Samantha McKenna

#samsales Consulting

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Founder

GTMfund

Limited Partner

Sales Assembly

Advisory Board Member

Spekit

Investor

Goldcast

Advisor

Champify

Gated

PatternAI

Revenue Collective

Member

SharpLaunch

Founder @ #samsales l Sales + LinkedIn + Sequence Expert l SKO Keynote Speaker l 13 Sales Records l Angel Investor l Overly Enthusiastic l Swiss Dual Citizen l Creator, Show Me You Know Me l TikTok @ hashtagsamsales

I had my first exposure to competitive "sales" in sixth grade when my school raised money for the Leukemia Lymphoma Society.  Knocking door to door and delivering a pitch was the start of my education; I still have the portable TV that I won for second place, which fuels my competitive spirit.

I’ve spent my career in sales doing a few things – breaking records, putting others first, creating global sales programs, educating through peer interaction, and going to great lengths to make people feel valued.  I’ve launched new verticals, overseen the GTM strategy for some of the most successful initiatives in company history, and put in processes across businesses that redefine how each company works and succeeds.

As the founder of #samsales, I oversee an all-women team of 11 (50%+ are military/expat spouses with storied careers) who:

•	Run every sales training imaginable, from the foundations of what your BDRs need to executive GTM strategy

•	Supports me as I speak at 200+ events annually - keynoting for SKOs or discussing everything re: sales, social selling, and women in tech/sales/leadership

•	Rewrites the sequences you have in Outreach.io, etc. based on our proprietary techniques (like Show Me You Know Me™) and the most up-to-date data on what works to drive opens + replies

•	Teach social selling - as an LI influencer, ambassador of Sales Navigator, and former LI leader, I understand how to use the ecosystem to truly SELL. I've personally trained tens of thousands on the platform, ranging from 10-person teams to Fortune 500 brands. Book me for what has been repeatedly called, “The best training of my career.”

•	Oversees executive branding on LI.  If you're an exec who wants to build a brand on LI but don't know what to write, don't understand the algorithm, and don't have the time to manage, it, we'll handle it for you, like we do for some of the most prominent/highly visible execs you see on LI.

As a founder, I have one goal - to make as much positive impact as we can.  Since our inception, we’ve raised over $100,000 via personal donations and our annual charity events for incredible causes, and have given away hundreds of our trainings to the military and transitioning teachers, free of charge.

When you hire us, you're not just hiring a team, but rather investing in one who constantly puts good into the world.

Who am I, otherwise - 

Philanthropist, investor, dog lover, die hard competitor, writer, former Nickelodeon game show contestant, extrovert, expert in self-deprecating humor, and willing to walk through fire to make you laugh.

Sign up for our newsletters, webinars, and all our content here www.samsalesconsulting.com 

Something fascinates me about our focus on cold calling.  Many of you know I've never made one and yet I've broken 13 sales records. My opinion doesn't matter though, the data does:

😳It takes an avg of 11 dials to get someone to pick up the phone
😳Industry avg = 1% of cold calls convert to meetings
😳Avg show rate of cold call meetings?  37%
😳83% of people immediately block cold call phone numbers (🙋‍♀️)
😳65% of buyers would prefer a remote or online sales experience
😳Only 3% of our buyers are ready to buy, and another 7% might entertain a conversation that will still take nurture work.

Wait, there's more!  

😳HBR found that 90% (!!) of buyers will choose a vendor that was already on their consideration list, so even if we do call that 10%, if we weren't on the original list, odds are slim of us getting in.

So, why aren't we listening to our buyers?  Why aren't we meeting them where they are? Why aren't we paying attention to the data and modernizing our practices?

**********************************************************************

Consider this approach instead...

Build a spectacular sequence:

Email One - #SMYKM in the SUB, authentic tie, specific challenges that the buyer persona has + one tangible way you can solve it.

