A non-influencer interview (for once)

Published: Wed, 04/05/23

April 5, 2022

TOGETHER WITH

Well folks, we made it. Now that we’re past Q1, it’s smooth sailing from here on out! That was an April Fool’s joke – things will actually get much worse, BUT there is still plenty of time to hit your sales goals. In this week’s issue, we’re kicking off our interview series and sharing our usual slate of brilliant content. And don’t forget, you can get free stuff if you refer people to this newsletter. Check out the last section for more info!

NUMBER OF THE WEEK

Only 13% of customers believe a salesperson can understand their needs.

Source: Zippia

SALES ROUNDUP

Here’s what’s happening in the sales world this week:

An Audi salesman, who we happen to know personally, will be honored with the Carnegie Medal for his heroism after saving a 97-year-old woman from a burning home. Jay Pichardo, of Nashua, NH, was on his way home from work (after staying late, of course), when he was flagged down by a woman outside a burning home. Jay sprung into action and, with the help of another man, pulled a (different) woman from the burning structure. You can read more about it here.
Famous salesman Jim “Mattress Mack” McIngvale is back in the news again, this time for betting $1.9m on his hometown Houston Astros to repeat in the World Series. Last year, McIngvale won $75m (!) thanks to the Astros’ championship win, and he stands to gain another $11m this year if they can pull it off twice. You can read more about the wager here.

FEATURE

An interview with Jacqueline Poulson, Senior Account Executive at Learning Pool, an E-Learning Platform

(note: this interview is part of a new series where we profile sales reps and sales leaders across industries. If you’d like to be considered for an interview, click here).

Tell us a little bit about yourself.

I’m writing to you from Grand Rapids, Michigan, where I live with my husband, 3 year old son, and two dogs. I have a sales background in both healthcare and ed tech. I’m a consumer of useless facts and a lifelong learner at heart. I enjoy long walks to nowhere, wasting time laughing at Reddit comments, and, of course, some good red wine.

How did you get your start in sales? When did you know that it would be your career?

I left the lucrative world of teaching and started as a pharmaceutical sales rep for AstraZeneca in 2014. Teaching is one of the few industries that doesn’t recognize hard work with promotion, so I was intoxicated by sales, knowing that the more effort one puts in, the greater the rewards. I loved the autonomy and flexibility and all the interesting people one gets to meet along the way.

Your company also sells to the public sector. What is that sales process like? How much different is it from selling to private companies?

Selling to the public sector is not much different than selling to private companies in the Learning and Development space; both are long and arduous, especially in this market. Not unlike other sectors, the typical sales cycle in L&D is about 9-12 months, with many stakeholders taking part.

You also work as a CrossFit coach. Are there any lessons you’ve carried over that help you in your day-to-day?

CrossFit focuses on creating mental toughness and getting just a little better every day. Resilience and mental toughness are required for success in any sales job. There are workouts where I have wanted to quit, and days where I have wanted to quit sales, but if you just keep moving, eventually success will follow.

What does a typical work day look like for you? Walk us through it.

I enter my cl-office and start prospecting. Admittedly, this is my least favorite part of the job, but as the saying goes, eat the frog, right?! Internal meetings, conversations with colleagues, and furthering the pipeline are peppered throughout the day. The beauty of sales is that no two days ever look the same.

What's the one thing you’ve found that helps you be successful in sales?

Sales is such a grind. We always see jokes about how quickly sales ages folks, and the stress this line of work creates is real. For me to be successful, I need to take care of myself. That often takes the form of an intense workout first thing in the morning. I’ve also started to incorporate meditating which has really helped too.

What are your long term career goals? Early retirement or future CRO?

Long term?! Sales has me living day-to-day. 😆 I’ve always enjoyed helping teammates and researching the science behind why certain techniques work better than others, so management or even sales training or enablement has piqued my interest. In a perfect world, early retirement is the ideal. If Amazon packages stopped appearing at my house every day, this might happen sooner…

What is your favorite sales movie?

I’ve always laughed at the take Love and Other Drugs had on the pharmaceutical industry, but overall, I’m actually not that much of a movie watcher, (I know, I know)… books are more my thing. I’m currently reading Secrets of Question Based Selling and find Thomas Freese’s timeless advice about curiosity unlocking the rest of the sales process especially fitting. He gives great actionable insights to help with speed of implementation.

