Sales Tech Podcast: Recent Episodes
Produced by Sales Success Media and Hosted by Thom Singer
A sales tech show for sales ops, revenue ops, sales leaders, sales technologists and all sales professionals interested in sales technology.
The Critical Role of Revenue Enablement in Sales with Juniper’s Hang Black Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with Hang Black, Vice President of Global Revenue and Enablement at Juniper Networks.
In her role at Juniper, Hang supercharges the sales and service community within her company to help them sell more and close bigger deals. Hang has a unique Revenue Enablement origin story which she shares today with Thom. They touch on how Revenue Enablement works, what smaller companies need to know about it, and what Hang wishes every sales professional knew about the work she does.
Finally, Hang shares the inspiration behind her book, Embrace Your Edge, and provides advice to those looking to make a major career change.
What We Covered:
00:39 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Hang Black, VP of Global Revenue and Enablement at Juniper Networks, who shares her Revenue Operations origin story
02:02 – Skills Hang took from her Engineering background that have been integral in her sales career
03:51 – How Hang defines Revenue Enablement and how it’s been a critical component of closing bigger deals
05:17 – Hang shares her thoughts on the evolution of sales technology
06:16 – How to get sales professionals to embrace and utilize new sales tech stack
08:43 – Advice Hang would give to smaller companies on how to approach Revenue Enablement
10:58 – Hang speculates on the future of Revenue Enablement and sales technology
11:47 – One thing Hang wishes all salespeople knew about Revenue Enablement
12:28 – Hang talks about her book, Embrace Your Edge
13:37 – Advice Hang would give to those with diverse backgrounds looking to make a significant career change
16:00 – Thom thanks Hang for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with her
Tweetable Quotes:
“I always say I started engineering because I like numbers and I like complex problems. I ended up in sales because I like numbers with dollar signs in front of them a lot better.” (01:49) (Hang)**
“It took me a while to shed the skin of ‘I know better than the salespeople do.’ It’s not until you sit under the umbrella of sales that you actually understand that we are the ones who have the privilege to represent the voice of the customer and what they need.” (03:11) (Hang)**
“The customer journey is no longer a linear model; it’s an infinity model. Customers can enter and exit at any moment or any point. Just because you close a deal doesn’t mean that you don’t have to continue to nurture them through their experience.” (04:49) (Hang)**
“I’d rather have one or two tools that are very good at certain things than having a tool that says that it does everything and not well.” (08:35) (Hang)**
“The future is continued consolidation, I believe. And I do think that the tool stacks will definitely start collapsing, the vendors will start collapsing, which will make jobs for people like me a lot easier. But just as they collapse, there will be more technology and more innovations around the corner.” (11:04) (Hang)**
“I would hope the sellers know that we’ve got your best intentions. We’re not trying to feed you too much stuff, even though you will probably get too much stuff.” (11:55) (Hang)**
Links Mentioned:
Hang Black on LinkedIn
Hang Black Website
Juniper Networks
Embrace Your Edge: Pave Your Own Path as an Immigrant Woman in the Workplace
The Evolution of Revenue Operations & the Automation of Sales with QuotaPath’s Ryan Milligan Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with Director of Revenue Operations at QuotaPath, Ryan Milligan.
In his role, Ryan works to help and support sales teams with their sales tech processes so that they can do their jobs better and hit quota. Ryan is passionate about connecting systems together, building scalable processes, and geeking out on sales technology.
Today, Thom and Ryan engage in a rich discussion about the evolution of Revenue Operations, the relationship between Marketing and Sales, and how the future of sales will require a balance between automation and personability.
What We Covered:
00:36 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Ryan Milligan, Director of Revenue Operations at QuotaPath who discusses his buying process and the evolution of Revenue Operations
08:51 – How to get sales professionals to utilize their sales tech stack
12:27 – How Revenue Operations can be a bridge for sales professionals
14:17 – The biggest challenges Ryan faces in the Revenue Operations space
15:28 – How to measure success once you’ve implemented a new sales technology
17:38 – Ryan speculates on the future of sales tech
20:06 – Will traditional sales professionals become automated out of their roles?
22:26 – The personal aspect of sales
24:05 – One message Ryan would relay to every sales professional
25:47 – Thom thanks Ryan for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with him.
Tweetable Quotes:
“I think people are realizing that Marketing and Sales need to be super tightly connected. I think, historically in this world, there was this invisible fence where Marketing gets leads and throws them over the fence for Sales to run with. And I think people are realizing that decision cycles are much more complicated, the buyers are much smarter and everything is getting much more crowded.” (04:02) (Ryan)**
“I, very intentionally, want to be incredibly and closely aligned to a sales team. It is sales tech. You’re doing systems to help a team.” (11:29) (Ryan)**
“I think you’re going to continue to see a massive amount of automation in these sales processes, but I think you’re also gonna see a lot of people wanting to make sure, as customers, that the automation is still feeling very personalized and finding new paths to talk to customers.” (19:07) (Ryan)**
“It’s a shame that you can’t be in-person as much for sure. But it does give you access to people all over the globe.” (23:26) (Ryan)**
Links Mentioned:
Ryan Milligan on LinkedIn
QuotaPath
ryan.milligan@quotapath.com
Tune & See with Revenue Grid’s Vlad Voskresensky Vlad Voskresensky is the co-founder and CEO of Revenue Grid, a leading AI Guided Selling Platform that nudges sales teams with step-by-step guidance towards actions that bring the best results, shows deals at risk, and prioritizes tactics with the greatest impact.
Vlad has been driving the product vision and leading the company’s technology direction for over a decade, reinforced with more than 20 years of deep expertise in connecting enterprise (CRM systems) and personal environments.
Vlad gained numerous helpful insights while collaborating with such tech giants as Salesforce, Oracle, SAP, as well as other Fortune 100 companies in the field of business workflows automation, sales enablement, sales, and service acceleration.
Today, Scott and Vlad sit down to talk all about the work Vlad is doing at Revenue Grid, what it means to embrace the rise of sales technology, and what the best sales organizations are implementing to excel in this competitive industry. Vlad dives deep and explains the difference between Guided Selling and Revenue Intelligence. Scott and Vlad discuss the importance of relationship building and differentiation in sales.
Finally, Vlad speaks to productivity trends he has noticed in other organizations, the ‘why’ behind data, and the challenges of adapting to our new world and society that has increasingly become remote.
What We Covered:
00:54 – Scott introduces today’s guest, Vlad Voskresensky
01:07 – The top three things Vlad has noticed about the best sales leaders and organizations
01:45 – Number One: Differentiation
02:29 – Number Two: Implementing the Latest Tech Stack
03:25 – Number Three: Adapting to this new ‘Remote World’
04:05 – Vlad expounds on his background and his company, Revenue Grid
08:31 – ‘Revenue Intelligence’ vs. ‘Guided Selling’
14:03 – The rise of Sales Ops roles and increasing tech stack
18:27 – Scott takes a moment to promote the upcoming Sales Tech Expo
20:28 – What’s missing from the current sales tech stack
21:49 – Why all conversations are not created equal
25:17 – Relationship building and other best practices for differentiation
28:23 – Vlad reiterates the importance of Sales Operations
30:57 – Trends Vlad has noticed that organizations utilize to increase productivity
34:06 – The ‘Why’ behind the data
38:07 – Zoom vs. audio-only phone calls
43:58 – How listeners can learn more about Revenue Grid
44:35 – Scott thanks Vlad for joining the show today
Tweetable Quotes:
“I would say that there are three pillars of value in any revenue intelligence platform, and we are no exception. And these are: capturing the data from where it should be captured, putting the data into play and providing the meaningful insights for sales leadership and sales reps, literally guiding them through the next steps.” (04:34)**
“Revenue Intelligence is the answer to the question, ‘what?’ While Guided Selling is the response to the question, ‘How?’” (09:05)**
“You may think that your problem is with quality of leads. But then, after the analysis, you may figure out that the problem is with the quality of speech you deliver to those leads.” (21:18)**
“There is one very interesting conversation I had with a RevOps guru. He said, ‘Look, there are no silver bullets which you may start doing in your sales org that others are not doing. And even if you find that silver bullet, the next day your competitors will be doing the same.’” (36:24)**
Links Mentioned:
scott@top1.fm
2022 Sales Success Summit
Vlad Voskresensky on LinkedIn
Throw Down a Challenge with Dan Heffernan Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with sales guru, Dan Heffernan.
Dan is the Chief Growth Officer at Dale Carnegie, and he works with customers all over the world, helping them grow their teams and shape their cultures. Dale Carnegie is a unique company because they actually work in eighty-eight countries.
They do training in thirty-five different languages and they have over three thousand trainings. To say that Dan knows a little bit about sales, sales training and sales technology would be a gross understatement!
Today, Thom and Dan talk about the many offerings Dale Carnegie provides to their clients and customers. Dan expounds on his role as Chief Growth Officer and shares what he wishes everyone knew about sales technology.
