Guest, Nicole Smith: The easier you can make it to prove ROI to me that I can then turn over to my CEO, the less likely I’m going to be to move forward with one of your competitors, and the smoother just makes the sales cycle overall for me.
Announcer: You’re listening to the B2B Sales Show, a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s get into the show.
Host, Jennifer Groese: Good afternoon, and welcome back to another episode of the B2B Sales Show. My name is Jennifer Groese, the Chief Marketing Officer at Winmo. And today, I am joined by a fellow colleague of mine, Nicole Smith, who is also a Chief Marketing Officer here in Atlanta. She works at a really great company called UserIQ. A little bit about UserIQ, before we get started, UserIQ is an innovative customer success platform that helps businesses align with their user needs. Nicole is specifically responsible for developing and executing in a go-to-market strategy that aligns sales and marketing efforts to generate brand awareness, thought leadership, and demand.
Groese: Nicole, thank you so much for joining us today and welcome to the B2B Sales Show.
Nicole Smith: Hi, Jennifer. Thanks for having me. It’s great to be here today.
Groese: Thanks for joining. One thing that I will add before we get going into the podcast today, it’s kind of a shout out for you. A well-deserved shout out, I would say. We’ve actually been customers of UserIQ and been working with Nicole for, I would say the past three years. We use UserIQ with all of our communications within our platform, and it’s really been a pivotal tool that my team uses on a day-to-day basis. So well-deserved shout out to you, Nicole, and your team over there.
Smith: Well, thank you for that shout out, and I appreciate you guys being such amazing customers. It’s so nice to work with you guys.
Groese: Oh, we got a compliment back. I like it. Okay. So, for today’s episode, I want to discuss a popular topic, and this is a really great topic for those of you who are in sales, and it’s around how to sell to the elusive CMO. According to a HubSpot report that I actually came across this week, 40% of salespeople say that prospecting is the most challenging part of the entire sales process. So for today, Nicole if you’re up for it, we’re going to give them some tips to kind of help them out during this prospecting challenge that they’re going through.
Smith: Yes. I agree that prospecting is definitely probably the hardest part of the sales cycle, and I’m happy to give some tips to help them out.
Groese: Great. So, in just a few moments, Nicole and I are going to be going through topics like what she and I personally expect from sales reps who are trying to win a piece of our marketing budgets. Also, what really gets us to open an email or even schedule a meeting amidst our overflowing inboxes and very busy schedules. And one more thing that I think was kind of funny, when I was jotting down some notes of getting starting today, is that even though Nicole and I are considered the elusive CMOs, and I’m using air quotes on my end right now, and we’re often sought after by sales professionals. On the flip side, Nicole and I are responsible for the demand generation of our businesses at Winmo and UserIQ.
Groese: So needless to say, we are both very, very familiar with sales prospecting, and we can hopefully provide a unique perspective on both ends of the equation to today’s conversation. Nicole, I know demand gen is a big thing on your to-do list just like it is mine.
Smith: Yeah. That’s huge. I mean, actually 80% of UserIQ’s business is from inbound as well, so I feel like I’m working very closely with our SDR team, and our inbound, and outbound reps on what they’re doing, and what the process is. I’m always looking at best practices and what we can be doing on a day-to-day basis to generate the best demand and move them to the sales cycle as well.
Groese: 80% is great. That’s a huge accomplishment. I think we hover around like 65%, so hopefully, your sales team is giving you and your team a lot of love at 80%. That’s really awesome.
Smith: The love goes both ways.
Groese: Yeah. Exactly. Well, let’s go ahead and jump into some of these questions. The first is kind of just around the pulse of the market right now for sales reps. You and I have been doing marketing for a while now. I won’t say the number of years because I don’t want to date ourselves, but we’ve been around for a while. So it kind of seems like, for sales professionals, getting through to the marketing C-suite is much more difficult than has been in prior years. So, I’d be curious to get your perspective on why you think that’s happening, more so now than before.
Smith: Yeah. I do think, as you said, it’s changed a lot over the years. I think there’s really two reasons for this, and I’ll start with one and then I’d love to get your feedback on it. Then we can talk about the other one as well. You know, first, I think some of this might be coming from all the noise that’s out there in the market. But there’s really this growing popularity to share best practices, and tips, and tricks on social media with the intention of building a personal brand or helping build a company’s brand. I’m not saying this is a bad thing. In fact, I think it’s really helpful for learning and growing professionally.
Smith: But, on the flip side, I think if someone’s highly regarded in the industry and they’re going on LinkedIn and saying they had success prospecting a certain way, there’s this tendency for everyone to go try and do that. That method that was unique and cool really loses its appeal when you receive 300 of those exact same emails really quickly, you know? So one example of that I can give, and always comes to mind when I think about this, is remember how sales reps used to reach out and send personalized videos in prospecting emails?
Groese: Yes.
Smith: Well, so that started out really slowly. I can still actually remember the first time I got a video email from a sales rep. I think it was from someone at Terminus, which is a local Atlanta company. I remember watching it a few times. I circulated it to people on my team, and probably the whole company actually, and I said, “We need to do this.” I think I actually responded to the sales rep because it was so unique, and that was the first one I had received. Then LinkedIn started blowing up with everyone talking about it and saying if you weren’t using video in the prospecting emails, you were missing the mark.
Smith: Then I pretty quickly started getting 10 of these video emails this week, and then you were automatically just deleting them. I feel like fad fades out. Come to think of it, when I was thinking about this, I can’t think of the last time I got a personalized video email. So I think that’s kind of some of the thing. Like, there’s just a lot of noise, and then everyone doing the exact same thing, and copying what everyone else is doing, which makes it really hard to stand out and be unique in the market.
Groese: Yeah. I’m so glad you mentioned the video email marketing because I jotted it down on my end. And just very much like you, when I got my first one… Because sometimes we can get in the habit, I don’t know about you, but it’s almost like deleting emails. As soon as you see a sales email in your inbox, it’s just like delete, delete, delete. Then you see that thumbnail image of a video, and it kind of stops you in your tracks because it’s different. You know, I found myself in the same boat of clicking on it and at least hearing what the sales representative had to say.
Smith: Yep. Definitely.
Groese: Another thing and I don’t know if you can relate to this but in addition to kind of everyone jumping on bandwagons and it getting a little bit too noisy, I feel like some sales reps have ruined it for others because they have not done a really great job in prepping for their outreach. You know, you get a few really kind of bad or half-assed emails or voicemails, and then you kind of become a little bit more numb to any other kind of incoming sale inquiries, or at least on my end.
Smith: Yes. I completely agree with that. You get those same cadences that say the exact same things just from different companies, and it’s just like, “Insert your company name,” or something like that. But once you’re getting a lot of those all the time, it’s really hard I think for a sales rep to stand out, and like I said, break above that noise too because there’s been people that have kind of ruined that.
Groese: Yeah. Absolutely.
Smith: I also think, as I was thinking about this too, that I think there’s more of the CMO, and just the C-Suite in general, that really know what they want now. They’re talking to peers about challenges they face, they’re learning how… You know, I got you and other people in our network and I’m asking like, “How have you solved this problem with technology?” Or they’re looking at industry experts, whether it’s an analyst firm, a review site, or a peer group, for validation and researching products online to figure out what they need.
Smith: So I think where, as many years ago, you were waiting for a sales rep to call or email them to learn about a product or a pain point you have, now we’re just out there researching it ourselves. Then I might go tell my team, “Hey. These are the top three solutions in the market, go evaluate them.” I think it makes it more important than ever now that companies are investing in building a strong brand that tells your story and speaks to how you can solve the C-Suite’s challenges. So that, when that CMO is out there doing this investigation, that you’re showing up in these searches or that a peer is using them as well. Because if not, I think you’re going to miss out, and then it makes it that much harder as a sales rep for you to go in there and get that market share.
Groese: Yeah. Absolutely. So there’s no doubt challenges for sales rep, this is why I’m in marketing. I work closely enough with sales, but there’s a reason why I stay on marketing side versus sales. So let me you ask you this, Nicole. So, if a sales professional is going to get a piece of your marketing budget, are there maybe two or three things that they must check off on your list in order to kind of capture your attention?
Smith: Yeah, there are. I have two big things, and then kind of a third bonus item I would add. So it’s not necessary but definitely helps the process. The two big things are, first, I want them to present me with a really personalized discovery call and demo. If something’s really cookie-cutter, and I feel like the disco call or demo is really super-scripted and they’re not answering my questions or meeting my needs, I’m going to be turned off and I’m likely to keep moving forward with the process. So, if you’re running through a script, and I’m asking a question, but you just keep bouncing back to something that’s already there, or you’re not showing me something I’ve asked to see, things like that are a red flag to me. Again, that’s going to be something where that’s not going to work to win my business.
Smith: Then, as a second thing, it’s really important to have a sales rep helping build out a business case for the product or solution I’m buying. The easier you can make it to prove ROI to me that I can then turn over to my CEO, the less likely I’m going to move forward with one of your competitors, and the smoother just makes the sales cycle overall for me. So I think no matter what, at the end of the day, you’ve got to be able to prove ROI and the business value of your solution.
Groese: Yeah. That one’s great because ROI is just… You know, it’s so important for us as marketers because we’ve just got an up-the-hill battle almost when we take this to our executive team or board sometimes of asking for additional revenue that, especially, might not be on our budget. So anything they can do, to your point, like that concise business case. And especially if they’re doing it for us, because oftentimes, Nicole, you and I are the ones putting together that business case and then having to share it with our team. So the more leg-work they can do for us, that’s a really good point.
Smith: Yeah. Make it easy for us to sell internally and buy it.
Groese: Yep.
Smith: Then I would say my bonus point is, I love it when I’m buying software, and a sales team offers to let me have a conversation with their CMO-
Groese: Oh, nice.
Smith: … about how they’re using the software at their organization. That usually helps me provide some additional use cases and think a little bit outside the box about how I could be using it as well. That’s a really great just networking moment for me, to meet another CMO, and it also helps build trust and accelerate the sales cycle. This has happened a few times for me when buying different software, and it almost always ends with me buying that product.
Groese: That’s great. I’m actually going to steal that tip from you after today.
Smith: Yeah.
Groese: Now I’m learning something from you also.
Smith: It works.
Groese: Yeah. All right, so we had a bonus round on that one. Those are really great, great points. The one thing that I jotted down on my end is sometimes I feel like some sales professionals… It really does take work. I mean, you’ve got to put the effort into learning about our business, what are the problems that we’re trying to solve for our customers, and really kind of educate yourself before you even send me an email or jump on the phone. Sometimes I see so many sales professionals who might just kind of like grab one sentence on our homepage, and reach out to me and think that they know what we do, and it’s kind of usually way off-base.
Groese: So something as simple as spending the adequate amount of time to research who you’re going after, and really trying to do your best, as well you can, to understand what the problems are that we as CMOs are trying to solve for our companies. It would be a big tip on my end.
Smith: I think that’s a great tip, and that’s where the best sales reps do really well, in my opinion.
Groese: Yep. Yep. You can definitely see who excels and who doesn’t there. Okay. So we’ve kind of seen a little bit of a shift in sales organizations over the past few years and the incoming roles of BDRs, or business development reps. So I’m really curious to get your opinion on what you think of this incoming role. For example, do you mind being qualified by one person, only to be passed over to someone completely different on the second or third call?
Smith: I really don’t mind that. Maybe I’m just saying that because that’s how our organization is set up, so I have to say that. No, I’m just kidding. No, I don’t. I don’t mind being qualified by someone else. I’m really a big believer that when it’s done right and if you’re following whatever your qualification model is, like some popular ones are BANT or the medic qualification principles, that qualification really save everyone time to determine if I’m going to be the right fit for your product and if you’re the right fit for my organization. Not everyone should make it through that discovery qualification call, so there should be a lot of drop off from between discovery and opportunity.
Smith: But, if an organization is just having an SDR or BDR do this to check off a box and BANT is not truly happening, then I think that’s really where it’s a big mess.
Groese: Yeah. No, and I think BDRs have offered a lot of help to both the marketing side of the organization and for the seasoned account executives as well too. Since you do have a BDR team in-house, as well your more seasoned sales veterans, do you have any tips to BDRs who might be listening in on this episode on kind of how to take it to the next level in their careers?
Smith: You know, I think just asking more of the why questions, really drilling in on to, “Why are you looking at the solution like this? What can we be showing you in a demo to make the most out of your time on this next call?” And finding out those why’s and not being scared to ask the big-budget need, timing, who’s going to be making this purchasing decision on your end. Those kinds of questions, I think, really help. I’d like to also encourage that the BDR joins that first demo as it moves forward and kind of doing that reiteration of what they heard on the discovery call, instead of just passing it off to the AE to handle that and say, “Oh, this is what my notes say.”
Smith: I think my biggest pet peeve is when I’ve spent 30 minutes doing a discovery call with a BDR, thought it went really well, and then you get on the demo, and you have those same exact questions asked again. So I think that’s a whole sales process thing of making sure that that sales leader has really put in a great process of, “Well, here’s this person that’s qualified, now let’s make sure that they’re not spending the next 30 minutes of their demo getting asked and it looks like we didn’t hear anything they said on that call before.”
