Gong

Strategic Mid-Market Account Executive

⦾ 2023 - 210% YTD
⦾ 2022 - 173% YTD
⦾ 2021 - 286% YTD

Senior Mid-Market Account Executive

Helping revenue leaders blow past their targets & sellers crush their quotas.

Mid-Market Account Executive

Senior Commercial Account Executive

Commercial Account Executive

Closed Won

5 Resources and counting:

https://closedwon.xyz/
https://closedwon.xyz/sell-different/
https://closedwon.xyz/newsletter/
https://closedwon.xyz/interview/
https://closedwon.xyz/msp/

Founder

Aligned

Strategic Advisor

Sales Assembly

Featured Thought Leader

BrightEdge

⦾ 3x President's Club Award (2018, 2019, & 2020)
⦾ Closed $2.5 Million+ won brands Mailchimp, Tony Robbins, DentaQuest, + More
⦾ Fastest all time through SDR program - 178 qualified meetings in sub-10 months

Enterprise Account Executive

BrightEdge is the leading SEO SaaS platform working with 57% of the Fortune 100. 

MM + ENT selling through outreach, demos, presentations, negotiations, legal, and security review.

Sales Development Representative

Anheuser-Busch

Sales Internship

Vanderbilt University

Took 100 hours of MBA-level instruction and worked 150+ hours for 5 firms.

Accelerator Business Program

AE @ Gong | Closed Won 🦙 | 5x President's Club

A closer & "all in" leader. Creating raving fans @ Gong. Founder of Closed Won.

https://closedwon.xyz/
https://closedwon.xyz/sell-different/
https://closedwon.xyz/newsletter/
https://closedwon.xyz/interview/
https://closedwon.xyz/msp/

Tech sales career path 101:

Kick things off as an entry level SDR (OTE $70K)
Call, email, message and set meetings
Timeframe 9-18 months
(salary and top companies, SDRs: https://lnkd.in/g9svdW47


Start as a Commercial/SMB Account Executive (OTE $130K)
Ideally, you got promoted internally for this
Crush quota for 12-18 months
(salary and top companies, SMB AEs: https://lnkd.in/gX_FyEDe)


Once you have 1 year+ closing experience, many options open up. 

Promote into a Mid-Market Account Executive Role (OTE $175K)
Either internally or join another company
Crush quota 12-24 months
(salaries & top companies, MM AEs: https://lnkd.in/gNUta3DK)

Take an account management role with higher base, lower upside, a bit ‘safer' of an option
(salaries & top companies, AMs: https://lnkd.in/gW4uGK_v)


OR a customer success role if closing and prospecting isn't your thing
(salaries & top companies for CS: https://lnkd.in/gJPuZ8RR)


OR a sales engineering role if you're more into the technical side of things
(salaries & top companies for SEs: https://lnkd.in/gBb3dFDt)


OR...

Take a management role with higher base and OTE, but lower upside, but possibly puts you on track for the C-suite (would be another 5-7 years)
(salaries & top companies, managers: https://lnkd.in/guBmUDeC)


OR...

Keep staying an AE and work more Strategic / Enterprise accounts. 

Parlay that into a strategic or enterprise AE role **OTE $300k**
Work really hard, set yourself apart… and just make bank.
Top performers in this role are clearing $1M/year.
(salaries & top companies, Strat AEs: https://lnkd.in/gDHF3rVT)


[There are many other paths too and not all fall linearly like this]


All of that might seem easy in a LinkedIn post. 

But each move to the next step requires you to crush that current role. 

No replacement for putting in the hard work.

Brian LaManna

After a 45 min doctor appointment, would you like if they asked: 
 
So what do you think we should do for next steps? 
 
I'd be 😡😡😡 because 
 
 
You go to the doctor when there's a problem 
 
-You want them to listen to you 
-You want to know they understand your problem 
-You want them to prescribe something to make it better 
 
 
Fun fact, your prospects feel the same way 
 
- Make them feel heard 
- Build up trust + credibility 
- Be prescriptive on next steps 
 
 
 
𝗙𝗶𝗿𝘀𝘁 𝗮𝘀𝗸: 
 
"Are you open to a recommendation?" 
 
 
Now go be the doctor 👩‍⚕️ 
 
 
𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗻 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗰𝗿𝗶𝗯𝗲: 
 
"Given xyz, I'd recommend we set up a 2nd demo with you + Karen to get her unique perspective. 
 
Are you in alignment on that?" 
 
 
Show up with a POV and guide them 
 
Happy last week of March ✌️

For each deal, I write out why I'll lose it.

Usually there's 2 3 different core reasons.

It’s specific to that account, prior conversations and my prep.

