48. Future of Sales

This episode is about the future of sales (non-AI edition). It’s difficult to talk about the future of sales without mentioning AI, but there is a lot of stuff in the future that has nothing to do with AI. So we are going to end this season of the Practical Prospecting Podcast by talking about some of the trends we see in the coming years that sales reps need to be aware of and follow.  Timestamps [0:01] Intro  [0:52] It’s easier than ever to build SaaS platforms leading to more competitors  [4:32] How to grow a SaaS company in a crowded industry  [6:12] Selling against your competitors  [7:10] The future of sales is still based on emails and calls  [9:19] Leaning into referrals

Today we are talking about how to pre-sell offers before they launch. Sujan looks at pre-selling as validation that you should actually do what you intend to do. This episode will be really helpful to any new sales reps or early-stage founders.  Timestamps [0:01] Intro  [1:43] How we pre-sold before the launch of Mailshake  [2:43] This practice is great for companies of any stage (even if you haven’t launched yet)  [3:38] What to do if nobody wants what you are pre-selling  [5:11] You should be doing this at your SaaS company every quarter Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

Mastering the offer for outbound messaging is a topic that often gets pushed to the side. But most of us have stories about terrible pitches we have gotten from cold calls or emails. And this can be fixed by simply spending an extra 30 seconds on someone’s LinkedIn profile. So on the show today, we are going to spend 15 minutes helping you create a better cold outreach offer. Timestamps: [0:01] Intro  [1:26] What NOT to do on a cold call  [2:52] Crafting an offer for cold outreach  [4:03] Ask this one question about your demos  [6:42] Validating your offer Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

The SaaS market is crowded these days. It’s easier than ever to build software, but that makes it harder to sell and market. Some of your customers may already be using a different software to solve their problems, so how do you steal those customers away from that competitor? Timestamps: [0:01] Intro  [1:59] Finding if someone is using your competitor  [3:02] Narrowing down to your top competitors to target  [4:40] Centering your message on how you are different from the competitor  [7:20] Your customer success team is a goldmine of information Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

Jan is the founder of coldagency.io, and he has a lot of amazing insights into creating cold email campaigns that have a high reply rate. On the show today, he shares everything he knows about cold emailing and prospecting. Listen if you want to boost the replies to your cold emails! Timestamps: [0:01] Intro  [1:06] Building a cold email agency  [2:40] Transferring B2C experience into B2B prospecting  [4:00] Best deliverability practices in 2023  [6:23] List building tools and practices  [8:30] The secret to high reply rates  [11:48] Designing a cold email sequence Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

A nurture sequence is not a common practice, but it should be. A nurture sequence is the act of reaching out to the prospect at a certain cadence, which allows you to take advantage of any prospects that might not become customers right now but could buy later. Timestamps: [0:01] Intro [1:32] A nurture sequence is different than an outbound campaign  [2:09] Finding helpful content for a nurture sequence  [3:14] How long your nurture sequence should be  [5:13] The importance of being specific Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

Zach Wright co-founded a SaaS startup (Syft AI) that modernizes the selling process to lead with value. The founding team saw a fundamental shift in B2B sales. Most sellers don't adopt sales tools due to the overwhelming amounts of data across many siloed applications and many manual processes. Zach is passionate about networking and helping the next generation of B2B sellers maximize their careers and development. Timestamps: [0:01] Intro [0:56] What inspired Zach to build Syft [2:20] Value selling 101 [5:34] Where to look to find a lot of leads [11:01] Will SDRs be replaced by AI? [16:36] Creative prospecting plays Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

Time management is one of the most important skills for SDRs. And it’s not about doing the most activities, it’s about doing the right activities. The ones who focus their time on the most impactful activities are the ones who earn the most revenue. So on the show today we are talking about the best way to block your time through the day as a sales rep. Timestamps: [0:01] Intro [1:24] How to time block your day  [2:24] Blocking time vs. creating habits  [3:30] What to do every day to close your pipeline  [5:12] Knowing what to work on when Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

Outbound folks are super aggressive. You have to be in order to get outbound prospects to the next step. But inbound requires less energy and it can be easily forgotten. And if you neglect your inbound close game, you could be leaving money on the table. Timestamps: [0:01] Intro  [1:38] What you can do to help your inbound sales team improve closing [2:21] More effective follow-ups on inbound prospects  [4:08] Double your close rate just by following up Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/

Kris Rudeegraap is the Founder and CEO of Sendoso, the leading Sending Platform, which helps companies stand out by giving them new ways to engage with customers throughout the buyer’s journey. By integrating digital and physical sending strategies, companies can increase the effectiveness of their existing go-to-market programs and improve their relationships with customers. Timestamps: [0:01] Intro [2:45] The do’s and don’ts of gifting [4:35] Lessons learned being a founder of a company [6:06] Why founders should build a recruiting strategy from day one [9:33] Creating new norms in an industry [11:33] Some new top-of-funnel things Kris is trying in his company [14:57] Some prospecting tools Kris is finding useful Follow us on social: https://www.linkedin.com/company/mailshake/ Jed's Newsletter: https://jed.substack.com/