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The Sales Acceleration Formula: Using Data, Technology, and Inbound Selling to go from $0 to $100 Million
Use data, technology, and inbound selling to build a remarkable team and accelerate sales The Sales Acceleration Formula provides a scalable, predictable approach to growing revenue and building a winning sales team. Everyone wants to build the next $100 million business and author Mark Roberge has actually done it using a unique methodology that he shares with his readers. As an MIT alum with an engineering background, Roberge challenged the conventional methods of scaling sales utilizing the metrics-driven, process-oriented lens through which he was trained to see the world. In this book, he reveals his formulas for success. Readers will learn how to apply data, technology, and inbound selling to every aspect of accelerating sales, including hiring, training, managing, and generating demand.
As SVP of Worldwide Sales and Services for software company HubSpot, Mark led hundreds of his employees to the acquisition and retention of the company's first 10,000 customers across more than 60 countries. This book outlines his approach and provides an action plan for others to replicate his success, including the following key
Hire the same successful salesperson every time — The Sales Hiring Formula Train every salesperson in the same manner — The Sales Training Formula Hold salespeople accountable to the same sales process — The Sales Management Formula Provide salespeople with the same quality and quantity of leads every month — The Demand Generation Formula Leverage technology to enable better buying for customers and faster selling for salespeople Business owners, sales executives, and investors are all looking to turn their brilliant ideas into the next $100 million revenue business. Often, the biggest challenge they face is the task of scaling sales. They crave a blueprint for success, but fail to find it because sales has traditionally been referred to as an art form, rather than a science. You can't major in sales in college. Many people question whether sales can even be taught. Executives and entrepreneurs are often left feeling helpless and hopeless.
The Sales Acceleration Formula completely alters this paradigm. In today's digital world, in which every action is logged and masses of data sit at our fingertips, building a sales team no longer needs to be an art form. There is a process. Sales can be predictable.
A formula does exist.
As SVP of Worldwide Sales and Services for software company HubSpot, Mark led hundreds of his employees to the acquisition and retention of the company's first 10,000 customers across more than 60 countries. This book outlines his approach and provides an action plan for others to replicate his success, including the following key
Hire the same successful salesperson every time — The Sales Hiring Formula Train every salesperson in the same manner — The Sales Training Formula Hold salespeople accountable to the same sales process — The Sales Management Formula Provide salespeople with the same quality and quantity of leads every month — The Demand Generation Formula Leverage technology to enable better buying for customers and faster selling for salespeople Business owners, sales executives, and investors are all looking to turn their brilliant ideas into the next $100 million revenue business. Often, the biggest challenge they face is the task of scaling sales. They crave a blueprint for success, but fail to find it because sales has traditionally been referred to as an art form, rather than a science. You can't major in sales in college. Many people question whether sales can even be taught. Executives and entrepreneurs are often left feeling helpless and hopeless.
The Sales Acceleration Formula completely alters this paradigm. In today's digital world, in which every action is logged and masses of data sit at our fingertips, building a sales team no longer needs to be an art form. There is a process. Sales can be predictable.
A formula does exist.
217 pages, Kindle Edition
First published February 3, 2015
847 people are currently reading
6942 people want to read
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March 13, 2015
This is a must read book for any sales organization, specially startups and B2B orgs. If you want to know and understand the science of sales, please read this book by the Sales VP of HubSpot(a marketing automation SaaS solution).
December 30, 2019
Apuntes
-Es importante estandarizar procesos.
-Hay que parecer grande siempre.
-Los vendedores son educadores.
-A la hora de crear estrategias, considerar las fortalezas de cada miembro del equipo.
-Mejores atributos para cerrar un trato: inteligencia, empatía, pasión y curiosidad.
Resumen por capítulos (inglés):
Part I: The Sales Hiring Formula
Chapter 1: Uncovering the Characteristics of a Successful Salesperson
World-class sales hiring is the biggest driver of sales success.
The ideal sales hiring formula is different for every company, but the process to engineer the formula is the same.
Statistics suggest salespeople who are intelligent and helpful, rather than aggressive and high-pressure, are most successful with today's empowered buyer.
Chapter 2: Five Trait Great Salespeople Have and How to Interview for Them
Every buyer context should have a unique sales hiring formula. For HubSpot's buyer context, there were five criteria that correlated most strongly with sales success. These criteria are probably components of your ideal hiring formula, especially if you are operating in a rapidly evolving market. The five criteria are:
Coachability: The ability to absorb and apply coaching.
Curiosity: The ability to understand a potential customer's context through effective questioning and listening.
Prior success: A history of top performance or remarkable achievement.
Intelligence: The ability to learn complex concepts quickly and communicate those concepts in an easy-to-understand manner.
Work ethic: Proactively pursuing the company mission with a high degree of energy and daily activity.
Chapter 3: Finding Top-Performing Salespeople
Build a Recruiting Agency within Your Company
Find Quality Passive Sales Candidates on Linkedin
Find Quality Passive Sales Candidates through Your Team: The “Forced Referral”
Understand the Sales Talent Pool in Your Area
Great salespeople never need to apply for a job. Finding great salespeople requires a passive recruiting strategy.
Don't hire a recruiting agency. Don't build a corporate recruiting team. Build a recruiting agency within your corporation.
Searches on LinkedIn and the forced referral are great sources for quality passive sales talent.
Chapter 4: The Ideal First Sales Hire
When faced with the first sales hire decision, many founders put the most weight on senior leadership experience and industry domain knowledge. Don't fall into this trap.
The most critical value from your first sales hire comes not from the first customers or revenue she generates, but from her ability to accelerate the company toward product/market fit.
