Andy Mewborn

Distribute.so

I use to be young & cool. Now I do b2b SaaS. 

Husband. Dad. Ironman. Pilot. Taco lover. 

Founder of Distribute // Co-founder of Taplio (acq. by Lemlist) // Early @ Outreach.io.

Creator

A community of over 4,000+ B2B professionals growing together on Linkedin.

• "Brand30 absolutely did wonders for my business." -Maritha Koortzen

• "Brand30 changed the trajectory of my life...To say it’s opening doors for me is an understatement" - Amanda Stern

• "Brand30 provided the group accountability and expert advice I needed to more than double my LinkedIn engagement in just one month" 

🚀 Start Building An Audience Of Potential Buyers On LinkedIn In 30 Days👇

• https://www.brand30.io/

most sales reps kill deals with their follow-ups (here’s how to fix it)

so i’ve been in sales for a while, and the one thing that still blows my mind? how many reps completely tank their chances with shitty follow-ups. not because they’re spamming people, because they’re sending nothing.

"just checking in"
"wanted to circle back"
"following up on my last email"

like, checking in on what? you never gave them anything to actually respond to. prospects aren’t mind readers. if you don’t say something useful, they’re gonna ignore you.

so what actually works? here’s what i’ve seen:

instead of "just following up," try:

"i recorded a 2-min video showing how [similar company] cut their onboarding time by 40%. thought of you because you mentioned this was a bottleneck last time we talked."

instead of "wanted to circle back," try:

"saw this article about [industry trend] and immediately thought of our convo. the part about [specific insight] lines up with what you said about [their challenge]."

instead of "any updates?" try:
"quick question, are you still focused on [goal they mentioned], or have priorities shifted? context changed, so i don’t want to waste your time."

the pattern here is simple:

• give value first
• show you actually listened
• make it about them, not your quota
• make it easy to respond (ask a specific question)

i built a tool that does this automatically. it pulls call recordings, videos, and docs into one link so you’re not just sending another empty "checking in" email. not because reps are lazy, because prospects are busy, and they don’t have time to guess what you want.

Andrew Mewborn

Sellers

Should you ever badmouth competitors during sales calls?

A) Always - Highlighting their flaws strengthens our value proposition
B) Strategically - Only when directly asked about specific weaknesses
C) Rarely - Focus on our strengths without comparative negativity
D) Never - Unprofessional and damages industry relationships

P.S. - 15,000 sellers stopped writing follow-ups. Take the 2-min quiz to see what they switched to: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Should you ever badmouth competitors during sales calls?

Sellers

Is cold calling dead in 2026?

A) Yes - Buyers avoid unknown calls completely now
B) Mostly - Only works when highly personalized with research
C) Still viable - Just needs better targeting and messaging
D) Stronger than ever - Digital channels are oversaturated

P.S. - 15,000 sellers stopped writing follow-ups. Take the 2-min quiz to see what they switched to: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Sellers

What’s the worst sales advice you’ve received?

A) “Always be closing” – Aggressive pressure turns prospects off
B) “Fake it till you make it” – Authenticity matters more than acting
C) “Price isn’t a problem” – Dismissing budget concerns backfires
D) “Never take no for an answer” – Respect boundaries to build rapport

P.S. - Still writing follow-ups manually? This 60-second quiz builds you an AI system that does it for you: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

What’s the worst sales advice you’ve received?

Sellers

When is the most effective time to give a demo to a prospect? 

A) Early in the sales process – To quickly showcase the product's value and capture interest.
B) After a thorough discovery call – Once you have a clear understanding of their needs and challenges.
C) Just before the closing phase – When the prospect is already considering a purchase.
D) Only on request – Waiting for the prospect to express interest ensures they're engaged.

P.S. - If your follow-ups take longer than 60 seconds, you're doing it wrong. Take the quiz: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

When is the most effective time to give a demo to a prospect? 

Sellers

Should you maintain relationships with clients post-sale without concrete upsell potential?

A) Always - Future opportunities emerge unexpectedly
B) Only if they initiate contact
C) No - Focus energy on active pipelines
D) Never - Emotional labor ≠ compensation

P.S. - Took me 2 min to find out I was wasting 11 hrs/week on follow-ups. Take the quiz, get your number: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Should you maintain relationships with clients post-sale without concrete upsell potential?