𝐎𝐧𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞:

-They use a cheaper competitor
-Only speaking to a manger-level. Need to get higher. 
-Unsure on their tech stack

The goal isn’t negativity. 

It’s awareness. 


𝐇𝐞𝐫𝐞’𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐈’𝐝 𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐚𝐜𝐤 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐞𝐱𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐥𝐞:

-Differentiate from the start. Learn contract dates. Share someone who’s upgraded (cheap competitor) + results. 
-Include in upfront contract that if call goes well, getting Director looped in.
-Working in discovery to understand their exact tech stack.


Every first call will have risk for why you’ll lose the deal.

It’s not negativity or pessimism.

Seek out risk head on.


More on this strategy + 17 others in "Differentiated Selling"

34% off through tomorrow only: https://lnkd.in/gz3nd8ik

Join 100+ others who've already grabbed a copy.

Dumb questions are killing your deals. 

Yes, 'dumb' questions do exist.

A few examples:

- Asking what their CEO's name is
- Asking how they make money as a business
- Asking how long they've been at the company
- Asking who they sell to in terms of their customers
- Asking if the company is public or private
- Asking where they live 

When you ask one of those, they will usually answer it.

But quietly, you've lost respect from an exec on the other side

A 'dumb' question is anything you could 𝐞𝐚𝐬𝐢𝐥𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐬𝐞𝐚𝐫𝐜𝐡

Do your pre-call prep and show up ready 🦙

This morning, I compiled all my (free) resources I've created, into one post.
 
[Saturday Chi weather ☀ got me in a great mood rn]
 

1. Account Planning Template - Organized way to keep track of all your prospecting efforts and people you're going after. 

https://lnkd.in/gwjX9Nya


2. Interview questions - Unlock the truth about your potential earnings, attainment, company culture with these 27 proven questions. 

https://lnkd.in/gKbpE5W2


3. Mutual Success Plan - Template to keep you and your champion fully aligned through a deal cycle. Also, helpful to navigate security, legal, and who the signer  ends up being.

https://closedwon.xyz/msp/


4. Podcast - 30 Minutes to President's Club episode with me on how I maintain momentum in deal cycles. On Spotify below.

https://lnkd.in/gcwrMKKR


5. Newsletter - Actionable sales tips (and some B+ memes) delivered to your inbox every Monday. Trusted by 11,200+ sellers and counting. Read in 2-3 min. 
 
https://lnkd.in/gjeVd_U8


♻️  Please consider resharing if it'd help others in your network.
 
📌 Sellers - what resource should I build up next?

I’ve now ran over 100 pilots (trials) at Gong.

With a win rate of over 90%. 

4 biggest lessons. 


1. 𝐄𝐱𝐞𝐜𝐮𝐭𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐀𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐧𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭

Never begin a pilot without executive alignment. Ideally, the economic buyer has already been engaged through demos / the evaluation. 

If not, this is a great opportunity to get them looped in as a ‘give / get’ before starting. 

“Before approving a pilot, we require exec alignment. I’ve learned it’s much easier to ask for 20 minutes upfront and all be aligned, than 50K at the end. How can we loop ___ in?”


2. 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐂𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐢𝐚

Before beginning a pilot, align on success criteria with the team + economic buyer. Always come ready with criteria proposed to help guide them as to what they should be looking to prove. Keep them simple. Under promise, over deliver. 

I also use the time to uncover additional risk. 

“Say we nail all the success criteria, you love the pilot, but the team decides not to sign on (date). What are the most likely 2 reasons why?”


3. 𝐌𝐮𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐥 𝐒𝐮𝐜𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬 𝐏𝐥𝐚𝐧𝐬

Create a mutual success plan that outlines the success crtieria, sessions, pilot resources, etc. and share it with your POC to encourage editing. 

I have 3 lines that include - security, legal, and signer. 


4. 𝐒𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐝𝐮𝐥𝐞 𝐚𝐥𝐥 𝐬𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐮𝐩𝐟𝐫𝐨𝐧𝐭

If your pilot / trial process includes trainings, insights, check-ins, get them scheduled in bulk. 

Never have to worry about grabbing a next meeting then. 



Key to all 4... having a great, repeatable template. 

Yesterday, I launched "Differentiated Selling." 18 strategies to help sellers stand out, sell more, and crush quota.

One features mutual success plans + includes my downloadable template. 
 
More details here: https://lnkd.in/gz3nd8ik

34% off only through Friday only

One easy question to improve multithreading. 
 
I plant this seed mid-demo. 
 
 
𝗤𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 
 
“When you see these data/insights, who else on the team would get value?” 
 