Groese: Yeah. That’s a big pet peeve of mine. It kind of naturally leads itself to the next question here around time, right? We don’t have time to-
Smith: Yeah.
Groese: … repeat who we are, and who we serve, and what we do. So, as a CMO, time is really our most precious asset. If we could find a way to clone ourselves… I joke with my team all my time, “You know, I’d be doing great if I could figure out how to clone myself, add more time.” But a recent report shows, that on average, it’s taking about 18 calls to actually connect with a buyer and that only 24% of all sales emails are being opened. What that tells me is that there’s a lot of outreach coming our way, into our inboxes, and to our voicemails that we have to filter through on a daily basis.
Groese: Nicole, what are the channels, or the cadence rather, that you preferred to be sold to? You had mentioned the video email marketing kind of stood out for you before, what kind of touchpoints are you looking for? More importantly, how often and when is enough, enough?
Smith: Yeah. I would say… Yes, I wish I could just clone myself as well. You definitely need a clone of yourself. Calling is probably my least favorite channel. I really don’t pick up my phone. I’m never going to be able to have a non-scheduled call probably during the day either. I think one of the things that’s bugged me most about some sales stuff lately is that…
Smith: You know that spoofed local presence dialing where no matter where they’re calling from, it shows up as a local number? So, if I do happen to pick up a call because I’m expecting a call from someone that’s doing work on my home or a doctor calling me back, and you’re a sales rep calling me California, I’m going to get upset and irritated instead of it starting off the call the right way.
Groese: No, not at all.
Smith: Yeah. But I would say it’s still probably email for me. Even though I get a lot of emails, it still probably my favorite channel. I’m almost afraid to say this for fear of being inundated with prospecting emails, but I don’t read a lot of emails I get during the day from people that I don’t know and I’m more likely to hit Delete. However, a good time to catch me and get me to look at your email is during early morning hours when I’m getting ready for work, or after hours as well. I’m more likely to be like either I’m sitting on the couch and catching up on emails or doing something like that. That’s also the time where I’ll look at a prospect email, and flag it, and say, “Okay. I might be interested in this,” rather than just hitting the Delete button right away.
Groese: Now you’re going to be inundated with early-morning and-
Smith: I know. I know.
Groese: You’ve opened Pandora’s box and given the secret away.
Smith: Right.
Groese: No, but I would agree with your point of almost… I feel like salespeople try to get a little tricky sometimes with the local dialing and stuff like that, and even on voicemails. I get a laugh sometimes when I listen to my voice mailbox because, very similar to you, email’s best for me. I really never answer my phone during the day. But, when I go through my voicemails, some people will just give a name, and phone number, and say, “This is urgent if you can follow back up.” Then I’m left thinking, “Oh, do I really need to followup or is this a new sales tactic to get me on the phone?”
Groese: To your point, I think it just doesn’t start the relationship off on a very good foot. So being open and candid. If you’ve done a really good job of your research ahead of time, you really don’t have to do anything tricky in order to get us either via email or on the phone.
Smith: Exactly. It’s all about building trust in that sales process. If you start off on the wrong foot, it’s not going to go well and I’m probably not going to give you a shot.
Groese: Yep. Absolutely. All right, well we’re moving fast today. So I’ve already got the last question for today. We’ve been talking about things that we like about sales reps and mishaps that maybe we’ve had with sales reps, and I always like to give recognition to people who are doing a really great job in the industry. So, are there any companies that have wowed you recently with their sales approach?
Smith: Yeah. One example I’ll say… I’ll give you two examples, so I’ll give you one for prospecting and then one for their sales process.
Groese: Okay.
Smith: So a prospecting one, they’ve been prospecting me right now and after this plug, I’m definitely going to probably have to set up a call with them. I forwarded this guy’s email to my whole sales team as a great example of what works when talking to the C-Suite, but the first email he sent me was really personalized. When I say “personalized,” I don’t mean something like, “Oh, I saw you went to Georgia. Go Dawgs.” Because I think those are the worst emails and Delete.
Smith: His said something like, “I read your LinkedIn article where you talked about lessons you learned leading a start-up marketing team.” And then he references one of the lessons, which was Be Aware of Your Competitors but Don’t Obsess Over Them. And then proceeded to tell me in the email that in the spirit of honoring that lesson, one of our competitors is actually their customer and they’d help them succeed by doing X, Y, and Z. Honestly, that really piqued my interest. I will also say he sent me this email a little bit after-hours.
Smith: So two things, those were really good ways, very personalized, good time to get my attention, and, just again, he did a great job on that all around. He’s, I think, sent me two more emails since then that have also been very personalized and good. So I will be responding to him now because I said that.
Groese: He won the first round, at least.
Smith: Yeah. Then the other one is InsightSquared. They’re a company we use. We’re a customer of theirs, but their sales process was amazing. We had bought the product almost two years ago, and I think it goes a long way to say that I still keep in contact with our sales rep because he was so amazing. The things I mentioned before, about how to win business and what a sales rep should do to win business, are all the things that InsightSquared did.
Smith: Their demo was super-personalized, and they even did an additional one and personalized it for our CEO. They let us do a trial of the product, build a business use case, and they helped us build out that business use case. It wasn’t on us to prove value and ROI internally. Then they connected me in-person with their CMO to talk use cases and marketing ROI. So, needless to say, they blew their competitor out of the water, and we’re still happy customers two years later, today.
Groese: Ah, that’s great. Yeah, you find the people… Would you agree the people that you can tell have put more time into prospecting and working the entire kind of journey are the ones that usually make it to the finish line for you? And you can easily tell who’s put their time in and who hasn’t?
Smith: Yes, 100%. Then it’s like, when you get to the end of the sales process, if you feel like the sales rep is one of your friends that you want to talk to, and you want to go tell their boss they did a great job, then just congratulate them instead of having an icky feeling at the end of the sales process that you just kind of got worked over, you don’t feel good about it. I want to feel good at the end of a sales process, and like I’m entering into a great partnership.
Groese: That’s such a great way to phrase it of wanting to almost congratulate that person, rather than that icky salesperson feeling that people talk about often, you know?
Smith: Yes.
Groese: You know, I’ll add one last thing before we kind of wrap it up here, but we were talking about a nice kind of warm, good feeling at the end of the prospecting journey. One company has done a really good job of prospecting my entire department. It is actually they were kind of at the end of the process with them and another competitor, and they actually sent in this huge order of cupcakes to our office. Now that might sound really silly in comparison to everything else that they did for prospecting us. The response throughout the office, Nicole, was just crazy. I had people from our IT team and our sales organization coming over and asking who the company was and if we were going to partner with them. It was like I was almost getting peer pressure from other people in the company, just because they had a little bit of a chocolate or sweet tooth fix for the day, which I thought was pretty funny.
Smith: That’s great. I mean, did they have their logos or anything on the cupcakes?
Groese: Oh, yeah. Absolutely. Everything was branded. But they know the way to people’s hearts with-
Smith: They do.
Groese: … some sweets or chocolates in the middle of the afternoon, when you’re kind of hitting your low coming up on 5:00 PM. So that was something unique that kind of caught us off-guard a little bit.
Smith: I like that idea.
Groese: Everyone enjoys those moments.
Smith: Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Groese: Yeah. We’ll wrap up our episode for today at the B2B Sales Show. Nicole, thank you so much again for joining us and sharing your wisdom on tips and tricks on how to capture the elusive CMO. If listeners want to get In touch with you, Nicole, what’s the best way to learn more about UserIQ or reach out to you if they have any more questions?
Smith: Yeah, of course. If you want to learn more about UserIQ, you can visit useriq.com. In the spirit of being of transparent, I’ll give out my email, so that if you want to prospect me or reach out, you can find me. It’s nicole@useriq.com.
Groese: Okay. That’s great. Lastly, if you’d like to learn more about how Winmo can specifically help you connect with chief marketing officers and other marketing executives at precisely the right time, I’d highly encourage you learning more at winmo.com/b2bsalesshow. Once again, thank you for listening, and we look forward to catching you on our next episode.
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The B2B Sales Show is a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve got to check out their content!
(Podcast) How to Sell to the Elusive CMO
in Podcastby Ayanna GantAnnouncer: You’re listening to the B2B Sales Show, a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s get into the show.
Host, Jennifer Groese: Good afternoon, and welcome back to another episode of the B2B Sales Show. My name is Jennifer Groese, the Chief Marketing Officer at Winmo. And today, I am joined by a fellow colleague of mine, Nicole Smith, who is also a Chief Marketing Officer here in Atlanta. She works at a really great company called UserIQ. A little bit about UserIQ, before we get started, UserIQ is an innovative customer success platform that helps businesses align with their user needs. Nicole is specifically responsible for developing and executing in a go-to-market strategy that aligns sales and marketing efforts to generate brand awareness, thought leadership, and demand.
Groese: Nicole, thank you so much for joining us today and welcome to the B2B Sales Show.
Nicole Smith: Hi, Jennifer. Thanks for having me. It’s great to be here today.
Groese: Thanks for joining. One thing that I will add before we get going into the podcast today, it’s kind of a shout out for you. A well-deserved shout out, I would say. We’ve actually been customers of UserIQ and been working with Nicole for, I would say the past three years. We use UserIQ with all of our communications within our platform, and it’s really been a pivotal tool that my team uses on a day-to-day basis. So well-deserved shout out to you, Nicole, and your team over there.
Smith: Well, thank you for that shout out, and I appreciate you guys being such amazing customers. It’s so nice to work with you guys.
Groese: Oh, we got a compliment back. I like it. Okay. So, for today’s episode, I want to discuss a popular topic, and this is a really great topic for those of you who are in sales, and it’s around how to sell to the elusive CMO. According to a HubSpot report that I actually came across this week, 40% of salespeople say that prospecting is the most challenging part of the entire sales process. So for today, Nicole if you’re up for it, we’re going to give them some tips to kind of help them out during this prospecting challenge that they’re going through.
Smith: Yes. I agree that prospecting is definitely probably the hardest part of the sales cycle, and I’m happy to give some tips to help them out.
Groese: Great. So, in just a few moments, Nicole and I are going to be going through topics like what she and I personally expect from sales reps who are trying to win a piece of our marketing budgets. Also, what really gets us to open an email or even schedule a meeting amidst our overflowing inboxes and very busy schedules. And one more thing that I think was kind of funny, when I was jotting down some notes of getting starting today, is that even though Nicole and I are considered the elusive CMOs, and I’m using air quotes on my end right now, and we’re often sought after by sales professionals. On the flip side, Nicole and I are responsible for the demand generation of our businesses at Winmo and UserIQ.
Groese: So needless to say, we are both very, very familiar with sales prospecting, and we can hopefully provide a unique perspective on both ends of the equation to today’s conversation. Nicole, I know demand gen is a big thing on your to-do list just like it is mine.
Smith: Yeah. That’s huge. I mean, actually 80% of UserIQ’s business is from inbound as well, so I feel like I’m working very closely with our SDR team, and our inbound, and outbound reps on what they’re doing, and what the process is. I’m always looking at best practices and what we can be doing on a day-to-day basis to generate the best demand and move them to the sales cycle as well.
Groese: 80% is great. That’s a huge accomplishment. I think we hover around like 65%, so hopefully, your sales team is giving you and your team a lot of love at 80%. That’s really awesome.
Smith: The love goes both ways.
Groese: Yeah. Exactly. Well, let’s go ahead and jump into some of these questions. The first is kind of just around the pulse of the market right now for sales reps. You and I have been doing marketing for a while now. I won’t say the number of years because I don’t want to date ourselves, but we’ve been around for a while. So it kind of seems like, for sales professionals, getting through to the marketing C-suite is much more difficult than has been in prior years. So, I’d be curious to get your perspective on why you think that’s happening, more so now than before.
Smith: Yeah. I do think, as you said, it’s changed a lot over the years. I think there’s really two reasons for this, and I’ll start with one and then I’d love to get your feedback on it. Then we can talk about the other one as well. You know, first, I think some of this might be coming from all the noise that’s out there in the market. But there’s really this growing popularity to share best practices, and tips, and tricks on social media with the intention of building a personal brand or helping build a company’s brand. I’m not saying this is a bad thing. In fact, I think it’s really helpful for learning and growing professionally.
Smith: But, on the flip side, I think if someone’s highly regarded in the industry and they’re going on LinkedIn and saying they had success prospecting a certain way, there’s this tendency for everyone to go try and do that. That method that was unique and cool really loses its appeal when you receive 300 of those exact same emails really quickly, you know? So one example of that I can give, and always comes to mind when I think about this, is remember how sales reps used to reach out and send personalized videos in prospecting emails?
Groese: Yes.
Smith: Well, so that started out really slowly. I can still actually remember the first time I got a video email from a sales rep. I think it was from someone at Terminus, which is a local Atlanta company. I remember watching it a few times. I circulated it to people on my team, and probably the whole company actually, and I said, “We need to do this.” I think I actually responded to the sales rep because it was so unique, and that was the first one I had received. Then LinkedIn started blowing up with everyone talking about it and saying if you weren’t using video in the prospecting emails, you were missing the mark.