Sellers

Cold-calling prospects’ cell phones after 6 PM – hustle or harassment?

A) Harassment – Respect personal time
B) Hustle – Prime time to catch execs
C) Depends – OK if prior interaction exists
D) Mandatory – Quota > bedtime

P.S. - Still writing follow-ups manually? This 60-second quiz builds you an AI system that does it for you: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Cold-calling prospects’ cell phones after 6 PM – hustle or harassment?

Sellers

Should you trash talk competitors to win deals?

A) Always – War is war, and deals are war 
B) Subtly – Plant seeds of doubt strategically
C) Never – Makes you look desperate and weak 
D) Only if they started it – Fair game then

P.S. - Steal my 1-pager email follow-ups: https://lnkd.in/eQr9JQhq

Should you trash talk competitors to win deals?

Sellers

Do good looks matter in sales?

A) 100 % – Beauty opens doors before product does
B) A bit – Looks earn attention, skill seals the deal
C) Barely – Confidence > cheekbones
D) Zero – Quota is blind to pretty faces

P.S. - Still writing follow-ups manually? This 60-second quiz builds you an AI system that does it for you: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Sellers

Is AI replacing salespeople or empowering them?

A) Replacing – Only top 20% of reps will survive automation
B) Empowering – AI handles admin, humans handle relationships
C) Overhyped – Human psychology can't be automated
D) Transforming – The role evolves but never disappears

P.S. - 15,000 sellers stopped writing follow-ups. Take the 2-min quiz to see what they switched to: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Is AI replacing salespeople or empowering them?

Sellers

Remote selling vs. in-person: Which closes more deals?

A) Remote wins – Efficiency and scale beat face-to-face
B) In-person dominates – Trust requires physical presence
C) Hybrid approach – Use both strategically based on deal size
D) Industry dependent – Complex B2B needs in-person relationships

P.S. - If your follow-ups take longer than 60 seconds, you're doing it wrong. Take the quiz: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Remote selling vs. in-person: Which closes more deals?

Sellers

Which comp structure would you rather live on?

A) 70 % base / 30 % commission – stability rules
B) 50 / 50 – balanced risk-reward
C) 30 / 70 – big swings, big wins
D) 0 / 100 – eat what you kill, baby

P.S. - Steal my 1-pager email follow-ups: https://lnkd.in/eQr9JQhq

Which comp structure would you rather live on?

Sellers

Who's harder to sell to?

A) CFOs – Every penny is their first-born child 
B) CTOs – They'd rather build than buy 
C) CEOs – Good luck getting past their gatekeepers
D) Procurement – Where deals go to die slowly

P.S. - Took me 2 min to find out I was wasting 11 hrs/week on follow-ups. Take the quiz, get your number: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Sellers

What's the biggest lie in B2B sales?

A) "I'll circle back next quarter" (They won't) 
B) "Budget isn't an issue" (It always is) 
C) "We're the decision maker" (Committee of 12 enters chat) 
D) "Your product is perfect" (Here comes the ghosting)

P.S. - Steal my 1-pager email follow-ups: https://lnkd.in/eQr9JQhq

Sellers

Is "fake it till you make it" acceptable in enterprise sales?

A) Essential – Confidence sells more than competence 
B) Sometimes – Strategic bluffing is part of the game 
C) Risky – One Google search can tank your credibility
D) Never – Authenticity beats artifice every time

P.S. - Took me 2 min to find out I was wasting 11 hrs/week on follow-ups. Take the quiz, get your number: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Is "fake it till you make it" acceptable in enterprise sales?

Sellers

How do you respond when a prospect ghosts you late in the deal?

A) Persistence: Keep following up until you get a response, showing your commitment to helping them.
B) Pause and Reflect: Give them space for a while, then reach out with a new angle or valuable insight.
C) Closure Attempt: Send a "break-up" email to prompt a final decision, making it clear you're moving on.
D) Seek Feedback: Reach out for feedback to understand what went wrong and learn for the future.

P.S. - If your follow-ups take longer than 60 seconds, you're doing it wrong. Take the quiz: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

How do you respond when a prospect ghosts you late in the deal?

Sellers

Swearing on a discovery call: power move or career-ending?