Part II: The Sales Training Formula
Chapter 5: Setting Up a Predictable Sales Training Program
Defining the Three Elements of the Sales Methodology: The Buyer Journey, Sales Process, and Qualifying Matrix
Create a Training Curriculum around the Sales Methodology
Adding Predictability to the Sales Training Formula
Constant Iteration on the Sales Process
Every top-performing salesperson succeeds in her own unique way. Heavy reliance on ride-alongs during the training process jeopardizes a new hire's ability to shine using her unique strengths.
A “ride-along” sales training strategy is neither scalable nor predictable.
Defining the sales methodology enables the sales training formula to be scalable and predictable. The three elements of the sales methodology are the buyer journey, the sales process, and the qualifying matrix.
Exams and certifications add predictability to the sales training formula. They also provide the platform to learn from and iterate on the formula.
Chapter 6: Manufacturing Helpful Salespeople Your Buyer Trust
Train Your Salespeople to Experience the Day-to-Day Job of Potential Customers
Enable Your Salespeople to Build Their Personal Brand with Potential Customers Using Social Media
Buyers should not be asked to understand the salesperson's solution and how it can help with their own goals. Instead, the salesperson should understand the buyers' goals and how his own solution can help achieve those goals.
The best-trained salespeople have experienced the day-to-day jobs of their potential customers.
Modern selling feels less like a seller/buyer relationship and more like a doctor/patient relationship.
Social media presents an opportunity for all salespeople to be perceived as trusted advisors by their buyers. Salespeople should take some time normally spent prospecting and reallocate it to social media participation. The rewards are greater.
Part III: The Sales Management Formula
Chapter 7: Metrics-Driven Sales Coaching
Implementing Coaching Culture throughout the Organization
Creating the Coaching Plan Together with the Salesperson
Examples of Metrics-Driven Skill Diagnosis and Coaching Plans
“Peeling Back the Onion”
Measure the Coaching Success
Effective sales coaching by sales managers is the most important lever to drive sales productivity.
A common sales management mistake is to overwhelm the salesperson with coaching too many skills simultaneously. Pick one skill and focus.
Use metrics to diagnose which skill development area will have the biggest impact on a salesperson's performance. Customize the coaching plan to that skill area. Execute metrics-driven sales coaching.
Chapter 8: Motivation through Sales Compensation Plans and Contests
Criteria to Evaluate a New Commission Plan
Involve the Sales Team in Compensation Plan Design
Promotion Tiers: Removing the Subjectivity from Promotions and Compensation Adjustments
Using Sales Contests to Motivate the Team
The Best Contest I Ever Ran
The sales compensation plan is one of the most effective tools for the CEO and VP of sales to use to drive business strategy.
There is no perfect sales compensation plan. The appropriate sales compensation plan depends on the stage of the business.
Evaluate a sales compensation design through the lens of three factors: Simple. Aligned. Immediate.
Sales contests are an effective tool to drive short-term behaviors and build team culture within the sales organization.
Chapter 9: Developing Sales Leaders - Advantages of a “Promote from Within” Culture
Prerequisites for Leadership Consideration
From the Classroom to the Real World
Common Potholes from New Sales Managers
Focus on leadership skills, rather than general sales management skills, when developing future managers internally.
Develop your leadership bench by using a formal leadership curriculum for your salespeople who earn the opportunity.
Before formal promotion, let qualified leadership candidates hire, train, and manage one new salesperson while still carrying their individual quota responsibilities.
Avoid the common pitfalls of new managers: exhibiting weak time management around coaching, acting as a glorified salesperson, and giving up on new hires too early.
Part IV: The Demand Generation Formula
Chapter 10: Flip the Demand Generation Formula - Get Buyers to Find You
How Can Your Business Rank at the Top of Google?
This Does Not Happen Overnight
Create a Content Production Process
Complement Content Production with Social Media Participation
Long-Tail Theory
Today's buyer is empowered by the Internet. A modern demand generation strategy means less focus on interruptive outbound marketing and more focus on inbound marketing.
Successful inbound marketing comes from two tactics: (1) continual quality content production, and (2) frequent online participation in social media where your target buyers are already conversing.
Do not overburden valuable resources at your company with inbound marketing responsibilities. Hire a journalist. Form a thought leadership committee. Put the two together to create a continuous stream of high-quality content.
Focus your content on “long-tail” topics. They are less competitive and more likely to attract your target buyer.
Chapter 11: Converting Inbound Interest into Revenue
Marketing’s Role in Converting Interest into Revenue
Sales’ Role in Converting Interest into Revenue
Filter the leads. Avoid passing all inbound leads to Sales.
Avoid the lead scoring trap. Use a Buyer Persona/Buyer Journey matrix to decide when to pass leads to Sales.
Sales needs to:
Call low, and then call high. On the call, scrap the generic elevator pitch.
Prioritize prospecting by engagement, not call cadence or alphabetical order.
Consider specializing the team by inbound or outbound.
Chapter 12: Aligning Sales and Marketing - The SMarketing SLA
The Marketing Service Level Agreement (SLA)
The Sales Service Level Agreement (SLA)
The dysfunctional relationship between Sales and Marketing is the kiss of death in a buyer-driven world.
Use the Sales and Marketing SLA to replace the subjective and qualitative aspects of the Sales/Marketing relationship with well-defined targets and quantified goals.
The Marketing SLA provides a framework to put Marketing on a revenue quota, similar to Sales' dynamic.
Sales is accountable to Marketing just like Marketing is accountable to Sales. The Sales SLA defines a series of behaviors expected of the Sales team to ensure each lead is worked effectively.
Send daily reports updating the entire Sales and Marketing team on the Sales and Marketing SLA. Manage the Sales and Marketing machine on a daily basis.