Finally, Dan speaks to the impact the global pandemic has had on sales on B2B sales and the important role face-to-face interaction continues to play in sales.
What We Covered:
00:38 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Dan Heffernan, who joins the show to share his background in sales, sales training, and sales technology
02:12 – How sales managers can ensure sales professionals utilize the sales tech available to them
03:42 – Dan talks about the company he works for, Dale Carnegie, and some of the unique tools they offer their clients
06:02 – Dan expounds on his role as Chief Growth Officer and what he wishes more people knew about sales technology
07:33 – Areas where Dan hopes his organization can improve upon
08:17 – Social selling
10:05 – Dan talks about some of the most exciting innovations we’ve seen in sales tech and speculates on what the future may hold
11:12 – Tools Dan is currently using to sell to those in a buying cycle
13:01 – How a global company approaches sales technology
15:01 – How the global pandemic has changed B2B
18:23 – The importance of face-to-face interactions in sales
21:00 – What Dan wishes every sales leader understood about sales technology
22:33 – Thom thanks Dan for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with him
Tweetable Quotes:
“No matter how big your company is, adoption is always a challenge because sales reps usually have their own flow and their own focus. They know what works for them and trying something new could get in the way of their production. And salespeople avoid that for obvious reasons.” (02:37)**
“Sales reps and sales leaders that are effective are all doing the same thing. They’re testing something, making sure it works and they’re finding success and sharing that success quickly.” (07:19)**
“Social selling is a world where buyers are doing most of the decision making independently before they have to engage with a salesperson. And so we need to make that easy for them.” (09:35)**
“I’m excited about the whole idea that, as salespeople, we no longer should be wasting our time selling to people who don’t want to buy. And that we’ve got an opportunity to really just be selling to those who are buying because we know who’s buying now.” (10:33)**
“If we’re feeling like our sales reps and our teams and our leaders are wasting time selling to people who will never buy our products then we’re definitely not using technology the right way.” (22:16)**
Links Mentioned:
Dan Heffernan on LinkedIn
Dale Carnegie Website
Dan Heffernan's Email – dan.heffernan@dalecarnegie.com
Enhancing Sales Relationships Through Technology with Quantum Computing’s Dave Morris Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with friend and Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) at Quantum Computing, David Morris. Quantum Computing is a cloud-based quantum software vendor, offering ready-to-run software for complex constrained optimization computations.
Today, Thom and Dave dive deep into Dave’s eclectic sales background in enterprise sales and distribution. Dave has always been a scrappy salesperson looking to push out the latest fresh ideas that enhance his ability to sell. Dave explains the concepts of expected value, the importance of profitability while selling, and why relationships in sales will always matter regardless of the evolution of sales technology.
He provides best practices for sales professionals to fully take advantage of sales technology and speculate on what the future holds.
What We Covered::
00:39 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Dave Morris, CRO at Quantum Computing who explains its mission and the work he does there
03:43 – The biggest changes Dave has observed throughout his nearly three decades of sales experience
05:09 – Dave speaks to the evolution in sales technology and what’s going on today
08:57 – Dave provides his thoughts on those who think automation will replace salespeople
10:18 – Dave stresses the importance of profitability and profit margin in sales
12:37 – Expected value explained
14:22 – Best practices companies can utilize to get sales professionals to utilize their sales tech stack
16:23 – How to funnel these sales tech tools upward to executives and the C-Suite
18:02 – What are the most successful sales professionals doing right with sales tech
20:00 – What sales professionals are doing wrong
21:32 – Dave speculates on the future of sales tech
25:14 – The best tip Dave would give to sales professionals
26:48 – Thom thanks Dave for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with him
Tweetable Quotes:
“Quantum Computing is the next generation of computing.” (02:23) (David)**
“What people are really looking for is a business advisor. They’re looking for somebody who can understand their business, hopefully, has some experience in their business and then can understand the technology and figure out how that technology is gonna impact their business.” (09:33) (David)**
“In the VC world, a VC is basically interested in a new technology that has a ten times impact for the customer. And the basic model is, ‘We’ll give the customer five times and we’ll take five times.’ I know that’s an overly simplistic way to look at it, but I think that’s what customers are looking at.” (11:21) (David)**
“When somebody says, ‘That’s too expensive. Can I have a discount?’ what they’re actually saying to you is, ‘I don’t see your value.’” (12:37) (David)**
“The most successful people like winning and they like helping the customer out. And whatever amount of money they get, and it’s likely going to be substantial, they don’t even know until it shows up how much it’s going to be.” (20:22) (David)**
“I really like that there are more and more tools coming out, from a technology perspective, that allow me to connect with the customer not just on a business level but in a way that validates that we are a trusted advisor.” (22:15) (David)**
Links Mentioned:
Dave Morris on LinkedIn
Quantum Computing Website
Helping Sales Go from Great to World Class with CentralSquare's Julie Greenfield Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with Julie Greenfield.
Julie is the Head of Revenue Enablement at Central Square, an organization with a mission to innovate on behalf of the public sector to create the broadest and most agile software platform to help solve some of the most pressing issues facing local governments today. Julie is passionate about helping others identify and reach their goals through the development of individual growth plans.
Today, Thom and Julie talk about the role that Revenue Enablement plays in an organization as it pertains to Sales and Marketing. They discuss the amazing technological leaps that have been made in sales and how it impacts how organizations operate.
Finally, Julie speaks to the importance of having world-class CEOs and Executive Leadership teams in order to foster a culture of innovation and better selling.
What We Covered:
00:46 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Julie Greenfield, who joins the show to share her background in Revenue Enablement
02:30 – Bridging the gap between Sales and Marketing
03:59 – How sellers can partner with people in enablement roles in order to achieve more success
07:10 – Julie speaks to why she believes there’s an aversion to the adoption of new sales technologies
09:47 – Trends Julie has observed in the world of sales technology
12:01 – Julie discusses the ‘Big Brother’ issue and speaks to the monitoring of sales technologies
16:03 – Strategies for getting sales professionals to utilize the sales tech available to them
19:02 – Fostering a team atmosphere in sales
21:05 – Julie speculates on the future of Revenue Enablement and sales technology
23:54 – Thom thanks Julie for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with her
Tweetable Quotes:
“Revenue enablement focuses on all of those areas that touch the customer.” (01:35)**
“Really when you talk with enablement professionals, we want to improve efficiency and effectiveness of our sellers. I’m trying to remove the barriers to their success. I want to maximize their selling time and minimize that dreaded time they have to do with putting things in CRM, following processes, whatever the tech stack is. That’s our goal. We want to partner.” (05:28)**
“I will say that a positive of the situation we’ve had over the last year and a half is that a lot of people are really looking for learning. And of course, there’s the pivot more to virtual-instructor web training, online learning, self-paced learning.” (09:07)**
“This remote world is here to stay. Embrace the technology, be able to set yourself apart by using it, embracing it and meeting the customers where they’re at.” (11:36)**
“I’m here to help support [Sales]. I use this terminology all the time. We’re looking to help go from good to great or great to world-class.” (13:39)**
“It starts at the top. It really truly starts with that world-class CEO. It starts with that world-class Executive Leadership team. They have to provide the culture, at the company level, that we are one team.” (19:24)**
Links Mentioned:
Julie Greenfield on LinkedIn
CentralSquare Website
Buying Is Harder: Looking at the Other Side of the Sales Coin with Garin Hess Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with author and serial entrepreneur, Garin Hess.
Garin is the founder and CEO of Consensus, an intelligent demo automation software company that helps sales professionals be more successful. Garin has spent his entire career in enterprise software and is passionate about combining technology and methodology to make B2B buying easier.
Today, Thom and Garin talk about the buying aspect of sales and why Garin believes it can actually be harder than selling. Garin speaks to challenges that sales engineering professionals are facing today and provides best practices for buyer enablement.
Finally, Garin speculates on the future of sales technology and what it means for B2B buying.
What We Covered:
00:38 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Garin Hess, who joins the show to share his background in buyer enablement and B2B buying
04:56 – Garin speaks to why there seems to be a lack of sales technology to support Sales Engineering
09:11 – Challenges that sales engineering professionals are facing today
13:01 – Garin provides best practices for overcoming issues of qualification
14:49 – What makes it so hard to buy in the B2B environment
18:26 – Trends Garin has observed in the world of sales technology
20:11 – How to get sales professionals to utilize the sales tech available to them
22:07 – Garin provides one final piece of advice to sales professionals and sales leaders
23:44 – Thom thanks Garin for joining the show and lets listeners know where to connect with him
Tweetable Quotes:
“Our focus is on demo automation because the demo and engaging sales engineers is one of those things that’s inherently difficult to scale and make really efficient. And so that’s why we focus there.” (03:21)**
“Sales engineering has traditionally been looked at as a necessary evil rather than a strategic function. Marketing and sales are always looked at as strategic functions.” (06:20)**
“This issue of qualification is such a problem because it steals time away from their most important deals.” (11:06)**
“The premise of buyer enablement is you, as the seller, should be in charge of the buying process.” (17:37)**
“One of the main things I would emphasize in sales, in general, is we focus a lot on financial ROI, which is great. I’d like to emphasize that we should be focusing on emotional ROI as well.” (22:13)**
Links Mentioned:
Garin Hess on LinkedIn
Consensus Website
Selling Is Hard. Buying Is Harder
Orchestrating Sales Success with Allego Co-Founders Mark Magnacca & Yuchun Lee Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with Mark Magnacca and Yuchun Lee, co-founders of the sales enablement software platform, Allego. Allego ensures that sellers have the skills, knowledge, and content they need to optimize team success in a virtual world.
