These are ten lessons I’ve picked up along the way, they are not in any special order.
Lesson #1
It's all about energy and enthusiasm, once this clicked our sales numbers got a lot better.
In every conversation with a potential client you have to transfer your energy and enthusiasm for the product or service that your offering/selling.
You don't want to be transactional here. Enthusiasm and energy doesn't mean you shouldn't listen and let the potential client talk for most of the time (huge pitfall).
This is why founder led sales works so well. They are imbued with enthusiasm and energy around their product or service. If you are not the founder, talk to the founder and absorb their enthusiasm, energy and know-how.
Lesson #2
Your response (time) matters.
When someone has a question or reaches out you’re mostly not the only one. The speed and the quality of your response have a huge impact and make you stand out.
I created a habit of replying directly even if it was only to let them know that I received their question well and when they could expect the full reply.
People value that, it makes them and their question/problem feel important.
This reply mostly contained some extra value, for example a latest blog post that felt relevant or a project that we just did that had similarities (build trust).
Make response time and the quality of your response an edge, try to stand out from the first touch point. It works!
Lesson #3
Always keep it simple!
You don’t build trust by showing people how smart you are with a lot of technical mambo djambo. Most people don’t like that.
Explaining stuff in a simple way without making it feel technical is an edge.
Think Kidlin’s law: If you write the problem down clearly, then the matter is half solved.
So keep it simple and make sure people learn a thing or two and you are set.
Lesson #4
Don’t talk about yourself when drafting up an offer.
Focus on showing you understand the problem by describing the prospects pain. Spend enough energy on describing your solution to fix this pain.
Once this is in place make sure to add layers of trust. This can be done by creating a link to similar problems you fixed or solutions you came up with that have something in common and what the results were of your work.
Last but not least pricing should be transparent and very clear. No second guessing here.
This way you create an offer that stands out and that is hard to refuse.
Lesson #5
Leave every prospect/potential client better off than you found them.
Listen to them, care about trying to help them, teach them something or give them an insight. Always!
Don’t be transactional here, it’s a long term game and this way you’ll win the game.
Lesson #6
Put most of your energy in active listening.
You’ll feel the urge to tell them how good you are. Suppress it, this is what everybody does and it works against you.
The times you do open your mouth you demonstrate that you understand the problem/their pain and explain and show how you solved it in the past (examples/no random namedropping).
This is where a deep understanding of your product and/or services are a huge asset and differentiator.
Lesson #7
Every touchpoint or follow-up should contain value.
For example an interesting blog post on your technology (Did you know that Drupal is a digital public good and why that is good for you?) or something that will help them move forward.
It’s a mindset you grow in, once you get a hold of it, it makes following up more fun for obvious reasons. Very powerful!
Lesson #8
Eat your own dog food!
You have to be so convinced that your product or service is the real deal and that it genuinely solves your customer’s problems.
If you wouldn’t buy it yourself at the price you are offering it, you’ve got a problem to fix. No bueno.
Are you eating your own dogfood?
Lesson #9
It can't all be winners.
Your offer wil get rejected. Learn to deal with this disappointment in order for you to keep going. Try to learn from it, don’t just blame someone or something else and move on. Learn from it. Find a way to stay motivated in this process where people will say no (a lot). Your success depends on it.
Lesson #10
You can't delegate sales and it’s process in the beginning.
You have to own the process. Obsess over it, experiment, see what works.
You have to master it and document every step with the WHY's before you even think about delegating pieces.
Founder led sales is magic for a reason.
Lesson #11
No just kidding, I promised only 10 lessons. Your words mean nothing when your actions are the complete opposite.
Thank you for reading!