A) Fireable – Keep it squeaky-clean, sailor
B) Situational – Mirror the prospect’s vibe
C) Adds spice – Curses = authenticity
D) Essential – If you ain’t cussin’, you ain’t closin’

P.S. - Steal my 1-pager email follow-ups: https://lnkd.in/eQr9JQhq

Swearing on a discovery call: power move or career-ending?

Sellers

What's the most overrated sales skill?

A) Objection handling – Good discovery prevents objections 
B) Closing techniques – Desperate and outdated 
C) Product knowledge – Buyers know more than you anyway 
D) Rapport building – Nobody cares about your weekend

P.S. - If your follow-ups take longer than 60 seconds, you're doing it wrong. Take the quiz: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Sellers

Who makes better B2B salespeople?

A) Former athletes – They live for competition & teamwork 
B) Theater kids – Natural performers who command attention 
C) Engineers – They speak the customer's language 
D) Career salespeople – Nothing beats pure sales DNA

P.S. - 15,000 sellers stopped writing follow-ups. Take the 2-min quiz to see what they switched to: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Sellers

Is "ghosting" prospects ever acceptable?

A) Yes - Time management requires cutting unresponsive leads
B) Only after 3+ unanswered follow-ups
C) Rarely - Persistent nurturing eventually converts
D) Never - Professional courtesy always required

P.S. - Took me 2 min to find out I was wasting 11 hrs/week on follow-ups. Take the quiz, get your number: https://lnkd.in/eNYQ3DeQ

Certified Clay Expert & Agency owner | I'll help you build a scalable outbound engine that gets meetings booked on autopilot in the next 180 days | Visit Youtube: @growth-today to see how

Growth shouldn’t feel random.

Most of the B2B companies hit the same walls:
Inbound leads that don’t convert

Outbound that burns reps out without results

Partnerships that look good on paper but never drive pipeline

A CRM full of noise instead of reliable data


I’ve seen it across founders, sales leaders, and marketing teams. The problem isn’t effort, it’s the lack of a repeatable, scalable GTM system.
That’s what we build at Growth Today.

Instead of disconnected tools or random campaigns, we design and implement repeatable GTM engines across sales, marketing, and partnerships that…

✅ Enrich and qualify data
✅ Activate inbound leads into real opportunities
✅ Automate outbound prospecting
✅ Keep CRMs clean and reliable
✅ Orchestrate multi-channel campaigns
✅ Make BDR teams more effective or fully replace them
✅ Align marketing + partnerships with sales for compounding growth

Recent wins:

 → Built a clean, automated CRM that doubled conversion rates
 → Launched a content-driven demand gen engine that 3x’d inbound lead quality
 → Systematized partner outreach → pipeline from alliances grew 40% in 6 months

Growth doesn’t come from more outreach or more tools.
It comes from building the right system once and scaling it.
If you’re a B2B founder or revenue leader serious about building predictable pipeline, let’s connect.

Book your call: https://calendly.com/growth-today/intro-meeting

Brigitta Ruha

We automate 90% of our repetitive tasks or GTM motions.

And honestly, it's the only reason we can move this fast

Most of us are doing manual work…

Copywriting, following up, building lists.

We used to do that too.

Then we asked… "what if we only touched things that actually need a human?"

So, here's what we automate:

1️⃣ Lead & Account Enrichment

→ Clay auto-enriches companies & contacts with firmographics, tech stack, and intent signals.

2️⃣ ICP Qualification & Scoring

→ Clearbit/Clay score accounts automatically based on size, industry, and buying signals.

3️⃣ CRM Hygiene

→ HubSpot auto-deduplicates records, standardizes fields, and keeps pipelines clean.

4️⃣ Inbound Lead Routing

→ Zapier routes inbound leads instantly to the right owner based on rules.

5️⃣ Outbound Personalization at Scale

→ Claude generates personalized first lines using firmographic + behavioral context.

6️⃣ Multi-Channel Campaign Orchestration

→ lemlist sync email, LinkedIn, and follow-ups, and all activities w/o manually adding anything.

7️⃣ Meeting Booking & Follow-Ups

→ Calendly removes back-and-forth and auto-trigger reminders after no-shows.

8️⃣ Content Repurposing

→ Claude turns one idea into multiple GTM assets across channels.

9️⃣ Performance Tracking & Attribution

→ Hootsuite tracks what actually drives the pipeline, not vanity clicks.

