales developers think are important business objectives versus what the business’ actually care about How people consume Tibor’s content in 2021 differently, his tips for listeners to best put their time to level up in enterprise sales development and the worst advice he constantly hears How he balances executing activities with things like coaching and leveling up What listeners can expect on his podcast, The Monday Morning Breakfast For Champions Podcast QUOTES “I liken it to a train. All the buyers are in the front car and then as you go further and further back, there’s less and less closer to buyers. But I figured if I can get on the train and continue to move with them, then eventually they’ll become buyers.” -Tibor Shanto [05:53] “There’s always that tension between marketing and sales, but I think marketing has it right. When somebody’s that far away from a decision, help them get to the point where they can make those decisions as opposed to trying to ram the decision now when you know it’s not going to happen” -Tibor Shanto [24:12] “We’re the only profession that doesn’t practice between games.” -Tibor Shanto [27:52] “I think you can be very good, assertive salesperson that does well for their company, and at the same time does well for their customers.” -Tibor Shanto [29:18] “I really do think that a manager's job is to be an active frontline leader, so if you’re not coaching, what are you doing?” -Tibor Shanto [39:24] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:21] Meet Tibor Shanto [00:57] Objective-based selling [05:35] His methodology and formula [09:02] Feedback loops [14:26] The last page of the novel [18:37] Differences in business objectives [27:09] Gentle love but draw the line [30:28] How people consume his content in 2021 differently [32:54] The worst advice he hears [36:53] Balancing executing activities with coaching and leveling up [44:26] The Monday Morning Breakfast For Champions Podcast [50:10] How to contact Tibor RESOURCES The Ten-Day MBA 4th Ed.: A Step-by-Step Guide to Mastering the Skills Taught In America's Top Business Schools by Steven Silbiger Enterprise Sales Development with Gerry Praysman In-Depth: B2B Tech Vendors (Still) Don’t Meet Buyers’ Needs: TrustRadius Report Mike Bosworth Talks Storytelling & Sales Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Jon Selig, who merges sales with comedy. Jon talks about how he gets into the understanding of the brain of the people he’s trying to communicate with from a salesperson’s perspective. He also discusses how he helps salespeople use the lens of a stand-up comedian to better understand their buyers. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN Jon’s observations of sales teams from early 2000s to today and how this has changed the psychology of the buyers he’s going after now What has changed in selling, how to reach buyers who are avoiding sellers and how Jon disarms them with comedy How he teaches organizations and SDRs to find those comedic bits and the visual component to jokes How his time in sales development helped him with comedy Lessons he’s learned from bad salespeople and bad comedians and how he approaches that space in general How he approaches jokes through the different mediums and how he applies this approach to a medium like LinkedIn QUOTES “I think buyers are always going to react to sellers’ tactics. They’re trying to avoid sellers, let’s not kid ourselves. Let’s not make ourselves out to be the heroes that we know we really are. They want to duck us, but if they manage to catch them and we offer them something of value and we can stand out, they’re going to talk to us.” -Jon Selig [10:01] “But ultimately, I use humor to paint a powerful picture about what sucks from my buyer which it just so happens is something I can help them with.” -Jon Selig [17:04] “I’m not trying to turn sales reps into comedians with Netflix specials, and I’m not even trying to get our buyers rolling on the floor. If they do, great, but I’m trying to get sales reps to better connect with buyers and have easier conversations. And a joke is just connecting tissue between buyer and seller.” -Jon Selig [17:26] “Jokes are like mini-stories. We talk about storytelling in sales, but the right jokes are just condensed stories that get a laugh.” -Jon Selig [25:39] “The beauty of good joke writing is the brevity.” -Jon Selig [33:03] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:25] Meet Jon Selig [05:12] Jon’s observations from early 2000s to today [08:36] How this changed the psychology of the buyers [11:16] Incorporating comedy into sales calls [19:43] How he teaches and coaches to find those types of bits [25:49] Did Jon’s time in sales help him with comedy? [30:19] What he’s learned from bad sales people and comedians [38:22] How to think about the different channels affecting the message [42:24] Applying this approach to a medium like LinkedIn [44:07] How to contact Jon RESOURCES Oracle Corporation Cadence Elliott Gould on Friends Bill Burr Greg Fitzsimmons CONNECT Jon Selig’s website Jon Selig on LinkedIn CIENCE website CIENCE on LinkedIn CIENCE on Facebook CIENCE on Twitter Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Tony J. Hughes, a keynote speaker, best-selling author and sales trainer. Tony brings his 35 years in the business to discuss his best practices for enterprise sales development. He explains why the opening messaging is the more critical phase of a sales call and the three important questions to ask. He discusses the combination of outbound and qualification methodologies and what he looks for in prospective clients. He also talks about his book, Tech-Powered Sales: Achieve Superhuman Sales Skills, that he co-wrote with previous podcast guest, Justin Michael. