Hey there friends,
We all know the power of mentors in life, business, and especially in sales.
I wrote about this a couple years ago (LINK HERE) with examples from Abraham Lincoln, Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg.
There’s no shortage of sales gurus online to grab the baton here - and we’ve talked about others earlier (link above) so today we’ll hit the other half of the wall…
In this week’s edition of Stretch Weekly -
Joubin Mirzadegan talks with Mark Roberge on how he got started, how he made his way to Hubspot and other lessons learned along the way.
Ian Koniak talks about shifting your mindset from “Inward selling” to “Outward Selling” and how doing so - sets you up for more success and more wins.
Plus - don’t miss snippets with tactical tips from must follow mentors in sales.
And inquiring minds want to know - who’s someone you look to as a mentor in your journey as a sales leader? Who else should we be talking about?
THANKS for reading!!
-Grant
And lastly - as always, if you find this newsletter valuable- subscribe or share it with someone who might as well 👊.
STRETCH SHARES
The Science and Psychology of Scaling
I’ve mentioned this before, but I’m a big fan of the podcast GRIT with Joubin Mirzadegan. He asks all the pertinent questions and absolutely does his homework.
Couple this with an episode with one of the SaaS Sales OGs - Mark Roberge, and you have my attention. Hear how Mark got started, how he made his way to Hubspot and other lessons learned along the way.
If you’re new into Sales Leadership in SaaS - look no further than Mark Roberge as a mentor. (Also check out this entire newsletter I wrote on all things Mark Roberge)
From Inward to Outward Selling
Speaking of mentors - Ian Koniak is a great source of insight and content for Enterprise Sellers.
In this video, Ian talks about shifting your mindset from “Inward selling” to “Outward Selling” and how doing so - sets you up for more success and more wins.
The harder you try to sell, the more you will repel
Inward selling is:
My job is to sell you
I talk, pitch, and present to you
We discuss my companies products and services
Hitting quota is my #1 goal
I pressure you to buy
I'm seen as a vendor
Outward selling, by contrast is:
My job is to help you.
I have authentic conversations with you focused on your goals and challenges.
I listen and understand first and only pitch when I know I can help you
Helping you hit your goals and solve your problems is my #1 goal
I empower you to sell this internally within your company only if it's a good fit
I'm seen as a trusted advisor
Check out Ian’s full video HERE
STRETCH SNIPPETS
🥵 95% of managers are burned out for a single reason. Ready for it? Pavillion says it's simpler than you might think: They don’t delegate nearly enough.
🏄♂️ Found this post from Scott Leese and comments that follow pretty enlightening. I can’t say I disagree. With so many things calling for Sales peoples time- more urgent responses and things taking away from actual selling is a problem. Thoughts??
🦄 After 3 tech unicorns, 11 years in sales, and 4 years as an enterprise AE, Krysten Conner shares 10 Discovery questions she swears by.
💲Belal Batrawy says is your’e getting asked about pricing you’re already at a disadvantage. He recommends a science based method to talking about pricing upfront without waiting to be asked.
☎️ Ralph Barsi says, when there’s a need to build revenue pipeline, host a prospecting day. And if done right, can generate millions of dollars worth of sales opportunities in one day. Learn HOW
🧠 Mindset
Thanks for reading!
My hope is if you find this valuable, consider sharing it with friends (or signing up if you haven’t already).
— Grant 👋
About stretch vp: confessions, learnings, and insights from sales leaders in SaaS
Compiled and aggregated from a network of sales leaders in SaaS, Stretch VP showcases learnings, insights, and experiences as well as best practices to overcome common hurdles, obstacles, and setbacks in your quest for excellence as a sales leader in SaaS.
Are you a VP, Director, thought leader, or content producer in the SaaS space? We’d love to have you contribute. Just reply to this email and I’ll be in touch.
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