Ben Light

It’s never been more difficult to be in sales. To be successful, you need high-value outbound messaging that distinguishes you as the right solution for your prospect. But let's face it — not all reps have the time or access to real-time data to truly understand each prospect's needs...  It's time to meet SAM, the AI-powered sales assistant from Similarweb. Only with SAM do you get: 💡Prospect-tailored insights based on buyer intent, sales signals, and your prospects’ use case 📬Hyper-personalized, ready-to-use outbound messaging that spotlights your company as the right solution 🗓️Instantly generated insights accessible through Gmail and Google Calendar, making sales reps ready for any meeting  You can learn more about SAM’s capabilities here → https://bit.ly/3QOi5BB

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The same page… AEs, SDRs, CSMs & renewal managers How are you tracking to your goal achievements 🎯? Some mid-year reminders for the team. - Re-align to find out what has changed in your shared account(s) - Stay connected on a regular cadence - Build report and trust - you want to rely on each other - Meet in person if possible - see previous bullet - Enable tough feedback sessions - so important - Share current customer status and revisit top priorities - Strive for a unified front & strategy - Known when to engage leadership - target this as a step - Share your success metrics, KPIs, and percent to goal Success is a #team sport Have a great day!

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Too many sales leaders are obsessed with scaling: - More calls - More leads - More emails - More meetings - More opportunities Without nailing: - ICP - Discovery - Messaging - Buyer journey - Value proposition Better to 2x what works than to 10x what doesn’t.

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Revenue Leaders. Salespeople at all levels. “Coming 10/15… Powerful articles Expert Insights Actionable Strategies Interviews with the best minds in sales”

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So, we have an engaged prospect - They’re in the ICP - They have buying intent - It’s the right timing for them - But they’re the wrong Buyer Persona! What do we do here? 𝗗𝗼𝗻'𝘁 𝗚𝗼 𝗔𝗿𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗺 (𝗬𝗲𝘁) In my experience this is a fantastic way to piss of your prospect (AND their boss) while coming across as salesly and losing all credibility. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 if we try to sell to the wrong persona, more often than not we lose the deal, and any time we’ve invested, if we don’t get to power. This is a fantastic way to work really hard and miss quota. 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗮 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗜𝗻𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗮𝗱 Instead of selling the product, we sell them on partnering with us to run an evaluation together. Let me walk through how I’ve done this. 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗦𝗲𝗹𝗹 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗪𝗵𝘆 Find out why this is important to them and the impact on them personally of getting this right, of getting it wrong, and of it not happening at all. We need a good reason to ask them to stick their neck out to introduce us to their leadership team. 𝗛𝗮𝘃𝗲 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝗶𝗿 𝗕𝗮𝗰𝗸 There’s often risk for our champion. If this goes south, they may be blamed for it, or even fired. I’ve seen it many times and I can share specific stories of how this goes down and how it could all be avoided by engaging leadership in the right way. 𝗦𝘁𝗮𝘆 𝗜𝗻 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗣𝗼𝗰𝗸𝗲𝘁 It’s critical not to skip key steps. To earn trust, we have to add value. They want to see an introductory demo, understand pricing, etc etc. These things are fair. But we can’t go too far without looping in the right people and we need to stay in the pocket until we can. 𝗠𝗮𝗸𝗲 𝗮 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝗧𝗼𝗴𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 Once we’ve earned their trust, we can and should ask to build a plan together. This involves bringing the right people, from both sides, in for the right steps. If we build this plan together we stand a better chance they’ll follow through with it. 𝗪𝗮𝗹𝗸 𝗔𝘄𝗮𝘆, 𝗡𝘂𝗿𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗠𝘂𝗹𝘁𝗶-𝗧𝗵𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 If we cannot get them on board with this we need to walk away and nurture them until that’s changed. We can share relevant marketing content, events, etc with them to do this. We can also start to share that with others on the team. I’m a big fan of role specific marketing content for this reason. It’s a lot easier to invite a CEO to a CEO dinner than it is to just go around our champion with a cold email pitching a sales meeting. RevOps can really shine here by helping to map this process out and align sales and marketing to do this. What would you add here? 🤔 More on nurturing tomorrow in 📰 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗢𝗽𝘀 𝗪𝗲𝗲𝗸𝗹𝘆 📰 Sign up here to get it: https://bit.ly/3xgqF55 ✌️

