Sean Grealy 💰🪓’s Post

Building Products in Startups: Lesson #2 As entrepreneurs, we often gravitate towards what we naturally excel at or enjoy. Not everyone is a born salesperson, but until you've heard "NO" enough times, you haven't really tested your product and your own resiliency. Resiliency is especially important when you are prospecting for potential clients. In short: EMBRACE THE "NO" TO FIND THE "YES" — AND NEVER STOP SELLING YOUR PRODUCT. Building a startup also means pushing boundaries. As founders, many of us aren’t trained sales professionals, but here's the truth: selling is a muscle you need to exercise regularly. Each "no" is an opportunity to understand your market better, refine your pitch, and find your path to "yes." Here are some additional observations to date: Learn to Love Objections. The tough questions from potential clients are golden opportunities. They force you to think critically and refine your product's value proposition. If you only hear praise, it's time to dig deeper.  Praise makes me nervous! Stay in Sales Mode. No matter who joins your team, founders should remain close to customers and drive top-line sales. Relying solely on others to sell your product can be risky. Keep Iterating on Your Sales Pitch. Don’t settle for a pitch that works once. Iterate, adapt, and evolve.  Don’t Delegate. You may be tempted to delegate sales to a 3rd party who has “access” and “special sauce” - do it yourself at first. Refine Your Ideal Customer Profile & Buyer Persona. Do this until you hit on a conversion rate within the accepted range for your industry segment. By the way, even if you dream of a product that sells itself (and that should be the goal), the reality is, few products do. 🤷♂️ Whether you're a natural salesperson or not, selling is a fundamental skill in the startup world. What sales challenges and lessons can you share? Happy Selling! 🚀 #StartupLife #StartupLessons #Sales #CoffeeIsForClosers 

If you’re not comfortable with leading on sales, forget being a founder Especially in the early stages In the first 18 months at Connectd, I was there alongside the sales team speaking to as many customers as I could For a good chunk of the week too. A study by HubSpot found that nearly half of high-growth tech companies were led by their founders in initial sales efforts Customers, investors, prospects - people will feel your passion and belief in your product And this energy is highly contagious That personalised communication goes a long way in building trust and securing those initial sales  The reality is, if you can’t sell to your target market, how are you going to convince investors that you can scale this business? How will you attract top talent and show them your startup is the next best thing? Would you agree? Let me know your thoughts below👇🏻 #Founders #Startups

Last week a couple of young startup founders asked my opinion on how they should split their time between sales and operations. My proposal to them: 100 - 0 % 𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘵'𝘴 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘵. 𝘉𝘰𝘵𝘩 𝘰𝘧 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘨𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘢𝘭𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘤𝘶𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘳𝘴. Any business exists primarily to serve its customers. In exchange for this service, customers usually pay the business some money. In the very beginning of starting your company, you will be faced with a number of non-commercial issues: - Structure - Legal - Funding - Personnel And you may be drawn into trying to address each one of them. Leaving behind: - Talking to customers - Closing deals - Listening to the market As I often advise young founders: You attract what you put your focus on. If you focus on the market, the customers will come. 𝘉𝘢𝘤𝘬 𝘵𝘰 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘨 𝘧𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘴.... After 30 minutes of conversation, we started talking and focusing on their market, their customers, etc. We identified a number of opportunities and prospects that otherwise would have remained hidden, such as: → Lead generation mechanisms → How they could improve their conversion rates → Their service absorption levels → Key sales metrics they must track → How to handle overbooking When you have an overselling problem, you can start solving other types of problems. → 𝗞𝗲𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗰𝗹𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻: When setting up a company, it is very important to choose the problems to be solved in the first place. What troubled you last week? Feel free to drop a comment sharing your thoughts, and if you've found the content valuable, give it a thumbs up! 👍 #businesscoaching #startup #founders

