Brian LaManna’s Post

It’s great to have a plan. But the best opportunities usually aren’t ones that are planned. If I would have stuck to my “plan,” I would have ignored a Gong leader’s DM in June of 2021. Sadie McGraw telling me she had an opening on her commercial team. Asking what it would take, for me to take a call with her. Have a plan, but hold on to it loosely. Never know what pops up. Happy Friday 🦙🦙🦙

My last step in my sequence earned me 6 opportunities last year. First year of ever getting responses, on my last touch. And it’s 100% automated. Template: Hi {Recipient first name}, Yikes. 16 attempts later and STILL no reply... are you on a super long vacation? Or perhaps my prospecting skills should just be replaced by AI... 
Any feedback to help me improve, is appreciated! {sender first name} Why it works: 1. Keep automated emails short… harder to tell it’s automated 2. Add some humor in there as a new approach 3. Low friction ask for feedback, not a demo Built out 6 🔥 other [free] email templates for closed-lost, multithreading, previous users, and more: https://lnkd.in/gAyuvKkt 🦙 🦙 🦙

It’s 2024 and you can auto send emails, use Gen AI to write emails, and power dial 20 people at once. And my most successful prospecting is still doing the things that Do Not Scale. In fact, my ’non-scalable prospecting’ has been more successful than ever. My theory: Because other sellers aren’t doing it and won’t. 3 examples this year: Gong to the doorstep - Found a previous VP of Sales went to a new company that bought Gong in the past. Easy way would have been a cold email. Fun way was finding his address and shipping a physical Gong to his house. Emailed asking him if he forgot anything from his last role?? Bought a Book - Found a revenue leader that had authored a book before. Purchased the book. Read it and wrote a 5-star review. Sent her a photo with it and the review, comparing it to our product. Recruiting - Found out a sales leader was hiring for AEs. Knew a top candidate on the lookout for her next role and led with this no-ask intro to source her to the leader. Kicked off the conversation with adding value first before any asks. These all took a few hours to put together 1 touch. 1 highly personalized touch > your 22 step, 35 day sequence. Have to be willing to do the ‘unscalable’ things too. 🦙 P.S. Join 1,000+ sellers that have downloaded my (free) account planning template: https://lnkd.in/gwjX9Nya

Top sellers often get asked to take a pay cut. The counterintuitive truth - top performing individual contributors, (almost) always earn more than sales managers. But it’s positioned as a promotion and an exciting new opportunity. Here are the numbers: Top Performer, Enterprise AE: $611,000 See more: https://bit.ly/4cPLhAw 1st Year, Sales Manager: $250,000 See more: https://bit.ly/4cTqk7L And in a recession / downmarket, it’s almost impossible for a manager to hit quota. But if you’re a top performing seller, you can still find a path to number. All to keep in mind as you work your way up the ladder. Salaries by role here: https://bit.ly/4cPLDXS Advice for those considering the promotion to sales manager?

Here's what it -actually- means to be a raving fan of Gong. [Our #1 operating principle to create them] -You champion learning & vulnerability. Even the best athletes in the world watch film after each game. Everyone has room to improve. Sellers aren't too good for it. -You champion the need to get closer to voice of customer and hearing directly from them. What they are requesting, how we can improve, what problems they face, etc. -You champion transparency and openness. No lone wolf sellers refusing to share what's working for them. All rowing in the same direction. -You champion improving customer experience. No more distracted conversations scrambling down notes. Both sides fully present. Sharing a copy with the customer after. Let AI do the mundane work of notetaking, action items, etc. Nothing about this has to do with our features, products, or platform. Building an internal culture of trust, learning, & development. Why customers call it a 'need to have' alongside CRM.

My biggest, why the f**k did I not do this earlier, by years. 2024 - TSA pre-check 2023 - LASIK surgery 2022 - Buy a great water bottle 2021 - Standing desk 2020 - Amazing pillow 2019 - Tailored all my pants 2018 - Got an air fryer What do I need to get on my radar for 2025? P.S. Posted this on X and it went viral and reached 35M people. Great way to make an early holiday list 😁

The most important question to ask in a sales interview: “In terms of 1st year performance - what % of reps hit 100% of goal, in their very first year?” So much emphasis on the '𝗳𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝘆𝗲𝗮𝗿' That I say it 2x in that question. I DO NOT care if the rep who has been there for 12 years, is exceeding their quota I DO care about whether 1st year reps, can actually over exceed in Year 1 The question needs to match your situation (as a newcomer) Join 1,000+ sellers who've downloaded (free) all 27 questions you should be asking in an interview. Or tag a friend searching that could benefit from it. Grab here: https://lnkd.in/gKbpE5W2 Good luck!!

Made the best career decision 3 years ago. Accepted a role at Gong as a Commercial AE, as I was being promoted at my current company from Sr. AE to Manager. One step back, for two giant steps forward. Truly feel like I’ve gotten my MBA in sales here at Gong. Here’s a few things I knew nothing about: -Sandler -MEDDICC -Onsite visits -Multithreading -Account Tiering -Getting to power -Upsell / Cross Sell -Early stage funding -Selling multi-product -Upmarket vs. downmarket Learned 10x more in 3 years here, than my 4 years of college. And got to close a cool ~93 logos along the way. Next milestone: 💯 logos

One year ago: Went hiking in Banff, Canada 🇨🇦 ⛰️ I spend too much time indoors in general So I climbed up on the highest rock I could find and gave it the 'ole 360° view Happiest when # of daily steps 👣 > # of daily notifications 📱 Realizing the 🌎 is filled with too much screen time Outdoors [+ no cell service] clears my mind It lets me reset and think with clarity This year, I'm celebrating the 4th in the US Feels just a tad more 'right' Excited for 2H of 2024!