Tips to Maximize Sales Efforts

Sales folks, take note! Spamming a target company's employees with your services and requests for meetings will result in your company making its way onto a buyer's blocklist. As a buyer in the localization industry, I receive dozens of emails and LinkedIn requests every single day from vendors looking to showcase translation, AI, QA services, and more. It's not humanly possible to give personal replies to every outreach. When vendors can't get through to me, they often reach out to everyone on my team... and sometimes to many others across my company. I'd love for this practice to stop. It wastes valuable company time and makes a vendor appear desperate and non-strategic. Here's what to do instead: 1. Appeal to ego! Invite a target company’s decision-maker to a panel, or start a vlog series and ask buyers to appear and discuss industry topics. It’s also a great opportunity to reposition your company as a thought leader. 2. Offer genuine insight, not just services. Share a case study, white paper, or benchmarking data that’s actually useful to the buyer’s role, and do it without a sales pitch. 3. Build a reputation before you build a pipeline. Comment thoughtfully on posts. Contribute to community conversations. If you consistently show up with value, you’re far more likely to get noticed. 4. Target smarter, not broader. Don’t shotgun your message to an entire company. Learn the org. Understand the buyer’s scope. Then send one well-researched, personalized note that shows you actually did your homework. 5. Focus on mutual value. Can you help solve a known pain point or offer perspective on something changing in the market? Frame your outreach around collaboration, not consumption. 6. Use timing to your advantage. Keep tabs on when companies are hiring for roles associated with your offerings, launching in new markets, or attending conferences. That’s when buyers are more receptive to new solutions. 7. Lead with generosity. Offer a no-strings-attached resource, intro, or suggestion that doesn’t benefit you directly. Reciprocity is a powerful trust builder. And please! Don't ever ever call me on the phone! ;)

I spent my first year in sales, pushing too much and it nearly tanked my career. Decades later, after leading sales teams through every market cycle, I’ve learned that success isn't about slick talking. It’s about systems, psychology, and grit. Here are the 10 non-negotiable rules for anyone starting out today, paired with the exact resources that shaped my career: Listen 60% of the time. Read: "Just Listen" by Mark Goulston to master active discovery. Sell outcomes, not features. Read: "Value-Based Selling" frameworks via Harvard Business Review articles. Treat rejection as data. Listen: "The Sales Evangelist" podcast for building rejection resilience. Follow up relentlessly. Read: InsideSales data studies on optimal cadence timing. Prioritize high-intent leads. Read: "Fanatical Prospecting" by Jeb Blount for pipeline efficiency. Prospect every single day. Read: HubSpot’s Sales Blog guides on daily pipeline protection. Lead with genuine empathy. Read: "Never Split the Difference" by Chris Voss for emotional intelligence. Qualify hard and early. Study: The BANT and MEDDPICC frameworks via Gartner Sales insights. Detach worth from quota. Read: "The Daily Stoic" by Ryan Holiday for mental resilience. Become an industry expert. Read: Your target market's specific McKinsey & Company industry reports. Sales is a compounding game. What you build today pays off next quarter. Which of these rules or resources have transformed your sales career the most? #SalesTips #SalesLeadership #Prospecting #SalesTraining #CareerAdvice

Most people aren’t bad at sales. They’re just trained on the wrong playbook. Here’s what to do instead ↓ 1. Talk less, understand more → Ask sharper questions that uncover real problems → Let the buyer speak more and build your pitch from their answers 2. Ditch scripts, think in frameworks → Use flexible structures instead of memorized lines → Adapt your flow based on how the conversation evolves 3. Drop the urge to win arguments → Acknowledge concerns without reacting defensively → Explore the objection to understand what’s actually behind it 4. Stop chasing volume blindly → Prioritize high-quality conversations over quantity → Spend time where conversion probability is higher 5. Lead with impact, not features → Translate what you offer into real outcomes → Tie everything back to the buyer’s goals 6. Build value before talking numbers → Strengthen perceived value early in the conversation → Position pricing within the context of results 7. Stay consistent beyond the first touch → Build a structured and reliable follow-up system → Add value in each touchpoint instead of just checking in 8. Focus on momentum, not pressure → Move the deal forward with small, clear next steps → Let decisions build naturally over time 9. Guide instead of pushing → Help buyers reach their own conclusions → Align your solution with what actually matters to them 10. Say less, make it land → Communicate ideas in fewer, clearer words → Pause and let key points sink in 11. Learn faster from every “no” → Treat rejection as feedback, not a setback → Track patterns and refine your approach Sales improves when your approach evolves. 📌 Save this before your next call Follow for more practical sales thinking