Smith: Then I pretty quickly started getting 10 of these video emails this week, and then you were automatically just deleting them. I feel like fad fades out. Come to think of it, when I was thinking about this, I can’t think of the last time I got a personalized video email. So I think that’s kind of some of the thing. Like, there’s just a lot of noise, and then everyone doing the exact same thing, and copying what everyone else is doing, which makes it really hard to stand out and be unique in the market.
Groese: Yeah. I’m so glad you mentioned the video email marketing because I jotted it down on my end. And just very much like you, when I got my first one… Because sometimes we can get in the habit, I don’t know about you, but it’s almost like deleting emails. As soon as you see a sales email in your inbox, it’s just like delete, delete, delete. Then you see that thumbnail image of a video, and it kind of stops you in your tracks because it’s different. You know, I found myself in the same boat of clicking on it and at least hearing what the sales representative had to say.
Smith: Yep. Definitely.
Groese: Another thing and I don’t know if you can relate to this but in addition to kind of everyone jumping on bandwagons and it getting a little bit too noisy, I feel like some sales reps have ruined it for others because they have not done a really great job in prepping for their outreach. You know, you get a few really kind of bad or half-assed emails or voicemails, and then you kind of become a little bit more numb to any other kind of incoming sale inquiries, or at least on my end.
Smith: Yes. I completely agree with that. You get those same cadences that say the exact same things just from different companies, and it’s just like, “Insert your company name,” or something like that. But once you’re getting a lot of those all the time, it’s really hard I think for a sales rep to stand out, and like I said, break above that noise too because there’s been people that have kind of ruined that.
Groese: Yeah. Absolutely.
Smith: I also think, as I was thinking about this too, that I think there’s more of the CMO, and just the C-Suite in general, that really know what they want now. They’re talking to peers about challenges they face, they’re learning how… You know, I got you and other people in our network and I’m asking like, “How have you solved this problem with technology?” Or they’re looking at industry experts, whether it’s an analyst firm, a review site, or a peer group, for validation and researching products online to figure out what they need.
Smith: So I think where, as many years ago, you were waiting for a sales rep to call or email them to learn about a product or a pain point you have, now we’re just out there researching it ourselves. Then I might go tell my team, “Hey. These are the top three solutions in the market, go evaluate them.” I think it makes it more important than ever now that companies are investing in building a strong brand that tells your story and speaks to how you can solve the C-Suite’s challenges. So that, when that CMO is out there doing this investigation, that you’re showing up in these searches or that a peer is using them as well. Because if not, I think you’re going to miss out, and then it makes it that much harder as a sales rep for you to go in there and get that market share.
Groese: Yeah. Absolutely. So there’s no doubt challenges for sales rep, this is why I’m in marketing. I work closely enough with sales, but there’s a reason why I stay on marketing side versus sales. So let me you ask you this, Nicole. So, if a sales professional is going to get a piece of your marketing budget, are there maybe two or three things that they must check off on your list in order to kind of capture your attention?
Smith: Yeah, there are. I have two big things, and then kind of a third bonus item I would add. So it’s not necessary but definitely helps the process. The two big things are, first, I want them to present me with a really personalized discovery call and demo. If something’s really cookie-cutter, and I feel like the disco call or demo is really super-scripted and they’re not answering my questions or meeting my needs, I’m going to be turned off and I’m likely to keep moving forward with the process. So, if you’re running through a script, and I’m asking a question, but you just keep bouncing back to something that’s already there, or you’re not showing me something I’ve asked to see, things like that are a red flag to me. Again, that’s going to be something where that’s not going to work to win my business.
Groese: Yeah. That one’s great because ROI is just… You know, it’s so important for us as marketers because we’ve just got an up-the-hill battle almost when we take this to our executive team or board sometimes of asking for additional revenue that, especially, might not be on our budget. So anything they can do, to your point, like that concise business case. And especially if they’re doing it for us, because oftentimes, Nicole, you and I are the ones putting together that business case and then having to share it with our team. So the more leg-work they can do for us, that’s a really good point.
Smith: Yeah. Make it easy for us to sell internally and buy it.
Groese: Yep.
Smith: Then I would say my bonus point is, I love it when I’m buying software, and a sales team offers to let me have a conversation with their CMO-
Smith: … about how they’re using the software at their organization. That usually helps me provide some additional use cases and think a little bit outside the box about how I could be using it as well. That’s a really great just networking moment for me, to meet another CMO, and it also helps build trust and accelerate the sales cycle. This has happened a few times for me when buying different software, and it almost always ends with me buying that product.
Groese: That’s great. I’m actually going to steal that tip from you after today.
Smith: Yeah.
Groese: Now I’m learning something from you also.
Smith: It works.
Groese: Yeah. All right, so we had a bonus round on that one. Those are really great, great points. The one thing that I jotted down on my end is sometimes I feel like some sales professionals… It really does take work. I mean, you’ve got to put the effort into learning about our business, what are the problems that we’re trying to solve for our customers, and really kind of educate yourself before you even send me an email or jump on the phone. Sometimes I see so many sales professionals who might just kind of like grab one sentence on our homepage, and reach out to me and think that they know what we do, and it’s kind of usually way off-base.
Groese: So something as simple as spending the adequate amount of time to research who you’re going after, and really trying to do your best, as well you can, to understand what the problems are that we as CMOs are trying to solve for our companies. It would be a big tip on my end.
Smith: I think that’s a great tip, and that’s where the best sales reps do really well, in my opinion.
Groese: Yep. Yep. You can definitely see who excels and who doesn’t there. Okay. So we’ve kind of seen a little bit of a shift in sales organizations over the past few years and the incoming roles of BDRs, or business development reps. So I’m really curious to get your opinion on what you think of this incoming role. For example, do you mind being qualified by one person, only to be passed over to someone completely different on the second or third call?
Smith: I really don’t mind that. Maybe I’m just saying that because that’s how our organization is set up, so I have to say that. No, I’m just kidding. No, I don’t. I don’t mind being qualified by someone else. I’m really a big believer that when it’s done right and if you’re following whatever your qualification model is, like some popular ones are BANT or the medic qualification principles, that qualification really save everyone time to determine if I’m going to be the right fit for your product and if you’re the right fit for my organization. Not everyone should make it through that discovery qualification call, so there should be a lot of drop off from between discovery and opportunity.
Smith: But, if an organization is just having an SDR or BDR do this to check off a box and BANT is not truly happening, then I think that’s really where it’s a big mess.
Groese: Yeah. No, and I think BDRs have offered a lot of help to both the marketing side of the organization and for the seasoned account executives as well too. Since you do have a BDR team in-house, as well your more seasoned sales veterans, do you have any tips to BDRs who might be listening in on this episode on kind of how to take it to the next level in their careers?
Smith: You know, I think just asking more of the why questions, really drilling in on to, “Why are you looking at the solution like this? What can we be showing you in a demo to make the most out of your time on this next call?” And finding out those why’s and not being scared to ask the big-budget need, timing, who’s going to be making this purchasing decision on your end. Those kinds of questions, I think, really help. I’d like to also encourage that the BDR joins that first demo as it moves forward and kind of doing that reiteration of what they heard on the discovery call, instead of just passing it off to the AE to handle that and say, “Oh, this is what my notes say.”
Smith: I think my biggest pet peeve is when I’ve spent 30 minutes doing a discovery call with a BDR, thought it went really well, and then you get on the demo, and you have those same exact questions asked again. So I think that’s a whole sales process thing of making sure that that sales leader has really put in a great process of, “Well, here’s this person that’s qualified, now let’s make sure that they’re not spending the next 30 minutes of their demo getting asked and it looks like we didn’t hear anything they said on that call before.”
Groese: Yeah. That’s a big pet peeve of mine. It kind of naturally leads itself to the next question here around time, right? We don’t have time to-
Smith: Yeah.
Groese: … repeat who we are, and who we serve, and what we do. So, as a CMO, time is really our most precious asset. If we could find a way to clone ourselves… I joke with my team all my time, “You know, I’d be doing great if I could figure out how to clone myself, add more time.” But a recent report shows, that on average, it’s taking about 18 calls to actually connect with a buyer and that only 24% of all sales emails are being opened. What that tells me is that there’s a lot of outreach coming our way, into our inboxes, and to our voicemails that we have to filter through on a daily basis.
Groese: Nicole, what are the channels, or the cadence rather, that you preferred to be sold to? You had mentioned the video email marketing kind of stood out for you before, what kind of touchpoints are you looking for? More importantly, how often and when is enough, enough?
Smith: Yeah. I would say… Yes, I wish I could just clone myself as well. You definitely need a clone of yourself. Calling is probably my least favorite channel. I really don’t pick up my phone. I’m never going to be able to have a non-scheduled call probably during the day either. I think one of the things that’s bugged me most about some sales stuff lately is that…
Smith: You know that spoofed local presence dialing where no matter where they’re calling from, it shows up as a local number? So, if I do happen to pick up a call because I’m expecting a call from someone that’s doing work on my home or a doctor calling me back, and you’re a sales rep calling me California, I’m going to get upset and irritated instead of it starting off the call the right way.
Groese: No, not at all.
Smith: Yeah. But I would say it’s still probably email for me. Even though I get a lot of emails, it still probably my favorite channel. I’m almost afraid to say this for fear of being inundated with prospecting emails, but I don’t read a lot of emails I get during the day from people that I don’t know and I’m more likely to hit Delete. However, a good time to catch me and get me to look at your email is during early morning hours when I’m getting ready for work, or after hours as well. I’m more likely to be like either I’m sitting on the couch and catching up on emails or doing something like that. That’s also the time where I’ll look at a prospect email, and flag it, and say, “Okay. I might be interested in this,” rather than just hitting the Delete button right away.
Groese: Now you’re going to be inundated with early-morning and-
Smith: I know. I know.
Groese: You’ve opened Pandora’s box and given the secret away.
Smith: Right.
Groese: No, but I would agree with your point of almost… I feel like salespeople try to get a little tricky sometimes with the local dialing and stuff like that, and even on voicemails. I get a laugh sometimes when I listen to my voice mailbox because, very similar to you, email’s best for me. I really never answer my phone during the day. But, when I go through my voicemails, some people will just give a name, and phone number, and say, “This is urgent if you can follow back up.” Then I’m left thinking, “Oh, do I really need to followup or is this a new sales tactic to get me on the phone?”
Groese: To your point, I think it just doesn’t start the relationship off on a very good foot. So being open and candid. If you’ve done a really good job of your research ahead of time, you really don’t have to do anything tricky in order to get us either via email or on the phone.
Smith: Exactly. It’s all about building trust in that sales process. If you start off on the wrong foot, it’s not going to go well and I’m probably not going to give you a shot.
Groese: Yep. Absolutely. All right, well we’re moving fast today. So I’ve already got the last question for today. We’ve been talking about things that we like about sales reps and mishaps that maybe we’ve had with sales reps, and I always like to give recognition to people who are doing a really great job in the industry. So, are there any companies that have wowed you recently with their sales approach?
Smith: Yeah. One example I’ll say… I’ll give you two examples, so I’ll give you one for prospecting and then one for their sales process.
Groese: Okay.
Smith: So a prospecting one, they’ve been prospecting me right now and after this plug, I’m definitely going to probably have to set up a call with them. I forwarded this guy’s email to my whole sales team as a great example of what works when talking to the C-Suite, but the first email he sent me was really personalized. When I say “personalized,” I don’t mean something like, “Oh, I saw you went to Georgia. Go Dawgs.” Because I think those are the worst emails and Delete.
Smith: His said something like, “I read your LinkedIn article where you talked about lessons you learned leading a start-up marketing team.” And then he references one of the lessons, which was Be Aware of Your Competitors but Don’t Obsess Over Them. And then proceeded to tell me in the email that in the spirit of honoring that lesson, one of our competitors is actually their customer and they’d help them succeed by doing X, Y, and Z. Honestly, that really piqued my interest. I will also say he sent me this email a little bit after-hours.
Smith: So two things, those were really good ways, very personalized, good time to get my attention, and, just again, he did a great job on that all around. He’s, I think, sent me two more emails since then that have also been very personalized and good. So I will be responding to him now because I said that.
Groese: He won the first round, at least.
Smith: Yeah. Then the other one is InsightSquared. They’re a company we use. We’re a customer of theirs, but their sales process was amazing. We had bought the product almost two years ago, and I think it goes a long way to say that I still keep in contact with our sales rep because he was so amazing. The things I mentioned before, about how to win business and what a sales rep should do to win business, are all the things that InsightSquared did.
Smith: Their demo was super-personalized, and they even did an additional one and personalized it for our CEO. They let us do a trial of the product, build a business use case, and they helped us build out that business use case. It wasn’t on us to prove value and ROI internally. Then they connected me in-person with their CMO to talk use cases and marketing ROI. So, needless to say, they blew their competitor out of the water, and we’re still happy customers two years later, today.
Groese: Ah, that’s great. Yeah, you find the people… Would you agree the people that you can tell have put more time into prospecting and working the entire kind of journey are the ones that usually make it to the finish line for you? And you can easily tell who’s put their time in and who hasn’t?
Smith: Yes, 100%. Then it’s like, when you get to the end of the sales process, if you feel like the sales rep is one of your friends that you want to talk to, and you want to go tell their boss they did a great job, then just congratulate them instead of having an icky feeling at the end of the sales process that you just kind of got worked over, you don’t feel good about it. I want to feel good at the end of a sales process, and like I’m entering into a great partnership.