Email Two - No new information, <48 hours after first one

Email Three and beyond?  Addressing ONE challenge/idea that the buyer persona will read to learn from, consider as a different POV, or that gives one/two key points to teach them something that will entice them to click on whatever link you have in the email.

(Psst - sending "We have a cool case study here!" isn't enough - convince them it's worth the click!)

LI touch?  

Eliminate the "view their profile" step.  Those "Sam looked at your profile!" notifications disappeared - it's an outdated play based on the way LI worked eons ago.  

Instead, send a connection request.  

"Hey Henry, my name might look familiar as I've sent you a few emails.  I'd welcome the chance to talk through how #samsales can support your growing sales teams.  If you're ever up for a chat, let me know."

The result?  

The ultimate goal is the reply/meeting booked, but...it shouldn't be the only goal.  

Your smart sequences are meant to attract customers by offering B2C-grade, personalized content with tailored value props that get them to think, consider, and click. 

If you're successful, you'll have a new marketing contact, and the voice of sales AND voice of marketing AND voice of social hitting your buyers.  

You'll be hitting the masses instead of 1:1 cold calling
You'll be listening to your buyers
You'll be meeting your buyers where they are, nurturing the 90%

McKinsey notes that only 8% of orgs are doing this, but that 75% of those are seeing an increase in market share.

Your competition isn't doing this (yet) - you have a competitive advantage.

Execs, need help with your teams' sequences?  Man are we good at this - give us a shout!

#samsales #sales #saas 


If you're using LinkedIn Sales Navigator, and think the value is in the ability to send InMails, I have an update for you 🙃.

Brian Walton recently shared this killer graphic on the activities done by a major tech customer to break into a strategic account.

Two major things we @ #samsales is always asked for help around - "teach our teams how to prospect and how to use LinkedIn Sales Solutions." - even better, we'll teach you HOW to prospect using Nav.

The below is top-performing, modern prospecting in the most efficient and client-centric way - a total mic drop of consistent, smart process.

It's a touch hard to see with the colors, but you'll see InMails aren't represented much (if at all - pardon my squinty eyes...).

I've been an uber fan of Navigator since the day I learned it existed, and it was the ultimate honor to be on the leadership team for the product before starting #samsales.  

Why? Because it's the ultimate prospecting and sleuthing tool...that's where sales starts - it's a huge game of Sherlock Holmes.

Think of the smart, low-hanging-fruit, strategic plays you can run in Nav:

1. Set up alerts for when clients change jobs - out with tracking who signed your deal, in with tracking the 20 people that touched your deal in the buying process.
2. Set up alerts for when new things are cooking with your buyers (hello smart, real-time compelling events!)
3. Alerts let you build KILLER Show Me You Know Me #SMYKM for your email subject lines
4. Create searches that...

🔥Alert you of new execs leaving, joining your top accounts
🔥Alert you of new execs joining your own company (and then dig into the who-knows-who of their network for quick intros)
🔥Alert you when key buyer personas leave your best client+ go to your prospects (even if you don't know that human exists on the planet)
🔥Alert you when your previous peers (in your existing or previous employers) leave that co and go to one of your target accounts.  

Think about this one - set up a search that says, "Tell me anytime a Manager+ leaves my co and goes to one of these 150 accounts so that I can reach out and say help us get iiiin...in a tactful, professional way 😀.

5. "Prospect" two of your internal executives every week - who do they know, are they connected with your buyers, do they have high-level ins at your accounts.  

BONUS: get results that say they know 13 people at an account and not sure where to start?  Segment Nav to say "tell me if they worked for the same company before, if they live in their same city, if they went to their same school" to up the chances that you find people they actually know.

I could talk about this for six more hours but I'll save you the pain (plus the character count will soon yell at me...).