Part V: Technology and Experimentation
Chapter 13: Technology to Sell Better, Faster
Accelerate Lead Sourcing with Technology
Accelerate Sales Prospecting with Technology
Accelerate Lead Engagement with Technology
Automated Reporting with Technology
Historically, sales technology has been built for the sales leader, not the salesperson.
This technology does not work for salespeople. Instead, it creates work for salespeople.
Companies should strive to adopt sales technology that enables better buying for customers and faster selling for salespeople.
Sales technology creates better buying experiences for customers by capturing customer context and making that context readily available to salespeople.
Sales technology enables faster selling for salespeople by eliminating admin tasks and automating data capture.
Sales technology developed for the salesperson in the end benefits the sales manager with more accurate reporting to run the salesforce and the business.
Chapter 14: Running Successful Sales Experiments
Generating Ideas for Experiments
Best Practices of Experiment Execution
Great teams have a core philosophy of continual improvement. A key ingredient to the sales acceleration formula is fostering a culture of experimentation.
A key role of the executive team is to set up a culture around innovation, rather than generate all of the big ideas themselves.
Follow a specific formula for experiment execution so that you can be confident your experiments are efficient and effective.
Chapter 15: HupSpot’s Most Successful Sales Experiments
The HubSpot Value Added Reseller (VAR) Program
GPCT
Chapter 16: Conclusion: Where Do We Go from Here?
“Constantly seek out the latest, best practices; study the sales strategies of the most successful companies.”
“Challenge the norm in the areas in which you are unique. Innovate. Share your learnings. Contribute to the field of sales.”
“The best and brightest students graduating from top universities have, for many years, pursued rewarding careers as investment bankers, management consultants, engineers, entrepreneurs, lawyers, and doctors. Traditionally, they have delegated the sales jobs to their less-accomplished peers.”
“I have seen a renewed interest in sales by top students from the world's best universities.”
“These students see that many Fortune 500 CEOs' careers started in sales and appreciate the importance of sales in almost every aspect of entrepreneurial success. They understand the financial rewards of a high-performing career in sales.”
“Over the years, buyers have migrated from reluctantly engaging with salespeople to proactively avoiding them. Salespeople are notoriously regarded as manipulative, deceitful, and borderline unethical. It is these perceptions, and the behaviors that create them, that will lead to the continued degradation of the sales profession. We need to embrace the early incubation of modern sales tactics in order to change this stigma. Salespeople should be thought of as helpful advisors and respected thought leaders. They should be sought after in times of crisis, just as doctors are, and their diagnoses should be taken seriously.”
“Somebody out there holds the most important element of the sales acceleration formula: improving the underlying global perception of sales itself.”
-Es importante estandarizar procesos.
-Hay que parecer grande siempre.
-Los vendedores son educadores.
-A la hora de crear estrategias, considerar las fortalezas de cada miembro del equipo.
-Mejores atributos para cerrar un trato: inteligencia, empatía, pasión y curiosidad.
Resumen por capítulos (inglés):
Part I: The Sales Hiring Formula
Chapter 1: Uncovering the Characteristics of a Successful Salesperson
World-class sales hiring is the biggest driver of sales success.
The ideal sales hiring formula is different for every company, but the process to engineer the formula is the same.
Statistics suggest salespeople who are intelligent and helpful, rather than aggressive and high-pressure, are most successful with today's empowered buyer.
Chapter 2: Five Trait Great Salespeople Have and How to Interview for Them
Every buyer context should have a unique sales hiring formula. For HubSpot's buyer context, there were five criteria that correlated most strongly with sales success. These criteria are probably components of your ideal hiring formula, especially if you are operating in a rapidly evolving market. The five criteria are:
Coachability: The ability to absorb and apply coaching.
Curiosity: The ability to understand a potential customer's context through effective questioning and listening.
Prior success: A history of top performance or remarkable achievement.
Intelligence: The ability to learn complex concepts quickly and communicate those concepts in an easy-to-understand manner.
Work ethic: Proactively pursuing the company mission with a high degree of energy and daily activity.
Chapter 3: Finding Top-Performing Salespeople
Build a Recruiting Agency within Your Company
Find Quality Passive Sales Candidates on Linkedin
Find Quality Passive Sales Candidates through Your Team: The “Forced Referral”
Understand the Sales Talent Pool in Your Area
Great salespeople never need to apply for a job. Finding great salespeople requires a passive recruiting strategy.
Don't hire a recruiting agency. Don't build a corporate recruiting team. Build a recruiting agency within your corporation.
Searches on LinkedIn and the forced referral are great sources for quality passive sales talent.
Chapter 4: The Ideal First Sales Hire
When faced with the first sales hire decision, many founders put the most weight on senior leadership experience and industry domain knowledge. Don't fall into this trap.
The most critical value from your first sales hire comes not from the first customers or revenue she generates, but from her ability to accelerate the company toward product/market fit.
Part II: The Sales Training Formula
Chapter 5: Setting Up a Predictable Sales Training Program
Defining the Three Elements of the Sales Methodology: The Buyer Journey, Sales Process, and Qualifying Matrix
Create a Training Curriculum around the Sales Methodology
Adding Predictability to the Sales Training Formula
Constant Iteration on the Sales Process
Every top-performing salesperson succeeds in her own unique way. Heavy reliance on ride-alongs during the training process jeopardizes a new hire's ability to shine using her unique strengths.
A “ride-along” sales training strategy is neither scalable nor predictable.
Defining the sales methodology enables the sales training formula to be scalable and predictable. The three elements of the sales methodology are the buyer journey, the sales process, and the qualifying matrix.
Exams and certifications add predictability to the sales training formula. They also provide the platform to learn from and iterate on the formula.
