Predictable Prospecting's Podcast

Advancing the sales process from lead generation until the deal is closed is full of potential hiccups and nuances that many reps struggle to master. Our guest today has over thirty years of experience with qualifying and moving prospects all the way down the pipeline. Brad Williams is the President of Doextra CRM Solutions, a partner company to Sales Force, that helps businesses implement software and technology to improve the sales cycle. Join us as we discuss the book that influenced both our careers,why CRM won’t help you without a sales system in place, and tips for re-organizing and recognizing dead opportunities in your pipeline.   Episode Highlights: Introducing Brad Williams Why we love the Getting to Closed process How Doextra uses Getting to Closed to solve dysfunction in sales The most common mistake businesses make Technology and the “parked” prospect Red flag sales skills Why active listening and role playing are still the perfect training tools       Resources: Any questions for today’s guest

Keeping the data in your pipeline fresh is crucial for running a productive system, but too many of us allow our data to get old and obsolete, clogging up the pipeline and hurting sales. Technology can help keep your contacts updated, but it’s far from a perfect solution. My guest today is Donato Diorio,the Co-founder and General Manager of Data Services at RingLead, a company that offers the tools you need for your company’s contacts. We discuss the problem with thinking cold calling or cold emailing is dead, tips for tracking your numbers and pacing your interactions with leads, contacting multiple influencers to move prospects through the cycle, and the culprits that are keeping good sales processes down.  Episode Highlights: Introducing Donato Diorio Why email and phone conversations aren’t dead yet How a 3x3 approach can boost your outreach Data, technology, and outreach Bridging the gap between sales and marketing Lead generation and data for start-up companies Challenges with building buyer personas V

It’s easy to send a form email to a new prospect, but the key to building a pipeline is to connect with your prospects by having real conversations over the phone. Genuine moments of connection happen when a consultant truly knows and understands the pain points and persona of the buyer, but this process is much easier said than done.   My guest today is Evan Jones, Head of Business Development at VoxGen. As an expert in lead generation, marketing, and managing accounts, Evan discusses his methods for communicating with prospects, and shares his best advice for generating the leads that matter.   Episode Highlights: Introducing Evan Jones Emails, phone calls, and texting - communicating with the prospect How to be a consultant with a purpose United States versus European prospects Owning the buyer persona Creating the perfect wrap-up note Evan’s top advice for lead generation representatives   Resources: Connect with Evan on Linkedin, by emailing him at ejones@voxgen.com, or by calling/texting him direct: (

Today’s guest is Steven Wagner, founder and CEO of Sales Ignition, a company that helps sales teams start conversations with their ideal customers for consistent growth. Sales techniques of the past are giving way to new, more efficient predictable prospecting methods. Join us as we discuss Steven’s tips for finding your perfect prospect list, why focusing on the tools in your sales stack is hurting your business, and how to tailor your message to reach the customers you want.   Episode Highlights: Steven’s background in software, sales, and outreach The death of the trade show Why you shouldn’t worry about your sales stack: Tips for the first-time prospector Crafting the perfect message Steven’s value grid system   Resources: Value Grid Contact Steven by emailing steven@sales-ignition.com or by visiting Sales Ignition Marylou Tyler’s new book Predictable Prospecting: How to Radically Increase Your B2B Sales Pipeline is now available!  

While we might all be in different types of sales, we can learn plenty about conversation, influence, and leadership from each other. On today’s episode, Steve Underwood and I discuss all aspects of the sales business, from building a sales pipeline to the power of meditation and gratitude in your daily life. With a family background in car sales, Steve Underwood began his career in the auto industry before moving into technology sales. Steve is currently the account executive at Workfront, a project management software company, as well as a dedicated podcaster and mentor. In his free time, Steve enjoys learning new languages and hanging out with his family at the beach. Episode Highlights: Steve Underwood’s background and journey Efficiency vs Effectiveness Distinctive roles in the sales and development teams Building a predictable pipeline Roleplaying, weekly reviews, and post-mortems Handling a loss Documenting calls and other data: how to reduce lag The power of a positive mindset and meditation   Reso

Having an impact with your marketing message requires understanding. Your ideal buyer is more than their basic demographics. Our guest Samuel Woods is a growth marketing expert who helps clients experience consistent growth. Clients establish an effective funnel and create powerful campaigns by first gaining a comprehensive understanding of a buyer’s psychographics. Samuel Woods transitioned from the design world to growth marketing and created an agency specializing in conversion copywriting. Creating copy that converts requires that we move beyond ourselves to connect with our target buyer at every stage of the buying cycle. In addition to providing value it’s increasingly important that every campaign message is crafted with the human in mind. Using a buyer’s language to address concerns is a powerful method that Samuel teaches clients and discusses with us today.   Episode Highlights: Why sharing benefits is not enough Understanding the language of your ideal buyer The importance of rooting your campaign

