Practical Sales Podcast - By Atlantic Growth Solutions: Recent Episodes
AGS
Practical: A Plan that Succeeds in Real Circumstances. Relevant discussions for professionals in B2B business development, lead generation and sales leadership roles.
Kyle is joined by Kent Murphy, COO at Atlantic Growth Solutions. Kent leads the BDM and SDR teams who engage their client's ideal customers and qualify sales leads with decision-makers. Kent's team has been achieving a 70% MQL to SQL, and SQL to Opportunity conversion rate on leads qualified for their clients.
Kent breaks down one important piece of the conversion puzzle: Researching prospects. Likely the first action a revenue team member would complete before reaching out to a prospect. He talks about where to research, what to look for, and the experience level required for revenue members to be able to achieve effective research.
Process and efficiency are critical to an effective sales process and Kent has some wisdom to share on how to improve the research phase for revenue leaders and their teams.
How does a Revenue Leader know their teams are performing to the best of their ability?
Meghann Misiak (LinkedIn) is the founder of Path to Presidents Club. She helps companies build onboarding best practices and coaches sales talent on their path to being high achieving.
On this episode, Meghann and Kyle discuss more tactical and practical onboarding and ramping strategies to get sales professionals up to speed quicker, without cutting corners.
Meghann and Kyle cover some key details surrounding the following topics:
- Why is onboarding important?
- What metric should you track to indicate if your current onboarding is successful?
- Hiring for Talent or Personality - who should revenue leaders invest in?
- What onboarding typically looks like within companies.
- The Bootcamp model - team approach to building the foundation for success.
Check out part 1 of our interview with Meghann if you haven't already
How does a Revenue Leader know that their teams are performing to the best of their ability?
Meghann Misiak (LinkedIn) is the founder of Path to Presidents Club. She helps companies build onboarding best practices and coaches sales talent to become high achieving.
Meghann and Kyle cover some key details surrounding the following topics:
- Why is onboarding important?
- What metric should you track to indicate if your current onboarding is successful?
- Hiring for Talent or Personality - who should revenue leaders invest in?
- What onboarding typically looks like within companies
- The Bootcamp model - team approach to building the foundation for success
Check out part 1 of our interview with Meghann. Part 2 drops soon!
Part 2 of our interview with Andrew Holmes of ICS Creative Agency.
Kyle and Andrew discuss the process for interacting with leads once they have come in to your organization. Whether they have raised their hand through a form, a download or a contact us inquiry, someone in the organizations has to manage them.
They talk Service Level Agreements to manage the relationship and expectations between Sales and Marketing, as well as how leads should be qualified and when teams should hand them over to the next person in the process.
This Part 1 of 2 of Kyle's conversation with Andrew
There are a lot of differences between Marketing and Sales operations. But at the heart of any successful campaign is the Customer.
Andrew Holmes from ICS Creative joins Kyle to discuss two key exercises that need to be conducted to ensure success in your revenue growth.
First - you need to build your Ideal Customer Profile. Collaboration between Sales and Marketing will help build an accurate picture of what attributes make up an "Ideal Customer".
Second - the customers buying journey needs to be mapped out. Each stage of the process that a customer will navigate through has to be thought out and logical. The right messaging, combined with the proper Call to Action, all while feeling personalized and tailored to the potential customer as much as possible.
Doing these two exercises will build a clearer picture of who the organization should be focusing their attention on, and what milestones they will be completing along their journey.
Sales Organizations rarely look the same during start-up as they do when the business is mature.
Chris Forman (CEO, Appcast) knows how to structure a Sales Organization for the stage the business is at.
In this episode, Kyle and Chris discuss Go-to-Market Strategies, Content Marketing and Being Honest to your team members.
Major Topics:
-
Honesty from the top : Telling a new team member "I can only pay you for three months"
-
What makes you successful at one stage, will kill you at the next
-
Too much money at the start makes you dumb : Financial Constraint drives innovation
-
CAC:LTV Ratio to understand health of Sales Organization : Be honest an include the correct costs
-
Churn is a major indicator of a Healthy Sales Organization : Team Members stay if they are happy and winning.
And much more.
We hope you enjoy this episode as much as we di making it!
--- Thank you !
Old News : 2020 Forced nearly every company to shift to virtual selling
Bob Perkins, founder of the American Association for Inside Sales Professionals (AA-ISP)joins Kyle to discuss a wide range of topics focused on a single theme: Inside Sales
As businesses are preparing for 2021, have already established their "next-normal" and work to improve and optimize their strategies, Bob joins us to discuss some of the most relevant topics for Inside Sales Professionals and Leaders.
-
Stages of Grief for the way things used to be
-
Tech Stack Essentials for B2B Sales
-
Good and Bad of Virtual Sales Environments
-
Going back to business basics
-
And more!