Chapter 6: Manufacturing Helpful Salespeople Your Buyer Trust
Train Your Salespeople to Experience the Day-to-Day Job of Potential Customers
Enable Your Salespeople to Build Their Personal Brand with Potential Customers Using Social Media
Buyers should not be asked to understand the salesperson's solution and how it can help with their own goals. Instead, the salesperson should understand the buyers' goals and how his own solution can help achieve those goals.
The best-trained salespeople have experienced the day-to-day jobs of their potential customers.
Modern selling feels less like a seller/buyer relationship and more like a doctor/patient relationship.
Social media presents an opportunity for all salespeople to be perceived as trusted advisors by their buyers. Salespeople should take some time normally spent prospecting and reallocate it to social media participation. The rewards are greater.
Part III: The Sales Management Formula
Chapter 7: Metrics-Driven Sales Coaching
Implementing Coaching Culture throughout the Organization
Creating the Coaching Plan Together with the Salesperson
Examples of Metrics-Driven Skill Diagnosis and Coaching Plans
“Peeling Back the Onion”
Measure the Coaching Success
Effective sales coaching by sales managers is the most important lever to drive sales productivity.
A common sales management mistake is to overwhelm the salesperson with coaching too many skills simultaneously. Pick one skill and focus.
Use metrics to diagnose which skill development area will have the biggest impact on a salesperson's performance. Customize the coaching plan to that skill area. Execute metrics-driven sales coaching.
Chapter 8: Motivation through Sales Compensation Plans and Contests
Criteria to Evaluate a New Commission Plan
Involve the Sales Team in Compensation Plan Design
Promotion Tiers: Removing the Subjectivity from Promotions and Compensation Adjustments
Using Sales Contests to Motivate the Team
The Best Contest I Ever Ran
The sales compensation plan is one of the most effective tools for the CEO and VP of sales to use to drive business strategy.
There is no perfect sales compensation plan. The appropriate sales compensation plan depends on the stage of the business.
Evaluate a sales compensation design through the lens of three factors: Simple. Aligned. Immediate.
Sales contests are an effective tool to drive short-term behaviors and build team culture within the sales organization.
Chapter 9: Developing Sales Leaders - Advantages of a “Promote from Within” Culture
Prerequisites for Leadership Consideration
From the Classroom to the Real World
Common Potholes from New Sales Managers
Focus on leadership skills, rather than general sales management skills, when developing future managers internally.
Develop your leadership bench by using a formal leadership curriculum for your salespeople who earn the opportunity.
Before formal promotion, let qualified leadership candidates hire, train, and manage one new salesperson while still carrying their individual quota responsibilities.
Avoid the common pitfalls of new managers: exhibiting weak time management around coaching, acting as a glorified salesperson, and giving up on new hires too early.
Part IV: The Demand Generation Formula
Chapter 10: Flip the Demand Generation Formula - Get Buyers to Find You
How Can Your Business Rank at the Top of Google?
This Does Not Happen Overnight
Create a Content Production Process
Complement Content Production with Social Media Participation
Long-Tail Theory
Today's buyer is empowered by the Internet. A modern demand generation strategy means less focus on interruptive outbound marketing and more focus on inbound marketing.
Successful inbound marketing comes from two tactics: (1) continual quality content production, and (2) frequent online participation in social media where your target buyers are already conversing.
Do not overburden valuable resources at your company with inbound marketing responsibilities. Hire a journalist. Form a thought leadership committee. Put the two together to create a continuous stream of high-quality content.
Focus your content on “long-tail” topics. They are less competitive and more likely to attract your target buyer.
Chapter 11: Converting Inbound Interest into Revenue
Marketing’s Role in Converting Interest into Revenue
Sales’ Role in Converting Interest into Revenue
Filter the leads. Avoid passing all inbound leads to Sales.
Avoid the lead scoring trap. Use a Buyer Persona/Buyer Journey matrix to decide when to pass leads to Sales.
Sales needs to:
Call low, and then call high. On the call, scrap the generic elevator pitch.
Prioritize prospecting by engagement, not call cadence or alphabetical order.
Consider specializing the team by inbound or outbound.
Chapter 12: Aligning Sales and Marketing - The SMarketing SLA
The Marketing Service Level Agreement (SLA)
The Sales Service Level Agreement (SLA)
The dysfunctional relationship between Sales and Marketing is the kiss of death in a buyer-driven world.
Use the Sales and Marketing SLA to replace the subjective and qualitative aspects of the Sales/Marketing relationship with well-defined targets and quantified goals.
The Marketing SLA provides a framework to put Marketing on a revenue quota, similar to Sales' dynamic.
Sales is accountable to Marketing just like Marketing is accountable to Sales. The Sales SLA defines a series of behaviors expected of the Sales team to ensure each lead is worked effectively.
Send daily reports updating the entire Sales and Marketing team on the Sales and Marketing SLA. Manage the Sales and Marketing machine on a daily basis.
Part V: Technology and Experimentation
Chapter 13: Technology to Sell Better, Faster
Accelerate Lead Sourcing with Technology
Accelerate Sales Prospecting with Technology
Accelerate Lead Engagement with Technology
Automated Reporting with Technology
Historically, sales technology has been built for the sales leader, not the salesperson.
This technology does not work for salespeople. Instead, it creates work for salespeople.
Companies should strive to adopt sales technology that enables better buying for customers and faster selling for salespeople.
Sales technology creates better buying experiences for customers by capturing customer context and making that context readily available to salespeople.
Sales technology enables faster selling for salespeople by eliminating admin tasks and automating data capture.
Sales technology developed for the salesperson in the end benefits the sales manager with more accurate reporting to run the salesforce and the business.
Chapter 14: Running Successful Sales Experiments
Generating Ideas for Experiments
Best Practices of Experiment Execution
Great teams have a core philosophy of continual improvement. A key ingredient to the sales acceleration formula is fostering a culture of experimentation.