We’re all familiar with the famous proverb: “It takes a village to raise a child!” As more entrepreneurs launch their own startup company, perhaps the phrase should be changed to “It takes a village to make a business!” Community between entrepreneurs has become more important than ever as those with great ideas search for the people who can make their dreams come to life. In today’s episode with market specialist Jorge Soto we discuss the benefits of community, leadership style, and the new markers of success. Jorge Soto is a self-proclaimed startup fanatic who focuses on inspiring and motivating the new entrepreneur. After leaving Twitter to work as a consultant for Node.io, a new kind of database, Soto launched Sotoventures Media which functions as a community for entrepreneur education. Soto believes in the power of a good leader and strives to encourage startup entrepreneurs and sales reps alike to break their own barriers . In his free time, Jorge enjoys painting and playing guitar.   Episode Highlights

Getting a startup tech company off the ground and into the public sphere is no small feat, but having a team of great sales reps makes it infinitely easier. But how do you build a sales team from scratch? Focusing on hiring the doer instead of the thinker is part of creating a team, but the real key lies in hiring sales reps who actually care about the customer base they communicate with. Join me in a conversation with Kevin Chiu as we discuss the secrets to tech startup success. Kevin Chiu is the manager of Sales and Operations at DigitalOcean, a new cloud infrastructure provider, and is the man behind DigitalOcean’s first ever sales team. Chiu’s tech sales background was built by working with companies such as Greenhouse Software and FiveStars. When he’s not hosting the NYC Sales Hacker meetups or working on his Linkedin page, Kevin enjoys writing blogs and listening to podcasts.   Episode Highlights:   Background on Predictable Prospecting: How to Radically Increase Your B2B Sales Pipeline Building a stro

Many sellers have no idea how to begin talking to a new customer. Instead of creating honest dialogue, businesses jump into a sales pitch and lose the trust of the prospect. A good conversation begins by understanding the customer’s pain -- what core problem do they need help solving? Searching for customer feedback and developing dialogue is the first step to creating messages that speak to the heart of what the customer wants, but analyzing and using this data is where businesses stumble. Copy that reassures a customer of the value in your product is key to engaging them on a deeper level.   Jennifer Havice is a copywriter who specializes in helping businesses create meaningful conversations with customers while still maintaining their own brand and personality. Her new book, Finding the Right Message, is aimed at conveying the value of your product by understanding what the customer needs to hear. When she’s not speaking at conferences or writing compelling copy, Jen enjoys horseback riding and eating choc

One of the most important factors in building a predictable pipeline is continuing the conversation with prospects. My guest today is Kyle Porter, the founder and CEO of SalesLoft, a company dedicated to turning target accounts into customer accounts. Kyle is an expert in helping companies integrate new tools and technology in their current systems to begin conversations with the buyers that matter. We discuss how targeting prospects in your market is changing, why and how you should start the conversation at the top of the funnel, and where to begin when developing your sales stack.   Episode Highlights: Technology and the salesman: how our industry is changing Targeting your prospects Connecting with the person who doesn’t sign the check Creating frequent touch points with buyers Software and technology Reducing lag in the pipeline Preparing for adding new tools to your process Understanding the equation of connection Death of the average salesman   Resources: “Why Software Is Eating The World” article b

All great sales professionals have one thing in common: they never stop learning. Even the most veteran leaders are looking for educational resources to help them succeed, especially in our current sales industry. How can you stay on top of your game when the sales techniques and technologies you used to trust have become obsolete? Join today’s guest, Max Altschuler, and I for a conversation on resources, sales paths, and community.   Max Altschuler is a speaker, author, and the founder of Sales Hacker, Inc. an educational sales resource. Sales Hacker, Inc. produces the popular website saleshacker.com as well as events and conferences that foster community engagement. Besides his work in the sales industry, Max is also passionate about helping military veterans and animals. He is the co-organizer of PushUpCharity, which has startups competing against each other in a pushup challenge. All proceeds go to charity!   Episode Highlights: Sales Hacker: Max’s inspiration for creating the company Who can benefit fro

An effective sales process brings a prospect on as a partner; working together to solve their issue. This ideal situation requires that their expectation is set and they commit to the solution. Today’s guest is Ash Alhashim a self described “marketing oriented sales person” who is an expert in all things sales process. Ash believes that the entire funnel should be connected to motivate those in a nurture cycle and shares his tips with us on how to achieve that.   Ash Alhashim is the founder of Brown Flag Group, a consulting group that helps businesses grow through effective sales and marketing. Besides his own site, Ash also contributes regularly to the Sales Hacker blog and finds time to connect on social media.   Episode Highlights:   The importance of setting expectation early in buyer cycle Ash’s thoughts on linear progression Which actions indicate a prospect is ready to move out of nurture Behavioral cues that signal readiness to progress through cycle Respecting levels of awareness   Resource