Bob drops some of the most practical sales advice for Professionals and Sales Leaders that has been heard on the Podcast to date. It is something we should all take a moment to do, and this is the perfect time of year to do it.
Check out Bob Practical Sales Takeaway in the second half of the Episode.
What should your Sales Organizations approach to KPI's for Sales Team Members be?
Tera Gillen is back for a second time on the Podcast to talk about Healthy Organizations and their approach to KPI's.
Kyle and Tera run through 3-4 Rapid Fire Questions to build a clear starting point for an organization looking to build their KPI strategy to drive business and sales growth, sustainably.
The Best Thing you can do, as a Business or Sales Leader, is benchmark your Sales Organization's Health with the Sales Organization Health Assessment - Found HERE
Organizations need to play their part in the ongoing skill development and knowledge building for members of their sales teams.
Kevin Duffer is a true Sales Leader and specialist in the world of Employee Training. He joins Kyle for a second time to discuss key topics that Organizations must consider to be truly healthy when it comes to ongoing employee training.
A Few Highlights:
- Not a shotgun approach, must be part of a larger strategy
- Needs to customized and relevant to the level of experience and role that the Team Members are in daily
- Personal Development doesn't fall solely on the shoulders of the Employer - Sales Professionals must work to develop their own skills
- Learn from the best people around you, but adapt it to you own style
Benchmark the health of your sales organization with this free assessment tool - Link
The Healthiest Sales Organizations hire to fuel the fire and accelerate growth, not band-aid an issue and cover it up.
Doug King Joins Kyle for a second time on the Practical Sales Podcast. Bringing his experience as a Senior Recruiter for Broad Reach Staffing and previously as VP of Sales at Skillsoft, helping to build a team of over 320 Sales Professionals.
Doug King knows what a Healthy Hiring Process looks like for Sales Talent.
He drop 7+ key topics that Sales and Business Leaders need to consider when evaluating their internal Hiring Process.
- Team Effort with HR
- Anticipate the Questions Interviewees will likely ask
- Leverage Personality Trait Assessments to Benchmark your Top Performers
- and many more...
Arguably the most important roles within your organization, it may be time that you step back and take a look at your hiring process. Small improvements in a few key areas can turn an UNhealthy sales Organization into a HEALTHY one.
AGS has created the Sales Organization Health Assessment, a series of questions to benchmark the Health of your Sales Operation against other, similar organizations. On this Podcast, Kyle talks with Chris Cummins, CRO at Appcast, about what the healthiest Sales Organizations are doing. Appcast is the industry leader in Programmatic Job Advertising, and has a diverse team spanning Business Development, Marketing and Account Management Roles.
Chris and Kyle talk about a huge range of topics:
- Having a Sales Plan - From the CEO, CRO, VP of Sales, all the way to Sales Reps
- Aligning Reps to the Sales Plan - Ensure their goals are communicated CLEARLY and without clutter
- Shared Goals between Sales and Marketing - Could be multiple podcasts worth of content, but they have to be working together
- Performance Management
- Training and Development - Ongoing Skills training, Podcasts, Books, Leadership Led Sessions
- Defined Sales Process - Don't just define, but share and revisit OFTEN
- Hitting Revenue - This is the overall metric, but can't be the single guiding metric.
Check out the latest episode, and take the Sales Organization Health Assessment HERE
Kevin Duffer, VP of Sales and Business Development for Management Concepts (Professional Training and Certification company largely servicing US Federal Government and Large Businesses) joins Kyle to discuss a wide range of B2B Sales Topics.
- Know your Solution ... Better than anyone
- Know your Competitors ... Better than anyone
- Know your Prospect ... Better than anyone
These are the Core Philosophies that Kevin uses to guide his Business Development and Sales Strategy. He is always learning. Right up until that RFP is submitted, the deal is won/lost or the PO is received. Leveraging knowledge he can obtain from any source, he is always improving his expertise in his area of focus.
Kyle and Kevin talk about the upside and downside of Virtual Training and New Employee Onboarding. They also dive into Sales Knowledge Download for new hires, Building relationships with competitors or other businesses already selling into your prospect organization and the need to continuously grow your Professional Network.
Tera Gillen quite literally grew up in the world of Inside Sales. Climbing her way upwards from Business Development to VP of Inside Sales for Small and Medium Enterprises for Skillsoft in North America.
In this Episode, Tera and Kyle discuss:
- Focusing on the Evolving Profile of an Ideal Customer
- Increased Engagement From Prospects
- Roles and Traits of a Hunter vs. Grower Personality
- Making sure your Team understands the WHY
- AND MORE!
Tera is a True expert when it comes to leading an inside Sales Team. We can't wait to have her back on the PSPod soon!
Sales Organizations are now required to partially or fully reinvent the way they approach B2B sales.