Today, Thom talks to Mark and Yuchun about what inspired them to launch Allego and the incredible growth they’ve seen this past year despite the global pandemic. Mark and Yuchun speak to the power of video and how they are getting their clients to embrace this tool as part of their tech stack. They talk about the book they recently released, Mastering Virtual Selling, and what they are seeing currently in the world of sales technology.
Finally, Mark and Yuchun provide best practices for sales professionals to fully take advantage of sales technology and speculate on what the future holds for this exciting industry.
What We Covered:
00:39 – Thom introduces today’s guests, Mark Magnacca and Yuchun Lee, co-founders of the sales enablement software platform, Allego
01:12 – Mark and Yuchun share the origin story of Allego and speak to some of the incredible capabilities they’ve been able to achieve recently
04:53 – What Mark and Yuchun are doing to help get clients to embrace the power of video
06:18 – Mark and Yuchun speak to what inspired them to write a book on Virtual Selling
12:46 – What Mark and Yuchun see in the world of sales technology
16:13 – Best practices companies can utilize to get sales professionals to utilize their sales tech stack
20:12 – Mark and Yuchun speculate on the future of sales tech
24:00 – The best tip Mark and Yuchun would give to sales professionals
25:49 – Thom thanks Mark and Yuchun for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with them
Tweetables:
“I would say that the pandemic actually has helped our business quite a bit because it has opened the eyes of folks that there’s a possibility out there that you can be successful in selling and do that not in person but in addition to in-person.” (03:59) (Yuchun)**
“Video is a unique form factor. If you think about it, it’s kinda the closest thing to the way most of our brain works, with visual imagery and sound and movement. So, why not use something that is similar to the way we learn anyway?” (07:00) (Mark)**
“I began to realize that there’s this flow. And, when done properly, salespeople can orchestrate and use their time way better by setting the stage before you get on a live Zoom call.” (11:43) (Mark)**
“In the area of sales enablement, regardless of what kind of technologies or vendors or tools you have, you really have to solve a set of problems. And they are very straightforward. You gotta help onboard effectively. You’ve gotta be able to launch product successfully. You’ve got to make sure the seller can access important content to share with their prospect. You’ve gotta make sure sales managers can coach sellers properly and lastly you’ve got to be able to engage your buyers virtually.” (13:47) (Yuchun)**
“Part of the entire ethos of our business is all about customer success and we’re known in the market for that. ” (18:53) (Yuchun)**
Links Mentioned:
Mark Magnacca on LinkedIn
Yuchun Lee on LinkedIn
Allego
Mastering Virtual Selling Book
Benjamin Zander’s TED Video ‘The Transformative Power of Classical Music
Crystal Knows
Gathering the Intel and Relationship Management: Tips on Becoming a Sales Rock Star with Sam Richter Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with his close friend, speaker, best-selling author, and tech entrepreneur, Sam Richter.
Sam is a tech and research junkie who utilizes his skills to help sales professionals leverage technology to improve sales.
Today, Thom and Sam talk about the importance of relationship-building, the role that data plays in the sales process, and why personalization and care really matter.
Sam speculates on the future of sales tech, including the emergence of Artificial Intelligence and machine learning, and shares his thoughts on how sales professionals can leverage tools like LinkedIn and his very own search engine overlay tool, IntelNgin.
What We Covered:
00:35 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Sam Richter, who joins the show to share his background in journalism and advertising and the shift he made to become an author and speaker
06:46 – How gathering data helps sales professionals to close sales
08:58 – What Sam sees in the world of sales technology that is working
10:34 – How sales professionals can get better at relationship building
14:29 – Sam shares advice on how to get called back and creative ways sales professionals can leverage LinkedIn as a sales tool
20:20 – Sam speculates on the future of sales tech
22:47 – Sam talks about the search engine overlay tool he created called IntelNgin
25:30 – The important role Research plays in the sales process
27:23 – Sam provides his thoughts on if technology will ever fully replace sales professionals
29:07 – Sam provides one final piece of advice to sales professionals and sales leaders
30:07 – Thom thanks Sam for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to connect with him
Tweetables:
“What I talk about is how to find information on people and how to use it in ways that helps you develop relationships.” (01:23)**
“Being an introvert, I realized quickly that if I could get the other person talking, then I didn’t have to talk. And that was my goal. But along the way, I also learned that the more I got the other person talking about themselves, the more I actually ended up selling.” (03:09)**
“Sales technology has allowed companies, sales managers and sales leaders – to be blunt – to be lazy.” (07:12)**
“It is really hard but you need to stay in touch with people in ways that are relevant to what they care about versus what you care about.” (17:03)**
“LinkedIn is really a marketing tool. It’s a way to keep your brand out there.” (18:08)**
“Technology is only as good as the people that are leveraging the technology. And the people are only as good as the process you have in place.” (20:52)**
“Technology is awesome. Leverage technology to become more efficient and more effective. But, never forget that you, the salesperson, have the ability to connect with a prospect in a way that’s relevant to them.” (29:20)**
Links Mentioned:
Sam Richter on LinkedIn
Sam Richter Website
IntelNgin
You Got The News Website
Zapier
Salesforce
Microsoft 365 CRM
Google News
Powering the Revenue Operations Engine with Clari’s Rosalyn Santa Elena Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with sales leader, podcast host, and advisor, Rosalyn Santa Elena.
Rosalyn is the Head of Revenue Operations at Clari, an organization that provides revenue teams with total visibility into their business, to drive process rigor, spot risk and opportunity in the pipeline, increase forecast accuracy, and drive overall efficiency.
Today, Thom and Rosalyn discuss her incredible career working for both Fortune 500 companies and early-stage startups. Rosalyn opens up about the process she employs to identify and implement sales tech stacks that are efficient and solution-based.
Rosalyn talks about her role in powering the Revenue Operations Engine, provides advice to those in sales and revenue operations careers, and highlights the importance of mentorship.
What We Covered:
00:35 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Rosalyn Santa Elena, who joins the show to share her experience in Revenue Operations and highlights the stark differences in working for large organizations and smaller startup companies
03:38 – How Revenue Operations became an integral component of Sales
05:26 – Rosalyn shares insights that she believes we need to be paying attention to with regards to sales technology
07:02 – How to get sales professionals to better utilize sales technology
08:40 – Rosalyn talks about how to deal with sales tech adoption especially among sales professionals who are resistant
09:59 – Rosalyn shares the process she utilizes to identify the ideal tech stack to invest in
13:08 – Rosalyn speaks to the role that Big Data plays in her job
15:06 – Tips and advice Rosalyn would give to those interested in a career in Revenue Operations
17:32 – Thom takes a moment to promote the upcoming Sales Tech Expo
18:06 – Advice Rosalyn would give to sales professionals on how to sell better
19:35 – Rosalyn speaks to the importance of finding a mentor
22:36 – Rosalyn speculates on the future of sales tech
24:14 – Thom thanks Rosalyn for joining the show today and let’s listeners know how to connect with her
Tweetables:
“When I joined my first startup, I had the opportunity to jump in and really build an Operations team from scratch. It was a hundred people, small company, a dozen customers and I had an opportunity to really take my experience and go build something.” (02:46)**
“I think something to look out for really is to not buy a tool just to buy the tool. You have to be very thoughtful around your process of what is it that you’re trying to solve and then look for the right solution that’s going to support that.” (06:16)**
“That’s really one of the biggest values of Revenue Operations is bringing those insights to the table and also managing all the data to ensure it’s accurate, comprehensive, real-time and always available to the right people and the right time.” (14:18)**
“I think one thing that we’ve seen a big shift in is a lot more sharing in sales and a lot more coaching.” (18:52)**
Links Mentioned:
Rosalyn Santa Elena on LinkedIn
Clari Website
Keeping Humanity in Sales with Anita Nielsen Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Thom sits down with author, entrepreneur, and B2B sales expert, Anita Nielsen.
Anita has devoted herself to helping remove obstacles in sales professionals’ path through compassionate coaching. Her goal is to help sales leaders create high-performing sales organizations that are fueled by the culture and designed to accelerate growth.