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How do you get AEs to prospect more? Turns out, a simple driver might be...streaks? We added a small, almost accidental feature in AccountAim - a daily activity map, inspired by GitHub’s contribution tracker. It’s become a huge driver of AE prospecting output. 🔥 Reps don’t want to break their streaks 🏆 Visible competition motivates the whole team 📈 Activity leads to impact - reps can easily sense the correlation between activity and opps created when presented visually Combine this with prescriptive targeting, and many of our customers have more than 2x’d AE prospecting activity. It’s no wonder gamification has taken off in all of the consumer apps, it’s actually a game-changer. Credit to Brett, our CTO, for this one!

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Ashi from Gong is fast (😮‍💨10k) But not as fast as Gong Engage users when they use Lavender. Access to your Gong calls in our personalization assistant ✅ Access to our coach & "Ashi fast" personalization in Gong ✅ Better 🤝 Faster 3.0 (and so much more) coming soon

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Tired of losing hard-earned deals? Solve for Revenue Leak. In Clari’s 2024 Revenue Leak Report, RevOps leaders said leak happens at every stage of the funnel. - Creating: Poor and slow upsell pipeline tracking - Converting: Unsure where pipeline is dropping off - Closing: Slipped deals Don’t let Revenue Leak drag down another quarter – or another year. Download the Revenue Leak Report for more: https://lnkd.in/g9gnGrdz  

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Pipeline Heroes use scripts in cold calls. Scripts that induce: Curiosity Dont target the meeting as the only purpose of the call Scale follow-ups and next actions for those in ICP, but not in market Treat conversations as reconnaissance and a cornerstone of a relationship with a stranger PipelineHeroes use scripts because they are professionals and want to be Accountable Measurable Scientific

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What does it take to drive revenue while leading with empathy? I sat down with Alexandra (Alex) Gold, Customer Success Leader at GoCardless to find out and below are the key takeaways from our conversation. 👇 👉 Customer Success isn’t just about reducing churn—it’s a growth engine. The strong relationships CSMs build enable them to identify upsell and cross-sell opportunities organically, focusing on addressing customer needs rather than simply selling. 👉 Align Customer Success with customer outcomes. When you help customers achieve their goals, expansion conversations happen naturally—it's about delivering ongoing value, not pushing new products. 👉 Hiring for CS is about finding balance. Candidates need both soft skills, like empathy and communication, and the technical skills to solve complex problems. Focus on current team gaps—for instance, prioritizing technical skills if you’re already strong in commercial expertise. Above all, look for a coachable mindset, a hunger to learn, and cross-team collaboration. 👉 Keep your team motivated with transparency and a focus on control. By openly communicating changes, you build trust and keep everyone aligned. Last but not least Alex shared an unconventional tip: Build open, personal relationships with your team—sharing life updates and encouraging them to do the same. It builds trust and deepens connections, humanizing leadership rather than diminishing respect. For more tips, you can find the full interview below 👇 #SuccessmadeSimple #leadership #RevenueGrowth

