Claim OwnershipForging Ahead
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© Thomas Sullivan
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This podcast has evolved. The new direction is that I will invite guests on to teach us about a topic that they know better than anyone on earth.
44 Episodes
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I first saw Allin present when he was moderating a Startup Week event in 2019. He was super impressive and this episode did not disappoint.
This is a man who started in marketing, launched the BDR/SDR program at Intuit, and is now a player coach smashing it selling to the enterprise.
Allin is a perfect example of a practitioner. There is real shit in here that you can take into work tomorrow to close more deals or become a better sales leader.
This episode is with my brother, Jeff!
Jeff's been grinding away in inside sales for a decade now and shares some thoughts from the front lines.
He gives us a framework for how to identify a hypergrowth company to sell for.
Jeff just celebrated 3 years at Drift.
Enjoy.
This episode features JR Butler. JR is the CRO of Pillir.io.
In past conversations, JR has casually talked about W2-ing a million bucks and I wasn't sure if this was hyperbole or actually attainable.
So I circled back and asked. Turns out, you can W2 a million bucks as a salesperson.
Listen to this episode to learn how.
https://audiencefirst.link/
Twitter: https://twitter.com/arvidkahl
Louis runs Sparkloop.app, a SaaS referral tool for newsletters that is growing 20-30% every month.
He runs a course called Sales for Founders, which is why I wanted to chat with him.
Louis intends to help founders get good enough at sales to close their first 100 customers. Getting to around 10k MRR allows you to take a breath, regroup, and make a plan for what to do next. This often includes shifting gears to a different customer acquisition strategy or bringing someone else in to run sales.
I'd pay special attention to how Louis talks about audience and targeting people to reach out to.
His success plan is gold as well.
You can find the course at https://salesforfounders.com/
The biggest question you should ask yourself during fundraising?
Who's your lead?
It's all about a lead investor. They are putting the price on the round of funding. They de-risk the round for fellow investors. "Once you have a lead, that's everything."
Blog post that Chris mentions: https://blog.bolt.io/find-a-lead/
Traction can be a substitute for track record. If you've never gotten to the pay window, you can improve your situation with traction. Can you show up to investors meetings with some revenue generated, some customers, some cash raised in scrappy ways? Show progress.
Dipjar can be found here:
https://www.dipjar.com/
Had a fun chat with Patrick Campbell.
https://www.profitwell.com/
Quick 5 minute ramble. Want to get back into the habit of hitting publish!
This one feels like it could be helpful in these scary times. Tara has moved her business online. You can find her at https://www.taraatwood.com/.
Her story is incredible. I think you will enjoy this chat.
I was worried about getting over my skis in this discussion. I am definitely not in ProdPerfect's target buyer cohort:)
We talk about:
- Plans for Covid19
- Making your first sale as a founder*** Erik goes deep here. Super helpful. He has a strong opinion on who should do the early selling.
- Presentation chops
- Values. Erik goes DEEP here also.
- Breaking the rules, being different. Founders must be somewhat crazy.
We could have gone for hours and Erik has committed to a part 2. Thanks, Erik!
Things we mentioned:
Erik's books: https://www.amazon.com/Erik-Fogg/e/B00GC0FE3A?ref=sr_ntt_srch_lnk_3&qid=1584551538&sr=8-3
Erik's older blog: http://foggofwar.blogspot.com/
Erik's LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erikfogg/
ProdPerfect: https://prodperfect.com/
GitLab Remote Resources: https://about.gitlab.com/company/culture/all-remote/guide/
We talked about the origin story of ScholarJet, having tough discussions with your parents, and the grind of entering and WINNING pitch competitions as a way to get funding. Lot of great stuff in here for early stage founders or people that are thinking about starting a business.
Check out ScholarJet here: https://scholarjet.com/
Joe's linkedin profile: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephalim/
Zoe has been at Yesware for 7 years. She started in sales ops before moving over to run people ops.
We talk about recruiting, hiring, culture, and more.
I wanted to rush to publish this one ASAP because there is timely information for People Ops leaders on how to deal with the current panic over covid19.
There is a great message on how to LEAD during this time at the end of the pod. Worth sticking around for it.
Zoe's linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zoe-silverman/
Michael and I spend a big chunk of time talking about the most important thing that you should measure if generating more sales is important to you. I'm going to leave it at that as a little teaser...
This one has tactical advice that you can start testing immediately.
Find Michael's company at https://www.gotomarketpros.com/
My guest is Emma Brudner, the Dir of People Operations at Lola.com. We talk about how she ended up in People Operations. We talk about recruiting, hiring, and the difference between HR and People Ops.
If you are in People Ops and looking for some tips and tricks on how to be successful, it doesn't sound like there are any shortcuts. Emma talks about actually caring, empathy, being human, listening etc. These are not life hacks.
Emma shares some thoughts on 1 on 1's. ***Listen closely for her favorite question to start a 1 on 1.
There's so much in here and if you give a shit about people, please check this one out.
Michelle and I talked about the "right" way to start a business. My words, not hers. I think they did it right. Pay attention to how she transitioned from her full time job to full time entrepreneur. Michelle's family story is amazing. Michelle talks about letting the customer show you what your business is. She truly embraces a customer first mindset. Thanks, Michelle!
Hadn't done a solo ep in quite some time and wanted to sneak in an update mixed with a little promotion for Blacksmith dot work.
Chris and I spent 30 minutes together. This is a bit shorter than our usual format. Chris and I talked about his experience leading startups. We hit: go to market strategy, course corrections, partnerships, and why everyone should have a list of 5 companies that they want to buy and 5 companies that they'd like to be bought by. Thank you, Chris!
A fun chat with Bryce. We talked about:
- Bryce's path
- What is Customer Success?
- What's going on in Boston?
- We talked about Bryce's role at Underscore VC
- Being a Dad in today's startup world.
Matt and I chatted about:
- The path he took to start his CBD wellness company, Beam!
- Matt have me the 101 on how to think about CBD. Oil for your engine!
- The importance of branding.
- Influencer marketing
- How to approach partnerships in business.
- The early days of lugging around tables to different fitness facilities in Boston. Selling hand to hand.
- Visit beamtlc.com for more info!
What a fun chat!
We talked about:
- Dave's professional poker days
- How he ended up in commercial real estate
- We get into some detail about how he started his team in Toronto. From 2 people to 8!
- Dave is incredibly thoughtful about prospecting and partnerships. I think there is a lot of value for brokers in this section. #cbreforward.
- Dave provides actionable tactics around opening your first office.
- Find David Cairns on LinkedIn. He is great at it. https://www.linkedin.com/in/david-cairns-5644a233/
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