In April 2020, AGS conducted a Business Leader Sales Survey. This survey was designed to understand the major issues facing Business Leaders caused by the Pandemic.
The Survey had 4 Major Sections:
- Areas Sales Managers Need Help
- Urgent Priorities vs. Top Priorities
- Main Area of Focus for Business Leaders Moving Forward
- Areas Business Leaders Recognize they need Help
Mark joins Kyle to discuss the survey results, what mindset Business Leaders and Sales Leaders may find themselves in currently, and their challenges and focus moving forward.
Full Survey Results can be found HERE on our AGS website.
Doug King : A true expert in Everything Related to Sales Talent
- 30+ Years of Sales Experience
- Built a Team of over 320 Sales Professionals
- Experienced in both sides of the Hiring "Coin"
Doug Shares DOZENS of practical takeaways from both Perspectives: Those who want to get hired, and those who are hiring.
For Sales Professionals Looking for a New Opportunity:
- Take time to collect your thoughts
- Leverage your existing Network
- Identify as "Open to New Opportunities" on LinkedIn
- Prepare, Prepare Prepare for an interview
- Interviews are 50/50 - Ask Questions to Evaluate if the company is a good fit for you
- Follow Up
- Reflect on Past Sales Wins - Use these to refresh and recharge your process and mindset
Sales Organizations Looking to Hire New Talent:
- Leverage Referrals (And Compensate Well For Them)
- Review / Upgrade your Companies Career Page
- Involve Sales Leadership in Candidate Process
- BENCH BUILD - Don't just Hire when you have an empty seat
- Bad Hire can Cost as much as $500,000 to an Organization
- ... And Many, Many More
"Doug's knowledge of the Sales Landscape from the perspective of a Sales Professional and the Sales Organizations is truly worldclass.
I thoroughly hope you enjoy the interview with Doug as much as I did." - Kyle
Ensure all of your written and verbal communications follow the “3 R” framework. Be Recognizable, Ensure you are Relevant, and get to the point Right Away.
Its Summertime. The Weather has likely been great where you are listening from. Which typically (in the business community) means VACATIONS!
And with Vacations, Comes Out Of Office (OOO) Emails.
As a Sales Professionals, OOO's may seem like a roadblock to your Business Development and Prospecting Efforts. However, They can be a goldmine of CRM worthy data, which could actually HELP in your efforts, rather than hinder.
Kyle discusses a few key details to look for in OOO's from your prospects, and also flips it around and talks a little about what you should include in your OOO in case a prospect sees it.
Reality - Businesses have less than 5 months left in 2020. Likely, they have to do 10 months worth of business in those months to have any chance of matching 2020's projected revenues.
Special Guest Mark Haines-Lacey, CEO of Atlantic Growth Solutions discusses the lat few months and the mindset business leaders have gone through. He discusses ways businesses can work to gain ground on their 2020 revenue targets after a rough Q1 and Q2 for many businesses.
The Strategic Account Planning Document that Mark Discusses can be found on our Site (AtlanticGrowthSolutions.com) for Download.
Everyone has heard of Open and Closed ended Qualifying Questions. They are what your team knows best and what your prospects may be tired of hearing.
SHAKE IT UP A LITTLE with a fresh take on Qualifying Questions. These questions open up a new line of conversation from your prospect with every answer!
Kyle and Kent take questions from listeners and members of our network on a variety of topics.
- Shortening Value Proposition for Conversation
- Sales Leaders - Activities to do with your Team
- Bulk email vs. Personalized Email?
- Qualifying Questions - How many to ask
- Best Time of Day to Call prospects
- How much Sales Activity per day - Benchmark
- KPI's to Track Performance - Lead Generation
Ideal for Sales Professionals and Sales Leaders who sell B2B Solutions
The #1 Goal of a Prospecting Call is to hear your prospect say "Yes, tell me more!". But what is the Second Best? Kyle takes a quick dive into the Business Development Process to discuss how to proceed when you don't get a "Yes, tell me more!" response.
The Trust Equation : 1 + 1 = Trust. Kyle and Kent discuss a Practical Process for Sales Professionals and Business Development Reps who want to build trust with a prospect quickly. This will lead to more engaging conversations with your top prospects and more leads converting to opportunities in your funnel, faster.
"It Will Help You Close More Business, Faster" - Kent Murphy. Kyle and Kent discuss how identifying and analyzing your 5 most recent Customer Successes will provide the direction to grow your business. Also, if your Company doesn't have a Documented Sales Process, this exercise will provide the framework for getting started with mapping out the Key Milestones for your Sales Team to follow.
Kyle and Kent from Atlantic Growth Solutions discuss the topic of Needing to Virtualize your Sales Process now that Face to Face Sales and Business Development is no longer a reality. The team at AGS has proven over the last 7 years that a virtual sales process is entirely possible and in some cases, even more efficient.