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You know what sucks? Telling an incredible BDR - "Thanks, but no thanks." I just had a multi-week interaction with an amazing BDR that understood my challenges and provided a few great teasers on why I should connect on a call and discuss how we could work together. 💪 Outreach: Superb 📲 Communication: Excellent 🖥 Demo: Fantastic 😇 Personality: Phenomenal 📈 Fit for our needs: Spot on ⌛ Timing: Terrible 💲 Cost: Not feasible today Even if you do everything right, the answer can still be 'no' due to factors outside of your control. When faced with rejection the BDR said something to the effect of "When should I circle back to turn that 'no' into a 'maybe'? What can I do in the coming weeks and months to showcase the value our platform can bring to Callvu? We want to be a business partner for you instead of just another software vendor". They were selling past the "no" and they didn't dump me into a disqualified stage of their funnel prematurely. They were passionate about their technology and genuinely wanted to help us overcome our obstacles and have committed to staying in touch through 2024 - not through some nurture campaign, but through real human connection. We're grabbing some beers in a few weeks. 🍻 They will 100% win my business when the time is right. Hopefully they’ll be the AE for the account when that time comes. 🤑 Be passionate. Be helpful. Be human. 

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It should not be so hard to empower your sales teams. But, in 2023: 📉 53% of CROs struggled to increase sales velocity and rep productivity 📉 72% of salespeople spent time not selling 📉 28% of sales reps expected to attain quota This year, learn how to leverage the power of sales enablement 🚀 https://lnkd.in/gZ7qQftm #salesenablement #change #saas

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HubSpot that actually works for you: Lifecycle Stages, Lead Status & Deal Stages made easy (and automated). As a tech founder, you want a CRM that delivers results, not headaches. Without clarity, tracking contacts through the pipeline feels like a time sink - manual updates, missed follow-ups and slipping deals. If your team is buried in CRM tasks, they're not closing sales. And lost deals, they're lost growth. Here's how I simplified it: 1️⃣ Lifecycle stages: Track the level of clear engagement signals. → SQL: Lead shows measurable intent, ready for sales outreach. → Opportunity: Actively exploring solutions, ready for deal tracking. 2️⃣ Lead Status: SQL identified readiness for a deal. → Open Deal: Lead is engaged and has requested a formal proposal. 3️⃣ Deal Pipeline Stages: Begin only when the customer is ready for a proposal. → Qualified to Buy (20%): Discovery call completed, budget confirmed. → Proposal Sent (35%): Offer presented, awaiting feedback. → Negotiating (60%): Client and team engaged in terms discussions. → Contract Sent (80%): Final contract sent, awaiting signature. → Closed (100%): Contract signed. Pro Tip: Use automation to move leads forward as soon as measurable signals - such as booked meetings, webinar polls, survey responses, and other intent signals - appear. Your team stays focused on closing, and you're left with a CRM that keeps pace with your growth, not slows it down. #HubSpot #SalesPipeline #LifecycleStages #LeadManagement

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Here's the stark facts in sales today. - 31% of reps are making quota - Nearly half (44%) of deals slip - Sales cycles are double digits longer, win rates are double digits down - Inbound leads are down - Salesforce recognised the need to increase pipeline coverage to by 50% (from x2 to x3) Most of those we speak to recognise all these challenges. But they are stuck. "Do more with less" is the message. They have cut teams and fought for those remaining. Their organisations are stuck with blind hope and knives sharpening. The only solution they know is to fire and replace. Because the real problems aren't acknowledged. The market has changed and it's harder. But are teams are not more skilled. The same teams, that could achieve in the old world are failing in this one. And the last message anyone wants, is we need to spend some money to solve that. "That's your job isn't it?" cries the leadership to time-starved managers and leaders. Anyone want to guess what's going to happen to sales manager average tenure (already at an all-time low of 18 months)????