A key role of the executive team is to set up a culture around innovation, rather than generate all of the big ideas themselves.
Follow a specific formula for experiment execution so that you can be confident your experiments are efficient and effective.
Chapter 15: HupSpot’s Most Successful Sales Experiments
The HubSpot Value Added Reseller (VAR) Program
GPCT
Chapter 16: Conclusion: Where Do We Go from Here?
“Constantly seek out the latest, best practices; study the sales strategies of the most successful companies.”
“Challenge the norm in the areas in which you are unique. Innovate. Share your learnings. Contribute to the field of sales.”
“The best and brightest students graduating from top universities have, for many years, pursued rewarding careers as investment bankers, management consultants, engineers, entrepreneurs, lawyers, and doctors. Traditionally, they have delegated the sales jobs to their less-accomplished peers.”
“I have seen a renewed interest in sales by top students from the world's best universities.”
“These students see that many Fortune 500 CEOs' careers started in sales and appreciate the importance of sales in almost every aspect of entrepreneurial success. They understand the financial rewards of a high-performing career in sales.”
“Over the years, buyers have migrated from reluctantly engaging with salespeople to proactively avoiding them. Salespeople are notoriously regarded as manipulative, deceitful, and borderline unethical. It is these perceptions, and the behaviors that create them, that will lead to the continued degradation of the sales profession. We need to embrace the early incubation of modern sales tactics in order to change this stigma. Salespeople should be thought of as helpful advisors and respected thought leaders. They should be sought after in times of crisis, just as doctors are, and their diagnoses should be taken seriously.”
“Somebody out there holds the most important element of the sales acceleration formula: improving the underlying global perception of sales itself.”
November 1, 2019
О ЧЕМ КНИГА:
Одна из лучших книг по продажам, которую я прочитал за последние годы. Автор - основатель компании HubSpot. Видно, что он очень хорошо разобрался в построении В2В продаж. Ну и успех его компании говорит сам за себя. Как говорит Нассим Талеб «Хватит разговоров, просто покажи мне свое портфолио». Здесь портфолио отличное и есть чему поучиться у автора и сразу применить в своих компаниях.
КАКАЯ БЫЛА ЦЕЛЬ ЧТЕНИЯ:
Улучшить систему В2В продаж в моей компании
ГЛАВНЫЕ ВЫВОДЫ:
- Есть 4 столпа усп��шной системы продаж
1. Нанимать всегда одного и того же продажника, соответствующего портрету человека, у которого максимальные шансы добиться успеха в продажах именно в нашей компании.
2. Обуч��ть всех продавцов по одинаковой системе.
3. Контролировать всех продажников на основе одинаковой системы продаж, которую выстроила компания.
4. Давать всем продавцам одинаковое число качественных лидов каждую неделю и месяц.
- Всегда нанимать продавцов на основе оценки их успеха именно в нашей компании. У нас должен быть четкий портрет такого человека.
- Современные продажи больше похожи не на отношения продавец/покупатель, а отношения доктор/пациент. Не покупатель должен понимать, что предлагает ему продавец, а продавец должен понимать цели покупателя и предлагать ему решения.
- Когда директор по продажам помогает продавцу закрыть большую сделку, то он выигрывает битву. Когда он нанимает, обучает и создаёт команду сильных продавцов, он выигрывает войну. Поэтому основная задача руководителя - подобрать команду сильных продавцов, которые могут закрывать сделки без его участия.
- Формат и показатели компенсационного пакета зависят от индустрии в которой работает компания и от ступени на которой находится развитие бизнеса. Не надо копировать чужие системы мотивации.
ЧТО Я БУДУ ПРИМЕНЯТЬ:
- Внедрю систему, где руководитель отдела продаж будет уделять больше времени коучингу своих сотрудников, а не решению технических вопросов.
ЕЩЕ НА ЭТУ ТЕМУ:
Jason Jordan «Cracking The Sales Management Code»
Одна из лучших книг по продажам, которую я прочитал за последние годы. Автор - основатель компании HubSpot. Видно, что он очень хорошо разобрался в построении В2В продаж. Ну и успех его компании говорит сам за себя. Как говорит Нассим Талеб «Хватит разговоров, просто покажи мне свое портфолио». Здесь портфолио отличное и есть чему поучиться у автора и сразу применить в своих компаниях.
КАКАЯ БЫЛА ЦЕЛЬ ЧТЕНИЯ:
Улучшить систему В2В продаж в моей компании
ГЛАВНЫЕ ВЫВОДЫ:
- Есть 4 столпа усп��шной системы продаж
1. Нанимать всегда одного и того же продажника, соответствующего портрету человека, у которого максимальные шансы добиться успеха в продажах именно в нашей компании.
2. Обуч��ть всех продавцов по одинаковой системе.
3. Контролировать всех продажников на основе одинаковой системы продаж, которую выстроила компания.
4. Давать всем продавцам одинаковое число качественных лидов каждую неделю и месяц.
- Всегда нанимать продавцов на основе оценки их успеха именно в нашей компании. У нас должен быть четкий портрет такого человека.
- Современные продажи больше похожи не на отношения продавец/покупатель, а отношения доктор/пациент. Не покупатель должен понимать, что предлагает ему продавец, а продавец должен понимать цели покупателя и предлагать ему решения.
- Когда директор по продажам помогает продавцу закрыть большую сделку, то он выигрывает битву. Когда он нанимает, обучает и создаёт команду сильных продавцов, он выигрывает войну. Поэтому основная задача руководителя - подобрать команду сильных продавцов, которые могут закрывать сделки без его участия.