Today, Thom and Anita talk about the humanity of sales and provide best practices and strategies for bringing this human element back into the sales industry. They discuss sales tech trends Anita has noticed throughout the years and why the number of sales tech stacks out there can be overwhelming for sales professionals and organizations.
Finally, Anita shares her thoughts on the critical need to be a lifelong learner and why those who do are much better off that those who don’t.
What We Covered:
00:40 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Anita Nielsen, who joins the show to share her observations of technology and sales and why the sheer number of technologies out there is overwhelming
02:52 – How to get sales professionals to better utilize sales technology
05:06 – Anita talks about why some sales professionals resist sales tech that they are offered
06:32 – Anita revisits the notion that there are an overwhelming amount of options out there
08:52 – Anita talks about her book, Beat the Bots, and why the human element of sales is critical
12:58 – How people can build up their humanity and use technology to do it better
14:51 – The power of remembering birthdays and other small touches of human connection
20:35 – Anita provides her thoughts on the value of being a lifelong learner
23:43 – Thom takes a moment to promote the upcoming Sales Tech Expo
24:07 – Anita speculates on the future of sales tech
24:42 – Thom thanks Anita for joining the show today and let’s listeners know how to connect with her
Tweetables:
“Tech is only as good as the people who wield it.” (02:07)**
“You have to surround salespeople with communication and understand of what you are trying to do with that tech. And it has to help them.” (03:12)**
“People buy based on emotion, we’ve all heard this in sales. They later justify it. Well, the trick is that if you can’t tap into that emotion, if you can’t understand that emotion, how are you going to be able to get them to make a buying decision in your favor? It’s probably not gonna go your way.” (09:43)**
“My technology is used to tell me, ‘Hey, right now might be a good time to show them this case study. Or, maybe it’s time for you to set up a reference call.’ Any of those things that technology can do to support me to better enable the buyer to make the decision in my favor, that’s where technology needs to play.” (14:22)**
“There’s a bit of the ‘Survival of the Fittest’ thing going on. The way I look at it is the salespeople who are on their game and learning and moving forward and creating a personal brand and creating value, they’re still killing it. But the ones who aren’t, they’re falling by the wayside and it’s a little sad.” (21:18)**
Links Mentioned:
Anita Nielsen on LinkedIn
LDK Advisory Services Website
Beat The Bots Book
Salesforce
Blinkist
The Sales Tech Expo: Creating a Culture of Connection with Sales Success Media’s Scott Ingram Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, sales expert and entrepreneur, Scott Ingram joins the show to discuss his latest project, the Sales Tech Expo. Scott is the man behind Sales Success Media, a community that deconstructs world-class sales professionals. Scott is an incredibly thoughtful and deliberate sales professional who lives at the intersection of sales and innovation.
Today, Thom and Scott talk all about what to expect from the upcoming Sales Tech Expo in Austin, Texas. Scott speaks to what inspired him to launch this project, the importance of creating value for both practitioners and sponsors alike, and the culture of connecting at live events. Finally, Scott speaks to the investment boom in the sales tech industry and why it is poised to continue into the future.
What We Covered:
00:39 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Scott Ingram, who joins the show to talk about the upcoming Sales Tech Expo
04:43 – Scott talks about the importance of creating value for both the sales practitioner and sponsor communities when organizing an event
06:23 – Thom and Scott talk about the culture of connecting at events
09:22 – Why Scott is extremely excited about the timing of the Sales Tech Expo
12:26 – Scott talks about the structure and core tracks of the Sales Tech Expo
15:09 – Scott discusses the investments that are taking place in sales tech
16:50 – Scott let’s listeners know what to expect from the Sales Tech Expo and where they can learn more about the event
23:42 – Thom thanks Scott for joining the show today and all the work he’s doing at Sales Success Media
Tweetables:
“What I recognized early this year was that there isn’t a very practitioner-led event that brings all of the disciplines of sales together with all of the sales tech vendors and sales tech solutions.” (02:27)**
“The only way an event works is if there’s value on both sides. I think, at the end of the day, it comes down to experience. And events are successful when you deliver that experience.” (05:10)**
“I’m a pretty good salesperson, but you know who’s better than me? My best customer telling their story of working with us.” (10:46)**
“I’m looking to create a track called ‘Founders and Funders,’ where we can bring together the sales tech entrepreneurs, the C-level executives, the VCs, the angels, and those that are investing in the space and create this dynamic where they can all network.” (13:42)**
“We’re well north of $1.5 billion of new investment that has flowed into this space. Sales tech is hot right now. It is attracting massive dollars because the investors see this is the new frontier.” (16:08)**
Links Mentioned:
Scott Ingram on LinkedIn
Sales Success Media Website
Crunchbase
Sales Tech Expo Website
Less is More: Driving Sales Tech Stack Performance with Heinz Marketing's Matt Heinz Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, keynote speaker, author, and radio host, Matt Heinz joins the show to discuss his background in marketing, the relationship between Sales and Marketing, and trends he’s noticing in the sales tech industry. Matt has over fifteen years of experience in marketing, business development, and sales experience from a variety of organizations, vertical industries, and company sizes.
Today, Thom and Matt discuss the key role Marketing plays in supporting sales professionals. Matt talks about his experience with prospecting and provides best practices, including the value of utilizing the phone as a means of outreach. Matt shares his thoughts on sales tech stack that all organizations should be employing and expounds on what excites him most about the future of sales tech.
What We Covered:
00:39 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Matt Heinz, who joins the show to talk about his marketing company, Heinz Marketing, and the relationship between Sales and Marketing
03:40 – Matt speaks to the tools that both Sales and Marketing utilize
05:12 – Trends Matt has noticed in sales tech that sales professionals need to pay attention to
08:01 – Best practices for standing out while prospecting
12:39 – Matt stresses the importance of paying attention to the little details when looking to differentiate yourself
15:05 – Matt lists the sales tech stack that all companies should have in their arsenal and the value of using the phone as a means of outreach
18:38 – How to get sales professionals to better utilize sales technology
21:09 – What excites Matt the most about the future of sales tech
23:18 – Final words of wisdom from Matt
24:21 – Thom thanks Matt for joining the show today and let’s listeners know how to connect with him
Tweetables:
“You still, as a business, want to build brand. You still want to build thought leadership. You still want to build credibility for your brand and to build trust. But, you can’t just focus on that and say, ‘We’ve done our job for sales.’ You have to provide more tangible value in the way of actual, qualified leads as well as tools, content, and support to help the team close more business.” (03:18)**
“In the best, highest performing organizations where they’re consistently hitting their number, Marketing is helping to create the playbook of, ‘How do I use LinkedIn Sales Navigator to get more value?’” (04:32)**
“That’s my number one feedback to selling organizations is recognize the volume of noise in front of your prospects and be better.” (06:59)**
“According to Gartner Sales Research, only three to four percent of companies in your market are actively buying right now. Forty-six percent of the market are considered poised.” (14:02)**
“So the question you asked was, ‘How do we get salespeople to better use the technology?’ I would say the answer is probably in asking the opposite question, ‘What is the technology that’s gonna best support the sales organization?’” (19:03)**
“You don’t win awards, let alone sales, from having the most tools. You win awards and sales and make more money and get promotions in having a tech stack that is actively used that has a direct correlation to driving performance. In ninety-plus percent of occasions that means less is more.” (20:40)**
Links Mentioned:
Matt Heinz on LinkedIn
Matt’s Email
Heinz Marketing on Twitter
Heinz Marketing Website
Salesforce
Outreach
VanillaSoft
LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Tenacity, Determination and Sales Enablement with HP’s Laura Welch Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Laura Welch joins the show to discuss her experience in marketing, product marketing, training, and enablement.
Laura is an incredibly impressive individual, one whose tenacity and determination have helped her as a Black Belt, marathon runner, public speaker, and sales professional. In her current role in Sales Enablement, Laura supports and trains sales professionals to help them be more effective.
Today, Thom and Laura discuss how to effectively measure sales enablement, the technologies that are threatening the modern sales professional, and actions sales professionals can take to remain relevant in the ever-evolving world of sales tech. Laura speaks to what excites her most about the future of sales tech and provides advice on how to be the most successful person you can be.
