Category Sales

Full steam ahead: What can we learn from Generation Z to create distribution’s brightest future?

By in Operations, Revenue, Sales Tag , , , ,

by Mark Dancer on Innovating B2B Generation Z, the first generation born into a world powered by the Internet, is coming of age, entering the workforce, pursuing advanced education, and pushing for change. Generation Z is the future of everything. In this edition, I share insights about Gen Z gleaned by listening to Roberta Katz, a cultural anthropologist, lawyer, and senior research scholar on the Stanford Pathfinders podcast. As a Baby Boomer, I feel obligated to listen to Gen Z’s members, learn from them, and at the same time, offer my network and knowledge to help them find answers, resources, and connections. I’m…

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Usage-based pricing isn’t always best

By in Revenue, Sales Tag , , , ,

by Chris Reuter Usage-based pricing Usage-based pricing has been the darling of SaaS founders since Twilio, Stripe, and Snowflake broke through in the 2010s by generating monumental wealth for them and value for their customers. Ever since, investors and operators alike have tried to shoehorn consumption pricing into their products. However, there are some pretty hard and fast rules where it can be used effectively. 🪧 PSA: I’ll use the term usage or consumption pricing interchangeably from here on out, deal with it. First, the setting I’m not sure you’ve heard, but I’m from Maine. Coupling this with my experiences at a little company called IBM…

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The Anatomy of a Solid Sales Demo

By in Sales Tag

by How To Grow, on Substack “Show me your recorded sales demos, and I’ll tell you everything that’s wrong about your business.” - Confucius I keep getting questions about sales demos, so this week I’m going to open the vault and share a bit more. Components of an effective demo A demo is where *everything* about your business comes together: Your product Your messaging Your positioning Your packaging Your “offer” Your competitive strategy etc. etc. etc. Last week, I wrote about why your demos underperform when you ONLY focus on them as a “product” or a “sales” thing. This week,…

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How to (Appropriately) Qualify Leads for Enterprise Sales in 2023

By in Revenue, Sales Tag , , , ,

by Jason Bradwell Last week, I was trawling through one of the seemingly hundred-plus Slack groups I’ve joined when I came across this question in a #AskMarketing channel: “We’re seeing a significant drop in ROI on Google Ads and LinkedIn Ads. What’s your approach to increase inbound lead gen in 2023?” Ah. The million-dollar question. And it got me thinking. If you spend any time following B2B marketers on social media (especially LinkedIn) then it is almost a certainty that you have come across the argument that building a strategy around the collection of marketing-qualified leads (MQLs) is a waste…

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A masterclass in pricing psychology

By in Sales Tag ,

By Peter Ramsey at built for mars Take up for Netflix's ad-supported subscription was initially slow. The Wall Street Journal reported that only 9% of new signups opted for it, and of those who were happy to watch ads, 43% had downgraded from more expensive options. So Netflix made a simple design tweak: to 'hide' one of their most popular packages. The result: sign-ups to their ad-tier doubled. This case study demonstrates a masterclass of pricing psychology, and how simple changes (reliant on data and experimentation) can significantly alter the course of your product. Although before we start, I want to be clear about something: what you're about to see…

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How To Think In Funnels (And Achieve The Best Possible Outcomes)

By in Business Management, Content Marketing, Marketing, Sales Tag , , , ,

by Frontera Blog Thinking in funnels is a mental model that breaks down your goals into different stages. So you can improve the conversion at each stage to achieve the best possible outcomes. We’ll start with a marketing story from the 1890s to understand how it was born. And finish with how to think in funnels. Let’s go. In 1898, Elias Elmo Lewis created a formula that changed marketing forever. He had an advertising agency. And he wrote newspaper ads for his clients — which was the main channel to reach potential customers before radio and TV. Like any advertiser, Lewis wanted to sell…

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The 3 Phases of Product-Led Growth: The Triple Whale Method

By in Marketing, Operations, Sales Tag ,

by Gigi Levy-Weiss for NfX Truly product-led companies are countercyclical. Even in a downturn, when customers are shutting down or slashing spending, your product or service remains in their stack. You made something they can’t live without. Love from the market is how the best companies gain ground – in any economic environment. It is the clearest sign of product-led growth. But it doesn’t just happen to you. There’s a playbook for it. When we invested in Triple Whale at the very beginning, they only had a few hundred customers. But Twitter was hopping with Shopify sellers declaring their love for the…

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Pros & Cons of AI Email in Sales [+Tools to Consider]

By in Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning, Information Technology, Sales Tag , ,

by Kiran Shahid for HubSpot To say that ChatGPT has thrown the internet into a frenzy would be an understatement. Since December 2022, interest in the search term “AI tools” has skyrocketed by 292% in the U.S. alone. Now Google, HubSpot, and Microsoft are racing to develop their own versions of AI chat tools to compete with ChatGPT. Here's the burning question: Does AI have a place in sales, and how does it affect our current sales processes? Like any new tech, you need to dive in and research. We'll review use cases of AI emails, their pros and cons, and the tools…

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5 Types of Content to Spice up Your B2B Marketing

By in Content Marketing, Marketing, Sales Tag , , , , ,

By Julie van der Weele for FOLEON Are you looking for innovative ways to spice up your B2B content marketing strategy? You’re in the right place. Creating content that stands out from the crowd is no mean feat these days. Marketers and brands need to develop and deliver a content marketing strategy that gets their ideal customers' attention and encourages them to keep listening, watching, and waiting for the next content-related treat.  The team at Foleon is always super excited to share our content inspirations, and we especially enjoy it when we can show how they are aligned to a…

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Top 15 Challenges Small Businesses are Facing Today

By in Business Management, Market Research, Sales Tag , , , , ,

by Joshua Sophy for SmallBizTrends.com Starting a business can be an exhilarating time but for many small business owners, however, it can also be a time filled with many challenges. Many small business owners find some of their biggest business challenges due simply to the lack of knowledge. While success is never guaranteed in business, careful preparation can help ensure a small business’s survival in the long run. Why Do So Many Small Businesses Fail? Business leaders fail due to inadequate planning or a flawed business model. Without a clear strategy, it can be difficult to sustain operations, especially when budgets are…

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