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Taking time off as a CSM can be stressful. 💔 Things never stop breaking 🤖 Product never stops releasing 🔨 Processes continue to change 📩 Customers don't stop emailing 💸 Renewals don't stop happening Many CSMs either give up taking time off or end up logging in when they should be enjoying the beach. But it genuinely doesn't need to be like this... A few years ago I developed a social contract with my team: - Nobody logs in during their time off - Everyone prepares for their time off in advance We developed a PTO prep checklist and kept building upon it based on our lived experience. Here's what it looks like: - Book your holidays at least 8 weeks in advance - Add your OOO to your email signature ASAP - Book the day you come back off in your calendar to give you time to catch up on your inbox - Let your customers know when you'll be OOO in every call - Ask customers to submit any questions/issues in advance (by X date) - Create a manual on how customers can get help during that time that you can send to customers and add to your OOO email - List all your renewals for the period you'll be OOO - Get signatures early for the healthy and happy customers - Work on mitigation and save strategies for customers at risk - Aim to have every renewal deal closed before you leave - Anything left open, delegate to a colleague a week in advance from your PTO with introductions, CTAs, good notes and context (make this a central document for your manager so they can follow-up for you) - Let colleagues on internal projects know you'll be OOO - List all tasks and deliverables you have until your PTO - Work on delivering each of them ahead of time - Ask a colleague to be a buddy for you while you are out - Cover your OOO with your manager before you go - Schedule important customer meetings for that week ahead of time to avoid falling behind on coverage - Review any open roadblocks for customers 24 hours before leaving and add to your PTO document for your manager to follow-up - Put your OOO on the day you leave on email and slack Every CSM that implemented this left for their holidays feeling confident. And the best part? Nobody had to log in during their time of!! As a Director, I still use this checklist (albeit an adapted one). What's your top tip on how to prep for holidays? 📥 If you're interested in Customer Success, consider joining 8.5k+ CS Professionals who read my weekly newsletter on how to build and scale a CS Team [sign up in the comments section]. #csm #customersuccess #retentionstrategies #customerexperience #customerretention

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It should not be so hard to empower your sales teams. But, in 2023: 📉 53% of CROs struggled to increase sales velocity and rep productivity 📉 72% of salespeople spent time not selling 📉 28% of sales reps expected to attain quota This year, learn how to leverage the power of sales enablement 🚀 https://lnkd.in/eHDKVJ_J #salesenablement #change #saas

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There’s no such thing as leading indicators in sales, right? Wrong. BUT, there’s only one - it’s the quality of your team’s conversations. Pretty subjective matter, though. What does a “good” call look like? Where does each SDR/AE need the most help? What is “good” coaching, anyways? If your team is struggling to (because leaders can only do so much…): A. Get real-time call coaching B. Get actionable feedback on call execution C. Be able to improve on sales competencies D. All of the above I’ve partnered with GREAT companies solving for this. Hit me up and I’ll refer you to A, B, or C (better yet, all 3!). Sales coaching doesn’t need to be reactive!

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Revenue blindness is a condition that a 2/3 people in sales suffer from. When undiagnosed it can lead to... - Constant Peaks and Valleys - Scaling Suck - a 'Just do more' mindset - Hives - Dispair and Misery What is revenue blindess? When all that is looked at in terms of success is the revenue number. If you hit = Things must be good. If you miss = The team/individual/leader suck It's actually far more dangerous on the 'hit' side, and I see it all the time. A rep is hitting their number, but tearing down the culture, but it's allowed because of... Revenue blindess A team of 10 hits the number, but off the back of the manager or or 1 top rep, so the decision is made to scale to 30 even tho they have nothing proven in place... Revenue blindess It works the other way too. A team is hitting their marks, hitting the activity, working the deals, using strong messaging, and yet miss the number, because the number was unhittable. The number doesn't get changed, the people do. Revenue blindess. A rep IS crushing their number, but because of that they don't get the recognition, attention and support they want/need because well.. they are hitting the number Revenue blindess I talk about this with my leaders all the time, we can't fall into revenue blindness. We have to stay below the number to drive results. Behaviors. Issue Diagnosis/Inspection. Process. Skills. You - This is where BIPSY comes in. We have seen some amazing results over the last 6 months. We're talking some 2-3x type results. BUT We stay obsessed over what's causing them, not just the end result. This is the key. Revenue blindness is curable. If you know someone that suffers from revenue blindness ... Send them to the Sales Leadership Accelerator - it will take time.. but we can save them. https://lnkd.in/ejPDhZw4

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