While preparing for a talk, I came across an old article of mine that had gone viral on LinkedIn and was later published by Tech in Asia. Revisiting it with fresh perspective, I realized there was room to improve the insights based on what I’ve learned over the past few years. Here’s the updated list: 1. If it’s not in writing, it didn’t happen. 2. Speed matters. You don’t need a perfect reply, but you do need a fast one. Responsiveness signals priority. People notice who gets back to them. 3. Underpromise and overdeliver. Most do the opposite. Flip it. Exceed expectations and you'll earn trust, referrals, and repeat business. 4. Choose your customers wisely. Some clients will push endlessly on price and give little in return. Learn to say no. Not all revenue is created equal. 5. Mirror your client's communication style. WhatsApp? Slack? Voice notes? Go with what they prefer, but always follow up with an email summary, remember #1. 6. Be authentic. In Southeast Asia, the default playbook is karaoke and whiskey. I don’t play that game. My preferred game is solving problems for the customer while being competent at all times. 7. Never walk into a meeting unprepared. Know the context, the pain points, and the history. 8. Incentives run the world. Want to scale sales? Nail the commission structure. The right incentives turn good people into your growth engine. 9. The founder must lead the first wave of sales. No one else will navigate the messy terrain of buyer personas, pricing, and product direction as well. 10. Use the Rule of Four. In every key account, you need to approach at least four people. It de-risks the outreach and increases deal velocity. 11. Relationships > Transactions. Southeast Asia is not a transactional market. People buy from people they like and trust. If you rush the relationship, you lose the deal. 12. Show cultural intelligence and respect. A few local phrases, genuine curiosity, and humility go a long way. It shows you're not just here to sell. 13. The more technical your pitch, the faster you’ll be handed off to someone technical but not necessarily a decision maker. 14. If they’re not measuring or managing the problem today, it will be hard to sell, no matter how great your product is. 15. In Southeast Asia, you win by selling a service first and product second; in the US, it is the opposite. 16. I borrowed this from Ben Horowitz, and it holds up. Hire sales talent from underdog companies so they have the drive to hustle. Most people can sell Google or Meta, but not many can sell an unknown startup. With engineers, it's the opposite; it's best to hire from top-tier logos.

Sales teams are sitting on the most underused follow-up asset: Their CEO's LinkedIn posts. Your CEO posts 3x/week on LinkedIn. Your sales team never references it. That's a missed opportunity. I've been writing LinkedIn content for climate tech CEOs and founders for 2.5+ years. Companies that repurpose founder content for sales enablement shorten their 6-12 month B2B sales cycles. Here's how to write LinkedIn posts your sales team can actually use in follow-ups: Tip 1: Start posts with problems your prospects are facing right now. Open with the exact challenge your ideal customer is dealing with today. Use their language, not yours. For example: "Everyone's talking about scaling from $5M to $20M, but nobody talks about what breaks when you hit $10M." When your sales team follows up, they can say: "Saw our CEO wrote about the challenges at $10M ARR. Curious if you're experiencing any of that?" Instant warm conversation starter. Tip 2: Use the borrowed credibility format to create instant relevance. The format: "I met a [prospect's role] who [achieved impressive result]. Here's what they did differently..." Example: "I met a VP of Operations who cut their energy costs by 40% in 8 months." When your sales team reaches out to similar prospects, they can say, "Our CEO just shared a story about a VP Ops in a similar situation. Thought you'd find it relevant." Tip 3: Reference internal triggers that signal buying readiness. Call out the specific moments when companies realize they need a solution. Things like: "Growing past 5-6 crews," "Drowning in service tickets," "Hitting the limits of spreadsheets." These triggers tell prospects: we know exactly where you are. When sales follows up, they can ask: "Are you hitting any of these inflection points?" It naturally qualifies the prospect. Tip 4: Include real numbers and metrics from your experience. Don't just say "we helped a client save time." Say: "We helped a $25M company reduce their reporting time from 40 hours/month to 4 hours/month." Specific numbers establish credibility and give sales concrete data points to reference. When a prospect asks "can you quantify the impact?", your sales team points to the CEO's post. Tip 5: End with niche-relevant engagement questions that filter for qualified prospects. Don't ask generic questions like "What do you think?" Ask questions that only your ideal customer can meaningfully answer. Examples: • "What's the biggest bottleneck you're hitting between $10M and $20M?" • "CFOs: how are you currently tracking sustainability metrics?" When prospects comment, they're self-identifying as qualified leads. Your sales team can follow up directly with context. — Using CEO content for sales enablement is one of the most underrated tactics in B2B. Your sales team gets warm conversation starters. Your prospects feel understood, not sold to. Your CEO's content drives pipeline. — How often do you repurpose your CEO's LinkedIn content for sales?