There are only four sale tech platforms your sellers need in order have the best chance to absolutely kill their quota, IMHO, and Navigator is a NEED to have.  You just may not realize how powerful is it just yet - #samsales is here to help! 👋 

Some people wonder why I support women who compete with me.
A lot of people gasp (and then applaud) when I say we have an all-women team.
Some people are surprised to hear that the first concern I have when any of our employees has a sick peanut at home is for them, not for our deadlines or our bottom line.
Some people don't understand proactively shining a light on women.
Some people ask why we don't charge for our Women's Leadership Group, "Who Runs The World?".
Some people ask why we invest in military and expat spouses.

And the answer is simple:

Because all of those things are underrepresented focuses of corporations and teams today, which is still astonishing to me.

Why do I support my competition?  Because for crying out loud there is a seat at the table and enough opportunity for Every. Single. One. Of. Us.  

All-women team?  I mean...have you met these women??  We don't deserve a SINGLE one of them - just look at their backgrounds, personalities, and achievements.  Holy.  Cannoli.  🔥🔥🔥🔥 

My first concern is for our people?  It's weird...when you give a shit about your employees and their well-being FIRST, they'll feel cared for and like they - as a human, not a headcount - matter, and will in turn care about you, your mission, your team, AND will contribute in bigger ways than if you'd said, "How will you get your work done?".

Shining a light on women?  I've had my fair share of women who have tried to take me down, make me look small, or steal my light and there's Just. No. Room. For. That. Noise.  I am privileged to shine a light on underrepresented individuals, on college students, on workforce newcomers, on titans of industry who wonder how they can make a career shift.  I am privileged to set an example for how others should go out of their way to lift women, and can only hope it creates a domino effect.

Our Women's Group?  We thought about it.  We tossed around numbers for an annual fee to participate.  And then we said eff it.  We make a ton of money - let's focus on making impact with this instead.

Military and expat spouses?  Did you see my note above about not deserving these incredible humans?  When I was a mil spouse myself, stationed in Germany, 10000 years ago, I was surrounded by the former #2 at Fannie Mae, by a former Boeing exec, by women who had been teachers for 20 years, women who spoke four+ languages, women with multiple Master's degrees...and guess what?  No one would hire us.  Why?  Because we were transient and needed some accomadations in the hours we could work.  EMPLOYERS: you're missing out on a stupid amazing opportunity to hire insanely smart talent if you're not looking here.

Don't let today be the only day you take time to think about the incredible women on your team, or how you can change your hiring, pay, and support practices to be more inclusive, supportive, and fair.

I'll stop yelling now 🙃. We can ALL make SUCH a difference together!! ❤️ 

"Thanks for joining us for this discovery call, everyone - I'd like to start off by sharing some insights of what we know about your market..."

😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑😑

Now, this was a hard lesson for me to learn, but 😏 ...no one cares what I think (yet!).  

When we come out of the gate sharing insights without permission from our buyers, we're not only assuming that it's what the buyer wants to hear, but we're also giving information that could either annoy the buyers ("...thanks for sharing, but that's not at all what we wanted to discuss...) or will get your buyers to reply to your opinion/information rather than discussing what their top priorities are.

Your discovery call - your first date, if you will - is for us to do one thing and one thing only: 

Understand the challenge of the buyer and find a way to solve it, either by what you offer or what someone you know can offer.  Even if you can't solve their challenge, you're setting yourself up for killer long term success by making great use of the time they gave you, especially when it doesn't benefit you.

We can only find out what their challenges are NOT by:

🚫 Sharing insights without context
🚫 By asking "What interested you in taking this call today?"
🚫 By firing away 19 self-serving questions that frustrate the buyer
🚫 By firing way the same 19 questions that were already asked of them on the qualifying call.

Instead, build rapport, do a little #SMYKM, and then use this script that can legit change the trajectory of EVERY single call you have with buyers:

Net New Buyer:

"So, we could tell you a million things about #samsales, how we train on discovery, build the brands of execs on LinkedIn, or write hundreds of sequences from scratch, but we'd love to hear about you first. 

I know the org is going through x and that so many in the x market are talking about x, but tell us about your team, challenges, and some of what you're focused on for the year ahead, if that's okay?"

