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Sales for Founders Advent Calendar Over the past 18 months I've helped thousands of founders learn how to do sales and acquire their first customers.
Here's a thread with 25 useful tips for founders looking to get started with sales (1 tip/day)...
1/
Good sales doesn't feel scary, spammy, unethical, or like a waste of time.
If you *do* feel that way about doing sales, take it as a warning from your subconscious that you're about to do *bad* sales.
Most likely, this is because you've never learned what "good" sales is.
Good sales doesn't feel scary, spammy, unethical, or like a waste of time.
If you *do* feel that way about doing sales, take it as a warning from your subconscious that you're about to do *bad* sales.
Most likely, this is because you've never learned what "good" sales is.
2/"What is sales?"
Most new founders think that sales is just a more intrusive, more aggressive, less scalable form of marketing.
That's completely wrong. And a guaranteed way to fail at sales (and marketing).
In reality, sales and marketing are polar opposites...
3/"What's a good sales process?"
Normally, people only notice "sales" when they're being sold to. Badly.
Which makes the sales process seem deceptively simple:
1) Find a lead, 2) Get them to talk to you, 3) Get them to buy.
But a 'good' sales process looks v. different...
4/"How do I feel less nervous about sales calls?"
On a sales call with a prospect, you're *not* there to try and make them buy.
You're there to help them work out if your product can help them, and how.
Like a consultant.
Remember: They *asked* for the call!
5/As a B2B founder, companies pay for your product.
But *people* are the ones who BUY your product! (or not)
It only takes one worried employee to crash the sale.
So remember: Sell to people. Not the company.
Or you'll end up like this poor guy:
6/When you first do sales, every unsuccessful call feels like a gut-punch. But it shouldn't.
The outcome of one sales call won't make or break your business.
So don't feel like a failure if you don't close a deal.
It's only failure if you don't know why they didn't buy.
7/Struggling with outbound sales? Cold emails not getting any replies?
Good outbound sales is built on one fundamental principle...
if risk > reward, you fail 
Build an outbound sales process that only has low-risk, high-reward steps, and you'll do just fine.
8/Most new founders don't understand their audience well enough to sell to them.
Mindset fix: Take 3 perspectives...
1. Accountant: How will the prospect get value from my product?
2. Exec. coach: Why would they want that value today?
3. Secretary: Where can I find them?
9/Most new founders could DOUBLE their sales if they just followed up more.
There's no limit to how many follow ups you should send.
BUT
Only ever follow up when you have something valuable to share that the prospect would want to receive.
No "just checking in" nonsense!
10/A "demo call" is NOT a call where you demo your product to the prospect.
It's a call where you agree on...
1. what "happy future vision" the prospect wants to achieve
2. how your product can help them achieve it
3. a shared plan for how they get from "here" to "there"
11/Not sure how to ask prospects if they'll pay? Find it scary/awkward?
You need to create shared success plans with your prospects (see tip #10).
That way, paying goes from a scary obstacle to just another step on the roadmap from "here" to "success with your product".
12/For customers 0-50, your choice of sales CRM isn't important.
There are only 3 CRM things you *HAVE* to get right...
1. Keep it up to date. Religiously
2. Segment your leads by "next step" NOT "previous step"
3. ALWAYS have a next action — with date — for every lead
13/So, you want to be "good enough" at sales?
Things that aren't important:
negotiation skills charisma perfect EnglishThings that ARE important:
caring about your customer showing up on time doing what you said you would following up
14/The best cold email, isn't.
15/"Sales is hard and scary. Can't I hire a salesperson to do it for me?"
No. Not until you've made AT LEAST ten sales yourself.
Otherwise, how will you know if your product/market fit is wrong, or if your salesperson just sucks?
@close has more: https://blog.close.com/sales-hiring-101-for-startups/
16/A good sales call boils down to four fundamental questions:
1. What is the potential customer's goal?
2. What obstacles prevent them from achieving the goal?
3. What are the negative consequences if they don't achieve it?
4. What are the positive implications if they do?
17/Where you can get AWESOME sales advice...
- @waitingtoberead (cold-email queen)
- @Steli (for tactics & building a sales team)
- @DamianThompson (for scaling sales)
- @brendanmcadams (for sales fundamentals)
- @sehurlburt (for a developer's take on enterprise sales)