A year ago, it was just an idea. 12 months later, we’ve closed over $800,000 in sales. Here are 10 key moves that got us there (and might help you on your journey too). 1. 100M Offers by Alex Hormozi - This book was a game changer. We used it as a blueprint to refine our offer, define our niche, optimize pricing, and craft a compelling guarantee. 2. 90 Days of Action - our goal-setting cohort was critical to our success. It helped us: • Set a clear target: $1M ARR in 12 months, with a goal of 5 clients in Q1 • Develop a detailed plan—because a goal without a plan is just a dream • Focus on inputs (emails, calls, posts) over outcomes (closed sales) • Stay accountable through a supportive community 3. Sold to Our Network First - our earliest clients came from relationships we’d already built. Don’t underestimate the power of your existing connections. 4. Learned LinkedIn & Social Selling - this platform unlocked massive opportunities for FreedUp. • I worked through Justin Welsh's LinkedIn OS (great course) • Darren McKee's LinkedIn & Social Selling cohort was the best business decision I made last year. The impact? Hundreds of thousands in revenue. • Consistency: Five posts weekly with 10 thoughtful comments and five meaningful DMs daily. 5. Invested in Sales Coaching - I worked with THE Chris Ray. He helped me develop a sustainable sales framework, tech stack, and operating cadence. 6. Prioritized Reps Over Perfection - growth in sales comes down to two things: coaching (see above) and reps. Just like athletes hone their craft through relentless practice, we put in the reps to keep improving. 7. Focused on Action Before Optimization - you can’t optimize a sales habit that doesn’t exist. I prioritized taking action over seeking perfection. Most of the time, I didn’t need more information but more courage and consistency. 8. Built a Top-Tier Service - we believe our services are second to none. Our team, the incredible EAs we've hired, and the EA Operating System we’ve built will become the industry standard. 9. Made Smart Hires - Bringing on someone as talented as Pammela Hernandez, CHRP® was a massive win for us. She’s fostered a culture of excellence while keeping things fun. 10. Care Deeply About Our Customers - as Alex Friedman recently wrote, "The biggest moat in startups? Actually caring about your customers." We obsess over client success, not chasing vanity metrics. I spend a significant part of my week talking with clients, understanding their needs, and finding ways to add more value. Bonus: We didn’t quit. Startup life tests you. The work is hard, but managing the stress is even harder. There were countless moments when Aaron and I wondered if we should keep going. I’m glad we did.

BFCM is a make-or-break moment for ecom brands. Don't shoot yourself in the foot by overcomplicating your email strategy. Here's how to simplify your approach so you can execute with confidence: 1. Analyze Past Performance Look at last year's data to see which products, promotions, and channels drove the most sales. Focus on metrics like revenue per recipient, conversion rate, and take rates on things like cross-sells or upsells. 2. Choose Your Hero Offer(s) Take a moment before you default to discounting –– that's what EVERYONE else will do. Consider options like free gift with purchase, contests/giveaways, or new product bundles. Customers expect great prices, but you can still give them an amazing deal without killing your margins. 3. Clean Your Lists Remove invalid emails and start re-engagement campaigns for inactive subscribers NOW to maximize deliverability. You're about to bring in a ton of new subscribers, so it's perfectly fine to prune your list heading into gifting season. 4. Create Strategic Segments Focus on curating lists of highly engaged subscribers, VIPs, and recent or repeat purchasers. These are your money makers. You can also create interest-based segments and send tailored messages to them to boost your conversion rate. Pro Tip: Give your subscribers the option to "snooze" email until after your BFCM campaign is over to lower your unsubscribe rate during this high volume period. 5. Nail Down Your Creative & Cadence Map out your message cadence, by segment, and build a promo calendar. Use that to draft attention-grabbing subject lines, design supporting graphics, and personalize content for different segments. 6. Go Omni-Channel Think about how you can supplement your email efforts with SMS, paid ads, social media, and mobile app strategies. Getting multiple channels to work together in harmony will dramatically improve your results. 7. Prepare For Life "Post BFCM" For many brands, their BFCM campaign is a "one and done" experience. But your long-term success hinges on your ability to turn those one-time buyers into repeat purchasers. Retention strategies like founder thank you's, "gift it again" messages, restock reminders, and loyalty programs are great ways to keep momentum going. Remember, the goal isn't just to boost sales for a weekend - it's to create experiences that turn one-time holiday shoppers into loyal, year-round customers. Don't let the pressure of the season lead you to overthink things. Start implementing these tactics now, and you'll be well-positioned for your most successful BFCM ever.