Land and Expand:

Same script, but add insights about what you know about their account/the work you already do with their peers.

This is the way to lead with insights, by proving you've done your research and that you're ready to talk about your POV IF the buyer wants that.  

Otherwise, use this opener and you'll be amazed at how much data you get, but also how you get answers that expose higher level business issues, not product issues.

#samsales #sales #saas


On peak bloom Friday, these DC #samsales’ers play hookie to brunch + see the cherry blossoms, come rain or shine 😍🌸 Sarah Carcone 

Never underestimate the value of just hanging out with your team and what taking a morning together off can do for the soul.

A whole group of us were at a holiday event. I was deep in conversation with the CEO, soaking up 1:1 time, standing about 5 or 6' apart, when she came up, back to me, and slid between us...,"I have GOT to tell you about a deal I'm working..." and ended my moment.

Every single one of us has this story. Many of us, like me, unfortunately have dozens of them.

We have experiences where a woman felt threatened by us and took the low road. Made us feel small. Cut us out of the conversation. Worked hard to get us to fall. We've all unfortunately been there.

But, there's no room for someone's insecurities to make impact to our confidence, our standings, or our place on the team.  

There IS room for every single one of us at the table.

This is a reminder that you're not alone, that we can do better by each other, that this isn't a battle - it's a partnership, that we can use our impactful voices to shine a light on the women around us, that we can collectively work to remove the barriers we went through for the class that comes after us, and that we can be examples for all that kindness, mentorship, generosity, and encouragement are what allow us ALL to get ahead.

#samsales

A phrase I find myself saying every so often is, "You could pay us for that, but I wouldn't waste your money." which I think often catches people off guard, especially because I wear two hats: salesperson and CEO.

One of my favorite things is earning trust through honesty and transparency, which often comes in the form of:

1. You can get free training on the basics of this platform from your vendor, so don't pay us to do that.  Pay us to do this other thing that is a good use of our skillset.  

2. You could hire us to do this training, but XYZ is way better at us than we are, give them a call.

3. Here's a way to get what you need at a discount, then call us once you've implemented it and we'll take it from there.

There's no better way to earn quick trust than by turning down revenue in the name of what's best for the client which...is what we should all be doing anyway...

There's no better way to stand out and be different than by giving them expert advice that helps them stretch their dollars (especially in this market) and look smart internally.

There's no better way to earn the other business, to potentially speed up your sales cycle, AND to open the door to, "Hey, what do you think we should do with this other challenge we have...?" conversations, than by giving them honest consultations that don't always benefit you. 

#samsales 

"Would you do this influencer program for free?"
"We've never met, can I pick your brain for 30 minutes?"
"My buddy is starting a company, could you meet with him?"
"You and 100 other influencers get to do this program with no payment, and post on social for us, you in?"
"Can you look at my 50 accounts and see who you know in them?"

😔😔😔😔😔😔😔😔 

When did we lose respect for people's time?

When did bigger brands start to feel good about taking advantage of small business owners?

When did we decide it was okay to get before we give?

When did it become acceptable to ask people who have worked for years to build their brands, audiences, and reputations to...give their time and support away for free?

When did we start to expect people to work for free, plain and simple?

Please, if you're making this request of individuals, invest in them.  

If you're a company, offer to pay them.

If you're an individual, support them before you ask for something.

If you're an individual, offer to connect them with someone that would be of value to them first.

If you're an individual who's short on time, offer to make a charitable donation on their behalf.

If you're anyone, offer to pay them for their time.

I consistently give away three hours of my time to anyone who needs it - whether I know them or not - every week.  But...

We can do better than this.

#samsales

Four marketing practices that are hurting your sales, progress, and company growth:

1. "Click here for a demo!"

Doing a demo before sales has had a chance to do proper discovery is like asking someone to marry you before you know their values, hopes, dreams, and FICO score (no?  just me on the last one?  k...)

Change the vernacular to "Book a conversation with our team" and your buyers won't be blindsided when your reps try to do discovery.

