Victoria Brooks

Good sales reps show through the interview process. Reps do these. Hiring Sales managers...If a rep with amazing quota attainment numbers doesn't show these...run. If a rep with bad attainment numbers does...sit up in your chair. - the get your cell phone and email, are super proactive and didn't adhere to the normal "hiring process", they do creative, thoughtful and clever cold outreach through or before the hiring process - resume's with examples, results, measurable outcomes - get past recruiters - ask great discovery questions about the role/company/goals - send follow up recap emails after every meeting - ask decisions about the process, dates, times, people involved, and try to schedule next steps - ask specifically for the interviewers reservations or doubts at every stage - close at every stage and person of the interview..."are you a yes to move me forward in the process? If this were solely your decision, would you hire me?" - come to interviews and conversations with lots of research and knowledge about your company, referencing specific things in question asking or answers...I noticed you just launched xyz...I saw on your website...I read in your case study... - they don't take the first offer, negotiate, ask for more and why - they ask for the job

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Subject lines matter Word count matters Deliverability matters Formatting matters It’s easy to get lost in crafting the perfect email But what matters most? ✅ Whether your message resonates with your prospect (is it relevant) ✅ Are you highlighting a potential problem they should solve now and why it’s better than the status quo 👉🏼Don’t feature dump your prospect in an email I’d rather see a problem solving dump than a feature dump The difference? One focuses on what your solution is and other focuses on what it solves for Which do you think your prospect cares more about? #sdr #sales

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Andy Stanley, author of Next Generation Leader, says that “fear defies logic.” This has been more evident lately in sales because some sales reps are afraid to talk to customers about price increases. “We have to save them money." ”They won’t buy from me if we are more expensive.” “I just lost to someone with a lower price!” All things being equal, yes I’d buy the lower cost item, but why are we allowing things to be equal? Why can’t we take a different approach and talk about how our product or service will help a business grow/scale/be more productive/etc.? Sales reps, overcome your fear this week and teach to your prospects how you can help them solve a problem they didn’t know they had, versus being a rep that says “I can save you money.” #mondaymotivation #overcomingfear #salesprofessional

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Send your SDR’s to events. This past week Brittany Moore and I got to attend a healthcare event in Dallas. We got to have a ton of in depth conversations with our ICP all day long and learned ALOT. SDR’s kick ass at events because: 1. They will talk to anyone, not just their specific accounts. Brittany doesn’t care if it’s not her account she just wants to generate leads. 2. They are proactive at initiating conversations, especially if you are not a household name..some people may not just stop by so you need to engage them. 3. They know enough to have in depth conversations but also keep it high level where it makes sense to set up follow up calls. 4. They are organized at capturing notes from these conversations. 5. They are great at following up with these leads. If you’re not sending at least 1 SDR to each in person event your missing out.

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Dear Salesperson, VERY few people actually have a consultative sales process. But everyone believes they do. What most people practice is this: A **conversion** process with a consultative style. Hear me out. - You know how to ask good questions - You know how to let the prospect do much of the talking - You identify what problem they want solved - You ask why that matters The catch is: Your line of questioning conveniently leads the prospect to your product or service. What this misses: The directional vision of the leader you’re working with. You can’t truly consult with someone if you don’t have a deep, clear understanding of what they’re trying to accomplish. Here’s how to make the shift: Bring out all the viable options that could resolve the issue at hand. Earnestly evaluate each. Discuss with them: - Doing nothing, leaving the problem alone - Using your competition  - Going an alternative path that doesn’t involve someone like you  - Using your company Run hard after the truth. Bring some subject matter expertise. Offer some real world stories that illustrate each of the above paths and get their feedback. Help people make good decisions. And here’s the great news: If you know who (the client) you’re looking for really is and what they actually care about... ...and work at a solid company... ...you won’t have anything to worry about. Lean hard into all the alternatives. Do it confidently. No one else will, and you'll help support some great decision making. ---- PS - Go Vols. And if anyone knows the guy in the background posing with me and Bob Kesling, please tag him in a comment.

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Can you share how the comp plan works? Specifically how you came up with the OTE number, what I would need to do in order to hit it and what % of the team hit those numbers? We can just figure all of that out later. It’s too early in the process to focus on compensation. So you FINALLY got on a meeting with a top 5% A+ sales candidate. You have been waiting for this moment. But you weren’t prepared for their questions. You are used to rapid fire questions for most of the meeting and you have never had anyone ask these types of questions on a first call. With those two sentences, you just lost the candidate for good. They won’t be back. But don’t worry, C talent won’t ask those questions. If you want to go back to hiring C talent, it’s easier, you just have to do it much more often. Or you can properly prepare for A+ talent and recognize that having the ability to ask uncomfortable questions early and always is a super power of A+ sales talent. Just over a year ago we had a very similar conversation with a client. They were at $1.5M ARR and the CEO was the only salesperson. Last week we had a meeting with them for some new openings they are having us work on. When we asked what the new ARR was they told us it was just under $3M. The CEO had stepped out of sales and the A+ AE was the only one selling. He doubled their ARR in just a year! Just imagine what would have happened if they had said “We can just figure all of that out later. It’s too early in the process to focus on compensation.”