What We Covered:
00:46 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Laura Welch who joins the show to talk about her sales journey and what makes her great at sales enablement
03:59 – What sales professionals want from their sales enablement team
05:04 – How to effectively measure sales enablement
06:56 – Laura speaks to recent trends in sales tech she’s noticed
08:38 – Sales tech that threatens great salespeople
09:58 – How salespeople remain relevant in a world of emerging sales tech
11:48 – Laura provides tips and best practices for sales enablement
14:23 – How to get sales professionals to better utilize sales technology
16:06 – What excites Laura the most about the current state of sales tech
17:43 – Laura speculates on the future of sales tech
18:17 – Laura reflects on the Ted Talk she participated in and speaks to why it’s important to have tenacity in sales
20:38 – Laura provides tips for salespeople that can help them be more successful
22:05 – Thom thanks Laura for joining the show today and let’s listeners know how to connect with her
Tweetables:
“You don’t stay in sales enablement long if you are not passionate that salespeople are the most important people in the company.” (03:19)**
“What makes a great salesperson unique and invaluable is their ability to tell a story and relate and look at it from the customer’s point of view.” (07:23)**
“The technology that is threatening salespeople is just Big Data.” (09:33)**
“Salespeople are faced with too much technology they have to deal with. They want it simplified. If you can simplify things for your salespeople that is what you should do. And if you try to push out a technology and salespeople don’t like it, it’s not working.” (14:55)**
“Surround yourself with people who are great at what you want to be great at. So if you’re a salesperson and you want to be great at closing, you want to be great at renewing, you want to be great at customer relationships, find people that are great at that, and do what they do.” (20:55)**
Links Mentioned:
Laura Welch on LinkedIn
Sales Enablement Podcast
HP Website
Laura’s TEDxTalk
Bridging the Gap from Knowing to Understanding with Sales Enablement’s Andy Paul Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Andy Paul joins the show to discuss his extensive experience in sales technology. Throughout his professional career, Andy has sold everything from computers and small businesses to complex communications systems. He’s closed hundreds of millions of dollars in products and services before eventually starting his own company.
Andy is also the host of Sales Enablement, a podcast that showcases in-depth conversations with the most exciting B2B sales and marketing leaders in the business. Today, Thom and Andy talk about the current state of sales technology, why sales managers tend to follow the status quo, and what sales tech Andy wishes existed years ago. Andy provides his thoughts on the most impactful ways sales professionals can utilize sales technology without becoming too reliant on it. Finally, Andy shares his thoughts on the future of the sales industry and the critical role that technology will play.
What We Covered:
00:36 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Andy Paul who joins the show to talk about his podcast, Sales Enablement, sales tech trends, and changes Andy has noticed in the industry throughout the years
06:27 – Andy reveals what sales managers should be doing to get people to be the best version of themselves
09:04 – Andy provides his thoughts on why managers tend to stick to the status quo
12:30 – Why some sellers are still hesitant to adapt to sales technology
14:07 – How to get sales professionals to better utilize sales technology
16:22 – The sales tools and tech that Andy wishes existed twenty years ago
17:40 – How sales has changed throughout the years
19:29 – Andy talks about what he thinks is the mark of a great salesperson when it comes to how they utilize technology
21:27 – What Andy wishes all salespeople knew that they don’t currently know
23:55 – Andy speculates on the future of sales tech
25:00 – Thom thanks Andy for joining the show today and lets listeners know how to connect with him
Tweetables:
“The idea is to help the person not become the best seller, it’s to help them to become the best version of themselves.” (05:19)**
“Leaning into [sales tech] too much, in my mind, can be problematic. But, that said, I think we’re still learning.” (13:46)**
“To me, enablement is anything and everything that enables a seller to have a knowledge-based interaction with the buyer.” (19:49)**
“To the extent, we can use our technology to enable people to bridge that gap from knowing to understanding, then I think we’ll be effective overall.” (21:08)**
Links Mentioned:
Andy Paul on LinkedIn
Sales Enablement Podcast
Harvard Business Review Article ‘Let Your Workers Rebel’
A Sales Tech Game-Changer with Tenbound's David Dulany Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, David Dulany joins the show to discuss the latest trends he’s noticed in sales tech.
David is the Founder and CEO of Tenbound, a Research, Advisory & Events firm that is focused 100% on Sales Development. Their mission is to help companies achieve higher pipeline and revenue.
Today, Thom and David talk about the evolution of sales roles into more distinct and specific categories, the importance David places on employee assessments both before and after the hiring process, and how David gets his team members to embrace and utilize the sales tech stack he implements at Tenbound.
Finally, David shares some key takeaways from his book and provides best practices on how to build an efficient and successful SDR program.
What We Covered:
00:45 – Thom introduces today’s guest, David Dulany who joins the show to discuss the work he does at Tenbound, trends he’s seeing in sales tech, and the future of Conversational Intelligence
03:46 – What inspired David to launch Tenbound
04:51 – David speaks to how sales roles have become more specific and siloed
07:49 – The importance David places on employee assessments both before and after the hiring process is complete
10:57 – David talks about the market map that he and his team utilize and the one technology that has had the greatest impact on his clients
12:13 – Why data is the lifeblood of sales development
14:04 – How David gets his team to embrace sales tech and actually utilize it
16:04 – David talks about key takeaways from his book, The Sales Development Framework
17:31 – Steps for building an efficient and successful SDR Program
18:39 – David speaks to how SDRs can help bridge the gap between Marketing and Sales
20:21 – David speculates on the future of sales tech
21:39 – Thom thanks David for joining the show today and lets listeners know how to connect with him and Tenbound
Tweetables:
“The first and foremost thing that you should definitely take a look at is the Conversational Intelligence space. Being able to plug in and analyze conversations that are happening on the sales floor – whether it be the SDR team, the AEs, or customer success – is just a complete game-changer.” (01:52)**
“The hypothesis is that you want to have people stay in their lanes and really focus on distinct work activities. Prospecting – going outbound, making cold calls, making lists, doing research, following up on inbound leads – is a specialty.” (06:06)**
“When it comes to assessments, people go with their gut a lot in the hiring process or they go with what’s on the sheet. But if you start to look into the capabilities of some of these tools, it’s much deeper than just a gut feeling. They use behavioral analytics and scientific analysis to really make sure you have the right people.” (09:46)**
“Data is the lifeblood of sales development, especially outbound.” (12:31)**
“We wrote the book as a way to look at the Sales Development Program and say, ‘Ok, let’s level set. How do you actually run an SDR program? How do you run it efficiently and make sure it’s got the best chance for success?’” (17:04)**
“From a leadership perspective, the Heads of Marketing and Sales really have to be in alignment based on what they’re expecting from the SDR team and how to get that performance up to the standard that they’re looking for.” (19:34)**
Links Mentioned:
David Dulany on LinkedIn
Tenbound Website
Salesforce
Who
The Sales Development Framework Book
Humanizing Sales Tech with Smile Virtual’s Nick Capozzi Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Nick Capozzi joins the show to share his extensive background in B2C sales and why he recently chose to enter into a B2B role as Vice President of Sales at Smile Virtual. Nick brings people together, he engages them and attempts to make genuine connections and relationships. This has served him incredibly well throughout his career and has given him a unique perspective on the human element of sales technology. Today, Thom and Nick share a discussion on what B2B sales professionals can learn from those who work in B2C. Nick speaks to the importance of building trust in sales, major hot spots in sales tech and what he would like to see in the evolution of sales tech. Finally, Nick shares best practices on how to utilize video to engage with prospective clients.
Clips:
What B2B sales professionals can learn from B2C sales professionals
The human element of sales tech
Best practices for building trust in sales
Using video to engage sales prospects
How technology sometimes gets in the way of sales
What We Covered:
00:37 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Nick Capozzi who joins the show to share his eclectic background in B2C sales as well as the work he’s doing in his new B2B role at Smile Virtual
03:26 – What B2B sales professionals can learn from B2C sales professionals
04:25 – The human element of sales tech
06:06 – Nick provides best practices for building trust in sales
10:02 – Major hot spots in the sales tech space that Nick has noticed
11:42 – Nick speaks to the work he’s doing in sales tech and onboarding
12:54 – How to get sales professionals who are averse to sales tech to actually utilize the sales tech stack that companies are incorporating into their day-to-day
15:25 – How Nick utilizes video to engage with sales prospects
19:29 – What excites Nick the most about the future of sales tech
20:30 – How technology sometimes gets in the way of sales
21:22 – A futuristic technology that Nick wishes was already invented
22:38 – Final words of wisdom from Nick
23:48 – Thom thanks Nick for joining the show today
Tweetables:
“I think that there’s opportunities for B2B to be more human. And I think coming from B2C that’s what we were was human.” (03:56)**
“To me, the only way I know how to build trust is to just engage with people and have genuine relationships.” (06:18)**
“I think we get lost in the day-to-day of what we do and how great our product or service is and we forget that we actually have to explain what it is.” (11:01)**
“Sales professionals are so worried about getting their calls in or hitting their number, and we have to take a step back and ask, ‘How do we train them to get there?’” (14:01)**
“Painting with a broad brush, my point is that if someone isn’t willing to adapt or doesn’t have a growth mindset, they’re probably not the right person to be on my team at least.” (15:16)**
“What can B2B learn from B2C? Be more human. It’s not hard to be human; it’s stuff we do every day in our social lives. But how do you do it without coming across the wrong way in business. I think that’s the only way you gotta think about it.” (22:53)**
Links Mentioned:
Nick Capozzi on LinkedIn
Smile Virtual Website
Zoom
Clubhouse
Enabling the Thoroughly Modern Sales Professional with Outreach’s Mary Shea Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Mary Shea joins the show to share the origin story of how she got involved in sales technology, trends she’s noticed, and where she sees the industry going in the future. Mary is the Global Innovation Evangelist for Outreach, the leading B2B sales engagement platform. Mary is an idea generator who is constantly looking towards the future. She’s a market influencer, content creator, connection maker, author, researcher, and keynote speaker. Today. Thom and Mary discuss how organizations can use technology to deliver better experiences for both their salespeople and their customers. Mary provides a detailed description of what the ‘thoroughly modern’ sales professional should look like. She also expounds on the importance of collaboration, understanding data, and how our ever-growing digital world will impact sales and sales technology.
