The document provides tips for building an effective sales team and sales structure for a startup. It emphasizes building trust and credibility, using LinkedIn to find candidates, hiring unconventionally by focusing on track records and networks. It also stresses standardizing processes like sales scripts and CRM tools, implementing goals and analytics to monitor performance, and compensating salespeople with a balanced salary and variable pay tied to goals.

1. STARTUP
SALESBEN RUSCHIN | WEAREDEVELOPERS

3. SKILLS

4. Skills
• Build relationships
• Persistence
• Clarity – one sentence!
• Opportunism
• Serendipity
• Trust & credibility

5. Trust & Credibility

6. Trust & Credibility

7. Trust & Credibility

8. Trust & Credibility

9. Buzz is essential!

11. LinkedIN is your friend!

13. Hiring: Be Unconventional!

14. Hiring your sales team
• Define your target group of candidates:
• What is your criteria? (industry, years of experience…)
• Track record of continuous over-achievement
• “Hunters” have a special set of skills
• Where can you poach the best sales people – which companies?
• Approach experienced sales managers directly
• Actively communicate the target salary, bonus scheme, benefits
• Build up a strong network of sales people
• Stay in touch with those who decline
• Job interview: Role-play!

15. Leading your sales team
• Lead by example
• You have to be the best sales rep in the team
• Empower your sales team
• Provide the tools, support and seniority where needed
• Monitor continuously
• Ensure you are reaching the numbers (e.g. calls per day)
• Ongoing adjustments to the sales process are normal
• Setup a dashboard with real-time info (# of calls, leads, emails)
• Celebrate every success, even if it’s a small one

16. STRUCTURE

17. Sales Structure
• Standardization
• Sales script, sales email templates, onboarding of new sales reps
• Knowledge DB: Product info, rules, pricing, updates, email templates…
• Sales tools
• CRM & Sales Automation (e.g. Pipedrive, Hubspot, Salesforce…)
• B2B Marketing (automation, newsletter, SoMe, etc.)
• Outreach tools: LinkedIN Sales Navigator, Prospect.io
• Meetings
• Monday kick-off, Friday review, weekly 1:1 with each sales rep
• Alignment meetings for product & sales teams

22. Sales Analytics

23. Structure
• Implement OKRs & quarterly sales goals
• Calculate & define the required behaviors
• Revenue target
• Average deal size?
• Conversion rate of outreaches to deals closed?
• Number of outreaches per quarter, month, week and day!
• Setup a dashboard to monitor the daily performance of your team
• How can you increase your conversion rate & deal size?
• Better sales material? Better sales website? Better B2B marketing? More PR?
• How big is your market? Can you increase the size of your market?

24. COMPENSATION

25. Compensation
• Easy to understand
• Fixed base salary
• Variable compensation
• Steers team behaviors
• Aligned to business goals
• No cap
• Attach variable pay
to quarterly goals
• Avoid push & pull!

26. Skills
Structure
Compensation
Sales Process
(Behavior)
Sales Outcome
Buyer BehaviorTrain & Supervise
Desired Outcome
- More Leads
- More Sales
- More Information
Source: Doug J. Chung, “Sales Strategy Framework”, Harvard Business School, 2019
Sales Strategy Framework

27. THANKSBEN RUSCHIN | ADD ME ON LINKEDIN!