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Cold calls are *not* about selling. Hear me out. As outbound salespeople we speak to our chosen industry experts every day. And while selling products and services is the ultimate goal, there’s so much more to these conversations. The amount I learn daily about manufacturing is worth its weight in gold. Cold calls allow you to: 📞 1. Learn about industry trends 📞 2. Understand the daily challenges in your specialist industry 📞 3. Educate yourself simply through a chat How many other roles give you daily access to true experts? I see sales jobs advertised on here that involve NO cold outreach! In my opinion, everyone from SDRs up to Sales Directors should be cold calling on at the least a weekly basis. If not, everyone is missing out on opportunities to learn and opportunities to sell. Pick up the phone and dial. 🤙 🤙

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Do YOU Fear being a Commodity as an MSP? Are you MSP A, B, or C? MSP A: Not investing in growth for their team. Not truly innovating. Not likely to be you if you follow me. MSP B: Investing in team, tools, and processes. You’re making efficiency gains every year. Now you have a real profit and pricing advantage over MSP A. Is this you? Outlier - MSP C: Comes along and does something entirely different. You no longer have any competition. You win more deals and command greater margin. Want to learn Bob Coppedge's Law? Learn Bob’s Corollary? Sub #MSPMindset to get this episode

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Today, I spun the proverbial wheel and it landed on this article from 2018 which, as we close out the week, the month and the 2nd quarter, is appropriately about closing. The reference points in the article are from 2018 so take it easy on me about pointing out that I got things wrong. The time frame was six years ago! https://lnkd.in/eDS8yVNR #closing #pipeline #salesprocess #salesdata #elitesalespeople #salesexcellence #salesperformance #salesenablement #sales

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Attention Salespeople If you're looking for a job and you see a 100% commission opportunity that is looking for a "superstar" or a "rockstar"... Don't walk RUN the other way!! I laugh at these every time I see them As if the only thing that is missing from growing revenue is work ethic and running a salesperson into the ground These types of companies are rarely prepared with the kind of sales enablement that is required They rarely understand that there are important aspects of their business that need to be put in place before they can (perverbially) beat a salesperson into an early grave There is often a lot of turnover and little care for the employees or the customers Instead look for companies who understand this... Consistent and predictable growth demands focus on a number of structural efforts that dramatically raise the odds of success There is not a silver bullet solution But there is a framework 1. Dream BIG!! 2. Find a Problem & Solve It 3. Be an Anomaly 4. Create Fans, not Targets 5. Preach Teach & Celebrate 6. Grow Your Tribe 7. Become a Media Company 8. Be a Systems Thinker 9. Measure the Right Stuff 10. Hire Believers BONUS: Client Success Trumps Everything Beneath each of these tenets is an important set of tasks to achieve your dreams Sadly folks often do not realize these necessities for long term success So they never know to execute them in the first place or they abandon them as they evolve and (organizationally) forget This strategy framework energizes me every day and I love to help good people PS - Notice that "hiring" is last on the list. It is last for a reason. Dream BIG! Chuck

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🎓 Come ready to learn or don't come at all! 📈 I hear it all the time... - MSP Sales is hard. - My clients don't want to come to my QBR. - I upsold my best client to $300/seat and now they want to leave. What if I told you that you're doing it wrong? And the good news is that Empath has a solution for problems like these. We call them AMAs. It's when we bring experts in to talk about your biggest problems... and tomorrow I'll be joining you to talk about your sales and account management struggles - because getting it right is easier than you think. Register to join the call here: https://hubs.la/Q02C703z0 #SalesSkills #AccountManagement #TeamGrowth #EmpathLearning