Six months ago, we launched Attained. Here is what happened next: First, a wave of support... Nathaniel Rottenberg, Tyler McIntosh and I were blown away by the messages and goodwill we felt as we began this venture. We wanted Attained to be something unique in a market full of fractional leaders and sales advisors - a unified team who had built together before providing our collective experience and frameworks to fellow founders and revenue leaders. The support from our networks and the immediate interest from potential clients was a shot of adrenaline. Once the dust settled, the real work began... Creating and re-creating marketing assets, refining how we delivered our services, finding our voice on LinkedIn, establishing our internal operations etc etc etc. I even made our original website which is... not my calling. Thank goodness for Dan Ioanitescu who helped us re-launch this month. We felt (and feel) the strain and thrill of being founders. At the end of the day, it is all on us, and tomorrow is not guaranteed. Then, there was experimentation... We were fortunate to surpass our internal goals and assemble a dozen excellent clients within a few months, but learned quickly that we had to be adaptable for each unique circumstance. Are we moving up-market? Are we doubling-down on outbound? Do we have untapped expansion opportunities? Our early work was a mix of coaching and strategic projects. We found that clients were looking for objective partners they could trust, and a fast method of identifying GTM adjustments that could make a real difference. This led us to develop our sales engine assessment - a unique framework designed to highlight opportunities and prioritized actions to accelerate growth. Think of it like an actionable GTM diagnostic report. So what's next? Startups evolve and we are no different. There are big things happening at Attained, and for me personally, that I'm excited to share soon. Whether you've worked with us, provided feedback, made an intro, 'liked' a post, or anything in between - thank you!

Being in a startup and running deals when nobody knows who you are and you have MUCH bigger competition....is really hard. I know, because I've been there. People buy the 'bigger name' often just for that reason. Taking a chance on the small scrappy startup is a much bigger risk. The challenge is blown up even further if you are a Founder or somebody with not much sales experience. Thats why tomorrow at 11:00am UK time, I'll be running a webinar in partnership with Anna Gordon at HubSpot For Startups, on: 'Nailing the Discovery Call: How to Convert Prospects into People Who Want to Buy' On this webinar I will : - Share the BIGGEST reason prospects don't want to speak with you after your discovery call. (Lessons learnt from listening to thousands of discovery calls) - Highlight the 4 killer questions you need to get answers for on your discovery call to help move prospects from passive leads, to people who want to buy -Use REAL clips from discovery calls to show how to get these answers. - Use a tactical framework to get prospects bought in to choosing YOU versus your bigger more well known competitor. On top of this, both MySalesCoach and Hubspot will be giving some juicy give aways to those who register and show up. If you are a Founder or selling in an early stage business, then this webinar will be the most tactical webinar you will attend this year aimed at helping you close more deals. Sign up here: https://lnkd.in/ePQD6QVS

🌱 What drives startup growth at different stages? Is it 💼 a relentless focus on sales, 🚀 rapid user acquisition, or 🎯 a product so good it sells itself? The truth is, growth doesn’t follow a single formula—it evolves. Startups often navigate through three distinct stages, each requiring a shift in mindset and strategy to thrive. Curious about these stages and how to figure out where your startup stands? 🤔 Sofie break it all down for us—check it out below 📖✨