2. Not investing in social selling as a mechanism to drive the creation of demand.

If you're selling to the B2B tech space and related markets, and your teams don't have social selling skills, it's not a hunch that you're missing a massive piece of the modern puzzle, it's a fact.

**Your competition is either doing it and you need to catch up, or they're not doing it and you have a competitive edge.**

There are no silver bullets with social selling (or with anything) but with even a fraction of your buyers on the platform, you effectively have people in your territories showing up to a virtual platform EVERY DAY to learn.  It's like you KNOW they're on the tradeshow floor and you don't show up to talk to them.

Kicker?  Look at some of the top execs you're targeting.  If they post content, you'll see something interesting.

They get tons of "likes" but very few comments.  And those comments usually come from their internal teams.  

It's legit like everyone is standing around them giving them a thumbs up, but you instead have the chance to jump into the ring and talk to them.  Saddle up, partner!

Teach your teams to do this (we can help!).  

3. Not having a "How did you hear about us?" line on every website form.  

Invest in 2. above and you'll start to see "LinkedIn" as the source.

Invest in 2. and just look at your Google analytics.  Social...social...social...

4. Being manically focused on attribution, or even worse, failing to do new, modern marketing practices because there's fear it won't work.

 Continuing to pump money into SEO, PPC ads, website ads, gated content, etc. will lead to a zoo of MQLs that are meaningless to sales.

Sales will in turn have SLAs to follow up with them, which will burn hundreds of hours on unqualified leads.

Instead, grab 30% of your marketing budget and meet your buyers where they are. 

- Invest in social selling - meet your buyers where they are!  900M members: 1% post every week, 50%+ show up every week for five min+.  Why?  To learn.  If you're not teaching them, your competitors are.

- Invest in influencer marketing.  Leverage the audiences of the influencers who have built followings.

- Invest in a platform like Champify that tracks the job changes of all of your buyers, champions, influencers, procurement, etc.  Lowest.  Hanging. Fruit.  Ever.

- Create a systematic client referral program, be proactive, not reactive with referrals.

Velcome to tha '90's, Mr. Baaaanks.

#samsales #saas #marketing #entrepreneurship 

We have a slush fund @ #samsales that is simply meant to delight our employees and our buyers.  Tell me you don't light up when an unexpected package shows up at your door - here are a few ways to do the same:

💡Tough day? Send $5+ to their fave coffee or on-the-go spot with a thoughtful note.

💡A buyer once joked they were off camera due to their eating lunch.  Well...we had to know what they were eating which led to a conversation about never having eaten a particular cult fast food breakfast.  We sent him a $15 card when we signed.

💡Internal champion going to great lengths for you to help you multi-thread or expand?  Send them a box of swag - if they love your company, odds are they'd be stoked to get a lux hoodie, Yeti (I see you Stanley fans...), etc.

💡Someone land/expand with you and say, "I'm putting all my chips in on you guys - you're getting my entire budget."  Send champagne afterwards to toast to the incredible faith they put in you.

💡Employee wanting to get back on the workout bus?  Send them your fave leggings, tank, or Bombas socks (do a little good in the world simultaneously!).

💡Notice a client always wears a festive different pair of glasses on your calls?  Scare up a custom branded glasses cleaner on Etsy for a few bucks and let them feel noticed.

💡Know someone is training for an Ironman, marathon, or their first 5K ever?  Shoot them a little box of their fave power bars or a funny sweat band.

💡Know someone is a book nerd, loves a particular author, or is always craving the next great xyz book?  Shoot them your favorite and do it from a small bookstore, to boot.

💡Someone celebrating a big birthday?  Send them flowers 30-90 days in advance - let the celebrations begin early! 

💡Have absolutely no budget but appreciate someone to pieces?  Scare up the old trusty pen and paper, and shoot them a card in the mail.

What does all this require?  You guessed it.  Show Me You Know Me #SMYKM.  