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🚀 PCR is the Way to Win in SMB Sales in 2024 🚀 Pre-Call Research (PCR) – it’s not groundbreaking, and you might be thinking, "I already know this." But here’s the thing: the basics are often forgotten. 🧠 PCR is so obvious that it gets overlooked. Think about it – how many of us skip the thank-you email after an interview because it’s such a given (don't do this btw)? The same happens with PCR. Here’s why PCR matters: 1️⃣ Stand Out from the Competition: In SMB sales, you're likely up against other sellers. PCR is a simple step that can dramatically increase your chances of closing the deal. Why leave it to chance since this is in your control as the seller? 2️⃣ Boost Your Confidence: Walking into a meeting with a clear hypothesis on "why they should buy" and "why they might not" improves your approach. Confidence is key, and PCR gives you that edge. We like to have reps do PCR in groups so they can redline each others hypothesis and get help from teammates who have seen similar situations 3️⃣ Master the Unpredictable SMB Day: In SMB, no two days are the same. One minute you’re on a customer support call, the next you’re in a hot handoff since this is the only time the customer could meet. Sometimes, if you're SO lucky, your previous meeting runs 90 minutes long because the customer needed their daughter to help them log into the Google Hangout and you played IT only to have them owner say they were selling the restaurant and moving to Reno by end of week (that got too real but gotta love restaurant owners❤️) 🏃‍♂️With solid PCR, you can control the call, even when you’ve just sprinted to join the meeting. 🏃‍♂️ 💡 Think of PCR as your safety net in unpredictable situations. It’s the preparation that lets you slow down, focus, and deliver value, even when the day gets chaotic. So, the next time you’re tempted to skip PCR, remember this: prioritize PCR. Your customers (and future self) will thank you. 🤝

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One of the biggest mistakes in selling is when organizations jump straight into pitching (or posting) what they offer without first taking the time to understand the customer they’re serving. This approach often leads to misaligned solutions and missed opportunities. Instead, the focus should be on deeply understanding the customer's pain points and then positioning your offering as the strategic solution. Research and Understand the Customer's Problems: Start by digging deep into your customer’s industry and specific challenges. Create a list of ALL their pain points, even the ones you can't solve. Know them! Frame the Problem Accurately: Create problem statements that mirror the real issues your customers are facing. These should resonate with their experience and show that you understand their business and pain points. Tailor Your Solution to the Problem: Instead of a generic pitch, align your service offerings to the specific problems you've identified. You can use real examples or case studies to illustrate how your solutions have worked for others. Communicate with Precision: Craft messaging that speaks directly to the customer's needs. Highlight the strategic value of your solution, positioning it as essential for overcoming their specific challenges. Engage and Educate: Develop content that not only markets your solution but also educates the customer on the problems they face and how they can be resolved. This positions you as a trusted advisor, not just a vendor. Over the next few weeks, I'll be writing how you can use AI to help with this process and create a process you can rinse and repeat. If you see I'm missing a step, let me know and I'll get it added.

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Less is more Sometimes we have a tendency to overexplain Some of the best emails I’ve sent out were 1 line: ex: John, have you given up looking at the opportunity with COMPANY NAME? If your prospect hasn’t been answering you for a while, they’re likely bogged down with other priorities. Do you really want to send them another long email? It’ll be viewed as a chore to read Too long didn’t read (TLDR) 🙅‍♂️ Be concise and don’t beat around the bush🌳 #SDR #sales #email

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This really resonates with me. understanding the broader industry trends and potential disruptions can significantly differentiate us from the competition. It's about being the strategic partner that execs can rely on! #SalesTips #ExecutiveInsights #ValueSelling #ProactiveApproach #StrategicSelling

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Most sales people who try cold calling are unsuccessful - fact Messaging is a key part of being successful with cold calling - fact Most sales people are equipped with bad messaging - my opinion It’s like using bad tires and expecting to win a nascar race. Bad messaging looks like this: -We are the best in this category. -We have 10 megatons of data or any quantity of anything. -CROs come to us when they need help with growth. -What’s top of mind for you in 2025? If companies want to be successful with cold calling they need to bring their A game with every aspect. That begins with messaging. Did you like the messaging they gave you? #sales #coldcalling #messaging

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Salespeople! Never just answer a question. You first have to get their attention You first have to position or frame the prospect to stop and listen to what you say next. “Good question” “I’m glad you asked” Etc… Will increase your impact on the sales call. Go get em! #sales #coach

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Sales hacks and persuasive gimmicks? That ship has sailed. In today's world, people crave authenticity. They're not looking for another sales pitch – they're searching for someone who genuinely cares. Before you step into any conversation, remember this: your prospect has problems, even pains, that need addressing. Becoming a master communicator isn't about the perfect pitch. It's about understanding human nature, hearing the unspoken needs, and demonstrating genuine concern. Here's a challenge: Forget selling, start serving. Let's commit to this! Starting today, let's tune out the noise and focus on what truly matters. How are you choosing to listen more deeply today?

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Sellers who sell selling software end up selling us all on sales ideas to sell their sales services ….aye aye aye Much of the time, the goal of the consultant, fractional or coach is to convince us of things that are only partially true Its so obvious, however, social media allows for the masquerad(e(ity?)) What I have learned from 6 years of closing business in cyber security is that every sales process works. Every technique works. Every style works. All messaging (categorically) works. It’s just a matter of commitment and time. If you’ve ever been a buyer you know exactly how much complication goes into these decisions So chill

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