- Формат и показатели компенсационного пакета зависят от индустрии в которой работает компания и от ступени на которой находится развитие бизнеса. Не надо копировать чужие системы мотивации.
ЧТО Я БУДУ ПРИМЕНЯТЬ:
- Внедрю систему, где руководитель отдела продаж будет уделять больше времени коучингу своих сотрудников, а не решению технических вопросов.
ЕЩЕ НА ЭТУ ТЕМУ:
Jason Jordan «Cracking The Sales Management Code»
July 3, 2023
This is an absolute goldmine of tactics and strategies for future-proof sales teams. Will surely re-read frequently!
February 25, 2020
It's a must read for anyone working in a startup, especially if you are selling SaaS, especially if your line of responsibilities are within generating growth.
Loads of lessons shared from the first few employees at HubSpot, hands-on examples and failed experiments.
Best sales-growth book I have read and definitely a good starting point for anyone just beginning their sales acceleration journey.
Loads of lessons shared from the first few employees at HubSpot, hands-on examples and failed experiments.
Best sales-growth book I have read and definitely a good starting point for anyone just beginning their sales acceleration journey.
August 26, 2024
While this felt like a big sales pitch for Hubspot, I do see that Hubspot *does* walk their talk.
I found the book very structured, easy to follow, and practical with its timely anecdotes and insights to Hubspot's experiments and learnings over the years. "Timely" because I'm currently trying to find ways on how to sync up our marketing with sales! Funnily enough, this book found me at the right time.
I recommend this book to professionals in the Marketing & Sales sphere, especially to the ones currently finding that balance between lead volume and quality. Looking forward to applying my learnings and helping create predictable growth!
I found the book very structured, easy to follow, and practical with its timely anecdotes and insights to Hubspot's experiments and learnings over the years. "Timely" because I'm currently trying to find ways on how to sync up our marketing with sales! Funnily enough, this book found me at the right time.
I recommend this book to professionals in the Marketing & Sales sphere, especially to the ones currently finding that balance between lead volume and quality. Looking forward to applying my learnings and helping create predictable growth!
December 22, 2019
A clear practical guide on how to build a scaling sales organization.
July 18, 2021
Simple and insightful. One of the best sales books I have read
December 24, 2024
El libro lo relata el CRO de HubSpot, primer vendedor de la empresa y cuarto empleado que tuvo la compañía.
Es un libro práctico que describe cómo escalar un equipo exitoso de ventas basándose en data y tecnología.
Mucho enfoque en inbound selling y prospección basada en Tech.
Lectura obligada para todos los que trabajamos en ventas.
Es un libro práctico que describe cómo escalar un equipo exitoso de ventas basándose en data y tecnología.
Mucho enfoque en inbound selling y prospección basada en Tech.
Lectura obligada para todos los que trabajamos en ventas.
April 7, 2015
Good read but above the scope of most small business requirements. A very systemised approach to management which works better at scale than in a more personalised environment of smaller sales teams.
I would have scored it higher had it not been for the over the top sales push towards inbound marketing above all other forms of sales methodology. I understand the author works for hubspot and that should be enough. Definitive sweeping statements about one form of sales vs another frustrate me. There isn't a one size fits all sales model any more than there's a one size fits all business model.
I would have scored it higher had it not been for the over the top sales push towards inbound marketing above all other forms of sales methodology. I understand the author works for hubspot and that should be enough. Definitive sweeping statements about one form of sales vs another frustrate me. There isn't a one size fits all sales model any more than there's a one size fits all business model.
April 25, 2018
One could say this is a sales enineering book: Clear structure on topics of recruiting a sales team, coaching them, lead generation and nurturing the customer relationships, with practical tips on each.
April 2, 2023
A good intro to building a sales function in an organisation. The heavy focus on B2B made a lot of it irrelevant to my world. If it had been similarly focused on B2C, it would probably have resulted in 4 stars.
August 8, 2022
Excelente. Conciso y practico para quien esté armando equipos de ventas.
August 1, 2021
I need to circle back to this book; this is potentially a High Output Management equivalent, but for the sales domain.
(HOM, by the way, is the only management book you ever need to read).
(HOM, by the way, is the only management book you ever need to read).
March 12, 2016
I've been a fan of Inbound marketing and HubSpot for many years but I've always looked at things from the marketing perspective. Reading this from a Sales perspective and seeing Inbound Marketing from a sales perspective is on the one hand duh dude how could you not have seen it, it's obvious and on the other hand completely eye opening. Gonna have to make this a compulsory read for sales and marketing teams from now on for sure!
December 4, 2016
The best book on sales that I've read. Very updated, with plenty of modern examples with real life situations among startups and SaaS business models. The book is also very complete since it draws the foundations for every major aspect of a sales team, going from lead generation, onboarding new employees and data driven management of a sales team and so on.
It could easily be a 6 stars rate.
It could easily be a 6 stars rate.
January 2, 2020
If Hubspot can do one thing better than marketing, it's sales; and in this book, their CSO shares what he's learned over the years. As a result, the book provides a solid guide on how to set up your sales organization, from hiring salespeople, through educating them, to evaluating the success of your team. If you're building a startup, especially a B2B business, this is a highly recommended read!
January 1, 2021
A Bible for every founder, CEO or Head of Sales of a company, whether a startup or a more mature company.
This book is not really addressing sales techniques, but rather how to recruit, manage, motivate and grow a highly effective salesforce
This book is not really addressing sales techniques, but rather how to recruit, manage, motivate and grow a highly effective salesforce
October 26, 2019
Inspired me at the beginning of my sales management career
July 14, 2025
I first encountered this book back in my payments days—while evaluating CRM systems—and even trialed HubSpot’s SaaS offering. When I finally sat down with the English edition, The Sales Acceleration Formula, I found its insights invaluable.