Groese: That’s such a great way to phrase it of wanting to almost congratulate that person, rather than that icky salesperson feeling that people talk about often, you know?
Smith: Yes.
Groese: You know, I’ll add one last thing before we kind of wrap it up here, but we were talking about a nice kind of warm, good feeling at the end of the prospecting journey. One company has done a really good job of prospecting my entire department. It is actually they were kind of at the end of the process with them and another competitor, and they actually sent in this huge order of cupcakes to our office. Now that might sound really silly in comparison to everything else that they did for prospecting us. The response throughout the office, Nicole, was just crazy. I had people from our IT team and our sales organization coming over and asking who the company was and if we were going to partner with them. It was like I was almost getting peer pressure from other people in the company, just because they had a little bit of a chocolate or sweet tooth fix for the day, which I thought was pretty funny.
Smith: That’s great. I mean, did they have their logos or anything on the cupcakes?
Groese: Oh, yeah. Absolutely. Everything was branded. But they know the way to people’s hearts with-
Smith: They do.
Groese: … some sweets or chocolates in the middle of the afternoon, when you’re kind of hitting your low coming up on 5:00 PM. So that was something unique that kind of caught us off-guard a little bit.
Smith: I like that idea.
Groese: Everyone enjoys those moments.
Smith: Mm-hmm (affirmative).
Groese: Yeah. We’ll wrap up our episode for today at the B2B Sales Show. Nicole, thank you so much again for joining us and sharing your wisdom on tips and tricks on how to capture the elusive CMO. If listeners want to get In touch with you, Nicole, what’s the best way to learn more about UserIQ or reach out to you if they have any more questions?
Smith: Yeah, of course. If you want to learn more about UserIQ, you can visit useriq.com. In the spirit of being of transparent, I’ll give out my email, so that if you want to prospect me or reach out, you can find me. It’s nicole@useriq.com.
Groese: Okay. That’s great. Lastly, if you’d like to learn more about how Winmo can specifically help you connect with chief marketing officers and other marketing executives at precisely the right time, I’d highly encourage you learning more at winmo.com/b2bsalesshow. Once again, thank you for listening, and we look forward to catching you on our next episode.
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The B2B Sales Show is a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve got to check out their content!
9 Brands Jumping Into the Esports Arena
in Ad Sales, Agency New Business, Marketing Tech, Sponsorshipby Anna CrochetSlated to reach $1.1 billion by the end of this year, with a global audience of 453.8 million people, the Esports industry is growing exponentially. As competition mounts, so do opportunities for marketers to capitalize on the Esports phenomenon through sponsorships, media, and marketing revenue opportunities.
While most revenue lies in the sponsorship realm, other advertising channels are on the rise as teams look to engage new audiences and expand their presence. For example, Esports teams are looking to increase awareness through channels such as experiential, social, digital, branding, merchandising and more.
So, how do you get involved in the industry gaming for your attention? Well, now’s your chance. With continued growth on the horizon, now is the time for you to explore potential relationships with marketers staking their claim in the space.
To help get you started, we’ve collected nine brands that are jumping into the Esports arena and where the opportunity lies.
If you find these opportunities valuable, download our ebook to get actionable insight on key leagues, sponsors, upcoming events, teams, and publishers plus five imminent sales opportunities to pursue now.
1. Gillette Establishes Global Marketing Partnership with Twitch
Men’s shaving product maker Gillette announced a global marketing partnership with Amazon’s streaming video service, Twitch. The “Gillette Gaming Alliance” will allow 11 Twitch streamers from 11 countries across the globe to represent Gillette and create relevant content for their specific viewers.
The brand also agreed to develop a fan experience for the TwitchCon Europe taking place in Berlin last April. This partnership marks Gillette’s widest-ranging Esports sponsorship yet. The brand first entered the arena through a 2017 sponsorship with the ESL.
Sponsorship Opportunity: Gillette is clearly making an effort to get involved in the Esports space. With a history of partnerships, don’t hesitate to reach out with ways to get Gillette in front of new audiences.
Media Seller Opportunity: Spend for the brand typically spikes during Q2-Q4. Keep in mind the target demographic consists largely of millennials and Gen-Z. US media spend has seen increases historically, so sellers are encouraged to reach out in order to remain top-of-mind.
Request a Demo for Access to Gillette Decision-Makers
2. Jack in the Box Increases Non-traditional Media, Launches Esports Series
In order to reverse sales struggles, Jack In the Box has created a strategic plan to focus on value creation. Part of this plan includes a heavier focus on marketing, particularly using more data and analytics along with investments in more non-traditional media.
The non-traditional media includes influencers, a tactic Jack in the Box has used in the past. Another addition is a six-part animated web series supporting Jack in the Box’s sponsorship of Esports team Dallas Fuel. The episodes, developed by creative AOR David&Goliath, have been airing on digital and social platforms on a weekly basis through platforms such as Gamespot, Reddit, and Xbox. According to sources, the partnership includes experiential efforts as well.
Media Seller Opportunity: Look for revenue tied to these initiatives, but spend increases will likely not occur since we estimate Jack in the Box’s struggles are too significant to support any new marketing initiatives. However, look for more revenue available during Q1 and Q4, when spend typically spikes. Also keep an eye out for a shift in target audience towards millennials and Gen-Z, especially men with an Esports focus. Those near the chain’s locations may have an advantage.
Sponsorship Opportunity: According to Hookit, Jack in the Box has sponsorships with the Portland Winterhawks, The San Jose Earthquakes and the Houston Dynamo in addition to Dallas Fuel. Sponsorship sellers in other markets should take note of the types of activations it has done in the past with these players, such as the web series detailed above.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: CMO Iwona Alter departed last September. Her replacement has not yet been named, but Jack in the Box did hire a number of other personnel, signaling strategy shifts to come. When reaching out, competition will include Cashmere on digital and social, David&Goliath on creative, and Carat on media.
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3. MasterCard Hires Three Marketing VPs, Launches Global Campaign
MasterCard strengthened its marketing team with three VPs, along with promotions and lower-level shifts as well. Chief Experience Officer Donald Chestnut was also brought on the team in January.
Agency and Martech Readers: With all of the leadership shifts, strategies and relationships will likely be evaluated within the next 12-18 months. Keep in mind competition will include McCann New York as creative AOR and Carat New York on media.
Sponsorship Opportunity: In order to appeal to younger consumers, MasterCard has a new logo, slogan, and most significantly a multi-year, global partnership with Riot Games and it’s League of Legends Sports series. MasterCard offers live-event activations and fan experiences across three major tournaments and is also releasing a co-branded League of Legends credit card.
Media Seller Opportunity: With spend increases imminent, sellers are encouraged to reach out, especially with the new initiatives in order to expand into new markets. Top spending periods fluctuate, and MasterCard typically uses experiential, social, outdoor, print and radio.
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4. NBA Loses CMO Amid Digital, Social Shift
In December 2018, the NBA announced the retirement of CMO Pam El, and began searching for her replacement. There have also been numerous lower-level personnel shifts over the past year.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: El’s replacement is likely to review agency relationships, so agency and martech readers with sports experience should get on their radar and begin reaching out to lower personnel. The NBA’s creative roster includes WongDoody, Translation, The Marketing Arm and Ready Set Rocket. Their media roster is comprised solely of Starcom Worldwide. Focus pitches on ways to engage Gen-Z and millennials, considering their audience growth is led by young adults.
Sponsorship Opportunity: The NBA invests heavily in sponsorships, and recently initiated a partnership with ReadyUp in an effort to help eSports fans track their favorite players.
Media Seller Opportunity: With spend increases likely, sellers are encouraged to reach out. Those with the ability to reach male millennials and Gen-Z will have the advantage. Spend typically spikes around basketball season from October to June.
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5. Nissan Names New Marketing Chief Amid Struggles, Digital Shift
Reported in March, Nissan selected Allyson Witherspoon as the VP of marketing communications & media role (brand CMO function). Nissan also brought on a number of lower-level personnel in an effort to combat sales declines and supports its “Move to 2022” initiative.
In order to reach these goals, Nissan has already made strides to appeal to the next generation of consumers, millennials and Gen-Z. It launched a connected car service and also initiated partnerships with Esports teams OpTic Gaming and FaZe Clan. It has also shifted to a focus from offline channels into digital and social ones.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: Agency changes are likely with all of the shifts in leadership, so reach out with pitches with ways to stand out from Ford, Honda and Toyota. Expect competition from TBWA ChiatDay, Zimmerman, OMD, and fluent360.
Media Seller Opportunity: Nissan is making a huge effort to engage younger consumers using strategic partnerships and digital and social investments. Those with the ability to reach these audiences have the best chance of securing revenue. Nissan typically has a male skew, and also keep an eye on new products such as the 2020 Versa.
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6. Pringles Expanding Esports Sponsorships to Expand Audience
In an effort to become the number one snack for Esports players, Kellogg Company’s Pringles has nearly doubled its investments in sponsorships relevant to the industry. The brand began with a 2017 partnership with ESL at it’s One Hamburg event, followed by two additional sponsorship events the following year.
Pringles now plans to sponsor ESL tournaments throughout 13 European countries, working with German marketing agency Jung von Matt on its Esports work. The sponsorships will consist of digital ads, logo placements, and event booths.
Pringles’ interest in online gamer audiences is a result of an effort to attract a younger consumer along with a global mindset. The brand’s marketing investment in 2019 is 80% more than what it spent last year, and it is still evaluating other Esports teams to sponsor.
Media Seller Opportunity: Pringles’ spend is historically highest throughout Q3 and prior to product launches. Keep in mind the target demographic is made up of mostly male millennials.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: With an agency review likely within the next few months, agency and martech readers are encouraged to continue to reach out for potential work. Grey Group has handled creative since 2013, Starcom Worldwide has handled media buying & planning since 2006, both much longer than average agency tenure.
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7. Sennheiser Electronics Taps Marketing Heads, AOR for Consumer Division
In the consumer division, Stefanie Reichert was promoted to global head of marketing execution (brand CMO function), effective January. Sennheiser also tapped MullenLowe Group as its global AOR, effective January.
Overall, budget across the brand has been low, but will likely increase under the new personnel and the new agency. Spend will also likely go up in an effort to promote various new products.
Sennheiser just became the official audio partner for Esports team San Francisco Shock. It also already sponsors Esports organizations SK Gaming, Rush Gaming and Newbee. In the past, it has sponsored Esports events such as the Super Smash Bros Melee Summit.
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8. Telemundo Reveals First American-based Spanish Esports Channel
Telemundo Communications Group is unveiling an Esports channel. According to sources, this will be the first US-based digital Esports channel, which will initially launch through YouTube and Twitch. In addition to the release of the new channel, Telemundo is collaborating with EA Sports to stream it’s FIFA19 Global Series events.
Last Q1-Q3, Telemundo spend $4.3 million on measured media according to sources. Broadcast was the top channel with nearly $2 million, followed by out-of-home at $1.5 million. Print, radio and digital channels also supported efforts.
Media Seller Opportunity: Sellers with the capability to engage a largely Hispanic audience should contact Spark Foundry for the chance to be a part of future initiatives. Spend typically spikes during Q2 and Q3. The main demographic consists largely of millennials and Gen-X.
Request a Demo for Telemundo Decision-Maker Contact Info
9. Tilly’s Taps Marketing VP Amid Continued Focus on Loyalty, Experiential, Local
Teen retailer Tilly’s tapped Heather Nyoklaychuk as it’s head and VP of Marketing, effective December. In the new role, she will be responsible for driving brand awareness, store traffic, and loyalty.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: With a new marketing lead in place, agency and martech readers with fashion experience are encouraged to reach out. Reviews are likely within the next 12-18 months. Focus pitches on building brand awareness with bolstered loyalty and local marketing, a strategy in place that will likely continue.
Media Seller Opportunity: In an effort to improve customer-facing technology, the retailer plans to launch an expanded loyalty program, an enhanced mobile app, a same-day delivery program, and also new ship to store initiative.
Experiential is still a heavy focus as the store opens more pop-ups for its RSQ brand. It also plans to promote its new partnership with the High School Esports League with a two-week, all-store augmented reality event.
Expect an emphasis on local marketing events as Tilly’s works to open 10 to 15 new full-size stores throughout 2019. All of these shifts should reverse spend declines, so sellers should reach out in order to stay on the radar for imminent spend increases. Keep in mind the target demographic is Gen-Z, especially those near specific locations.
Request a Demo for Tilly’s Decision-Maker Contact Info
Ready for more insight into Esports industry? Check out league, team, publisher and sponsor information in our new ebook: Esport Brands Gaming for Your Attention in 2019.
We Told Ya: 5 Agency Shifts We Called in H1
in Ad Sales, Agency New Business, Marketing Techby Anna CrochetBeating your competition to the pitch can prove to be extremely challenging, especially when everyone is reacting to the same industry news.
However, what if you could have predictive analytics to stay informed on sales opportunities weeks, months, or even a year in advance? Our team of in-house researchers make this possible by tracking numerous sales triggers daily and crafting the opportunities into quick, actionable reads.
While bragging can sometimes be seen as pretentious, we think it’s worth highlighting the sales opportunities our team predicted ahead of the trade publications. Insights like this help our customers make connections and close deals 2x faster than their competitors.