I spent 20 years mastering the art of sales strategy in the Spirits industry. Here's the shortcut to save you countless hours of trial and error...   Know Your Audience:    -You can't sell what you don't understand! Get to know your customers like they’re family. What do they drink? Why do they choose a particular brand? Use surveys, social media insights, and conversations to gather data!   Leverage Data:    -Have numbers on your side! Track sales trends, seasonal preferences, and even competitor strategies. Tools like CRM software can provide invaluable insights that lead to smarter decisions!   Build Relationships:    -Partnerships are golden and can be overlooked by focusing solely on data. Don’t just focus on transactions; create lasting relationships! Suppliers, distributors, and retailers. Attend networking events or join relevant groups online—these connections can open doors you didn’t even know existed!   Innovate Constantly:    -Never settle for ‘good enough’. Whether it’s trying out a new marketing technique or diversifying your product range, embrace change with open arms. The market is evolving; make sure you evolve with it!   Train Your Team:    -This isn’t a solo mission! Invest time in developing your team’s skills—train them not just on products but also on customer service and sales techniques. A knowledgeable team is an empowered team!    Measure Success Regularly:     -What gets measured gets improved! Set KPIs (Key Performance Indicators) for yourself and your team, then regularly assess progress toward those goals. If something isn’t working as planned, pivot quickly instead of doubling down on a losing strategy! These steps have helped me consistently increase sales and reduce turnover rates across my teams. So whether you're just starting out or looking to refine your existing strategy... remember that success is less about luck and more about well‑planned actions! What has been your biggest win in sales? Share your insights below.

Boost FMCG General Trade Sales : Simplified FAQ 1. How can I improve my relationship with distributors? Building strong distributor relationships is crucial for FMCG success. Focus on establishing trust and transparency. Offer competitive margins and maintain consistent communication. Regularly review performance data together to identify growth opportunities and address any concerns. 2. What's the best way to manage my sales territories? Effective territory management optimizes your sales force's efforts. Analyze data to identify high-potential areas and divide territories equitably to avoid overlap. Consider geographic factors, retailer density, and sales potential when defining territories. 3. What kind of incentives and promotions work well in general trade? Attract retailers and consumers with targeted promotions. Offer discounts, bundle products, or run seasonal promotions. Align your promotions with current market trends and consumer preferences in each region. 4. How can I make my products stand out in-store? Invest in eye-catching point-of-sale materials like posters, danglers, and shelf strips to increase visibility. Regularly audit store shelves to ensure proper product placement, adequate stock, and a visually appealing presentation. 5. What role can technology play in boosting general trade sales? Leverage CRM software, sales tracking apps, and data analytics tools. These can help monitor sales performance, streamline operations, analyze trends, and gain insights to optimize your sales strategies and resource allocation. 6. How can I empower my sales team for success? Invest in your sales force through regular training on product knowledge, negotiation skills, and effective customer service. Provide them with the tools and resources they need to confidently handle objections and close deals. 7. Is it important to adapt products for different local markets? Yes, tailoring your offerings to local preferences can significantly impact sales. Consider adjusting packaging sizes, flavors, or pricing to align with specific regional tastes and purchasing habits. 8. How can I ensure a consistent and reliable product supply? A well-managed supply chain is vital. Optimize inventory management practices, coordinate closely with distributors, and fine-tune delivery schedules to minimize lead times and prevent stockouts that can lead to lost sales. 9. How can I go beyond just selling to retailers and build stronger partnerships? Treat retailers as partners. Proactively understand their needs, offer value-added support like training programs, address their concerns promptly, and explore opportunities for exclusive partnerships or joint marketing initiatives. This fosters loyalty and encourages their commitment to your brand.