Guest: Jen Abel - Co-founder of JJELLYFISH and GM of Enterprise at State Affairs. Jen is renowned for her expertise in helping early-stage founders scale their sales efforts, particularly in the enterprise sector. Key Takeaways: Target Tier One Logos Early: Contrary to popular belief, large companies like Walmart and Tesla are often early adopters and can provide valuable feedback and credibility. Price for Enterprise: Aim for an initial deal size of $75K to $150K to ensure executive buy-in and avoid being pigeonholed into lower pricing tiers that can hinder future growth. Vision Casting Over Problem Solving: Sell the future potential and alpha your product offers rather than just solving a current problem. This approach resonates more with executives. Design Partners: Use them to guide product development but maintain a clear vision to avoid being pulled in unproductive directions. Sales as an Art: Enterprise sales require creativity and relationship-building, often involving bespoke deal crafting and co-authoring agreements with clients. Topics Covered: Enterprise sales strategy, pricing models, vision casting, design partners, creative sales techniques, outbound sales tactics, hiring salespeople, leveraging services to enter enterprises.
Guest: Jen Abel - Co-founder of JJELLYFISH. Jen is an expert in helping early-stage founders with sales, focusing on founder-led sales and early customer discovery. She has a strong background in enterprise sales and is passionate about guiding founders from zero to one in their sales journey. Key Takeaways: Founder-Led Sales: Founders should lead sales initially to leverage their vision and insights, which are crucial for aligning with market needs and refining the product. Effective Outreach: Use concise, relevant, and counterintuitive messaging to capture attention. Focus on the problem rather than the solution to engage potential customers. Qualifying Leads: Proper qualification is crucial. Identify the right prospects and ensure your messaging resonates with their specific problems. Sales Process: Understand the buyer's journey and adapt your approach. In enterprise sales, managing procurement and understanding the buying process is key. Vulnerability and Learning: Be open about your stage and use early sales conversations to learn and refine your product-market fit, rather than just pushing for revenue. Topics Covered: Founder-led sales, sales process, enterprise sales, qualifying leads, outreach strategies, procurement, product-market fit, sales learning, customer engagement.
“Founder led sales is not about revenue on day one. It is about learning as fast as humanly possible to get to that pulse, so that you can earn the right to sell.”
“Sales is supposed to feel fun for the buyer. They should be like, this feels fun. This person's invigorating.”
“Trust is the number one currency in sales. If you are a trusted salesperson, people will recommend you all day and every day.”
“You need to vision cast, you need to sell to a gap, don't sell to a problem.”
“The best clients are not going to do that to you. If they're sitting there nickel-and-diming you, they're not fully bought in on what you're selling them.”