🔟 Reporting & Revenue Visibility

→ Airtable dashboards that show what's working and what's not.

You don't need to automate everything overnight.

Start with one workflow that's eating your time, automate that, and see what changes.

Co-Founder @Growth Today | We Build Repeatable GTM Engines Across Sales, Marketing & Partnerships 🚀

You can have the best product in the world…

But without GTM

Nobody sees it.
Nobody hears about it.
Nobody gets it.

Because GTM isn’t some launch moment or a slide deck.

It’s the day-to-day clarity around:

who you’re actually talking to,

why they should care right now,

and where your message shows up.

I’ve seen solid products stall simply because that part was fuzzy.

Nothing was wrong with the product.

The path to the buyer just wasn’t clear.

GTM is what turns good work into traction.

Without it, even great products stay invisible.

Some examples:

- A great product, but no clear ICP → everyone’s “a fit,” so no one really is
- No value in messages → buyers don’t care 
- Good messaging, but wrong channel → you’re explaining value where your prospects aren’t paying attention

You can check Rippling, Drift, Gorgias, and many more companies

Your real moat isn’t the product…..

It’s how consistently (!) you can reach the right prospects at the right moment.

Distribution is most important
(on email, on ads, on cold email).

Be #ATOM

Always Be Top Of Mind

Where it makes sense & wherever you can

There is a better way ❣️ “call → email → call → email”…

👉 LinkedIn + social > email > calls > everything else.

Because it’s easier to say yes to someone you recognise.

So the smarter play looks like this:

→ build familiarity on social
→ support it with email 
→ use calls when timing makes sense 
→ add SMS + video to double down on familiarity ✌️

I've tested many sales extensions over the years

Some were OK (but nothing special) Some did a pretty good job (personal fav: Instant Data Scraper - huge ✌️for the team. You can scrape a lot of things for free)

Here are 10 I actually use:

- Clearbit Connect
- Clay Chrome Extension
- Hunter.io
- Wiza
- Instantly.ai  Chrome Extension
- Snov.io Email Finder
- Magical
- Loom Chrome Extension
- Grammarly
- Vidyard Extension

+ ZenRows, Apify, which is my team’s favorite

Are there any very, very good which is super useful and not on this list? 👀 LMK

10 SALES EXTENTIONS EVERY GTM PERSON SHOULD KNOW

You just opened HubSpot / Salesforce

Stared at it for 30 seconds.

Then asked: "Are we... okay?"

No. No, we were not. 😅

Look, we all start with the Fantasy CRM in our heads.

Clean data, perfect lead scoring, and sales handoffs smoother than butter

Then reality hits, and we see …

- Duplicate contacts
- Missing titles
- Wrong industries
- Bounced contacts

Your CRM becomes whatever you make it.

No ownership? No standards? No cleanup?

You get a beautiful, chaotic spiderweb of broken automations and vibes-based forecasting 🤷

So we had two choices:

→ Keep pretending it's fine, or actually fix it

We chose option 2.

So we do monthly audits, define clear rules of engagement, automate de-dupe-s, and align on recurring data governance

Revolutionary? Nope

Necessary? Absolutely

Your CRM will never be perfect.

But it can be functional….

And functional beats fantasy every time 🙌

… aaaand 🥁🥁🥁 ….. You just need to get started

fixing each of those steps one by one, you can see in the image.

We can help with ALL of those. 😉

We used to watch our client’s team manually update their accounts’ tiers for hours every week (gut feelings, quick LinkedIn scrolls, endless spreadsheets)

It was painful to watch because we knew there was a better way ❣️

At Growth Today, when we're helping teams implement CRM automation, we look for 12 specific signs that your system is ready for AI not the "shiny tech" kind of AI, but the "this is good, my reps just got 10 hours back this week" kind

Some issues we usually see:

🔴 Data Entry Hell
No one trusts the numbers anymore Lead qualification is still manual/semi-manual

🔴 Activity Theater
Sequences treat every lead the same (small to little difference inbound vs outbound) Takes a long time to ramp up new reps (lack of processes/unoptimized)

🔴 Revenue Killers
Pipeline reviews take forever (or you don’t trust it 😅 ) Inbound is often untouched (not ignored, just not routed, tagged, or sequenced)

🔴 The Breaking Point
Reps spend more time updating records than actually selling Forecasts are gut-feel first, math second (it works... until it really doesn't)

Just to mention a few…

Most of these aren't "CRM problems.” they're process design problems where we can use AI to fix these.