Clips:
What people really need to pay attention to in the world of sales tech
Mary Shea on Outreach Kaia
Utilizing Sales Technology
Characteristics a modern sales professional needs to have
Mary Shea on Collaboration
What We Covered:
00:40 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Mary Shea who joins the show to discuss her background as a professional oboist and academic and shares her sales tech origin story
03:47 – Mary speaks to the trends she’s noticed in sale technology and business initiatives she’s working towards at Outreach
07:25 – Mary talks about the work she’s doing to open sellers minds to the opportunities that new sales technology can provide to be more efficient and more effective
09:28 – Mary speaks to how sales professionals can better utilize sales tech
11:06 – Mary describes her vision for the thoroughly modern sales professional and what skills they must have
13:49 – Mary stresses the importance of collaboration
16:15 – Mary speculates on how sellers and buyers will have to work across all digital platforms in the future
18:05 – The critical role of understanding data
20:24 – Mary discusses the ongoing pursuit of the alignment between sales and marketing and the emergence of Revenue Operations
23:31 – What excites Mary the most about the future of sales technology
24:55 – Thom thanks Mary for joining the show today and let’s listeners know where to connect with her
Tweetables:
“Even though it seems not directly related, I find that the right brain and left brain aspects of being a musician serve me very well in the technology space.” (03:12)**
“I’ve spent the last two to three years going out to talk to big sales organizations all over the world in Asia, Latin America, North America, Eastern and Western Europe to help expand the hearts and minds of sellers and open up their consciousness to the role that technology can play in enabling them to operate more efficiently and more effectively.” (07:54)**
“I think salespeople are more than willing to embrace technology or a new initiative if they understand what’s in it for them and what’s in it for their customers.” (09:40)**
“I think the thoroughly modern seller is someone who is comfortable and capable in delivering meaningful message and interaction across synchronous and asynchronous video. It’s someone who loves to collaborate both internally and externally.” (11:38)**
“I think as we get more and more digital, the role of the seller changes and becomes more consultative and more collaborative. That’s how I see things playing out.” (16:04)**
“We’re starting to see really big growth metrics from companies that are adopting Revenue Operations.” (22:56)**
Links Mentioned:
Mary Shea on LinkedIn
Mary Shea on Twitter
Outreach
Outreach Kaia
‘Death of a (B2B) Salesman’
Becoming a Sales Tech Stack Champ with Zoom's Brendan Short Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Brendan Short joins the show to share his background in B2B Enterprise SaaS, his current role as BDR Operations & Enablement Manager at Zoom, and the major trends he’s noticed in sales tech recently. Through his role, Brendan helps sales teams do their jobs more efficiently through systems and enablement. He knows better than most the importance of having an effective sales stack that aids salespeople without taking out the human element of sales. Today, Thom and Brendan discuss Brendan’s journey to Zoom and what it was like joining a high-growth company, and the height of the pandemic. Brendan speaks to the ever-evolving digital world we’re living in and provides best practices for organizations to adopt different types of sales tech. Finally, Brendan discusses the value of asynchronous communication and what he anticipates for the future of sales tech.
Clips:
Three P's of a successful sales tech stack
Best practices for organizations to maximize their sales tech tools
The concept of 'Champ' roles
How sales tech can help augment the role of a salesperson
The Biggest Changes in Sales Tech
What We Covered:
00:39 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Brendan Short who joins the show to discuss his eclectic background in B2B Enterprise SaaS
02:28 – Brendan recalls what it was like joining Zoom in the middle of the pandemic in June of 2020
03:55 – Major trends Brendan has noticed in the sales tech space
04:49 – Brendan breaks down the Three Ps of successful sales stack
06:26 – Best practices for organizations to maximize their sales tech tools through employee adoption
08:10 – Brendan expounds on the ‘Champ’ roles that his team at Zoom have implemented
10:26 – Brendan talks about the $100 million fund Zoom recently launched
12:01 – How sales tech can help augment the role of a salesperson, especially in today’s ever-evolving digital world
13:58 – The biggest changes in sales tech that Brendan has noticed throughout the years
16:03 – Brendan speculates on the future of sales tech and what sales professionals should be preparing for
18:51 – Final words of wisdom from Brendan
20:12 – Brendan speaks to the ascension of audio and the important role it played today
21:20 – Thom thanks Brendan for joining the show today and let’s listeners know where they can connect with him
Tweetables:
“It was cool to see Eric, the CEO of Zoom, supporting everything that was happening and trying to help connect folks in such a crazy and chaotic time.” (03:05)**
“At the end of the day, from my perspective, a sales stack that is successful is one that gets out of the way and one where it’s enabling salespeople to reach out to the right accounts with the right message at the right time.” (04:38)**
“We have about a dozen that we actively use in our tech stack for the BDR team. And then we also have Champ roles for other things like AE/BDR relationship. We have a Champ who owns and oversees that relationship. There’s probably about eighteen or twenty Champ roles total that we have.” (08:23)**
“I think there’s a big opportunity, especially as we continue in this digital world. And I think in the future it will look like some sort of blended approach because I don’t think it’s gonna stay remote forever, but I don’t think that everyone will go back to the office. So, given that reality, there is an opportunity for a lot of companies to plug into Zoom as a platform and make that experience better.” (11:17)**
“The biggest thing that comes to my mind is being able to do things in the background. So, what are the things that salespeople are doing that technology can augment.” (12:39)**
“I would say being able to communicate asynchronously within your team but also externally is key.” (19:21)**
“I think that audio will continue to grow. But really, at the end of the day, people have different preferences. And so being able to create multiple different types of formats is the most important thing.” (21:04)**
Links Mentioned:
Brendan Short on LinkedIn
The Revenue Engine on LinkedIn
Zoom
Zoom Info
Sales Navigator
DiscoverOrg
Chili Piper
Vendr
Apollo
Mixmax
SalesLoft
Outreach
Clubhouse
Scaling & Process in the World of Sales Tech with Skaled Consulting’s Jake Dunlap Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Jake Dunlap joins the show to provide his thoughts on the ever-evolving sales tech industry. Jake is the CEO of Skaled Consulting, a company that helps organizations meet buyer demand through a unique approach that combines modern sales strategy, intentional digital presence, and quality execution. Today, Thom and Jake discuss the sales experience and how it can be a huge differentiator in today’s market. Jake expounds on the importance of process, the value of tactical execution, and why it is so critical that sales professionals take control and invest in sales technology tools that can help them hit quota more effectively. They discuss the work Jake and his team do at Skaled, the critical need for collaboration, and what the future holds for the sales industry.