Take a look at our H1 “Told Ya” agency shifts here, and also where we are forecasting new business opportunities still exist:
1. Grey Goose Taps Global Creative AOR, Social and Digital AOR
Winmo customers got these insights on 01/31/19!
Everyone else read about it on 04/16/19.
Grey Goose selected MullenLowe to replace incumbent global creative AOR BBDO Worldwide, reported April. The Bacardi-owned vodka brand also tapped Publicis Sapient as it’s global digital and social AOR. Lee Applbaum, who became global CMO of Grey Goose in August, used both agencies while overseeing marketing at Patron Spirits.
The agencies plan to help Grey Goose reposition its brand identity in order to compete with Stolichnaya, SKYY, Tanqueray, and Tito’s. The new agencies on board will also assist in combating sales declines.
Media Seller Opportunity: In order to accomplish these goals, a new campaign is likely sooner rather than later. Sellers with high reach among a male demographic are encouraged to reach out. Then, keep an eye on top spending periods Q2 and Q4.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: According to sources, OMD will remain on traditional media for all of Bacardi, but the relationship is in question considering agency reviews typically follow one another and Applbaum is a new leader in place. With new personnel as well, reviews are possible within the next 12-18 months following April reports.
Request a Demo to Access Grey Goose Decision-Maker Contact Info
2. Kroger Searches for First Creative AOR Amid Spend Increases
Winmo customers got these insights on 01/11/19!
Everyone else read about it on 02/11/19.
According to Adweek, Kroger is on the hunt for its first creative AOR, reported February. The agency will also be responsible for its local and regional brands, but will not impact Kroger’s relationship with multicultural AOR The Community.
This agency search follows the promotion of Gil Phipps to VP of branding and marketing for Our Brands, along with several other shifts in leadership.
Media Seller Opportunity: A new campaign will likely launch once the new agency comes on board, so sellers should reach out now in order to remain top-of-mind. Spend is high throughout the year, with a spike in Q4. Recently, Kroger has placed a heavier emphasis on reaching the millennial audience, but still runs ads to appeal to Gen-X and boomers. Therefore, sellers are encouraged to approach with a high ROI and omnichannel strategy.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: Since reviews tend to follow one another, additional reviews are likely to begin within 12-15 months of February reports. In addition to The Community and 84.51, Kroger works with digital agency SapientRazorfish and handles media in-house through Kroger Media Services.
Request a Demo for Access to Kroger Decision-Maker Contact Info
3. Planet Fitness Names New Lead Agency of Expansion Plans
Winmo customers got these insights on 08/14/18!
Everyone else read about it on 02/07/19.
Planet Fitness named Barkley as its new lead agency, reported February. The agency will be responsible for assisting with creative, strategy, design and media buying and planning. Brand awareness will serve as the main priority as the chain continues to expand its US presence. This shift comes six months after Roger Chacko was appointed chief commercial officer.
Media Seller Opportunity: Adbeat reports Planet Fitness has spent $1.8 million on digital display ads over the past year, most of which were placed programmatically through Google and Amazon. Top geographic locations include LA, NYC, and Miami. Keep in mind top targets are female millennials as well as first-time gym goers.
Request a Demo for Access to Planet Fitness Decision-Maker Contact Info
4. Harley-Davidson Concludes Creative Review, Selects Droga5
Winmo customers got these insights on 11/16/18!
Everyone else read about it on 01/16/19.
Harley Davidson completed its creative review and tapped Droga5, reported in February. The agency plans to bring new ideas to assist with expansion and open up into new market audiences.
According to sources, the review was project-based and involved only non-roster shops, but the finalist also has the potential to become the creative AOR. Therefore, the status of IPG’s dedicated Harley-Davison agency, Team Ignite, is unknown following the Droga5 hire.
Media Seller Opportunity: Sellers are encouraged to reach out with Droga5’s first campaign slated to drop this year. The brand is working to increase reach among women, as well as multicultural audiences and millennials. Top spending periods fluctuate, so keep an eye on new products and an opportunity to secure revenue year round.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: Reviews tend to follow one another, so those with automotive backgrounds are encouraged to reach out for media and digital work. Focus pitches on helping increase engagement among different audiences. Keep in mind competition will likely include MullenLowe MediaHub. Our in-house team of researchers predicted reviews within 3-6 months of Droga5’s hire.
Request a Demo for Access to Harley-Davidson Decision-Maker Contact Info
5. Campaign Imminent: Captain D’s Names New Media, Creative AORs Amid Spend Increases
Winmo customers got these insights on 09/06/18!
Everyone else read about it on 01/28/19.
Following the hire of CMO Chris Kuehn, seafood QSR chain Captain D’s selected Horizon Media as its new media AOR in January. Horizon replaces incumbent Empower and will oversee all channels.
Media Seller Opportunity: Sellers are encouraged to reach out for revenue tied to the 50th anniversary celebrations, along with menu innovations, new products, and new locations. Since Captain D’s does not have a national presence, those near specific locations will have the advantage. The target demographic consists on millennials and Gen-Z with no top spending period established.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: Creative and media work are off the table, but there may be an opportunity for PR work. Fish Consulting has been on the account since roughly 2015, approaching average agency tenure of 3-4 years. Reviews are likely within 6-9 months of the January reports.
Request a Demo for Access to Captain D’s Decision-Maker Contact Info
Advertising Decision-Makers on the Move
in UKby Anna CrochetWhen it comes to winning new business, timing is everything. While there are a number of prospecting triggers, nothing highlights a ripe window of opportunity quite like a brand who just hired a new marketing lead.
According to our CMO Tenure Report, the sweet spot for engaging marketing leaders and CMOs is within 3-12 months of starting their new role. During that time, media vendors, agency relationships, technologies, and strategies are likely to be reevaluated.
New hires are typically supported by a bolstered marketing team and spikes in spend in order to support their efforts. Decision-makers on the move signal a brand is getting serious about its investments in advertising and marketing expansion.
Aside from immediate opportunities we’ve listed below, we also recommend checking out the full list of newly-hired UK decision-makers here.
PayBreak Snags New Chief Marketing Officer from Divido
The finance specialist for online retailers, PayBreak, which owns affordItNow, appointed Chief Marketing Officer Anthony Harrison. He previously served as the marketing and partnerships director at Divido.
Martech and Agency Opportunity: As you may know, shifts in leadership are the number one trigger for agency new business. Now that a new marketing hire is in place, Harrison may decide to get a fresh start on the roster revamp as he evaluates current systems and strategies in place.
Media Seller Opportunity: Sellers specifically with experience working with financial companies are encouraged to reach out in order to secure revenue for the remainder of the year. Those with the ability to capture the attention of retailers should reach out as soon as possible.
Request a Demo for Access to PayBreak Decision-Maker Contact Info
Beauty Pie hires creative AOR, Paid Media Head
Beauty Pie, a buyers club for luxury beauty, hired Crispin Porter & Bogusky as it’s creative and brand strategy AOR. The agency will assist Beauty Pie in efforts to grow it’s UK business and launch in the US.
Media Seller Opportunity: While there is no set campaign launch date for Crispin, sellers should reach out in order to remain top-of-mind. Q4 is typically the period of highest spend for the brand in an effort to capitalize on the holiday season. However, keep an eye out for new products throughout the year. Those with the ability to engage Gen-X and millennial women will likely have the advantage.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: Yonder Media was hired as media AOR the same time as Above + Beyond, the brand’s previous creative AOR. Therefore, we may see Yonder lose the account. The vulnerability is furthered due to the fact that reviews tend to follow each other. Focus pitches on helping Beauty Pie differentiate itself from more well-known beauty competitors such as Glossier, Estee Lauder and Clinique.
Request a Demo for Access to Beauty Pie Decision-Maker Contact Info
Electronic Scooter Co Bird Launched D2C Product, Raises £474, Promotes Marketing Lead
Due to strict scooter regulations, electric scooters don’t have much traction in London. However, these laws aren’t stopping Bird, the electric scooter company based in California. They are taking the approach of a direct-to-consumer option with the launch of the Bird One, which takes advantage of scooter’s legality on private property.
With a loophole for its product, Bird is likely to increase spend in order to support expansion efforts. The company also raised £237m in Series C funding last June.
Media Seller Opportunity: With funding and predicted spend increases, sellers are encouraged to reach out for revenue. There is currently no spend reported in the UK, but in the future it will most likely use digital, earned media and experiential to mirror activity in the US. target demographic consist of mostly millennials and Gen-Z, and there is no current top spending period.
Agency and Martech Opportunity: These marketing efforts will be led by Rebecca Hahn, who was recently promoted to the brand CMO function, effective April. On a mission for growth in the UK market, Hahn will likely be on the search for agencies to assist in these efforts. Focus pitches on helping increase Bird’s awareness and standing out from main competitor Lime.
Request a Demo for Access to Bird Decision-Maker Contact Info
Imminent Q4 Opp: Warburtons Taps Robert De Niro for Another Big Campaign
Warburtons, the British bakery based in Bolton, enlisted the talents of major star Robert de Niro for it’s latest campaign. The campaign was created by Engine and Freuds, per Prolific North, with media handled by Mindshare UK. “GoodBagels” runs across TV, social, digital and OOH.
After the success found with de Niro’s first appearance in the Warburtons Easter campaign, they decided to bring him back again. Head of marketing Chris Hook was promoted at the end of last year, so keep an eye out for review announcements.
Media Seller Opportunity: Q2 and Q4 are typically peak spending periods, so sellers are encouraged to reach out for revenue with the upcoming holidays as soon as possible. Keep in mind the main audience consists of women ages 25-40 and Gen-Z consumers through TV, outdoor and digital channels.
Request a Demo for Access to Warburton Decision-Maker Contact Info
Winmo Removes the Grunt Work of Event Prospecting in One Click
in Breaking Newsby Jennifer GroeseHave you ever signed up for a big industry event, paid for a big booth and then in return received an incomplete attendee list from the vendor? It happens all the time. As more and more conferences are moving away from including decision-maker information within their attendee lists, it’s making it harder and harder for sales and marketing professionals to do their job and effectively show ROI for event marketing.
In situations like these you’ll typically see either an intern or BDR get stuck manually looking up and adding the contact information (big time suck) or teams will abandon the project altogether so they can focus on higher impacting projects.
Realizing this is a problem our customers undertake on a frequent basis, Winmo is now introducing a new feature to help you quickly add contacts on a targeted list of companies.
Customers who have event lists with just company information can now upload it into Winmo and quickly append relevant contact information, creating a custom prospecting lists with smart filters like location, industry, job title and more.
Aside from just event prospecting, Winmo customers can also use this feature to solve other cumbersome data projects, including:
Not a customer yet but need help targeting the right contacts for your next event? Request a Winmo demo today!
(Podcast) Exploring the Mindset of High Performing B2B Sales Professionals
in Podcastby Ayanna GantOn this episode of The B2B Sales Show, Dave Currie, CEO, and Jeff Haley, Director of Sales, at Winmo discusses the significance of mindset on B2B performance and provides listeners with a battle-tested, practical formula for creating the right mindset to be the best B2B performer possible.
Announcer: You’re listening to The B2B Sales Show, a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve come to the right place. Let’s get into the show.
Dave Currie: Great to be here again for another episode of The B2B Sales Show. My name is Dave Currie, CEO of Winmo Sales Intelligence. I’m joined here today with a B2B sales professional and colleague of mine, who’s made a career out of B2B sales, and someone I consider to be a true expert. Welcome, Jeff.
Jeff Haley: Thanks so much. I appreciate you having me a guest on the show today, Dave.
Currie: Great to have you here. Today, we’re going to be talking about the mindset of a high performing B2B sales professional. There’s two aspects that we’re going to be covering today.
Currie: Number one, understanding the significance of mindset on your B2B sales performance, and second, providing you a battle tested, practical formula to creating the right mindset to be the consistent, high performing B2B sales professional that you’re fully capable of. So, what exactly is a mindset?
Currie: In my experience, your mindset’s the most impactful asset that you have complete and total control of. It’s how you choose you present yourself, and how you choose to respond to the environment around you.
Currie: In a B2B sales setting, your daily role, it’s choosing to bring energy, enthusiasm and curiosity together, to be put to work, with the accumulation of your skills and experience, as consistently and as effectively as possible. Without the right mindset, consistently achieving or even beating your quotas is tough, if not, quite frankly, simply impossible.
Currie: So let’s dig into the topic together now, and Jeff, let’s kick it off. Does this idea of mindset resonate with you? And, I guess, the second part of that, why is your mindset so critical to high performance for professionals in B2B sales?
Haley: Yeah, yeah, Dave, it resonates with me. And to be quite frank, I don’t know of a single sales person who’s achieved real success in B2B sales, without having a mindset just like you described.
Currie: We all fall into traps and forget to check ourselves every so often. But in my experience, it’s those who know how to recognize the mindset slumps and get past them, quickly, that really begin to excel.
Haley: Yeah, you’re right. I believe it’s a personal thing, and therefore, it’s different for everybody. I’m not perfect, but I am self-aware enough to know that my mindset is the one thing I’m in total control of. Now our experiences and what motivates us are not the same for everyone. So, I think it’s very important to have a framework, from which sales professionals can work, to create and make their own. Your mindset is critical to how you’re able to achieve your full potential in sales.