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN The journey behind Tony’s book, Tech-Powered Sales: Achieve Superhuman Sales Skills How Tony used crowdsourcing as a form of peer review for his book and how he filters through the suggestions to find those pieces of gold Why the opening message is the more critical phase and three reasons that deals stall Mixing outbound methodologies with qualification methodologies, why it’s important to convey the intent and three questions to ask for inbound leads What Tony looks for in prospects and the most important two signs How to find a meaningful attribute for cold outbound calls and the relevance of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) Why you should be positively persistent and keep it simple QUOTES “I’ve always believed that professional selling is about making a positive difference in the lives of others, both for them personally and also professionally in their role in an organization.” -Tony J. Hughes [02:23] “I need to drive a conversation around why change now. Why would it make sense to consider change now? Because unless the person is committed to change, they’re not interested in what it is we can do for them.” -Tony J. Hughes [07:22] “What we know about buyers today is they don’t like to be manipulated by seller, but more importantly, they don’t want their time wasted in being asked to educate somebody about things that person could have discovered elsewhere.” -Tony J. Hughes [13:10] “The thing is we have to get to the nub of why this is relevant to them within seconds.” -Tony J. Hughes [29:59] “Most sellers misinterpret being ignored as being rejected, and they’re just not the same thing.” -Tony J. Hughes [44:44] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:21] Meet Tony J. Hughes [01:19] The wild journey behind the book [04:20] Tony’s filter with crowdsourcing [08:37] Three reasons that deals stall [11:32] Outbound and qualification methodologies [16:49] Ways to test for prospects [20:20] Find a meaningful attribute with cold outbound [26:56] Tony’s example [33:42] GDPR and CCPA [42:04] Be positively persistent [50:06] Keep it simple [54:22] How to contact Tony RESOURCES CIENCE podcast: Enterprise Sales Development with Justin Michael Tech-Powered Sales: Achieve Superhuman Sales Skills by Justin Michael and Tony Hughes Liquid syntax General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA) The Challenger Sa Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Brooke Bachesta, XDR Enablement Manager at Outreach and Chair of the Gals and SALs group. Brooke talks about her enablement role and what that means at Outreach. She discusses some of the initiatives they use to grow the team and the professional development they offer. She also talks about remote working and her interactions with the SDR team leaders and team managers that ensures the best for the team. She shares why she co-founded Gals and SALs, a group that provides women on the SDR team a place to get together, support each other, foster career growth and celebrate success. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN What is the XDR Enablement Manager and what it’s like at Outreach Some of the initiatives for growing the team and what she’s learned scaling that large of an organization How she measures and knows when the team is successful; what KPIs she looks at to define enterprise upmarket success; how she prioritizes the metrics and goals The mentality of going wide, who she likes to target more and what she’s looking for and how being meta - SDRs using Outreach every day - plays into this The kind of professional development programs do they have for SDRs to get them to the expertise level How she interacts with SDR team leaders and team managers to ensure the best for the team and the biggest thing she’s learned from her enablement role How the remote work is going, what does that look like from an enablement perspective and how hiring remotely allows her to harvest better talent Why she co-founded Gals and SALs QUOTES “Of course, you need to start with the end in mind and just like we want our ASP to be at this level. For easy math, we want it to be 100. We’re currently at 15. Let’s just get ourselves to 100. There needs to be incremental steps in process in order to do that.” -Brooke Bachesta [05:25] “That’s part of why I love working here so much, because you’re just forced to level up your knowledge of the industry.” -Brooke Bachesta [11:22] “I’m really starting to understand what it means to make strategic decisions and to plan in advance.” -Brooke Bachesta [20:20] “Thinking about how can we make sure that when we’re training folks, it is not wholly dependent on a person. Like if I’m on vacation or I get sick or hit by a bus, the