What We Covered:
00:38 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Jake Dunlap who joins the show to discuss the current state of the sales tech industry
02:38 – Best practices for dealing with the overwhelming emergence of so many new sales tech tools
05:11 – The most important sales tech tools that Jake has noticed in the market
08:25 – How customer behavior has changed over recent years and why salespeople need to be aware of these changes
10:50 – Jake speaks to trends he’s notices where sales tech is not being utilized and maximized the proper way
12:22 – Jake expounds on the difference between quantity and quality as it pertains to sales tech
14:05 – Jake speaks to how sales professionals can better utilize sales tech
16:04 – What excites Jake most about the future of sales tech
18:15 – Jake speaks to how he and his team at Skaled focus on tactical execution
20:03 – Why most of Jake’s customers have issues with process above all else
21:16 – Jake speculates on the future of sales tech and what sales professionals should be preparing for
23:48 – Final words of wisdom from Jake
24:40 – Thom thanks Jake for joining the show today and let’s listeners know where they can connect with him
Tweetables:
“I think right now we have a bit of a knowledge gap. Meaning, right now people don’t really even fathom what is or isn’t possible because there’s so many new tools and it’s always emerging.” (01:48)**
“Just like marketing goes and hires experts in performance marketing, sales teams need to get comfortable working with outside partners that will help them fill in the gaps of expertise.” (04:23)**
“As buyers have become more educated – they want a process, they want a helper, they want a guide – a platform where you and the customer and collaborating on the sales process, that to me is the new frontier for sales itself.” (07:46)**
“The issue with sales tech and how most people are wielding it today, is they’re using it to push the ‘more’ button. Listen to more calls. Do more activities. And we didn’t realize that these tools are about ‘more’ and quality.” (11:19)**
“If I was an individual, I’d either make sure I went to a company that values sales technology, or I’d buy it myself. And I know that’s gonna be controversial, but what are you waiting for? These tools exist.” (14:47)**
“I’m very bullish that using a beautiful way to talk through and describe and gather information, coupled with a way to interact with customers to get their input in the process, is going to dramatically shrink sales cycles. It’s gonna increase trust with prospects. It’s gonna make the experience fun.” (16:52)**
“If you don’t know your customer journey, how can you then align an optimal customer path?” (18:53)**
“The deployment and implementation is Step Zero. The end goal for any tech is power usage. And so make sure that when you do purchase, you’re building a path to get to power usage and reinforcement.” (24:25)**
Links Mentioned:
Jake Dunlap on LinkedIn
Skaled Consulting’s Website
The Goal
Zoom Info
Sales Intel
Sales Navigator
Lusha
Mural
In Accord
Clubhouse
Nuances in Revenue Operations and Sales Tech with UpKeep’s Jeff Ignacio Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not, and where the industry is going. In this episode, Jeff Ignacio joins the show to discuss his background in Revenue Operations and trends he’s noticed in the sales tech industry. Jeff is the Head of Revenue and Growth Operations at UpKeep, the number one mobile-first computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) on the market. In his role, Jeff focuses primarily on aligning go-to-market strategy and works across a multitude of departments, including Sales, Marketing, and Customer Experience, to help grow companies. Today, Thom and Jeff discuss the explosion and subsequent consolidation of sales technology, Jeff’s P.E.A.S. acronym, and how sales professionals can better utilize sales technology. Jeff provides insights on the future of the industry, the importance of having business models in place, and the multiple ways of differentiating yourself as an organization.
What We Covered:
00:36 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Jeff Ignacio who joins the show to discuss his background in Revenue Operations, his P.E.A.S. acronym, and trends he’s noticed in sales tech
03:47 – The Grocery Store Problem
05:19 – Jeff talks about the consolidation of sales tech and what he believes is and is not working in the industry today
08:12 – Jeff speaks to how sales professionals can better utilize sales tech
09:42 – Jeff expounds on his role at UpKeep
11:41 – Jeff discusses the nuances of working with the heads of Sales, Marketing and Customer Experience
12:55 – Jeff dissects his P.E.A.S. acronym as it pertains to sales technology
18:29 – Jeff stresses the importance of business models and systems
20:51 – What excites Jeff the most about the future of sales technology
22:13 – Final words of wisdom from Jeff
22:59 – Thom thanks Jeff for joining the show today
Tweetables:
“Revenue Operations is an interdisciplinary function where I believe it aligns both strategy and execution for go-to-market departments.” (01:30)
“As a consumer and as a customer, I find [increased options in sales tech] as a good thing because it decreases price of the feature I’m about to buy. But as an owner or as an equity holder or as a revenue operator, I don’t like it very much because now it erodes some of the margin and the capability of what we’re trying to accomplish because there are so many more competitors in there.” (04:51)
“Tools can be fairly flexible today. And so what you want to do is make sure that your process, even without the technology, is clean and cut and then the technology shifted around that. To me, that’s the ideal partnership between Operations and Sales.” (09:18)
“The part that’s most valuable is not the tools or the technology or the systems in any Revenue Operations role. It’s really to sit down with those leaders to figure out what are the core objectives, what are the programs and the initiatives that we’re going to launch this year, where do we see fresh in-points and how can we mitigate those as seamlessly as possible.” (12:37)
“Behind it all is this model. Just like any sales manager asking how many sales reps do I need, when do I need to hire them, and what role do I need to bring them in? That’s the model. The metric is how many sales reps do I have?” (19:05)
“How do you differentiate yourself? You can do it through superior product, obviously. You can do it through having a better customer experience. But where I work and where I figure out how to make companies better is figuring out what is that go-to-market motion, particularly for attracting customers and then selling to them and unlocking value.” (21:15)
Links Mentioned:
Jeff Ignacio on LinkedIn
UpKeep’s Website
Looker
Tableau
HubSpot
Salesforce
Google Analytics
Thinking, Fast and Slow
Don’t Do Sales Ops Alone with Global Sales Operations Association’s Kevin Raybon Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not and where the industry is going. In this episode, Kevin Raybon joins the show to discuss his extensive background in Sales Operations. Kevin is the Founder of the Global Sales Operations Association, an organization that aims to grow the function of Sales Operations and the careers of those who serve in it. Kevin is extremely passionate about helping people grow their Sales Ops careers. He’s a connector who loves to bring people together to start conversations and stir the pot so that people can do better in their jobs. Thom and Kevin talk about what exactly Sales Operations is, the three guiding principles for Sales Ops and the six practice areas to know. Kevin provides his thoughts on the emergence of sales technology, the impact he believes it will have and what the future holds for the Sales Operations industry.
What We Covered:
00:41 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Kevin Raybon who joins the show to discuss his background and the organization he recently founded, the Global Sales Operations Association
03:16 – Kevin defines Sales Operations
05:08 – The three guiding principles of Sales Operations
08:37 – Kevin speaks to the six practice areas of Sales Operations
15:53 – Kevin shares his thoughts on when organizations should bring on Sales Ops professionals
16:59 – Kevin comments on how Sales Ops teams can capitalize on the explosion of sales technology
19:48 – Kevin provides his perspective on some of the pitfalls of Sales Operations and what the future holds for sales tech as it pertains to Sales Ops
24:10 – Thom thanks Kevin for joining the show and let’s listeners know what they can expect to learn from visiting Kevin’s website
Tweetables:
“I founded the Sales Ops Association for the purpose of bringing together Sales Operations people into valuable community. I wanted to make sure there was a lot of resources for us and that we got to know each other on a personal level.” (01:22)**
“Sales Ops is the set of functions and processes that it takes to operate a sales team effectively.” (04:50)**
“Because selling is very much a human activity, we need to be looking out for the talent plan that we have.” (09:57)**
“For me, sales enablement is that SWAT Team of highly experienced individuals who I can give a new project to and they’re gonna make sure that the buyer-seller journey is totally tied up as this new project is going through the business.” (12:28)**
“We need to be looking at our process in what we do today in the business and then look to automate.” (18:27)**
“We’re gonna see more consolidation. We’re gonna see suites of products. And, I think we’re gonna look back in five to ten years and we’re gonna see a couple of major players who have really emerged that came from a place we would have thought they would never come from.” (23:55)**
Links Mentioned:
Kevin Raybon on LinkedIn
Global Sales Operations Association Website
Tableau
Justin Michael - How Technology Can Enhance and Support Traditional Selling Episode Summary:
Welcome to Sales Tech, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not and where the industry is going. In this episode, Justin Michael joins the show to discuss his background as a tech futurist. Justin is probably one of the most experienced people out there to talk about sales technology. He’s the author of the upcoming book, Tech Powered Sales, and he has worked with over 100 startups to select the right technology for them to use. Thom and Justin talk about the ever-growing need for sales technology, why some organizations are resisting and pushing back and competing against marketing for a share of budget. Justin expounds on the concept of guided selling and why it is what excites him the most about the future of sales tech. Finally, Justin provides his thoughts on solving problems of inefficiency with multiple sales technologies.
What We Covered:
00:23 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Justin Michael who joins the show to discuss the inspiration to launch the Sales Tech Podcast
01:41 – Justin provides tips for salespeople on how they can be more successful when it comes to technology
03:35 – Why organizations are resisting learning about new sales technologies
06:54 – Justin explains the explosion of marketing technology
10:54 – Solving efficiency problems with technologies that don’t coordinate with each other
13:57 – Justin expounds on the concept of guided selling and the role Artificial Intelligence (AI) plays into it
16:10 – Justin identifies where he believes pushback towards sales technology is coming from
18:27 – What sales can do to gain a share of the marketing budget
21:00 – Justin shares what excites him the most about the future of sales tech
23:05 – Thom thanks Justin for joining the show and encourages listeners to join him in future episodes
Tweetables:
“I really believe that opening is the new closing. Because digital outreach has been weaponized, the average decision maker is getting 250 emails a week and robocalled to death. And so the question really becomes, ‘How do we leverage advanced technology to improve the sales process and make a better prospecting customer experience in a world where there’s just so much noise?’” (01:02)**
“Only fifteen percent of high growth companies even have what is called Sales Engagement Platforms – an SEP – or a sequencer. And it’s often relegated to Gen Z and Millennials to figure it out.” (04:22)**
“The efficiency games are wild. A team of five reps can have the impact of fifty using some of these technologies.” (06:38)**
“Guided selling is this incredible way to set machine learning algorithms and Artificial Intelligence to be looking at these complex problems for you, as an assistant, to make sure if something is going to be a problem you can predict it.” (15:25)**
“I think the important thing is to expand your mind to make money to save money. And you’ve got to spend money to make money.” (19:22)**
“I’m excited about the role that technology can play to enhance and support traditional selling.” (22:44)**
Links Mentioned:
Justin Michael on LinkedIn
Tech-Powered Sales: Achieve Superhuman Sales Skills
Zoom
Slack
LinkedIn Learning
Salesforce Trailhead
SalesLoft
Outreach
Groove
XANT
ringDNA
LinkedIn Sales Navigator
Zoominfo
LeadIQ
Seamless.AI
ConnectAndSell
Gong
Chorus
Tenbound
Aragon Research
lemlist
Amplemarket
Apollo.io
PersistIQ
Syncery
Tray.io
Workato
Zapier
Amazon Mechanical Turk
Salesforce Einstein
Dunbar Number
Bombora
Snowflake
The Product Lead Growth SDR Podcast
Salesforce
Hubspot's Scott Brinker on Sales, Marketing and Technology Episode Summary:
Welcome to the Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not and where the industry is going. In this episode, Scott Brinker joins the show to discuss his background as VP Platform Ecosystem at HubSpot.