Currie: Yeah, I think it’s, certainly, about high performance as a measure against your full potential, versus a measure against others on the teams and their proud performance, which is how many quotas are set. It’s also something that you can truly own. Jeff, how does your mindset help you specifically win more and beat quotas consistently?
Haley: Well, about a year ago, I fell into a sales slump. It’d been going on for about four months. I started blaming, really, the things around me. You know, I wasn’t getting enough leads. Or either I was getting enough, wasn’t getting enough good leads, at least. There were problems with the product, and even the types of companies, who I was selling to. You name it, it was a problem with me. Not with me, but really, with everybody else.
Haley: I was frustrated, perhaps a little angry, and even let desperation seep in. And you know what happens to desperate salespeople, right?
Currie: Sure.
Haley: I don’t recall exactly what triggered it, only that one day I came to the office, and decided to change it. I needed to get my grit back. I decided to own it and stop playing the blame game. I decided to put forth the effort, and control what I could control myself. With that right mindset, not much changed the first week, but by the second week, my numbers started to move. I regained confidence in myself, and our products, and by the third or fourth week, I was back on track to beating my quotas as well.
Haley: I think the biggest challenge for me now, Dave, is recognizing when my mindset is not right, and then recovering quickly.
Currie: Yeah, I’m certainly no stranger to this, either. I’ve fallen into a victim mindset myself over the years from time to time. I think we all have. But as you mentioned, importantly, for everyone on this episode, I’ve also seen, heard and coached hundreds of B2B salespeople out of this mindset, by helping them recognize the importance of your mindset to achieving full sales potential, which we’re talking about right now; ways to self-diagnose or recognize that you’re slipping from an optimal sales mindset; and three, giving some tools to get back into the mindset to win.
Currie: As I noted earlier, there are numerous things that we can’t control, things we can only influence, but there’s also things called your controllables. So, Jeff, talk to us a little bit about a few things that you’ve listed as sales areas out of control. Maybe this help those on the episode understand what you’d prioritize.
Haley: Yeah, I’d say that the out of control list, this is probably my longest list. I’ll give you my top three that I think are pretty universal with all of our listeners on this episode.
Haley: Now, one, you can’t control the product or service you’re selling. Most of our listeners have some sort of predetermined products or services to sell.
Haley: Two, you can’t control the marketing strategies of the company. The marketing strategies should, of course, align with the sales team strategy, but it’s not something in your day to day control as a salesperson.
Haley: You can’t control your competitors. They’re going to do what they’re going to do.
Currie: Yeah, yeah, absolutely. Those are certainly the top three that have come up on my list, as well, over the years. Let’s move to a few things that you can influence, or you can only influence. These would be sort of between those controllables, and things out of your control.
Haley: Sure, here are a few things that come to mind, again, that would apply across all listeners.
Haley: First off is a buyer’s stage of consideration. Now, depending on how and where they came into my sales pipeline, in terms of consideration, weighs heavily on my ability to influence the buyer’s stage of consideration. I can guide them from the position they arrived in. But first, I need to undertake some discovery, to determine exactly what stage that is.
Haley: Second is a buyer’s sense of urgency. This is the area in which I most enjoy refining my craft. Through discovery, I’ve learned that I can influence a buyer’s sense of urgency by asking the right questions. I’ve created a cheat sheet for this, that I’ll be happy to share with our listeners, that we’ll include in the episode next.
Haley: The third one I’ll point out is price negotiation. Now most work within a preset price matrix. There’s some defined terms and conditions for discounts, but it’s an area that I have influence on.
Currie: Sure. All good points, Jeff, and listeners, remember to check the episode notes for Jeff’s mindset cheat sheet, on your influence on creating that sense of urgency. It’s a great sales tool and a great asset. So, there’s many things about B2B sales that you can’t control. The one thing that we can control is ourselves, and I like to simplify this by using the term E-A-R-, or EAR, as a way of remembering what we can control.
Currie: This is a tool that I’d like to share with you now. We can control E for Effort, probably the most obvious and therefore, easy to remember. Effort is a choice. In any given moment, you can choose to give maximum personal effort, and it’s that consistent effort that leads to increased success in any area of your life, but in this case, specifically in sales.
Currie: Some also call this discretionary effort, that little bit extra that everyone has the capacity to give. Effort breaks down into many areas. It relates to our own effort in our professional development, and effort in application and refinement of those skills on a consistent basis.
Haley: I completely agree. Effort is never cutting the corners, right? It’s a decision to work hard and work smart. Now, effort is a mindset. Really, never give up, and just keep on going, without any excuses. I called this grit earlier. We want those reps who are willing to take on that challenge, those that are resilient, even faced with the toughest challenges.
Haley: When adding to your team, I’d look for those who have a history of excelling under those different, difficult circumstances. This may not necessarily only be in sales, but in those situations like competitive sports, where they’ve had to demonstrate that grit, the passion and perseverance toward those longer-term goals.
Currie: Absolutely. E for Effort’s super easy, one really straightforward to remember. We can also control A for Attitude, and once again, attitude is a choice. There’s nothing that’ll make you more successful in your career or in your life than having a mindset of keeping a positive attitude. It’s tough. Attitude’s all about how we choose to see everything that happens to us.
Currie: We all have heard that old saying, “The glass is half empty, or the glass is half full,” and some people choose to see everything one way or the other. But you do have a choice of how you see it, and how you choose to see when others on your sales team succeed, while your numbers might be lower, do you just tank, and get negative? Or do you rise your level of effort and get energized by the challenge?
Jeff: Well, in my experience, Dave, most B2B salespeople, they’ve got a positive attitude. They always look for the good in others and finding the best in every situation. That’s what I look for in my teammates, and I’m constantly trying to bring that to the table myself. I like to think of attitude towards sales as really a go giver. That’s the attitude. You should add value without expecting an immediate return.
Jeff: Sometimes, it’s really difficult, especially for a new rep, to think about, “I’m providing all this additional content or value, and I’m not getting a sale out of it.” But that go giver growth mindset is one that pays out long term dividends.
Currie: It certainly does, and I think that’s a good way to sort of move into the next, a good segue into the next, which is R, which is for Response.
Currie: We control how we choose to respond to everything that happens to us in an office setting, or in our lives, and there’s a formula that we work with here, and I’ve used as a training platform for many years, which is, E plus R equals O. So the event, or E, plus R, your response, equals O, your outcome.
Currie: So in B2B sales, this formula, E plus R equals O, is happening over and over again. Events are constantly happening. Leads are up or down, lead quality is up or down. There’s a competitive offer that may supersede yours. There’s a new product, feature or service that could be better than yours. There’s another rep already working on the account.
Currie: But these are all things that are happening in just about every day, in every sales organization, to both clients of ours, and for the listeners on this episode. But how we respond is our choice. And that choice, good or bad, right or wrong, creates our outcome.
Haley: Yeah. I’ve used this framework, and it works. In fact, ever since we discussed this before I actually wrote this, and I got it on a Post-It note that’s stuck to the bottom of my monitor.
Haley: I talk about, with my team, too, let’s say you lose a deal to a competitor, at the very last minute. How do you choose to respond? Do you take it personal, complain, sink into the week of depression? Or do you respond by letting it go and moving on quickly? That increases your effort to chase down the prospect that would be a better fit.
Haley: Now how about when your manager gives you feedback about your lack of hitting your sales goal? Do you respond by resenting being picked on? Or do you listen and focus in on what you need to do, to change and correct, to get better?
Currie: Right. It’s certainly the big picture lesson. And here is the understanding that controlling the controllable isn’t just about the game of B2B sales. All through your life, you’re going to have things that happen to you, that you have absolutely no control over. Your opportunity here is to practice recognizing what you can and can’t control, and influence.
Currie: So an easy tool for that that we’ve discussed is remembering EAR, E-A-R-, and it’s your choice about your effort, your attitude, and how you choose to respond to everything that happens to you, in your professional life and in your personal one, which will give you the outcomes that you’re looking for. The more that you practice this, the better will you become as a person, and as a B2B sales professional.
Currie: So today we’ve talked through practical steps to creating the mindset to be the consistent high performing B2B sales pro that you’re fully capable of. We’ve identified the first step of self-awareness, identifying a victim mindset that may impede your ability to perform at a high level, and we also can now look to train and create a culture that reinforces, and most importantly, I think, sometimes overlooked, rewards these behaviors.
Currie: If you make it a priority, and celebrate the successes when you see these traits, you’ll be setting yourself and your team up for long term success as a high performing sales organization.
Currie: Jeff, thank you so much for joining me on this episode. You’ve offered some great context and insights for our listeners. So be sure to check the episode notes for those insights and more now.
Haley: My pleasure, Dave. I’ve really enjoyed sharing a few tips on what I’ve learned about the importance of having the right mindset for B2B sales.
Currie: That’s a wrap for this episode. On behalf of my team and I at Winmo Sales Intelligence, happy hunting out there.
The B2B Sales Show is a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve got to check out their content!
How to Craft & Pitch A Sponsorship Proposal
in Sponsorshipby Erynn LaFlammeAre you responsible for developing external partnerships for your organization? Whether you are brand new to sponsorship sales or a few years in and simply looking for new tips on how to improve your proposal technique, you’ve come to the right place. We work with the nation’s leading sports teams, nonprofit organizations, and event hosts, providing them with accurate brand decision-maker contact information, alongside forecasted sponsorship insights to help them identify timely partnership opportunities.
With so many people trying to get a piece of a brand’s marketing budget, make sure your pitch is getting to the right person at the right time. To help, here are insider details on how our most successful clients find partnership opportunities long before their competitors (and techniques that have helped them build sponsorship proposals that convert new partners).
To put it simply, a sponsorship proposal is a formal proposal that clearly outlines how your business can offer additional value to an organization or help them meet particular deliverables through a partnership. Whether you seek sponsors for your cause, event, sports team or organization, partnerships are an excellent source of funding.
Pre-sponsorship proposal checklist
Too many sponsorship sellers just blast a ton of companies with a one-size-fits-all proposal. This approach will not produce significant results. To access the brands you really want to work with, take a strategic approach. Here are three steps to complete before crafting and sending off your next proposal:
Step 1: Identify potential partners
Before you build a tailored proposal, identify ideal sponsorship partners by narrowing down the companies that might be a good fit for your cause, event, or organization. Determine who’s a qualified partner by answering these questions:
Which brands want to sell to your audience?
Brands have one goal in mind – getting in front of and converting their target audience. As someone selling sponsorship, it’s your job to convince them that your organization can do just that. So how do you find the brands that align with your audience? Successful sponsorship sellers leverage technologies to do the heavy lifting for them. Winmo’s sales intelligence platform lets you build custom brand lists using demographics and even planning periods so you can match audiences to when they’re spending. Alerts also allow you to get notified in real-time when brands have specifically opened up spend towards sponsorship so you can nail the timing of your outreach.
What job title are you targeting?
Once you’ve identified the brands you’re going to target next is knowing exactly who to connect with. While marketing is typically the go-to decision makers when it comes to sponsorship, other departments to look into might include public relations, community affairs, public affairs or supplier diversity. Again, technologies can help you work more efficiently here as well. Winmo empowers sponsorship sellers to quickly search and export titles like: VPs and Directors of Sponsorships, Sports Marketing Executives, Event Marketing Managers, Experiential and Lifestyle Marketing Contacts, Brand Managers, Sponsorship Coordinators, Entertainment Marketing Managers and more.
Who partners with your competitors?
Another quick way to scope out potential new sponsors is to see who your competitor’s current partners are. Simply go to their websites and evaluate who is investing sponsorship dollars with them. If you’re unable to gather intel from their website another alternative is leveraging Winmo. Clients can quickly see exactly which brands are partnering with their competitors via integration with HookIt. Here you’ll be able to see percentages of sponsorship spend across teams, leagues, venues, and events – with additional data on specific partnerships and sample promotions.
Step 2: Research your prospects
When conducting your research, you will want to find the answers to the following questions:
Here are the channels you should be taking a look at to research a potential sponsor:
Company and brand websites
If you want to create a proposal that will stand out from the rest, you need to show the decision-maker that you truly understand the nature of their business. Often times, a company will have a multitude of brands- make sure you do your research on those as well. Typically each brand will have its own marketing or sponsorship staff so keep that in mind when identifying the decision-maker.
Social media
Whether a brand is B2B or B2C, it’s likely you will find them on multiple social media channels. Typically you can quickly access these links in the footer of their website, or run a quick Google search. Take a peek at who’s following them to get a better idea of who their audience might be. You can also utilize hashtags to determine what people might be saying about them online.
Google
Of course, never forget about old faithful! Run a Google search to keep up with what’s going on with the brand. Are they receiving any new funding? Exploring new target audiences? Hiring for any significant team members? These are just a few of the six triggers that indicate it’s prime time to reach out about sponsorship opportunities. Using this information in your proposal will help ensure that your pitch resonates with the potential sponsor and answers their biggest pain points.
Step 3: Determine the benefits you can offer
When the marketer is looking over your sponsorship proposal they are looking to answer one question, “what’s in it for my company?” So the main question you need to answer when writing your proposal is, “what value can my organization offer this company?”