Its author, Mark Roberge, is one of HubSpot’s three co-founders. An MIT-trained engineer by trade, he somehow stepped into the role of VP of Sales for this scrappy startup. Though he “knew nothing” of sales at first, he brought an engineer’s rigor to the task—and in seven years transformed a zero-to-one sales team into a unicorn generating over $100 million in annual revenue.
The book traces HubSpot’s journey from hiring its very first salesperson to solving the complex challenges that arise once you exceed $100 million in ARR. It’s a must-read for any rookie in sales management, built around four core formulas:
1. Hire only those whose success traits mirror your top performers.
2. Train every rep in exactly the same way.
3. Hold each salesperson accountable to the same, well-defined sales process.
4. Deliver each rep the same quantity and quality of leads—month after month.
Yet on a second reading I unearthed lessons far beyond pure sales tactics. Here are a few revelations that struck me anew:
• Marketing vs. Sales. Mark’s elegant distinction:
“Marketing is one-to-many, mass communication of value to your target customers; sales is one-to-one, personalized value matching that culminates in a transaction.”
A perfect peach of a definition—marketing scales, sales personalizes.
• Build an in-house recruiting agency.
“Don’t outsource to headhunters or form an internal recruiting team. Instead, embed a recruiting arm within your company—and measure its performance exactly as you would a sales team.”
Brilliant: focus not on cost-cutting but on solution-finding, then optimize.
• Double down on retention. To incentivize his top quartile of reps, Mark simply doubled their commission: every dollar of recurring revenue once earned $2, now $4. Such boldness!
Never forget: compensation plans steer your business’s destiny.
• The 3×3 buyer-persona matrix. Segment prospects by size—large, medium, small—and by stage—nurture, evaluate, decide. Tailor marketing’s touchpoints accordingly, then pass the right leads at the right moment to sales.
Layered management always pays dividends.
• Hand off high-conversion leads to marketing. If Sales is breezing through certain leads at an unusually high rate, shift them upstream to Marketing’s steady, salaried team—reserving your expensive sales talent for more nuanced opportunities.
Management is a dance of dynamic adjustments, never a one-size-fits-all.
• Embrace the “negative close.”
“Whether a rep leaves three voice mails or a dozen, the final message should carry a hint of urgency—tilted slightly toward the negative.”
A deft use of psychological loss aversion.
• End the Sales vs. Marketing turf war with an SLA.
Defining service-level agreements between departments—this section is razor-sharp in its detail and utterly transformative.
As the saying goes, “Hear the tune once, and you perceive its notes; hear it again, and you become the music itself.” On my second reading, I found myself already dancing to Mark Roberge’s carefully composed score—and I suspect a third encore awaits.
Its author, Mark Roberge, is one of HubSpot’s three co-founders. An MIT-trained engineer by trade, he somehow stepped into the role of VP of Sales for this scrappy startup. Though he “knew nothing” of sales at first, he brought an engineer’s rigor to the task—and in seven years transformed a zero-to-one sales team into a unicorn generating over $100 million in annual revenue.
The book traces HubSpot’s journey from hiring its very first salesperson to solving the complex challenges that arise once you exceed $100 million in ARR. It’s a must-read for any rookie in sales management, built around four core formulas:
1. Hire only those whose success traits mirror your top performers.
2. Train every rep in exactly the same way.
3. Hold each salesperson accountable to the same, well-defined sales process.
4. Deliver each rep the same quantity and quality of leads—month after month.
Yet on a second reading I unearthed lessons far beyond pure sales tactics. Here are a few revelations that struck me anew:
• Marketing vs. Sales. Mark’s elegant distinction:
“Marketing is one-to-many, mass communication of value to your target customers; sales is one-to-one, personalized value matching that culminates in a transaction.”
A perfect peach of a definition—marketing scales, sales personalizes.
• Build an in-house recruiting agency.
“Don’t outsource to headhunters or form an internal recruiting team. Instead, embed a recruiting arm within your company—and measure its performance exactly as you would a sales team.”
Brilliant: focus not on cost-cutting but on solution-finding, then optimize.
• Double down on retention. To incentivize his top quartile of reps, Mark simply doubled their commission: every dollar of recurring revenue once earned $2, now $4. Such boldness!
Never forget: compensation plans steer your business’s destiny.
• The 3×3 buyer-persona matrix. Segment prospects by size—large, medium, small—and by stage—nurture, evaluate, decide. Tailor marketing’s touchpoints accordingly, then pass the right leads at the right moment to sales.
Layered management always pays dividends.
• Hand off high-conversion leads to marketing. If Sales is breezing through certain leads at an unusually high rate, shift them upstream to Marketing’s steady, salaried team—reserving your expensive sales talent for more nuanced opportunities.
Management is a dance of dynamic adjustments, never a one-size-fits-all.
• Embrace the “negative close.”
“Whether a rep leaves three voice mails or a dozen, the final message should carry a hint of urgency—tilted slightly toward the negative.”
A deft use of psychological loss aversion.
• End the Sales vs. Marketing turf war with an SLA.
Defining service-level agreements between departments—this section is razor-sharp in its detail and utterly transformative.
As the saying goes, “Hear the tune once, and you perceive its notes; hear it again, and you become the music itself.” On my second reading, I found myself already dancing to Mark Roberge’s carefully composed score—and I suspect a third encore awaits.
January 29, 2025
Lots of good principles here, from a leader who helped to create the new world of content marketing and inbound selling. Some of the specifics are outdated already (the tech moves so fast!) but the fundamentals are still strong.
Here are some of the notes I took from this book:
Nothing else is more important than doing excellent hiring. If you master everything else, but not this, you will never get great results.
But each company has its own unique formula for who makes a great sales person.