Discover why your first call might be your last. Imagine making a single call that opens the door to a lucrative relationship with a top-tier U.S. enterprise. That’s the essence of a transformational business strategy—making each interaction count. In my journey helping tech startups from around the globe navigate the U.S. market, I've found that the first call is often where the magic happens. But it’s also where most falter. Here’s why your first call might be your last if you don’t get it right: 1. **Lack of Genuine Understanding**: The initial call sets the tone for the entire relationship. You’ve got one shot to demonstrate your value. Fail to impress, and you may never get a second chance. 2. **Know the Real Pain Points**: It’s crucial to deeply understand the challenges your potential clients face. Without this understanding, your pitch will fall flat. Make it about them, not you. Quantify and qualify again and again. 3. **Clarity and Conciseness**: VPs, decision-makers and especially CXOs don’t have time to waste. Get to the point quickly. Explain how your solution addresses their issues in a succinct, compelling manner. Ideally, 2 minutes. 4. **Building Trust**: Establishing credibility from the get-go is not essential, it's everything! Share closely tied success/use cases, and above all, DO NOT oversell. Authenticity wins over hype. 5. **Strategic Follow-Up**: The first call is just the beginning. A thoughtful follow-up can turn an initial interest into a committed deal. Be persistent, respectful and provide a "provocative point of view." POVs sell! As a 3X founder and growth entrepreneur, I've seen how mastering these elements can transform a single call into a gateway for a $1-3M deal. In my work with tech startups (India, EMEA, the U.S.,) these principles have consistently reversed potential rejections into closed business. With our U.S. GTM Growth Workshop, we dive deep into these plus a dozen other strategies, so founders have the tools to make every discovery count. TAKEAWAY From identifying ICPs to refining value propositions, we lay the groundwork for winning deals from accessing to closing with large U.S. companies. Remember, it’s not just about making a call—it’s about making the right call. And that can make all the difference. What's your point of view? — 👋 I'm Ed, CEO & Founder @ revenueaccelerators. 🔔 Hit "Follow" for more on U.S. sales & wins.

Looking to implement a sales process or improve your startup's sales? You may just find the answer in our new sales playbook below! 📖🔥 The Ultimate Startup Sales Playbook For Founders https://lnkd.in/e6Yy4dTm #startups #sales #salesprocess #marketing #founderledsales #founders #entrepreneurship

#Founders, when it comes to driving #growth, it’s not just about one thing—it’s about excelling at every step of your revenue journey. 📈 At Triple & Co, we act as your CRO by focusing on three core pillars that ensure your startup doesn’t just grow—it triples its revenue: 💡 CMO as a Service With our tailored marketing strategies, we bring the experience of a full-fledged CMO, crafting campaigns that drive brand awareness and open the door to the new opportunities you are looking for. 🚀 Developing your sales engine We don’t stop at marketing. We work hand-in-hand with your team to build and refine your sales engine from the ground up. 🤝 Optimizing your customer success Revenue doesn’t end at closing a deal. We develop your customer success strategy to cultivate long-term relationships, retention, and growth - and most importantly, satisfied customers. At Triple & Co, we bring decades of experience, a hands-on approach, and a whole lot of energy to every partnership. Acting as your CRO, we’re here to roll up our sleeves, work with your team, and accelerate your revenue growth from every angle. Ready to take your startup to the next level? 🚀 Let’s make it happen together! 🔗 Follow Triple & Co - Powering Growth with Lihi Pinto for more insights on how we help startups thrive. #CMOService #CRO #SalesEngine #CustomerSuccess #RevenueGrowth #Startups #TripleAndCo 

One of the biggest mistake startups make. Business is profitable. You make good money if you dial in systems. But one of the biggest reason why startups fail is that they want to convert every lead they find. Let’s be realistic, It just doesn’t happen. - Some leads convert immediately - Some convert later - Some don’t There is no formula to crack this but there is a framework that I use. Here it is: 1. Find ideal ICPs on LinkedIn 2. Send them a connection request 3. Start a conversation. Get to know them 4. Appreciate them for what they do in their space. 5. Stay resilient. Following up will help. Keeping up and up and up Sales is more challenging than ever before. We have to build organic systems and dial them in to generate revenue. But it’s not impossible. To execute this strategy, you need a solid VA. An outreach specialist will help you out in: 1. Scouting for leads on LinkedIn 2. Sending DMs to your ICPs 3. Setting appointments That’s how you automate sales. 📍Thanks for reading! If you liked this post: 1. Repost ♻️ it to help others! 2. Follow me for daily tips. 3. DM me if you want to BUILD your Personal Brand on LinkedIn/X. 🚀 How do you identify your ideal customer profile? Let’s chat. #Startups #Sales #Automation #Business #Linkedin