Here are a essential questions to ask yourself:
If you answer yes to any of these questions, be sure to hone in on how partnering with your organization can help the brand reach these deliverables throughout your proposal.
What to include when building your sponsorship proposal
Finally, you’ve identified your prospective sponsors and you’ve done your research- now it’s time for the exciting part, actually building out your proposal!
At this point, you know your proposal needs to be personalized, it needs to identify the decision-maker’s pain points and provide solutions to those problems- but what actually needs to be included in your sponsorship proposal?
Page 1: A proposal letter
The first thing you will want to include in your sponsorship proposal is a formal letter. A sponsorship proposal letter briefly highlights the topics that will be covered in more depth throughout the entire package. This includes who you are, what you are offering the potential sponsor, and how the partnership will benefit their organization.
Page 2: A description of your audience
You’re likely prospecting potential sponsors who align well with your audience, so make sure you highlight this benefit first. Sponsorship is all about the exposure, so if your opportunity can help a brand get in front of its desired target demographics, you are encouraged to lead with that sales point.
Page 3: A description of the opportunity
You will want to keep this short and to the point- two paragraphs maximum. First, you will want to discuss your event, cause, team or brand. Next, describe the opportunity itself and how collaborating with you will be beneficial.
Page 4: Display sample activations
Most sellers offer “Gold, Silver, and Bronze” sponsorship levels because it’s easy- and potential sponsors know it. Tier level sponsorship packages give brands the impression that you don’t really understand what they are trying to accomplish, and if you did, your package would be customized to fit those needs.
Remember those four questions you were trying to answer in the research phase? This is where you have the opportunity to present a menu of options that will help them achieve those goals with the partnership. Let them know that these options are simply suggestions and that you are flexible.
Page 5: Testimonials from past sponsors
If you’re like most companies, 87% of your clients are willing to give you a testimonial – but only 10% of companies ever asked for one. It is highly encouraged that you reach out to past clients for some form of advocacy. One of the best ways to prove value in a sponsorship proposal is to rely on past partners to speak about the experience they personally had.
Sure, you can talk about how great you are, but it means a lot more coming from a third party. Sponsorship and marketing decision-makers do not want to feel like they are being sold, so outside endorsements make for great workarounds. But keep in mind, the people signing off on your proposal want to see numbers, so make sure these testimonials go beyond the surface and include details around actual results and ROI.
Page 6: A contact page
This is your call-to-action, so do your best to make it intriguing and encourage a “next-step” conversation. Make it obvious that nothing in this proposal is set in stone, rather a conversational tool to have a deeper discussion. This is not where you ask them to make a payment or “pull the trigger” on the deal. Your proposal won’t sell the opportunity for you, the relationship you build with the decision-maker will.
Pitching your sponsorship package
Now that you have your perfected proposal, you need to make sure they answer the phone or open their email so you can get it in front of them. But decision-maker’s inboxes are flooded with proposals daily, so how do you make yours stand out from the rest?
Write a compelling email subject line
Since 20% of people check their email at least five times a day, naturally, this is a go-to form of communication for sales professionals. But what good is an email if you can’t get your prospect to open it? According to Convince&Convert, 35% of email recipients open emails based on the subject line alone, so it is imperative that yours captures their attention. Have some subject line ideas but not sure how they will perform? A/B test them and see which one gets the most opens- then start using that winning subject line moving forward. Coschedule also has a great tool that will grade and provide feedback on how to improve your subject lines. Check it out here and be sure to bookmark it for later!
Be personable
You’re a human and so is your prospect, what do you both have in common? You hate being sold to; take that into consideration when writing your messaging. If your email sounds like a script, it’s going to turn your prospect away. Besides, you’ve done your research and you know their business needs so craft messaging that proves it! For example, if the marketer you are reaching out to is new to the role, start your message off by congratulating them on the new position before jumping into your sales spiel.
Talk numbers
At the end of the day, decision-makers want to hear the numbers. They have people to report to and if there is no ROI, there is no budget to support their ideas. If you have them, throw in some statistics to peak their interest and initiate a response.
Be persistent
Don’t lose patience or get frustrated when reaching out to prospects. The follow-up is so important. According to sources, 80% of conversations don’t happen until the fifth outreach and 44% of sellers give up after just one follow up. That means that nearly half of your competition is giving up after just two outreach attempts. For maximum success, remain persistent in following up multiple times and through a variety of touch points.
Pick up the phone
Phone calls are still an effective form of communication despite what others might say. In fact, 92% of all customer interactions happen over the phone. With the average business person receiving an average of 115 emails per day, a phone call might be exactly what you need to do in order to stand out from the competition.
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Updated: 8 Must-Take Certifications for All Sales Professionals
in Salesby Anna CrochetWhen choosing a challenging career path, nothing comes close to the competitive nature of a career in sales. Although your team members might be your buddies, everyone in the pit wants to outperform one another. Most importantly, the top dog must practice continued learning through sales certification courses.
Whether you’re a first-timer beginning your career or a seasoned professional, there’s always room for growth, especially in sales. According to Jordan Wan, Founder & CEO of CloserIQ,
Luckily, with the rise of online learning, there’s no shortage of classes to take for a certification in a particular trade or skill. To outperform the rest and take your expertise to the next level, we’ve tracked down some of the most reputable courses and programs for sales professionals.
Therefore, here are eight certifications to add to your sales portfolio:
1. Certified Inside Sales Professional (CISP)
Firstly is the AA-ISP, which exists to promote excellence in the workplace. In order to advance inside sales, the AA-ISP offers several certifications to provide a framework for virtual salespeople. The CISP is one of the most extensive certifications available because it shows an employer you have a desire to keep learning. The web-based program includes a comprehensive, 10-module preparatory coursework, followed by a final “live sales call” role play exam.
As the world continues to change, so does the role of a sales professional, specifically. That’s why a refresher course for the certification is required every three years to stay up-to-date on industry advancements.
This eight-week course is legit and so is it’s pricing. AA-ISP members pay $875, while non-members pay $975.00.
Register here.
2. Certified Professional Sales Person (CPSP)
Secondly is The National Association of Sales Professionals’ (NASP) Certified Professional Sales Person (CPSP) certification. This targets sales executives, CEOs, and sales professionals. The six-week online program transforms you into a top performer, helping salespeople:
Along with joining specific courses, the NASP allows anyone to become a member and access a wealth of networking, extended training, and career opportunities.
For $595.00, the CPSP produces seven key results to help sales professionals learn how to use different styles of communication to close more sales, and unveil areas within the sales process to be improved or re-evaluated.
Register here.
3. Challenger Development Program
Next, the Challenger Development Program improves performance of sales experts and lift sales results. The two-day workshop is designed for sellers and managers to navigate the complexities of the modern sales landscape.
The course consists of adult learning blended with guided practice and application. The ultimate goal is to discover how to attract and retain prospective leads throughout the sales process and engage the most valuable customer stakeholders.
Register here.
4. SPIN Selling
Looking to take your people skills to the next level? SPIN selling courses are essential for those working in sales, sales management, business development, or a customer-facing role. As a result, the ultimate goal of SPIN is to learn the best practices to demonstrate value to a prospect or customer.
International training provider and behavior specialist Huthwaite International created the program in an effort to help salespeople improve their emotional intelligence. For instance, the program dives into behavior principles underlying effective sales tactics. The seven-week expert training prepares teams to be well prepared, persuasive, and in-tune with customer needs.
Register here.
5. Certified Sales Leadership Professional (CSLP)
In addition to CPSP, the Certified Sales Leadership Professional (CSLP) program is also offered by the NASP. CSLP transforms salespeople into leaders and makes a difference at the individual, team and company levels:
The six-week course provides strategy and daily proving conditioning to improve leadership skills and create positive habits that will benefit both your team and the organization. You can get started for $696.00.
Register here.
6. Sandler Training
Likewise, Sandler offers a variety of weekly and monthly online training courses. The Sandler sales training program teaches how to engage prospects and exchange information with them in an honest, organized and non-manipulative manner. Sandler trains sales professionals to make sales in the best interest of both parties, too.
The program provides four different levels for sales professionals to enhance their sales skills with a specific focus for each course, including:
Register here.
7. Certified Sales Executive (CSE)
Offered by Sales and Marketing Executives International, the Certified Sales Executive certification consists of self-study courses with a final exam. Interestingly, SMEI is the only global sales and marketing professional association. After registering, members can access to online forums, educational webinars, then connect with peers.
Equally important, the learning method includes personalized study plans, interactive elements, current events articles, and critical thinking challenge questions. The training raises the standard of management to continuously progress leadership qualities across sales teams. For instance, here are some key learning objectives:
It’s important to note, members receive a discounted rate of $899.00 while non-members are required to pay the full amount of $1049.00.
Register here.
8. Meddic
Lastly is Meddic, designed to add to your certifications, just learn, or both. Meddic is based off the sales mythology…
Furthermore, Meddic offers three different courses:
Register here.
Bonus certifications (updated September 2020):
High Impact Selling: From the Kellogg School Of Management at Northwestern University, the High Impact Selling certification program offers a toolkit for sales success. Most importantly, this 10-week program is based on research from Kellogg Sales Institute and puts more than 30 different tools into practice. Assess your discipline, knowledge, and sales skills, then receive a clear roadmap to develop effective, lasting sales habits.
The Art of Sales: Mastering the Selling Process Specialization: Finally, and also from Northwestern University, is the Art Of Sales course on Coursera. This 3-month course will help you close more deals and improve your daily sales performance because you will learn the art of prospecting effectively and retaining new customers.
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What is Ad Sales? A Beginner’s Guide For Ultimate Success
in Ad Sales, Salesby Anna CrochetAd sales can be quite complex. As a newbie to the industry who’s hungry for success, it’s likely you have many questions. Through this guide, we’re break down ad sales step by step to help you understand the full scope of the industry, the expectations, the processes and more. Ready to become a bad@#$ ad seller?
Ad Sales In Media
\As an advertising or media sales representative, you’ll likely work for an employer in the media industry. This might include outdoor, newspaper or online publishers, or possibly even radio or TV stations. Think about it this way, any time you’ve ever seen a commercial on TV, there was a media seller who sold that spot to a brand because YOU were the audience in which that brand was attempting to reach.
The media industry faces some of the biggest challenges today. Ad sellers face a rate of change that is arguably greater than any other industry. Media is consumed everywhere and ad sellers are constantly challenged with where and how to capture the attention of the right people at the right time.
The job requirements of an ad seller differ according to the nature of the employer. But day-to-day tasks typically include persuading clients to buy advertising space or time. The best way to explain the value to a prospect is explaining the benefits of your medium and providing viewing figures to add credibility to your proposition- we will dive into detail on how to do this later on so stick with us!
The Ad Sales Process
Selling advertising space to other companies requires a great deal of patience and planning in order to be effective.
The first step in any ad sales process is proactively prospecting for potential clients. This step isn’t optional if you want to be successful in the sales world, and the ultimate goal is to build a sales pipeline by consistently connecting with potential customers.
When reaching out to prospects, many factors come into play. Not only targeting the right segments, but your sales positioning and the timing of your outreach. 64% of customers are more willing to have a conversation when they have dollars available in their advertising budget.
In order to connect with the correct decision-maker at precisely the right time, we recommend following these six tips:
1. Define your audience
The idea of prospecting can be overwhelming, but defining your audience is the ideal place to start. By defining the characteristics of your ideal partners, you can narrow the field to a more manageable search of who exactly your target audience is and the best way to reach them. Winmo revs up prospecting efforts with powerful sales intelligence that allows you to source leads quickly and accurately. Our team of researchers works to find contacts at hard-to-reach agencies, provide sales predictions, and stay on top of what media clients are buying, and we house all of this information under one roof in our platform.
Instead of doing this work internally, invest in a tool that allows you to prospect at scale so that you can spend more time selling. Winmo allows you to nail your outreach by providing details on when advertisers are planning and buying media, and edge out your competitors with sales predictions. Winmo will also provide agency related contacts working on specific brand accounts so that you can craft your pitches precisely and with confidence. Request a Winmo demo today and try it out for yourself.
2. Personalize your outreach
In order to stand out from the crowd, it’s imperative to personalize your outreach. Shooting out a generic email to a big list of contacts is not the way to go. Rather than sending emails with your fingers crossed hoping to get a response, make your efforts count and provide relevant and interesting information in your prospect’s inbox. Personalization demonstrates your willingness to speak directly to a prospect and work a little harder for the sale.
3. Strike while the iron is heating up
In business, timing is everything. It’s critical to pitch to a prospect when they’re ready to buy. In order to stay one step ahead of your competition, prospect proactively and keep an eye out for business triggers such as new hires, new funding, spending shifts, and product launches to name a few. We will break down each of these and more later on in this article.
4. Make prospecting a habit
Prospecting is not optional if you want to be successful in the sales world. In order to keep it a priority, we recommend blocking time out each day to update lists, craft emails, and follow up with potential prospects. Prospecting is important because it creates opportunities, and we’ve got the numbers to prove it.