whole program doesn’t die and people are still supportive and can find what they need to without having to Slack at here the channel, ‘Where is the script on so-and-so?’” -Brooke Bachesta [24:53] “Second Friday of every month, the office is closed as a way to force people to take a mental break, because now more than ever the lines are blurred between work and your personal life.” -Brooke Bachesta [27:23] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [01:05] What it means to be the ​​XDR Enablement Manager at Outreach [05:01] Maturing modeling, measuring success and prioritizing goals [10:59] Being meta [14:39] Professional development programs for SDRs [17:37] Interact with team leaders and managers [21:38] Experimentation and automation [25:14] Going remote [31:48] Gals and SALs [37:13] Brooke’s pitch on Outreach RESOURCES Selling Above and Below the Line: Convince the C-Suite. Win Over Management. Secure the Sale. by William “Skip” Miller Outreach hires former Forrester principal analyst for new VP role Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Rajiv Nathan, also known as 'RajNATION.’ Rajiv is a hip hop artist, a sales expert and consultant, a guest speaker, a yogi and has branded him as the startup hype man. He talks about crafting a narrative that “doesn’t suck” and the Que PASA framework that he’s been implementing for a really long time. Listen to this mini course in personalization. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN Rajiv’s eclectic career background The story behind his viral videos and the logic behind his lyrics The Que PASA Pitch How to adapt the pitch for different channels, especially for the phone and if one channel is better for storytelling How to connect the right person at multinational organizations QUOTES “You’ve got to stop thinking like an executive. Stop thinking like an entrepreneur. Stop thinking like a B2B person, and instead think like an entertainer. Because if you think like an entertainer, you have taken yourself out of being product obsessed or solution obsessed, and instead you put the audience first.” -Rajiv Nathan [06:39] “I think part of this idea of the creativity aspect is, you know, part of it is just for it. Another part is don’t just let it live once and then it dies. Figure out how you can use it over time. How can you reuse it over time? What are the different avenues you can place it on?” -Rajiv Nathan [10:26] “I want that prospect to leave the email feeling empowered. And the way that I can empower them is to lead the decision in their hands and make the assumption that they have the wherewithal to tell me what they would like to do next.” -Rajiv Nathan [19:05] “So rather than sending like one email to decision maker and waiting for them to respond, we just enacted this strategy where we sent an email to everyone, like in a subquencial fashion.” -Rajiv Nathan [27:43] “Again, you’re being honest with them, but in the process, it’s essentially making their life easier. You’re herding the cats for them.” -Rajiv Nathan [39:17] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [01:52] Meet Rajiv Nathan [03:14] How Rajiv got into his career [08:13] Rap-preneurship and the logic behind the lyrics [13:26] The Que PASA Pitch [21:34] How to adapt for different channels, especially for the phone [25:21] How to connect the right person at multinational organizations [34:02] Plus One Strategies [36:08] Basic goals when meeting with an end user [43:49] Startup Hypeman RESOURCES Startup Hypeman - Fresh Prince of SaaS "KARL" (NSFW) Simon Sinek: How great leaders inspire action Cash Flow Paradise - Hype Song by Startup Hypeman How to Craft the Perfect Elevator Pitch by Rajiv Nathan The Que PASA Pitch Guide CONNECT Rajiv Nathan’s website Startup Hypeman website Rajiv Nathan on LinkedIn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Andrew Lawson, Head of Inside Sales at MountainSeed. Andrew talks about how he leads his team to focus on results rather than the activities that lead to those results, using some of the key lessons he learned from his previous jobs. He also shares the ideal career trajectory for an SDR and the common misconception about SDR teams. Listen to his advice for those coming up in the enterprise sales development space in the more trickier markets such as banking. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN Andrew’s eclectic work path and what it was like to go through companies such as Vonage and Topgolf Some key lessons he learned from his previous jobs How he found the right balance to focus on results and the activities that lead to them as well as shifted the emphasis on meetings What he observed on behalf of his team with this new balance and shift and where his team tends to gravitate towards What is the ideal career trajectory for an SDR and the common misconception about SDR teams How he approaches the unique and competitive space of banking and how he oversees the closers at MountainSeed How he proactively aligns KPIs to what the company needs and learns how to improve General advice he would give to someone coming up in the enterprise sales development space in the trickier markets QUOTES “I never wanted the focus to be on activity. Activity, it’s there. It’s a good way to coach. It’s