What we do when working with you: (1) map which processes can be automated vs. which need human judgment (2) build scoring logic based on how your team differentiates OK vs 

GOOD vs BEST fit accounts (3) route/assign the right leads to the right reps at the right time sat down with the team to visualize all 12 signs for you ✌️

Every B2B deal has 6 people you need to win over

Have you been in a situation when:

The Champion is excited, pushing it internally, everything's moving... and then it just dies. 😅

Happened to me too many times before I figured it out

I was only talking to The Champion

But while they were selling for me, there were 5 other people I completely missed:

So I started mapping out who's who in every deal.

Added those 6 people on visuals

Once I started paying attention, deals became way less confusing.

I could anticipate objections and address the right concerns for each person.

Because you're not selling to one person, you're navigating a whole committee.

Tell me you're an OG SDR without telling me you're an OG SDR… 😅

If you're new to sales, grab an OG and ask about their cold calling days

you'll learn more in 20 minutes than most courses teach

what's your favorite old-school sales story? would love to hear it 👇

Every year, LinkedIn feels a bit harder than it used to be New year = new algorithm = new tactics to learn, right?

RIGHT?
But…

Links don’t magically kill reach
Posting daily doesn’t exponentially increase your reach

Viral posts feel great, but don't fill the pipeline (800 views from the right people > 100K random eyeballs)
& video isn’t king by default 👑

What actually works is often pretty boring:

Fewer posts
Very clear ICP (stopped trying to talk to everyone)
Content people spend 90+ seconds on
Valuable frameworks > shortcuts

Same rule as outbound:

Foundation first, then build every other lever ✌️
& foundation = clean, actionable, relevant data
& then how to use it for GTM

Don’t let the noise distract you from keeping at posting/emailing the right thing

It's mostly the same fundamentals wrapped in a new language

Keep posting to build trust, credibility
Keep cold emailing to consistently show up

2026 LinkedIn Reality Check

9 things I wish THIS GIRL knew about business

1- Ideas are cheap without follow-through.

2- As you grow, what you want will change. LET IT.

3- Your skills will compound over time. Start acquiring them NOW.

4- If you stop evolving, you start stagnating. Personally and professionally.

5- Everything is going to take way longer than you think. Never, EVER give up.

6- If you can’t do the work yourself, no one else will magically execute it for you.

7- Your team is only as strong as your weakest team member. Talent is everything.

8- You need both great distribution and a great product; you CAN’T skip either side.

9- LinkedIn is a very real - and very powerful - channel. Learn how to build your ASAP. It will amplify everything you are doing.

Just keep

…growing 🪴

…building ✌️

P.S. #6 hit different once I built Growth Today.

"if you can't do the work yourself, no one else will magically execute it for you.”

turns out, you CAN partner with someone who's already done the work. (that's literally why we exist - we've built the GTM systems so you don't have to figure it out from scratch)

but you still need to know what good looks like. ;)

If your whole GTM plan is

“wait for website visitors to convert”…

yeah, you’re gonna be swimming like this lion all year 😂

If you’re not messaging webvisitors, you definitely should 
(inbound-led audiences are still way more receptive.)

But…

Don’t forget that:

→ people need multiple touches
→ they buy when timing aligns

That’s why “just waiting” doesn’t work.

Be #ATOM instead 

Always be top of mind.✌️

(on LinkedIn, on ads, on email, on calls, via podcast etc)

Go meet people where they already are 

don’t just hope they come back.

Your website isn’t the finish line.

It’s the starting point.

One thing I love about outbound is you know pretty fast when something's wrong.

Either people respond or they don't.

We worked with a services company last week whose outbound just… wasn't getting replies.

First thought: bad list or bad copy.

Turned out their system was just set up wrong.

Here's what we changed:

☑ Started leading with the 2 services people actually want to talk about

They've got 3 services. All solid.

But one just doesn't work as a cold opener…. 💡

Like, nobody's sitting there thinking "oh yeah, send me that 40-page report." 😅

So we focused on the 2 that actually get conversations going.

☑ Cleaned up their list with Icypeas

Don’t just start verifying emails…but

Include Catchalls as well.

Cleaner data = fewer bounces = email sent in the inbox 📨

☑ Stopped asking for meetings, started giving

Before: "Got 15 minutes?"

Now: Here's a campaign idea. Here's an audit. Here's something you can actually use.

Give value first. Ask for time later.

GIVE → GIVE → GIVE → then ASK.

(my motto 💞)

☑ Added triggers instead of just general persona x industry-based campaigns

Used to be: blast everyone every Tuesday.

Now: send when something actually happens

They hired someone. Posted a job. Increased ad spend. Published something new.

Same list, way better timing.

(& signals alone not going to turn the ship around… BUT being not only relevant with a good offer but also a good timing significantly helps you increase the results.)

(& layer some nice customization such as: referencing another person from the buying committee, their GTM plans, changes in the team, something nice + relevant noticed on their profile)

Always be top of mind ✌️

☑ Updated the messaging

Didn't rewrite the whole message!

Just updated for current priorities and 2026 plans, challenges ☺️

The fun part is what we didn’t change:

The ICP. The list size. The channel. How much we send. The core offer.

Just changed how it all connects.

Takeaway:

When replies drop off, everyone blames the copy.

But most of the time? It's not the copy itself.

What if we run out of target accounts? What if we burn them?" (I hear this at least once a week.)

And honestly? That’s the wrong fear. Your TAM doesn't run out.

Here's why the "we'll burn through our list" excuse is bullshit:

1️⃣ Your market is gonna change

New people join companies every quarter. Roles shift. Restructuring happens. Decision-makers rotate.

The VP you pitched 6 months ago? They might be gone. The Director who ignored you? They just got promoted and now own a budget.

And sometimes… You even change who you market to.

Your TAM isn't static; it's constantly refreshing. Don’t think in snapshots; it’s a motion. ✌️

2️⃣ Your service/product evolves

You launch new services. You add new angles. You test different messaging.

The more different teams I work with, the more I come to realize that most of them truly underestimate how much their GTM actually changes over time.

You're not the same company you were 6 months ago, so why are you still pitching like you are?

So if you're still worried about "burning through your TAM," here's a quick audit:

→ Have you tested 3+ messaging angles this quarter?
→ Have you revisited accounts from 6+ months ago with a new offer? 
→ Have you scrapped your "perfect" pitch and tried something weird?

No?

Then you haven't run out of TAM. You've run out of experiments. 😂 (& if you need help running those experiments, you know where to find me 📲)

Half your lead list is just… missing

(Not people, but missing emails you can actually send to)

And that’s where most outbound motions quietly die…

Because the typical loop looks like this:

run one provider → blanks…run another → “valid” emails that still bounce

clean the CRM → patch the list → repeat

…and somehow we call that building pipeline 🫠

This is why i think Clay waterfalls + Icypeas is such a good combo

Icypeas is built in a way that GTM teams actually use:

Full Name + Company Domain → verified work email

Then Clay does what it’s best at:

waterfall across multiple providers until you get a real hit ... instead of betting your whole campaign on one provider.

The setup is simple :

Select Icypeas account → Clay-managed or your own API key

Map inputs → Name + Domain (optional catch-all)

Enable auto-update → refresh every 24h (less stale data)

Add a condition → run only if email is blank (credit-efficient)

Waterfall = higher coverage without extra tabs

Verification = fewer bounces / healthier deliverability

Auto-update = less stale data when titles change fast

Conditional runs = you don’t pay twice for the same row

Net result..more filled rows…Cleaner lists…Fewer bounces. ✌️

and reps start outreach with data that actually holds up.

I spent the weekend reading about AI-powered defense systems turns out, GTM and Defense have a lot more in common 💭

Read an interview with Helsing (Europe's biggest defense tech startup). One line stood out:

"Russia and China would have little compunction about delegating responsibility to autonomous systems. Western countries need better technology to compensate for higher human control."

➡️ speed ➕ human judgment = ✅ Not one or the other.

Same principles, different game:

1️⃣ Defense tech uses proactive systems, not reactive responses

In War: waiting for the enemy to attack means you've already lost. Helsing builds autonomous drones that act fast, adapt in real time, and stay ahead of threats.