Unproductive prospecting wastes 50% of sales time for the average sales rep. Forming productive prospecting habits is the first step to overcoming that statistic. Consistency counts when it comes to prospecting. We recommend setting aside time and energy to prospect daily. According to sources,
5. Find commonality
It’s a known fact that people are hardwired to like people who seem similar, so be sure to do your homework on the prospect’s current work, interests, and how your service or product could potentially meet their needs. Taking the time to personalize your outreach in this way will set you apart.
Before reaching out via email or phone call, it’s imperative to utilize social media, professional bios, and LinkedIn to try to get a better idea of who exactly the prospect is. The goal of establishing commonality is to put the prospect at ease before jumping into discussing goals and business challenges. Check out these techniques for establishing commonality and making the sales process as human as possible.
6. Track rejections
While it’s essential to stay positive in prospecting, it’s also grave to keep track of contacts that said no, and their reasons for doing so. Why? So you can improve future pitches and be prepared to address common concerns. Successful ad sales reps understand the value of rejection in the selling process. Rather than taking rejection personally, use it as an opportunity to receive constructive criticism and determine how you could make your outreach better in the future.
Five Tips for Ad Sales Success
In ad sales, there are many things that contribute to your success, but here are five tips to really help you stand out above the rest:
1. Set goals
Effective goal setting is an important habit to develop and will be essential to success in the sales world. If you and your team have goals and understand what you want to achieve, all efforts can be focused on finding the best and most efficient route to get there. When tracking performance don’t just look at lagging KPIs- also look at leading sales KPIs. For example, if your sales quota is $1M how many calls do you need to go through in a day to hit that milestone?
Implementing a new strategy becomes useless if the success isn’t measured month over month with proven improvements or declines. If you don’t have a baseline created, think through the most relevant KPIs to your specific industry and business goals.
2. The 80/20 rule
The 80/20 Rule, also known as the Pareto Principle, infers that there’s an 80-to-20 relationship between effects and their causes. In the sales and marketing realm, 80% of your sales volume will come from 20% of your advertisers. Therefore, it’s best to develop a strategy to help focus resources and efforts on your top 20% customers. Always be thinking about how can you attract and convert more of that group!
3. Training never stops
Regardless of how long you have been in ad sales, it’s meaningful to train on a regular basis in order to introduce new and fresh ideas. Training sessions can also be used to revisit problem areas. Continued education is critical to the success of a team and should be utilized as often as possible. Sales training is an opportunity to approach problems that are arising with a collaborative effort and set the tone for constant growth as an individual and team.
4. Practice
Role play as a team. While this may sound silly or uncomfortable, practicing as a group before pitching to advertisers will lead to more success in the long run. In a peer-to-peer environment, group exercises allow you to act out difficult conversations and find ways to overcome them. This way, the next time a salesperson picks up the phone they will be better prepared for possible objections and questions.
5. Stay relevant
The only way you can truly be a proactive ad seller is by keeping track of what is going on at the brands and companies you want to work with. You need to know who the decision-makers are, who has buying power, who their agency partners are, etc. Not only will you be aware of any significant changes or shifts, but your outreach will actually speak your prospect’s language. Keep reading for some crucial triggers to keep an eye out for.
Ad Sales Triggers to Look Out For
There are several key triggers that signal an advertising opportunity may be available. As mentioned earlier, it’s vital to stay up-to-date on industry shifts in order to stay one step ahead of your competition. Examples of important changes to keep track of include:
1. New CMOs or significant marketing personnel shifts
A new CMO or head of marketing hire signals that a company is making an effort to bolster its marketing efforts, and also indicates a probable increase in spend to support those initiatives. New executive marketing hires typically begin to evaluate current systems in place and make changes within their first 3-12 months.
2. New AORs or agency shifts
Agency of record shifts are opportunities you won’t want to miss as a seller. This is typically a knock on effect to a CMO shift however once the new AOR is named, this usually brings the opportunity of new campaigns, increased ad spend, and also the chance for struggling brands to make a comeback. A new agency hire is typically tied to a shift in strategy and increased spending. Keeping track of new AOR hires is essential in order to know who is handling ad dollars so you can connect with the right person at just the right time.
Courtesy of our in-house WinmoEdge team, here are some AOR Shifts we predict to take place in H2 of 2019– you’ll definitely want to keep these brands on our radar for media opportunities.
3. Spending shifts
It’s important to reach out to advertisers when they have budget to spend. So, what are some signals that spending shifts will occur?
New campaigns or products need to get in front of the right audience- meaning revenue opportunity for sellers. Upcoming campaigns and new product releases typically signal an effort to expand across different demographics, and we usually see an increase in spend to support these efforts. When you get wind of a new campaign or product launches, that is your golden opportunity to reach out as soon as possible!
It’s also paramount to understand planning and buying periods to ensure that your outreach is at precisely the right time. There’s nothing worse than reaching qualified advertisers only to hear they’re out of budget. Following buying and planning trends opens up a magical window of opportunity when media budgets are allocated.
4. Planning periods
The last thing you want to do is waste time on prospects that aren’t ready to buy or don’t have the budget available. Whether you’re manually tracking trade publications or investing in technologies that keep you up-to-date on important budget openings, knowing when a brand is actively planning their advertising efforts will give you an unparalleled advantage.
If your prospecting is falling flat because you’re engaging with brands after their budgets have already been allocated, it’s compelling to get ahead of the curve and engage with the right client and agency decision-makers when they start planning their campaign. In order to secure big-budget buys, take note of 8 advertising trends media sellers need to know.
Creating an Unbeatable Sales Outreach Strategy
So, flash forward to a week from today. You know what triggers to be looking out for and BAM, your dream client just hired a new CMO. What do you do now? Here are three tips on how to craft an unbeatable outreach cadence to help grab the attention of your target prospect:
1. Optimize your email marketing
C-level executives are busier than ever and because of this, first-time outreach is plummeting. According to sources, 97% of business calls now go to voicemail. With no one answering the phone, naturally, salespeople are focusing their communication efforts via email. On average, sellers spend 13 hours a week on email, so we want to help you make the most out of your efforts.
At the end of the day, success is driven by paying close attention to the details and knowing what will capture your prospects attention-starting with a strong subject line. According to sources, 35% of email recipients open messages based on the subject line alone. These are the four most important tips to keep in mind when drafting the best subject lines for your sales emails:
To make your life even easier, here’s a list of 21 subject lines to start using in your sales outreach today.
2. Do your research
As mentioned earlier, it’s necessary to personalize your outreach if you want to have a chance of getting a response. Before reaching out to a prospect, it’s pressing to do your homework and know exactly who you are connecting with and how you can meet their needs. According to sources, 88% of sales reps are not adequately prepared for a sales call. So how do you not only prepare but also stand out from the pack?
Successful ad sales reps typically have an arsenal of tools they can call upon to prospect. One resource that actually integrates directly into Winmo is Crystal Knows. This technology helps sellers understand how decision-makers prefer to be communicated to. Crystal Knows is a technology built around the idea of communicating with empathy and provides personality insights based on online profiles. The tool allows you to quickly view personality traits, communication tips and information on how to best approach prospects.
Here’s how the integration looks inside of Winmo:
Crystal Knows and Adbeat are just two integrations that help ad sellers prospect strategically. Check out a full list of Winmo integrations here.
3. Build an effective email cadence
Once you understand your prospects needs and how they like to be addressed, it’s time to craft the email copy.
As mentioned earlier, your email marketing efforts should be short, valuable, and to the point. Persistence is key in scoring media deals, considering 80% of sales require at least five follow-ups. However, 44% of reps give up after just one follow up. The ideal email cadence is made up of at least three to five emails in order to warrant a response. To help get started, here’s a three-piece email cadence crafted by our very own top sales executives here at Winmo.
Email 1: Initial Outreach
Hi (prospect name),
As you’re currently planning your advertising and media initiatives – looking to partner with organizations that align with your team’s vision and revenue goals, (*organization*) would like to present you with a unique opportunity. Attached is a one-page deck that outlines who we are and how we’ve helped others in your space.
Do you have time next week for a 15-minute call?
Email 2: Follow Up #1
(Prospect Name},
While some people that reach out for us for their advertising and media needs aren’t the right fit, your core audience is one that we have a lot of experience targeting. Outlined below is a testimonial from a company we have partnered with in the past that had similar goals.
“Testimonial.”
Does tomorrow afternoon work for a quick chat?
Email 3-: Follow Up #2
Hey (prospect),
I wanted to bubble this back up to the top of your email. With your new CMO in place and looking to allocate media and advertising dollars by Q4, would there be an opportunity for us to connect to go over how (*organization*) will get you in front of your target audience in a way no other organization can?
Follow a few simple tips and tricks and keep an eye out for prospecting triggers, to remain one step ahead of your competition, and reach decision-makers at the right time. Since selling is all about timing. It’s imperative to pitch to a prospect when they’re ready to buy. Use personalization methods mentioned throughout our guide, your unique outreach will stand out.
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Winmo’s Dave Currie Joins as Host of the B2B Sales Show Podcast
in Podcastby Erynn LaFlammeThis week, Winmo’s very own CEO Dave Currie officially became a co-host on the B2B Sales Show. Starting his career as a business development representing and working his way up to hold just about every sales position imaginable, Dave provides a raw perspective on navigating a successful sales career within the B2B industry. Listen to his episode here or read through the audio transcription attached below.
The B2B Sales Show featuring Host- Dave Currie of Winmo
Ralph Miranda: Welcome to the B2B Sales Show. We’re here today with Dave Currie, CEO at Winmo. Dave, how’s it going today?
Dave Currie: I’m doing great. Thanks. Excited to be here. Certainly looking forward to helping listeners of the B2B Sales Show.
RM: Well, we’re excited to have you onboard for our listeners, my name is Ralph Miranda. I’m the producer of the show from Sweet Fish Media.
Dave, tell us a little bit about your background.
DC: Well, I’m an Aussie bloke, a husband, father, and coach. I’m passionate about adventure and business. I’ve found that I’ve been as comfortable in a boardroom as I am on a surf or snowboard. So over the past 20 years, I’ve worked throughout the world from Australia to China, Canada, the UK, and the US, primarily helping B2B companies and their teams grow through proactive business development programs.
My personal expertise in the B2B segment is working with sales side advertising, media, marketing, and tech companies of varying shapes and sizes. I’ve worked through those sales and marketing career paths in pretty well every one of those roles and functions that you can hold. From my first days as a BDR to sales rep manager, VP, revenue officer, CMO, and today as CEO of Winmo. I’m humbled that we’re one of the largest, most comprehensive and widely used sales enablement companies in the US. And, given that position, I have a unique perspective on the state of the market. I really enjoy the opportunity to help people on a daily basis by sharing what I can from these learnings.
RM: Well, I’ll tell you, you bring a unique perspective. Obviously, you’ve come from the ground floor up on the sales side, starting as a cold caller all the way up to where you are today. So you definitely know the ups, the downs, the tricks, the traps of sales, and that’ll be refreshing to our listeners. We appreciate that.
Tell us a little bit about what you and your team are up to over there at Winmo these days.
DC: Our goal is to profoundly change business development. And through that, we consider and I guess the market considers even more importantly, that Winmo’s a world-class, B2B sales acceleration resource. Essentially it’s an advertising database that points you to exactly the right contacts, at precisely the right time to engage them.
We deliver actionable sales leads to thousands of customers who consider Winmo a mission-critical part of their daily sales stack. Researching, curating, and delivering these leads specifically for sales professionals and business development people who target tier-one advertisers or their respective marketing agencies. Now, it’s true that we do use technology, AI, and machine learning to increase efficiencies. But, it’s a manual process of human confirmation, interpretation, and context. We take great pride in our people and our purpose-driven culture of collaboration and accountability.
RM: Excellent. Excellent. Dave, tell us a little bit about why you and Winmo wanted to become part of this podcast, the B2B Sales Show.
DC: Yeah, so we’ve got really tight relationships with our customers. Helping them grow, we see what works and what doesn’t. I genuinely enjoy sharing these learnings and new sales, organic growth, and retention. So thank you for this opportunity to share those insights with listeners of the B2B Sales Show. I hope that we’re able to share some things which can make a real impact.
RM: Dave, how can listeners connect with you, or reach out to you if they have ideas for topics? A lot of times listeners listen to a podcast and they say, “I think I’ve got a great idea.” Or they want to ask some questions.
What’s the best way that they can reach out to you or your organization?
DC: I would genuinely welcome that from listeners. The best way to connect with me is on LinkedIn. Just go to Google, type in Dave Currie, C-U-R-R-I-E. So Dave Currie and Winmo, you’ll find me pop up there right away. You can also reach me on Twitter, @newbizdingo, New Biz Dingo. It’s a throwback to my Aussie heritage, or email me directly at davec@winmo.com.
RM: Okay, sounds good. Well, we’ve been talking to Dave Currie. I’m personally excited about what we’ll be adding to the conversation in the B2B Sales Show with this show after having talked to you, and some of your insight. And I really appreciate you contributing as a host. Thanks again for making time to kick things off today.
DC: You’re very welcome. Thanks, Ralph. Looking forward to it and happy hunting in the meantime.
RM: Sounds good. Same to you.
The B2B Sales Show is a podcast dedicated to helping B2B sales professionals master the art and science of selling. If you want to hear what successful sales leaders and individual contributors are doing to break into new accounts, close more deals, and drive revenue for their organizations, you’ve got to check out their content!
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