a good way to monitor people. And it’s a good way to build habits, but for me, if your focus is so driven on having to hit minimums of a dial requirement or anything else, you’re taking off the focus on what a company needs as a whole, which is money in the door, right?” -Andrew Lawson [05:51] “If you put the focus on what is important to the company and if you ask yourself that question ‘What is most important to the company,’ you’re going to be able to develop what KPIs are.” -Andrew Lawson [12:47] “You don’t want to oversaturate your company or oversaturate your pitch, because you start to lose effectiveness on what you’re actually trying to accomplish, which for us is to get them in the door and have a conversation.” -Andrew Lawson [29:22] “It’s a mental game. I mean that’s what this is all is. It’s a mental game not only from our end, but the physiological aspect of talking to someone. How can you control the conversation without them thinking you’re controlling it? All of that stuff kind of fascinates me and that’s where I love this game of trying to figure out how can we get you to talk to us.” -Andrew Lawson [32:05] “That’s what I try to tell my reps is that the best learning experience is failing.” -Andrew Lawson [38:44] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:31] Andrew’s career trajectory [04:47] Key lessons he’s learned [08:03] Finding the right balance [15:22] The results he saw with the new balance and shift [20:01] An ideal career trajectory for an SDR and [22:41] The common misconception about SDR teams [27:48] Approaching the unique and competitive space of banking [32:34] Overseeing the closers [37:02] How he proactively align KPIs to what the company needs [42:00] Advice for someone coming up in the space [46:18] How to contact Andrew CONNECT MountainSeed website Andrew Lawson on LinkedIn CIENCE website CIENCE on LinkedIn Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

In this episode of Enterprise Sales Development podcast, we speak with Frank Cespedes, author of Sales Management That Works: How to Sell in a World that Never Stops Changing. Frank previews his upcoming book and what inspired it. He talks about why it’s important for an organization to understand what they are doing with their sales department to help them decide what to do next. He also talks about why the buyer is the most important thing about selling and how division of labor is so essential. Listen as he explains how the market process is a variable, not a constant. WHAT YOU’LL LEARN What inspired Frank to write his book, Sales Management That Works: How to Sell in a World that Never Stops Changing Why hiring is an area where things can go the most wrong in the sales profession and why it’s important to understand what the organization is doing to help decide what to do next Why the buyer is and will continue to be the most important thing about selling Why Frank thinks specialization and the division of labor is so essential How to maximize profitability by understanding of what the company needs and don’t needs and how the pandemic opened company’s eyes to their sales models and what they could do differently How scope decisions are made within the sales force How the process is a way to scale the business, and how the market process is a variable, not a constant The difference between approaching and attacking different markets QUOTES “There’s no doubt that digital media and this sustained data revolution, which will continue throughout our lifetimes, those things are affecting buying and selling.” -Frank Cespedes [02:44] “You do not compete with people who have gone out of business. The dead are dead. You only compete with the survivors in a competitive market place, and in order to survive in any competitive marketplace, continuous improvement is essential. So it shouldn’t surprise us that the bar is rising.” -Frank Cespedes [05:41] “The most important thing about selling is and always has been the buyer. Who buys, why and how.” -Frank Cespedes [09:03] “Sales is a performance art. It’s about behavior. It’s not about how well somebody smiles in an interview. It’s not about your assumption or my assumption that somehow we can peer into people’s souls. We cannot.” -Frank Cespedes [26:58] “This is an area of business where you must be proactive. Because if you’re not proactive, one of two other groups are going to make your scope and customer selection decisions for you, either competitors or customers, and neither group necessarily has your best interest at heart.” -Frank Cespedes [35:34] TIMESTAMPS [00:01] Intro [00:23] Meet Frank [00:38] The inspiration behind his book [03:15] Hiring and sales competency [08:10] Grounding on the buying process [11:17] Why specialization is essential [15:42] Maximize profitability by understanding needs [24:42] Building sales development teams [33:56] Using scope as a framework for sales models [37:00] Market process is a variable, not a constant [42:03] Significant changes in the C-suite [47:56] Advice for senior leadership RESOURCES Sales Management That Works: How to Sell in a World that Never Stops Changing by Frank Cespedes The Department Store Museum John le Carré Sam Walton CONNECT Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices