Founder Sales Insights 8 Years of Learning
1. speed & learning are everything; revenue is the byproduct of doing this successfully -- hiring, managing, and outsourcing slow this down so much -- don't fall victim to some fake magic
2. sell how you solve a problem and see the world differently; the solution is secondary (hint: the tech is abstract to most buyers)
3. you're either unlocking high volume via unfair advantage -- OR -- high deal value ($MM expansions)
4. specificity ('wow, i feel like this was built just for me') is really the only way to inspire prospects in the absence of brand equity and lots of market fatigue
5. outbound really does work -- AI-based copy actually lowered the bar further; it's so boring AND general -- it's commoditized folks even more ;)
6. day 1 market vision is never the same vision to take you to product/market fit -- be prepared to invalidate (if you're not, red flag)
7. founder will be Head of Sales for ~24 months -- don't forget founder-led sales is a competitive advantage
8. your niche is far more important than your TAM -- knowing where to start is critical
9. consistency unlocks repeatability
10. hiring before it's working means you're delegating visioning -- a startup delegating vision is dead on arrival
11. most sales reps are mediocre; build that model so mediocre reps can be successful
12. early-stage sales is high-touch; you earn the right to scale
13. never ask the market what they want; they have no idea, hence why it's still a problem
14. there is no playbook, it's turning over every stone to figure out what's working via execution
15. warm friendly intros almost always lead to false positives