Scott has a wealth of knowledge in the intersection of technology platforms and ecosystems and marketing strategy and operations. This makes him the perfect candidate to discuss the explosion of marketing technology over the past few years and how that has impacted the structure of Sales and Marketing departments.
Thom and Scott discuss this technological boon, why sales technology has lagged behind and what needs to be done in order to ensure salespeople have all the tools them need to optimize their time and be successful. Scott speaks to how the global pandemic has impacted the sales profession, strategies for getting multiple technologies to work better together and how technology has changed the career structure for those who work in Sales and Marketing.
What We Covered:
00:29 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Scott Brinker who joins the show to talk about the explosion of marketing technology in recent years and why sales tech has lagged behind
07:03 – Lessons salespeople can glean from the global pandemic
08:30 – How technology has impacted the relationship between Sales and Marketing groups
10:32 – Scott discusses what salespeople need to be doing to help bring sales tech into their companies
11:30 – Scott speaks to the pushback he sees in sales technology
13:24 – Scott talks about strategies for getting these technologies to work better together
17:28 – Scott speaks to the vital role technology departments play, specifically with regards to sales and marketing today
18:33 – How technology has impacted the career structure for people who work in sales and marketing
21:16 – Scott speculates on the future of sales and marketing technology
23:33 – Thom thanks Scott for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to follow him
Tweetables:
“2020 was such a crazy catalyst for this. So many of these touchpoints now between sales people – buyers and sellers – all of a sudden started happening in these highly digital mediated channels.” (05:47)
“I think this meeting in the digital Wonderland has certainly been one of the best things to happen for encouraging greater collaboration between marketing and sales.” (09:00)
“I don’t think cost is really the primary barrier here [in sales tech]. It’s very easy and affordable to try things. If they end up working and you can demonstrate through this data trail its impact on performance, then your case is fine.” (12:03)
“While the industry I will say as a whole still has a long way to go, we’re making a lot of progress.” (14:51)
“One of the things technology did was it certainly raised the profile and the strategic impact of marketing operations.” (18:58)
Links Mentioned:
Scott Brinker on LinkedIn
Scott's Chief Marketing Technologist Blog
HubSpot Website
Nancy Nardin on the SalesTech Landscape Episode Summary:
Welcome to the Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not and where the industry is going. In this episode, Nancy Nardin joins the show to discuss her wealth of knowledge in sales technology.
Nancy is the founder of Smart Selling Tools and is widely recognized as the voice of authority on sales technology. She’s also the creator of the Nancy Nardin SalesTech Landscape, a market landscape of well over 1,000 sales solutions sorted into 45 categories.
Backed by 30 years of sales expertise, Nancy is a pioneer in mobile selling – having sold for the world’s first laptop computer manufacturer, GRiD Systems, in Silicon Valley in the early 1980’s.
Today, Thom and Nancy discuss the evolution of the sales technology industry, how Nancy prioritizes her time and the inspiration to launch Smart Selling Tools. Nancy speaks to the pushback she’s seen in sales tech, how companies purchase sales technology tools and the future of the industry.
What We Covered:
00:07 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Nancy Nardin who joins the show to talk about her background in sales technology and how the industry has changed over the years
06:26 – How all of the various technology apps are interacting with each other today
07:48 – Nancy speaks to the pushback she experiences in sales technology
10:53 – Nancy discusses the inspiration to launch Smart Selling Tools and analyzes her SalesTech Landscape tool
16:46 – The different approaches companies take to purchase sales technology tools
18:57 – Nancy speculates on the future of sales technology
21:46 – Advice Nancy would give to those who are heavily interested and invested in the future of sales tech
22:50 – Thom thanks Nancy for joining the show and let’s listeners know where to follow her
Tweetables:
“The SaaS model really opened the door to this pace of innovation that led to what we now have, eleven hundred sales technologies, versus what we had in 2010 and that was around one hundred technologies.” (04:44)
“I think all sellers – or many of us that are in sales – have an entrepreneurial spirit. We’re very independent-minded people. We work very well on our own. We’re thinking about our territory as our own business. And that was my case.” (11:04)
“I built the Landscape on a framework. And the framework I actually borrowed from Maslow’s Heirarchy.” (13:27)
“When companies are thinking about what tools they should buy, you could certainly take a holistic view and say, ‘Let’s step back and figure out how to be a more effective and efficient organization.’ But that takes a lot of time, and the market is moving way too fast. By the time they figure that out the technology will have changed.” (17:19)
“Companies used to be able to take their time and crawl along in terms of technology adoption. They can’t do that anymore because remote selling is nothing if it isn’t digital. And digital is what sales applications are.” (19:16)
Links Mentioned:
Nancy Nardin on LinkedIn
Smart Selling Tools Website
Nancy's 2021 B2B Enterprise SalesTech Landscape
G2 Website
Introducing the Sales Tech Podcast Episode Summary:
Welcome to the Sales Tech Podcast, the show that talks about sales technology, what’s working, what’s not and where the industry is going. In this episode, Scott Ingram joins the show to discuss his background as a quota carrying B2B sales professional with a passion for sharing great sales stories.
Scott is the founder of Sales Success Media, which recently added the Sales Tech Podcast to its repertoire. Thom and Scott talk about what inspired Scott to launch the Sales Tech Podcast and what he hopes that listeners take away from this show. Scott expounds on trends he’s noticed in sales technology, his passion for helping sales professionals become better versions of themselves and what excites him most about the future of this industry.
What We Covered:
00:37 – Thom introduces today’s guest, Scott Ingram who joins the show to discuss the inspiration to launch the Sales Tech Podcast
04:41 – Scott talks about his first podcast, Sales Success Stories, and the extraordinary reception it has received
08:30 – The decision to enter the event space and organize the Sales Success Summit
09:45 – What Scott hopes listeners take away from the Sales Tech Podcast
11:23 – Scott expounds on the trends he’s noticed in sales tech and what audience he believes this podcast will attract
15:49 – Scott talks about how sales professionals can better utilize sales technology
19:24 – Scott provides advice to Thom on best practices for hosting this show
21:29 – Thom thanks Scott for joining the show and encourages listeners to join him in future episodes
Tweetables:
“I’ve also kept a list since shortly after I started Sales Success Stories of every active sales podcast I can find. That list today is three hundred podcasts strong. And it surprised me that there wasn’t a single show on that list focused on sales technology.” (03:55)
“I wanted to know as the marketplace changes dramatically – especially in this last year – what are the very best people who are at the top of their game right now, what are they doing.” (05:45)
“At the end of the day, for me, Sales Success Stories is such a selfish thing because I get to talk to the smartest people in sales who are driving the best results. And many of them have become my mentors and my friends. The impetus for the event was just to share that.” (08:42)
“The hope is that we bring actionable ideas, a look to the future, and some inspiration.” (10:07)
“To me, what’s so exciting about this is how irrelevant this conversation may be in two or three or four years because of that pace of innovation. And just staying on top of that and watching where it goes is the thing that excites me most about this show and these conversations.” (15:32)
“It’s actually smarter to ask dumb questions than it is to appear smart and not ask the question. Because you’re probably not the only one that’s wondering, ‘What does that mean exactly?’” (20:57)
Links Mentioned:
Scott Ingram on LinkedIn
Thom Singer on LinkedIn
Sales Success Media
Salestech is the new martech, and it's supercharging both professions by Scott Brinker
Nancy Nardin's SalesTech Landscape
All Active Sales Podcasts
Sales Success Stories Podcast
Daily Sales Tips Podcast
Sales Success Summit
Sales Automation Companies on Crunchbase