In order to DO this, we need to take the time to know our buyers, know our people, and we also need to want to set the bar a bit higher on what they should expect from us; not only that we'll go above and beyond in our engagement, but that we genuinely care about the human they are, not just the budget they have.

#samsales 


If you've joined our webinars, Women's Leadership Group, or worked with us, there's a solid chance you've interacted with Katherine, our very first hire @ #samsales, who is celebrating her THIRD anniversary with us today 🎉🥂

At our holiday party last year, we were tasked with voicing superpowers that we see in each other, and it's safe to say the entire group clobbered one another to go first about Katherine.  

If you look up the word "grace", you'll see her picture there.  Air Force wife, mama to two amazing boys, lover of all things neutral, a jewelry maker on the side, a whiz at antique shopping, always up on the latest trends, and someone who exhibits patience, enthusiasm, and "sure, I can do that!" like no other.

As our Chief of Staff and Director of Customer Success, who also heads up our partnerships, Katherine is the ultimate wear'er of start-up hats.  

Kath, thanks for trusting Kayla when she suggested you join the team, thanks for your patience in listening to my voice and same jokes for so long, and thanks for simply being the exceptional human you are.  How so very lucky we are to have you...

To say I'm passionate about making sellers better writers is an understatement, which is why I often write back to cold emails with tips on how to succeed.  Check out the below (forgive the blur, our head of creative, Missy, out sick so you've got my Canva skills to deal with 💁‍♀️).

What can be improved:

1. Show Me You Know Me #SMYKM subject line.  I only opened it because I open all emails.

2. That SUB + "I had a note to follow up..." = preview text in an inbox that says, "Hi! This is a sales email!", which incentivizes the reader to delete it w/o opening it. 

^^Change that one thing along and see your open rates pop.

3. It's a marketing email sent by a seller.  

It tells me what they do, not how they solve the challenge of me as a specific buyer persona.  This is why hiring a team to expertly write your sequences is critical.  I happen to know a squad who can help! 🙋‍♀️ 

4. Missing the piece on the hidden or forthcoming objection.  

You need to assume that your buyers will read this and think, "We already have that, I don't want to change, I don't need this, we do that."  

Now...if they DID write that back (as I did and as they unlikely will), what would you say?  Drop it in early so you get a higher shot at a reply way sooner in the email.

Now, check out my reply and then their reply back...

What can be improved:

1. I tee'd up two perfect objections to discuss/assuage me on.  

My main priority is maintaining my status with how often I travel - little else matters to me, so target that objection first.  

My second is, "Hey, we might not be your ICP since I'm the only heavy traveler..."

2. My second one was hit...'ish.  But with a feature and a benefit, that doesn't address my top concern and doesn't tell me "so what".  A better swing could be:

"I totally get it - I dream of hitting that status one day!  You can actually tie your Delta Reserve to our system, and still use it.  The value in us actually isn't even in the card, it's in our software...  If you're anything like our clients, before they got to us, you're doing xyz or zzz or chasing x at month-end, which makes you start to dread each month-end, right? Any of that sound familiar or worth a chat on how to make those issues disappear?"

3. There's no need to close with another question - prove the value in what you suspect a (insert buyer persona) struggles with and then prompt to see if that resonates and they'd be interested in learning more.

I closed with a long list of tips, a joke, and enthusiasm to keep helping...  

Want to help your own teams?  

This is all part of our writing workshops - objection handling, nurturing, identifying "so what", identifying the right buyer, asking for referrals - and so forth.

#samsales #bdr #sales

Picture it - you're sitting in your office and find out that a few dozen (hundred?) of your top prospects are mingling at an event a few blocks away, free for all to attend.  What do you do now?

Do you send them all an email and tell them to come to your office to talk shop about whatever they're discussing, hoping a few show up?

...or do you sprint to the event, pulling a few execs and colleagues along with you, sparking conversations left and right, and then inviting them to your office to keep the conversation rolling, knowing that a few dozen will show up?