In GTM: waiting for the perfect [X] means you've already lost. Fast-growing teams build systems and aggressively market to their prospects: aggressive tests, creative plays, and hunting for unique GTM edges that competitors can't copy

2️⃣ Speed matters more than perfection (My motto: “Speed always wins)

In War: defense systems operate at machine speed because hesitation is fatal. You can't pause mid-battle to "optimize the strategy deck." GTM works the same way.

In GTM: The best systems I've seen aren't perfect. FAST. ROBUST. super MVP-ish.

lean thinking + rigorous process + fast execution.

less planning. MORE doing.

3️⃣ Agentic is empowerment, not replacement

In War: Helsing's systems still require human oversight because high-stakes decisions need judgment.

In GTM: We're not replacing SDRs or AEs, we're freeing them to do what humans do best. Automation should really handle the repetitive stuff (list building, data enrichment, sequencing) so your people can focus on high-value work.

See the pattern?

proactive > vs. reactive

Best part?

You don't need a billion-dollar budget to do that.

You need the right tools, the right data, and a mindset shift from "let's react faster" to "let's stay ahead.

& a team who can make it happen!

⬇️⬇️

If you have all these but are missing the talent or bandwidth, DM me 📲

P.S. with some of my team members at our Bali offsite.

→ we chose offense, hah! 💧

(got absolutely soaked, 10/10 would recommend as team bonding)

also: shoutout to this crew for building systems and work with me to consistently strengthen their GTM muscle that let us take offsites in Bali 🌴🌴🌴

I used to think a “bad outbound month” meant we needed better copy.

But this week reminded me (again) that copy is usually the least of the problems.

One of our clients in the services space came in thinking the same thing:

“Our messaging just isn’t strong enough.”

Except… that wasn’t purely the issue at all:

1️⃣ significant part of their target market is the enterprise

Enterprise prospects = Microsoft.

And Microsoft is picky.

If your infrastructure isn’t tuned for it, you can write the best email in the world, and nobody will see it.

I know many agencies in our space don’t do Microsoft (we do), but it’s SO true that Microsoft is just 5× harder.

So yep… we’re have a different mix of Google + Microsoft inboxes and all these inboxes are purchased by multiple resellers, so we can continuously monitor which ones are performing the best and use the data from our inbox placement tests to make adjustments to keep hitting the inbox.

2️⃣ they were leading with the wrong service

They have 3 services.

All great.

But one is a terrible conversation starter.

Their prospects literally respond ~2× better to the other 2 services, but outbound wasn’t aligned to that.

A tiny repositioning → big impact.

3️⃣ the CTA lacked compelling reasons to meet

In the agency space, you’re likely selling something that is “easy” to execute, so the barrier to entry is low.

What prospects see: “Everyone claims they do outbound, so I assume you’re all the same.”

This is commoditization.

The market is flooded and undifferentiated.

Because of this, you must be SO clear on how you’re different and give them a compelling reason to meet with you.

Concrete example if you’re running an ad agency:

→ “I have analyzed your ads published in the last 90 days. Can I send over a quick audit to decrease the CPL?”

→ “Would you be open to exploring how we can help you decrease the CPL on your Meta ads?”

#1 gives them something valuable for free.

GIVE → GIVE → GIVE → before you ASK.

4️⃣ They weren’t using any intent signals

General prospecting campaigns are good.

But if you’re only doing that, you don’t have any “always-on” campaigns that work 24/7 and indicate a buying window.

So we layered in:

→ new hires
→ accounts scaling ads
→ recent leadership hires
→ thought leaders actively posting/speaking at conferences

You can use Clay, Apollo (and many more) to test and capture these windows.

Same TAM.
Same volume.
Same (good) copy.

I’m confident there’ll be a completely different performance.

Because outbound doesn’t always have just a messaging problem.

It usually has a thought process problem.

Lesson I’m taking forward:

If outbound feels slow, don’t rush to rewrite the emails.

Check the infrastructure.
Check the timing.
Check the offer.
Check the CTA.
Check what buyers actually respond to in the first place.

Fix the system → the copy suddenly “works.”

Funny how that happens. 😅

4 LESSONS YOU CAN STEAL TO IMPROVE YOUR OUTBOUND

You know that moment when something feels weirdly specific?

Like:

“Wait… this is exactly what I was thinking about.”

Relax.

The universe isn’t sending signs 😅

Someone just did their targeting properly. 😉 💋

Good segmentation looks like magic from the outside.