What if a company is great at closing deals, but not so skilled in beginning the conversations with the prospects they need? A predictable pipeline is built on the foundations of habit and consistency, and can take more than a couple of weeks to properly develop. A business that struggles to reach the prospects they need might feel doomed to fall further and further behind their goals, and that’s exactly where today’s guest comes in. Join Stefan Boyle and I for a discussion on how to effectively generate sales leads on your own, and how to know when it’s the right time to hire a professional for the job. Stefan Boyle is the founder and Managing Director of PrintRepublic, a UK-based online printing business. Boyle is also the force behind Marketing Republic, a B2B Lead Generation Agency that works with companies to bolster high conversion leads. When he’s not at work, Stefan enjoys both reading and writing books.   Episode Highlights: Introducing Stefan Boyle Crawl, walk, run: generating sales leads Starting

If a sale requires risking political capital, how do you establish trust? Our guest Mark Kosoglow is an expert in outreach and here to share his success tips. Mark believes that effective outreach requires multiple contacts. These contacts are done through a variety of channels and ultimately lead to a sales pipeline. Today we discuss how to provide high value content during outreach while balancing efficient automation and personalization. Mark Kosoglow is the VP of Sales at Outreach.io a SaaS tool that empowers sales teams through intelligent automation of outreach processes. Mark believes that it's important to communicate with contacts where they live. Effective contact cannot be limited to one channel or a fully automated sequence. Personalizing content and bumping emails dramatically raises the success rate of outreach. Every line read is a step closer to qualifying a sale. Episode Highlights:  Testing to find the right process Tiering to determine who is in buying motion Using a “bump” to increase re

How do you capture the attention of someone you’ve never met in a way that encourages them to respond? Starting conversations with people we don’t know is the most difficult and the most crucial part of building a successful pipeline, but too many companies see dismal response rates to their cold email templates. Today’s guest holds the secret to creating copy that speaks to the desires, fears, and personalities of your customers to engage them in a whole new way. Heather R. Morgan is the Founder and CEO of Salesfolk, a company that helps salespeople create compelling cold emails that lead to three times the responses from customers. Heather began her career as an economist working internationally before entering the business development field. Episode Highlights: How Heather Morgan went from sending letters to her favorite children’s book authors to becoming the CEO of Salesfolk Preparing for the cold email: doing research on the audience Heather’s tricks for writing a personal email to someone you don’t k

Why are salespeople depicted as slimy money-grubbers instead of as the brand representatives we know we are? As the industry changes it’s important for the modern sales professional to change with it, abandoning the old idea of building sales and marketing from the inside out in favor of connecting with the buyer’s journey to sell from the outside in. Today’s episode covers new techniques for sales reps to engage with prospects -- you’ll be surprised at what common mistakes our guest thinks you’re making! Mark Roberge is a lecturer at the Harvard School of Business and the Chief Revenue Officer at HubSpot. His bestselling book The Sales Acceleration Formula: Using Data, Technology, and Inbound Selling to go from $0 to $100 Million covers his approach to building a sales team and increasing revenue. Episode Highlights: Who is the modern salesperson? Buyer behavior & empowerment Understanding the buyer journey Relationship between sales and marketing within persona development Becoming a stronger sales rep

Buyers are more than demographic statistics. They have sophisticated needs and are frustrated when companies fail to understand. Effective marketing requires alignment with the entire buying journey. To achieve this goal many marketers use the information in a buyer persona to guide sales interactions, advertisements, and content. Gaining true insight into the buyer’s journey takes far more than compiling search data. We will discuss how to create effective buyer personas with today’s guest Adele Revella. Adele Revella’s mission is to educate marketers about how to harness the power of buyer personas. She’s spent over two decades in marketing perfecting marketing tools such as personas. Her experience led her to develop the Buyer Persona Institute. With available content, workshops, and the Buyer Persona Masterclass the Institute utilizes the power of buyer interviews to teach modern marketing mastery. Episode Highlights:   Goals of an effective buyer persona How to utilize personas for sales funnels &

When your goal is to double sales productivity AND increase happiness the insight of a sales strategist is key. Our guest today is Jeremey Donovan the Head of Sales Strategy for the Gerson Lehrman Group. Jeremey believes that goals in sales and improving staff happiness can be achieved simultaneously. He views his position as that of a service professional with a goal to make the sales staff’s jobs easier. Jeremey Donovan was once an electrical engineer who moved through many roles to his current position with the Gerson Lehrman Group. His methods include involvement of key sales staff to improve a process before rolling out and split testing emails before templating. Jeremey strives to make the prospecting process personal by encouraging staff to write with a conversational tone. Providing training to employees is one of his largest priorities when tasked with improving morale; increasing skills to empower. Episode Highlights:   How to “stack the deck” in your favor when introducing new policy When to ask