The answer is so obvious and yet, if your marketing and sales strategy doesn't include having executives and leaders, at a minimum, posting on LinkedIn and contributing to the conversations every day, you're saying, "Of course it's the second one!" while you're actually doing the first one.

*****************************************************************

If your reaction to this is, "My buyers aren't on LinkedIn", I have some scoop for you:

1. They are.  Just because they're not active doesn't mean they're not reading/lurking/learning.

2. They don't need to be.  Dark social = someone takes your post and shares it in group texts, Slack channels, communities, Sales Assembly peer groups, podcast comments, webinar chats, and so forth.  

3. If you're only writing content for your budget-holding buyers, you're missing the mark.  

Content here is just like a marketing funnel, and much of this is brand awareness.  We write content to educate leaders, BDRs, marketers, lawyers, executive assistants, college students, first-time managers, individual contributors, CMOs, CCOs, CROs, and sometimes we write total nonsense that will get some laughs. 🙃 

If you write for your buyers only, you won't succeed nearly as fast.  If you auto-share company-promotional content only, you won't succeed.  In fact, the algo will start to throttle your posts as the first few aren't engaged with which isn't a great look for your brand or execs.

Instead, show up here to inspire and teach others 80% of the time.  

Perhaps a BDR likes this post.  And their AE sees it/likes it/shares it in Slack.  Both of their networks see it, they start to like it.  A leader on the Slack channel reads it/likes it, then that person's network sees it...rinse repeat.

Showing up here is not only a competitive advantage (only 1% of member post every week, but over HALF of the 900M LI member show up every week for a min of five minutes), but it's a slow start that ultimately creates a flywheel of continued massive impressions and awareness.

Ready to talk about it?  Give us a shout.  

We launched our newest exec branding this week, with the CEO's two posts netting 200+ likes, nearly 50 comments, and 10,000+ views collectively, and just signed a major celebrity to do the same for them.

#samsales #linkedintips #socialselling 

Slack, my love, I have a product request for you guys.  

Two of our #samsales'ers have been away all this week, and MAN do they do a lot for our squad.  What's giving me the most anxiety right now?

That they will come back to 54792574 Slacks to read through.

What's giving them the most anxiety right now?

"Holy cannoli, I hope I don't miss one of the 19 requests I was tagged in to do by 8 of my colleagues when I come home..."

How cool would it be to have a "Pin this to XYZ's to do list" and to be able to add tasks that they can then do, check off, and show completed as they go?

And if this exists and I live in a cave, give a shout :)

The rep's a ten but they wish you a Happy St. "Patty's" Day...

Want a LinkedIn Sales Solutions Navigator hack?  Sure you do!  Make use of our Expand the Sandbox play that we use for the execs for which we build brands:

If you post content:

That's great!  But, you live in a sandbox of the same every day connections.  Let's bust you out of it.

1. Identify a list of 10-20 accounts that don't know you exist or that are in your book and may not know you/your company exists.
2. Use the search filters to add those companies + titles + geo + other potential wins like former colleague, etc.
3. "But they don't post on LinkedIn!! 😩" 
Sure they do - use the spotlights (SUCH a powerful set of search criteria in this one little box!) and find those that have posted in <30 days.  
4. Add your top tier buyers to a list.
5. Visit daily/weekly
6. Add comments to their posts
7. Add the date of your last comment to the "Comments" section of their profile on LI Nav so you build a mini CRM of sorts and systematically hit your top buyers.

The result?  

Systematic drip campaign of your thought leadership and "Hi!, I exist and am smart! We should talk!" + upping the odds that they'll see your next post.

The even better result?  

If even ONE person at an account engages with your post, that means their network (full of other people at that account) sees your content.  Then they like/comment, then you follow our LI Influencer Playbook plays and add them to your network, then they start to share your posts on Slacks, then someone says, "Hey, I follow her on LI, too!" and a snowball effect of people talking about you on/off-line starts.

