Founder @ #samsales l Sales + LinkedIn + LinkedIn Ghostwriting Expert l Ex-LinkedIn l Keynote Speaker l 13 Sales Records l Angel Investor l Overly Enthusiastic l Swiss Dual Citizen l Creator, Show Me You Know Me®
Before the word "scale" was a thing, I did two unconventional things as a junior seller that helped me kill my quota: A. I paid for my own SDR. My dear friend Chelsea, a mil spouse with a Master's degree, let me hire her (and again at #samsales) for $20 an hour to help me prospect. I wrote the emails, gave her a territory, and had her go after it in my webmail (every IT person cringes...). Before the days of SDRs and sales engagement platforms, I knew I could do better if I could scale my efforts, and it paid off. B. I hounded Marsha Redmon. I found Marsha quoted in an article, and saw that she lived in DC + sold to and had relationships with the same demographic I was targeting, but at an even more senior level that I normally had access to, and in a non-competitive manner. Marsha was the start of me finding individuals within the legal market that could help keep their ears out for when there was a need for my software, and refer me in. After several attempts to have coffee, she finally caved, and our one hour meeting went the whole afternoon, which has led to a decade+ friendship and her being at my biggest life moments. But work-specifically, she and others have been a cross-selling army of all things Sam, with reciprocity, of course. It's one of the most underutilized tactics in scaling yourself through partnerships - don't wait for your company to find these relationships for you - go get after them yourself! **************************************************************************** None of these things are hard, they're just smart ways to scale yourself and get ahead. Bet on yourself, invest in yourself for better division of labor, look for partners that are mutually beneficial to you, and just. be. different.
This is great advice! I love the idea of hiring your own SDR to help you scale your efforts. I've also found that building relationships with other professionals in your field can be a great way to generate leads and close deals. Thanks for sharing your insights, Samantha McKenna! 🙌
Every smart, driven salesperson I know who wants to get to the next level paves their own way. They don’t wait to see if their company will pay for Navigator, they just buy it. They don’t wait for training they get it. They find a mentor and they hire the help they need. Then they crush it and make more than enough to make those expenses worth every penny.
You had me at “before scale was a thing”! What’s old is new folks! There’s still no better investment than individual relationships.
The power of networking. And the insight to know you can't go it alone (and why would you want to?) Two gems of advice there.
Networking has its own power. 🙌💗
There's another point or sub-point in there and it's something I've been giving a lot of thought to lately - reciprocity. Reciprocity comes naturally to you; it's part of who you are,Samantha! But, that isn't true of everyone and in our quest to reach our goals, we an sometimes lose sight of how important reciprocity is...in every aspect of our lives.
I love that you started delegating early, and believed in yourself enough to take the risk with Chelsea. Often times, junior salespeople feel that they have to only follow the "rules" that their company gives them. They don't realize yet it's ok to color outside the lines.
I was wondering why it took you so many attemps to pin down Marsha. 😊 I use Fieverr a lot these days for help building beautiful decks. Prices are very reasonable. I never though to do this when I was an employee. Instead, I wasted a lot of my own time creating PPT minutiae. It makes me wonder how many employees use this kind of resource out of pocket.
I love how scrappy you were to make these things happen. I know a lot of people will think about extra effort like this, or someone will share the idea with them, and they'll back out because they aren't sure what will come of it. But you've got to at least do *something* or nothing will happen!
ATP CEO · Redefining Startup Hiring · Empowering Founders/CEOs to Hire Executive Sales & CS Leaders With Confidence and Sidestep Costly Pitfalls · Advisor · LP · Speaker · 2 Exits · ✍️ My 1st Book · Obsessed with Windex
7moThe common thread between you taking the "bull by the horns" to set yourself up for success versus waiting around for it, Samantha? Relationships. You did the work to earn them. You supported them. And you continued to show up for them. And this is the foundation for why these people are STILL in your life. This stuff matters and I'm absolutely here for it ❤️