 
Now you have permission at the end of the call 
 
Close it out + make the ask to include them 
 
Army of champions > 1 champion 🦙

Typed 3 different competitors in the Zoom chat last week and gave them back 13 minutes.

Got an inbound demo request from two people, looking for a specific marketing solution. 

After learning about why they set up time, I shared that (unfortunately) our solution wouldn't help. 

But took the opportunity to tell the more about our space and even showed them a view from within the platform. 

They loved what they saw.

Running some more discovery, we determined it'd be a 'nice to have' for them as none of their business initiatives aligned to what we do. 

So I made a recommendation.


They should first use a cheaper solution on the market. 

If useful and they saw value, they could always upgrade to us later. 

Typed out three different names I'd heard great things about in the Zoom chat. 

Sent them a nice follow up email with our contact info if anything changes. 


See yourself more like a consultant and less like a salesperson.

Good things will happen for both sides 🦙

At 53% of goal this quarter (Feb-April).

What's going great:
-Pipeline generation and 5x+ coverage
-Getting in front of my customer accounts
-Learning our new products, advancements
-Working with my new manager I love
-Partnering with my SDR

What needs work:
-Driving urgency in deals
-Ensuring I'm 'At Power' who can influence timeline


I'll own - I'm definitely not where I want to be at quota wise.

Revenue lags the hard work we put in as sellers. 

Keep generating net new pipeline. 

Keep advancing that pipeline. 

Quota works its way out 🦙

Something people don't know about me!! 🎶

I was big into music. So much so, I ran some concerts for Indiana University + Greek Life.

Waka Flocka 🔥
Travis Porter
Post Malone
Big Wild
Baauer
Jauz 🦈

Each one: Harder than a full deal cycle.

Worked with 8-15 vendors. Thought the university would 'kill it' at any point.

Presented detailed plans in front of the university for approval, each time.

And each closed-won, executed safely 🥳


What's something ppl may not know about you?

📸: Me with Baauer

Been battling in a 'must win' super, competitive deal and got the bad news on Friday that we were not 'Vendor of Choice.'

Made me come to the realization.

I've been at Gong for ~3 years now and have yet to lose to a competitor due to technology. 

It's always been:
1) price
2) status quo

And for that, I'm so fortunate to work for such a great company.


The great news - the decision is not yet final. 

I'm prepared to go absolutely all in this week on it.

I've never have had more conviction that we are the best long-term partner to achieve their goals and vision.

I preach that there is no such thing as a 'must win' deal. 

But I'm 100% emotionally attached to this one. 

There's any army of champions there that want us. 

Not going to let them down 🦙

Great discovery vs. sh*tty discovery, broken down.


Great Discovery:

-Coming in with strong research
-Having a POV on their biggest challenges / priorities
-Uncovering true business-level and personal pain
-Active listening and being 100% present
-Customer talking 60%+ of the time

Bad Discovery:

-Asking what keeps them up at night
-Running through a checklist of questions
-Asking questions you could have researched
-Using the time to talk about your own solution
-Dominating the conversation and talking more than them
-Only surface level and tactical questions
-Scrambling to write / type out notes
-Showing up late


The list of ‘bad discovery’ could have been much longer. 

What am I missing here? 🦙

3 months of work later... WE. ARE. LIVE!!! 🎉 

Every President's Club winner you see isn't settling for what ‘most’ sellers are doing.

They unlock their ‘edge’ by daring to be different - always testing, trying, and failing forward.

As for me:

I've always said there isn't one ‘silver bullet’ for success.

And nothing replaces putting in the hard work.

But over the last 5 Clubs I’ve been insanely fortunate enough to earn, I focused on finding new strategies to give buyers an unbelievable experience the entire deal cycle.

Many didn't pan out…

…but a select few became instant hits that set me apart from the competition.

Today, I'm releasing my 2nd ever sales system on Closed Won: "Differentiated Selling"

Inside, I'm breaking down all 18 of my untold strategies that will help you stand out, sell more, and smash your quota.

To celebrate, I’m offering 34% off through Friday only.

Full details here: https://lnkd.in/gz3nd8ik

March Madness reminds me that people waste too much time on goals

They are pretty overrated. 

Two real examples. 


Imagine all 68 teams in March Madness. What's their goal?

↳ Win it all 🏀 


Imagine all sellers in your org. What’s their goal?

↳ Win President's Club 🏆


The problem?

↳ Winners and losers often have the same goals.


So what should you focus on?

↳ Systems


Systems are the processes to hit your goals.