3 ACTION TO INCREASE WIN RATES

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MEME OF THE WEEK

Source: Sales Humor -- Instagram

QUIZ

When did Google hire their first sales rep?

A. 2002
B. 1999
C. 1963
D. 2000

SALES FAILS

Each week, we bring you the most cringe-worthy sales moments from across the web. To submit your sales fail story for consideration, click here. (Don't worry, you'll remain completely anonymous).

This is something that happened to me around this time last year. I work as a BDR at a sales tech company, so naturally, I spend a lot of time cold calling and sending cold emails. I did some research on an account I wanted to land that seemed like an ideal client. I sent a personalized email to the VP who I knew would be the final decision maker. I got an email back a day later from a mid-level manager at the company who said that the VP had forwarded the email to him and asked him to explore our solution. This isn't uncommon, I've actually closed a few deals by turning the middle manager into my champion, so I was excited. I set up the call for later in the week.

The meeting time came and the guy was a no show. I waited 5 minutes and sent him an email politely letting him know I was in the meeting link. No answer. After another 5 minutes, I decided to call the phone number in his email signature. It was the last week of the month and I needed the deal. The guy answered the phone, sounding confused. I could tell by his voice that I had woken him up (it was well into the afternoon). I told the guy we could reschedule, but he frantically insisted now was still a good time and said he'd be on the Zoom in 5 minutes.

He joined the call looking disheveled; he was wearing a baseball cap trying to hide his bedhead and had on an old sweatshirt. He looked like he was still dreaming about his pillow. I told him again that we could reschedule but he insisted he was ready and asked if we could get into the pitch. I went along and told him more about our company and solution, but when I asked him discovery questions he would reply with short answers that didn't help keep the conversation going. He kept looking at his phone, and it was clear that he just took the meeting so he could tell his boss that he had done it. At the end of the call, he asked me to send a follow-up with all the info we discussed as well as next steps. Not surprisingly, I never heard from him again. Sales Fail!

Anonymous Location withheld

GRAPH OF THE WEEK

Source: LinkedIn Poll -- March 2023

WORTH A PEEK

Do you use a sales proposal template or do you just wing it? In either case, you might want to step your game up. HelloSign has a great sales proposal checklist that goes into depth on what every sales proposal needs (and why). Check it out here.

ASK THE QUOTA

Want to submit a question and be featured in our advice column? Click here. (Don't worry, you'll remain completely anonymous).

Dear Quota Team,

I’m an inside sales rep at a large company and have been in sales for well over a decade. Our company went remote for the pandemic but now makes those of us within driving distance of an office come in at least three days a week. Some people were upset about the change but it doesn’t really bother me.

What does bother me is one of my coworkers. He is a sales rep like me, and started here about two years ago if I remember correctly. I made the mistake of being friendly with him in the office, and over the last six months, he basically won’t leave me alone, to the point where it’s making me dread dealing with him.

He messages me every day throughout the day, and if I don’t respond, he’ll just keep on sending me stuff. Articles, memes, questions, random conversations, anything and everything. And when we’re in the office, he’ll come up to my desk at least three times a day but sometimes way more often, and try talking to me, barely ever taking the hint that I’m trying to focus on work.

This is not a person who has trouble communicating. He is sociable and friendly, he just seems to have developed a fixation for me. I really don’t want to hurt his feelings, but he is incapable of taking a hint. I’ve even considered looking for another job because that’s how much his behavior bothers me now, but there’s no way I would do that on account of one person. Is there any way I can politely get this guy off my back? It’s becoming unbearable.

Bothered in New York

Dear Bothered,

It’s time to put on your big boy (or big girl) pants and do something that most people hate doing: being direct!

Listen [insert name here]. I have some really ambitious sales goals I want to hit this year, so I want to make sure I’m using my time at work effectively, which means less chatting and more working. I hope you understand.

If that doesn’t get the message across, then this person probably has some issues, in which case you’ll have to go to your manager and ask them to (discreetly) step in.

If you keep indulging this obnoxious behavior, it’s never going to stop, so stop trying to please everybody and stand up for yourself.

Quiz Answer: B – 1999 (you can read the source article here)

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Today's email was written by Ken Kupchik, Erica Furgiuele, Steve Rado, and Emily Hill.

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