If you don't post content:

Do the same thing, you'll still get killer visibility while working your way towards opening the social selling doors with them, upping the chances that they'll connect with you AND take a meeting with you.

Welcome to one of a few dozen super smart plays that are...modern social selling.  

LI Playbook - http://bitly.ws/BI8Y

#samsales #bdr #linkedintips 

For those of you who witness my daily barrage of nonsensical banter with Matt on LinkedIn, you know a few things to be true:

A. I'm funnier, cuter, smarter, quicker, and witty'ier (that's a word.)
B. That I, at times, get DMs and texts from new friends saying, "I will beat this Matt guy up, did you see his recent comment?!" 
C. That I'm only doing this as a dare.
H. That it'll likely only be us bantering and you won't get any value out of it whatsoever.
And Q. That we're actually decently intelligent and will pack in some great intel in this session.

We tried to do this on April Fool's but figured no one would show up (most of all me), so instead come hang out with us, share some laughs, and pick up some tips on rocking through this next quarter and what you can do to set yourself up for success during the forthcoming summer months.

#samsales #comemakefunofmatt #sdr #sales

Anyone else re-binging all of Ted Lasso in anticipation of the final season premiere this week?  Sweet, me neither. Nope. Noooo sireeeee…

I don't often miss when I place big bets.  I'm also naturally suspicious - for better or worse.  I make big decisions with intention, and the holes I poke are what have led me to work for companies that brought huge financial success.

We often forget that interviews are a two-way street, that hiring managers and recruiters have goals to hit, and that picking the right org to sell for can make or break years of success ahead of us.

If you're looking for a new role or being recruited away to something that seems too good, or is a nominal (potentially non-existent) boost in OTE, think through using some of these questions along the way:

❓ What percent of this team hit their quota over the last three years?
❓ Who traditionally goes to Club - same 10% or a mixed bag?
❓ Can you tell me about a challenging situation you've had with a rep on a deal and how you coached them through it to a successful close?
❓ What's your process for giving feedback/coaching?
❓ How have quotas increased for this team over the last few years? 
**Note, many of us have been in that seat where we have a 750K number and then have it doubled + our territories reduced the following year
❓ Is this a growth role or replacement role?
❓ Is it possible to see the framework of the comp plan in advance?
❓ Can I speak with a ramped rep that was right in the middle of the pack, performance wise?
❓ If performance hasn't been as expected these last few years, what do you think the core issue is?
❓ What does it take to succeed here?  Full cycle rep?  ENT seller who understands how to nurture/multi-thread for the long game? Etc.

Arm yourself with these details to vet the company, the potential for success, and the leader(s) you'll ultimately work with to make sure it's not only a place you can succeed, but also a place you can grow.

Better yet, research in advance to see not only what top rated companies are in your market, what the direct feedback from sellers is, and who is actively hiring via RepVue, to set yourself up for success - bit.ly/3F8bwDR

#samsales


Social selling is a mystery to many and while we teach the ins and outs at #samsales, check out this one easy play -

This graphic shows the most common engagement that top tier, would-kill-for-a-meeting-with-them execs are receiving on their content.  One of these execs manages 7,000 individuals (it says so right on their About section!).

Droves of people "react" to their posts.

Almost no one comments. 😳😳😳 

And if they do, it's usually their employees, not your competitors. 😃 

So...  

Create a list in LinkedIn Sales Solutions's Navigator, or break out the old modern Google sheet
Document your top 50, 100, 200 hit list buyers
Then segment that list down to who posts often

And then?  

You guessed it.  Add your comments - something thoughtful - to those posts.  

And then?

Rinse, repeat.

And then?  

Do it again and perhaps tag in a high profile friend or client that you have - flex your network!

And then?!

Send them a connection request with context to their content and what you appreciate about it.

And then!, don't pitch slap them when they generously accept.

And then?!  Well, talk to us for more "and then". 

#saas #dudewheresmycar #sdr #linkedintips

Taplio

Samantha McKenna's Linkedin Analytics