𝗦𝘆𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗺 𝗲𝘅𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝘀𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀:
-Hitting 150 activities per week
-Listening to 2 calls/daily of top performers
-Prospecting 3 new accounts every day


Goals are a great north star ⭐

But systems separate the winners and losers

Spend 3x more defining the steps + systems to hit that goal


P.S. Will be locked in all day watching the full slate. Go Marquette!! Who you got this year?

New VPs and Directors convert to opps 2.5X higher in their first 3-6 months.

New leaders don't get brought in to keep things the same. 

Which makes this news even more exciting.


UserGems 💎 is launching a new product: the New Hires & Promotions Signal ⚠️ 

Signals = catalysts for smarter outbound because they not only surface WHO to reach out to, but also give vendors a clear WHY.

UserGems' flagship signal is Champion Tracking (the one you all know about love) and now that's expanding.


Reasons I'm excited about New Hires + Promotions:

🟢 Timing - new execs spend 70% of budget in their first 100 days 
 
🟢 Compelling event - a reason for reaching out: to help them look great in their new job 
 
🟢 Relevance - easy to make messaging is relevant / personalized: proactively show prospects why they should evaluate your tool before others 


You can find more info here: https://lnkd.in/gUMbYt5u

Tom Alaimo was one of the best sellers at Gong when I joined. 179% of goal, President's Club, Million Dollar Club, and hit quota every quarter. 

In 2023, he made the decision to bet on himself and start TA sales. 

Recently, he asked me to run a monthly recurring session on proven outbound prospecting strategies. 

Awesome full circle moment, as he's someone I've always looked up to.

After attending two cohorts, here's what I know: I would have killed to have something like this when I started out. 

Tom has done what he preaches and is one of the best humans.


He has a new cohort of his Prospecting Bootcamp now open for 4/30.

It includes 10 (!) live calls, amazing guest speakers, dozens of practical takeaways and a 24/7 Slack Community to learn and grow with other people. 

Disclaimer: It's not a passive course that could have just been recorded. He will push, enable, and challenge every person apart of it. Me too.

Tom included a 20% off for folks that also follow me on LinkedIn.

More info: https://lnkd.in/gi7z3Cjf

Code: "Brian"

🦙

Blown away and just feeling grateful.

Favorite message this week (from a close friend):


"Bri Man this was 🔥  - you do not miss!!!

Immediately came away with at least 10+ new concepts I can use right away. Some of it was just next level and know will make a huge different in 2024. 

Appreciate you putting in the time to break down what you do that's different and all of the resources/templates that are plug and play. 

Good luck if March is your EOQ!!"


I created Closed Won knowing "Differentiated Selling" would be my flagship product.

150+ copies grabbed in 4 days later, it exceeded all expectations.

See more details here: https://lnkd.in/gz3nd8ik

Last day of launch sale ends today.

Happy Friday ✌️

-Bri Man

The advice I'd tell younger Brian just starting in sales. 

Don't get caught in the  "Just 1 more year, and I'll finally be a _______" 
 
When I was an SDR, I was dying to get to Senior SDR.

When I was a a Sr. SDR, I was dying to get to AE.

Once an AE, I was dying to get a Sr. AE. 

It doesn't stop there either. 

Sr. AE → Manager 
Manager → Director 
Director → VP 
VP → C-Suite 
 

There will always be something more. 

Don't get so lost in the next role you forget to enjoy the present.

Had a blast joining Jan on the ARR Revenue Circus. 
 
Great reminder to not forget to enjoy the ride 🚗 

Sales can feel like an echo chamber where everyone talks about the same EXACT strategies. 

Yet, some go on to win President's Club and others struggle to hit their number. 

There’s no silver bullet to succeed in sales. 

But there's certain strategies you can enact to set yourself apart. 

Both as a seller and versus the competition.

Joining Jed Mahrle this Friday at Noon EST for a 30 min show.

Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/g_D2PsAh

Before product + feature launches, we put our own 500+ in GTM to the ultimate test. 

Our team rolls it out internally and pushes us for feedback.

As daily power users of Gong, we challenge our product team for perfection. 

Then we go live to our 4,000+ customers. 


EXCITING NEWS: Gong's Ask Anything feature for Calls, Deals, Accounts, and now... Contacts launched last week!  🎉 

𝐒𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐥 𝐦𝐲 𝐟𝐚𝐯𝐨𝐫𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐭𝐬:

Prospecting:
-Who has shown interest at this account in the past?
-Why did the last opportunity turn closed-lost? 
-What's their tech stack?

Pipeline Reviews:
-What risk is their with this deal?
-Have they ever looked into our competitors?
-Have we discussed security, legal, or the signer yet?


Also, noticed my sales leaders asking me way less questions...

The real 'source of truth' lies in the actual conversations.

Not what reps choose to put into CRM 💥

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