Krishna Visvanathan’s Post

Building a strong sales process is one of the most important things for a startup to be able to grow effectively but it is hard on many levels. In my latest Atlanta Ventures blog, I share some key components of a sales funnel and how to determine what parts of the funnel need improvement. https://lnkd.in/ewmMa3aj

Everyone building a sales engine (or a tech startup) should listen to this Pod. Mark Fershteyn and his team are deeply immersed in the day-to-day challenges of building and delivering a successful sales SaaS tool. Many people underestimate the amount of hard work and dedication required to create something truly impactful, especially when coming from larger companies where much of the foundational work may have been done years ago by others. There's always a ramp time. If everything is baked, it's weeks, when you are building everything ground up it can be years (with 5 Million in seed funding) Mark's approach prioritizes hands-on Founder effort and a commitment to delivering results, rather than relying on magic or assumptions that things will simply fall into place.

We closed 30-80k deals within <30 days late 2022. Now everyone starts with a Launchpad. 5 reasons why I see “The Launchpad Approach” as the highest-integrity form of sales. 🚀 1/ Take the right step back to save clients from trial & error “I just need more leads, tools & reps” does enable you to scale sales efficiently. Focusing on the right initiatives, at the right time, in the right sequence does. This de facto sales strategy looks different for every B2B SaaS Startup. But should be in place BEFORE tactical & operational initiatives. 2/ Time-to-Value within weeks instead of quarters Founders are impatient by their nature - often rightfully so. Money’s running out, need to hit the next ARR milestone, etc. So as a founder, you want to get value within <30 days after a first conversation. By crafting a Launchpad for the client, we usually manage to do this within <14 days. 3/ Nobody sells x buys anything the client does not need The Launchpad gives the client clarity on what needs to happen in their business. This does explicitly NOT mean they need to do everything with SalesPlaybook. We even encourage clients to implement in-house where they can. But to partner up where they can do it 3x faster and 3x better. 4/ Cultural fit assessment We are not selling a software, but a bespoke productised service. This involves people, human interaction & hard conversations. Even as a B2B SaaS business, there is Customer Success. Which is why you want to make sure you love collaborating. Before on both sides being locked up in a 3-year contract. 5/ Go slow to go smooth to go fast “If you’re in a hurry, take it slow”. I often see clients striving to “fix things, right now”. And then ending up “fixing” them 3-5x before getting it right. Trial & error has huge opportunity costs and can be avoided. If you’re willing to take a step back, reflect and then accelerate again. 👉How do you start your collaborations especially if your ACV is mid 5-/6-figures?

Founders, when you get an email from a VC, do yourself a favor and replace the name of your company with a random company, does the email still read well? Guess what, they use reply.io or some other software to spam you. Don’t be shocked if they show up unprepared to the meeting since they spent zero time on understanding what you do. Why they do that? Non-GP VCs, even those with a fake Partner title have quotas for number of companies they log into their VC CRM. Ask people why they want to meet with you before jumping on a call with them, your time to build is precious, protect it! Vet the VCs

Watch qualified leads slip through your fingers because your BDC isn't converting? At Willowood Ventures, we're BDC experts who can transform your team into lead-crushing machines! Here's what our BDC training and support can do for you: Expert Skills Development: We equip your BDC reps with the knowledge and techniques to turn inquiries into appointments and appointments into sales. Follow-up Finesse: Our proven follow-up strategies ensure you connect with every lead, maximizing your conversion potential. Unwavering Dedication: We provide ongoing support to keep your BDC team motivated and performing at their peak. Stop letting leads go to waste! Invest in Willowood Ventures BDC training and watch your sales soar. 🌐https://lnkd.in/eXYM6aSy 📞 864-909-6038 📧 dominic@willowoodventuresllc.com #bdctraining #dealershipsales #leadconversion #closesales #automotivecareers #boostprofits

If price was a barrier of entrance for any Pro+ Hubs in Hubspot well I have news for you... HubSpot just made a MAJOR move to a seats-based pricing model. For small businesses and startups this was usually a tough sell in the past. Happy to talk through what this means for subscriptions. Bluleadz is also offering a special onboarding this month to go along with small teams of 1-2 users. #hubspotcrm #hubspotpartner #hubspot #hubspotagency

⚡️ How We Doubled Revenue In 3 Months ⚡️ Navigating the challenges of a bootstrapped startup often means working with limited funds, but that doesn't mean growth is out of reach. This is where our approach at CommissionOnly proves invaluable. Our model centers around harnessing the potential of commission-only sales representatives, combined with our proven system and methodology, to foster business growth without any upfront costs. Our recent collaboration with Beige Video is a testament to this strategy's effectiveness. We focused on assembling a dedicated commission-only sales team and integrating their operations seamlessly with Notion. This strategic move was key in facilitating their sales process. Just three months into our partnership, the results are clear: Beige Video's monthly revenue has skyrocketed, doubling thanks to the efforts of the team we built, the culture we nurtured, and the technology we integrated. 🌟 But it's not just about numbers. The transformation we achieved involved creating a custom sales CRM and infrastructure, allowing our sales reps to maximize their selling time and minimize administrative tasks. This efficiency boost led to a significant increase in sales and overall output. The journey with Beige Video showcases the immense potential of leveraging commission-only sales representatives. By providing an end-to-end solution, we've enabled our sales reps to concentrate on their strengths – selling effectively and driving growth. This is just the beginning for Beige Video, which is poised to double their revenue yet again. Stay tuned for more exciting news from this brand in the future! 🔥 Are you looking to replicate this success in your business? If you're a founder aiming to double your revenue and step back from direct sales involvement, let's connect.

As your startup takes off, the transition from founder-led to team-led sales becomes mission-critical. 🚀 We sat down with sales experts David McFarlane (Operating Partner, Companyon), Evan Whelchel (CRO, Allstacks), and Jenny Vance (Founder/CEO, GrowthJen; Companyon Expansion Team Member) to discuss: 🔧 Identifying scalable patterns and techniques that may be missing from a founder’s toolbox ⚡️ Jumpstarting your knowledge transition plan 💪 Leveraging founder access to establish trust and credibility with prospects Part of what makes it so difficult to navigate this point of transition is that founders are the ones with lived experience and industry expertise—they know the product and market better than anyone, and they’re deeply passionate about what they’re selling. However, as Jenny Vance points out, that passion can actually impede the sales process once it becomes time to scale: “What I’ve seen in founder-led sales is that the founder is usually selling off of industry expertise, which builds a lot of trust. They often win despite the sales process that’s in place, and so they get this false belief that they’re great at sales when really, they’re very good at selling their product. But in the context of scalable patterns, sales skills, and techniques—those aren’t being used. So, when a salesperson does come in without that knowledge and tries to use the sales skills, the trust established doesn’t carry over. And that’s where we start to see that falter.” What’s the solution? Check out what the experts have to say in our latest blog post: https://lnkd.in/g7WbZMwC #TalesFromTheTrenches #StartupSuccess #GrowthStrategies #B2BSales #Marketing #Sales #SaaS

Need to sell? Here's how to use LinkedIn Sales Navigator. I had a great conversation with fractional sales leader Jay D. Miller where he walked me through the basics and gave me some pro-tips. Thanks, my friend!