But behind it, it’s usually just:

– a clearly defined ICP
– context that is * actually * relevant
– timing that makes sense
– and a message written for one type of person, not everyone

Most outreach feels pushy because it’s generic. 😞

When it’s precise, it doesn’t feel like marketing.

It feels obvious.

The same logic applies to outbound, ads, and LinkedIn.

Nothing mystical.

No secret hacks.

Just be relevant, helpful, short + sweet

… and a system that knows when to stop guessing 👀

i wanted to share this for the weekend. positive vibes only!

& im sure you can do it

because i can do it too!!

SaaS companies don’t buy the way we think they do.

(probably you already know this)

You email one person. They like it…. They even agree with it. But they’re not the ones deciding 😅 

Or they need to check with someone else. Or they forward it internally…

…and then it gets passed around internally.

SaaS decisions usually involve more than one person.

Those decisions usually live across teams.

Different people, different priorities.

Founders look at the big picture. Sales looks at the pipeline. RevOps cares about process. 

Tech worries about scalability, products, the roadmap, yada yada.

Everyone’s looking at the same challenge. Just from a different angle. 👀 

This is where a lot of GTM motions stop making sense.

When everything is aimed at one person, and we wait for a yes, we’re oversimplifying how SaaS actually buys.

What changed for me was thinking through:

Who else is involved? Who else influences the decision? Who else also needs to feel confident before anything moves?

That’s also why tools like saasyDB are useful in practice.

You can get the whole buying committee from a very accurate and simple Saas database

& loop them pre or post-sales as you’d like!

One company + whole buying committee = for 1 credit 💪 

If you haven’t tried out SassyDB and you’re targeting SaaS, do it. super easy to use and accurate, fresh database 🥁 ✌

Everyone wants replies Very few people earn them

Before someone opens, clicks, or replies, they’ve already made a few quiet decisions:

Do I recognize this name? Do I know what this is about? Does this feel like effort?

Most outreach skips these and goes straight to the ask…

But trust doesn’t work that way…. 

It’s built through relevance. 

Through consistency…. 

By showing up with something useful before you expect anything back (!)

Build the habit first. 

The replies usually come after ❣️❣️

Some examples below:

#1: How to lead with value

[Name] - thought you'd find this useful: [Article Title]. [Thought leader] from [Company] gives you a few ideas on how to build a kick-ass company culture.

My personal favourite is tip #1 on how to retain 80% of the hires

#2: Good vs bad offer comparison (Let’s pretend you’re an ad agency!)

⛔  BAD: Do you have time this week to chat about this?

🆗  OK: Opposed to seeing a better way of how you can reduce the back and forth on reviewing the copy?

👌 GOOD: Can I build one week of content for you for free?

Your lead sourcing workflow is probably more complicated than it needs to be….

You've got two bad options:

Apollo and Zoominfo are easy to use, but the data is old. People change jobs. The emails bounce.

LinkedIn has current data, but you can't export it without using scrapers that might get your account banned.

So your team is probably doing this:

1: scrape a database/import something 
2: export
3: upload to an enrichment tool 
4: verify, export again, push to CRM.

Four tools.

Three exports.

Hours gone.

There's a better way.

BetterContact’s waterfall lead finders that solve for coverage AND quality at the same time.

Here's how we use it in a 🥜

1️⃣ we originate lists inside the platform

2️⃣ then we push the clean data to Clay or HubSpot/Salesforce to activate & use the data

& just like their email/mobile phone enrichment waterfall, BetterContact also sources the data from multiple sources:

- B2B Databases (whitelabelled for now, incl. most popular ones)
- Web Crawling using AI Graph Expansions

To solve for quality/accuracy, their AI Agents to crawl the web in order to verify that the person actually works at that company/has that job title/lives in that country.

& if you're wondering:

- no, you don’t pay for unused credits → you only get charged when it finds a verified contact

- whether this replaces your entire stack → it doesn't replace everything, but it does change where list building starts. We've moved our own sourcing upstream into the waterfall, then push clean data downstream to Clay or HubSpot for activation

- you can find 5-10% more valid prospects to reach out to on average.

We've been using them because it just makes more sense than the old scrape-verify-export-repeat cycle.

if you think somebody would benefit this, repost it 🔄

if your Ops team is looking for other tools that can complement/replace, share this post w them

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