Being aggressive and closing skills were at the bottom of great b2b sales skills. In fact they were negatively correlated. Intelligent and helpful were the highest correlation with success.
Most crucial traits were:
1. Coachability
2. Curiosity
3. Prior success
4. Intelligence
5. Work ethic
One way to check the work ethic of a candidate is to see how quickly they move through the interview process. Are they pushing you to get to completion or are you pushing them?
Great sales people are not looking for a job. They always have somebody trying to pitch a job or keep them in their current job. So you have to come up with a passive strategy.
Many people think the that the first sales hire should be the SVP of sales from a leading company in your industry. Or the top salesperson from that leading company. But neither are ideal. One hasn't sold in a while and is used to slow paced work. The other is lacking leadership experience.
A good first hire is a sales manager. They recently sold and have the management ability to help you build a team. But the best first hire is a recent entrepreneur with sales experience. They have the right mindset, and they're willing to figure things out as they go. You can teach them the industry technical stuff later if needed.
How many times do you call before it's not worth the effort? For small businesses it's five calls. For mid market it's eight. For large enterprise it's 12.
Do you want your marketing team to send in leads in an even, consistent manner. If they flood the sales team with a ton of leads, then they have a hard time taking care of everyone appropriately. Smooth flow is better than lumpy.
So measure in short, frequent intervals to make sure that you don't have big spikes up or down. It doesn't matter if they hit their goal by the end of the month if they did it all in one week it was still bad.
Your sales technologies should reduce the number of steps required for your sales people to do their job. It doesn't matter how fancy it is, if it adds work for them to do, it's keeping them from doing the actual sales.
Here are some of the notes I took from this book:
Nothing else is more important than doing excellent hiring. If you master everything else, but not this, you will never get great results.
But each company has its own unique formula for who makes a great sales person.
Being aggressive and closing skills were at the bottom of great b2b sales skills. In fact they were negatively correlated. Intelligent and helpful were the highest correlation with success.
Most crucial traits were:
1. Coachability
2. Curiosity
3. Prior success
4. Intelligence
5. Work ethic
One way to check the work ethic of a candidate is to see how quickly they move through the interview process. Are they pushing you to get to completion or are you pushing them?
Great sales people are not looking for a job. They always have somebody trying to pitch a job or keep them in their current job. So you have to come up with a passive strategy.
Many people think the that the first sales hire should be the SVP of sales from a leading company in your industry. Or the top salesperson from that leading company. But neither are ideal. One hasn't sold in a while and is used to slow paced work. The other is lacking leadership experience.
A good first hire is a sales manager. They recently sold and have the management ability to help you build a team. But the best first hire is a recent entrepreneur with sales experience. They have the right mindset, and they're willing to figure things out as they go. You can teach them the industry technical stuff later if needed.
How many times do you call before it's not worth the effort? For small businesses it's five calls. For mid market it's eight. For large enterprise it's 12.
Do you want your marketing team to send in leads in an even, consistent manner. If they flood the sales team with a ton of leads, then they have a hard time taking care of everyone appropriately. Smooth flow is better than lumpy.
So measure in short, frequent intervals to make sure that you don't have big spikes up or down. It doesn't matter if they hit their goal by the end of the month if they did it all in one week it was still bad.
Your sales technologies should reduce the number of steps required for your sales people to do their job. It doesn't matter how fancy it is, if it adds work for them to do, it's keeping them from doing the actual sales.
January 13, 2023
"The Sales Acceleration Formula" is a book written by Mark Roberge, the former Chief Revenue Officer of HubSpot. In the book, Mark shares his experience scaling the sales team at HubSpot from $0 to $100 million in revenue. He outlines a formula for sales acceleration, which is a systematic approach to scaling a sales team and increasing revenue.
The formula is divided into three main components: People, Process, and Technology. Mark emphasizes the importance of hiring the right people, providing them with the right training, and setting clear goals to help them reach their full potential. He also highlights the importance of having a well-defined sales process and using technology to automate and optimize it.
The book also covers topics such as lead generation, sales forecasting, and sales management. Mark provides a detailed look into how HubSpot's sales team was able to increase revenue, and includes case studies and examples from other companies to show how the formula can be applied in different industries. Overall, "The Sales Acceleration Formula" is a valuable resource for sales leaders and entrepreneurs looking to scale their sales team and increase revenue.
My top 10 take-aways:
The importance of hiring the right people and providing them with the right training to achieve success in sales.
The need for a well-defined sales process and using technology to automate and optimize it.
The use of data and analytics to make informed decisions about sales strategy and forecasting.
The importance of setting clear goals and metrics to measure performance and progress.
The need to continuously innovate and improve the sales process to stay ahead of the competition.
The use of technology to automate repetitive tasks and allow sales reps to focus on high-value activities.
The value of creating a positive and supportive culture within the sales team.
The importance of lead generation and nurturing leads to increase the quality and quantity of opportunities.
The role of sales managers in developing and leading the sales team.
The need to continuously iterate and improve the sales process in response to market changes and new insights.
The formula is divided into three main components: People, Process, and Technology. Mark emphasizes the importance of hiring the right people, providing them with the right training, and setting clear goals to help them reach their full potential. He also highlights the importance of having a well-defined sales process and using technology to automate and optimize it.
The book also covers topics such as lead generation, sales forecasting, and sales management. Mark provides a detailed look into how HubSpot's sales team was able to increase revenue, and includes case studies and examples from other companies to show how the formula can be applied in different industries. Overall, "The Sales Acceleration Formula" is a valuable resource for sales leaders and entrepreneurs looking to scale their sales team and increase revenue.
My top 10 take-aways:
The importance of hiring the right people and providing them with the right training to achieve success in sales.
The need for a well-defined sales process and using technology to automate and optimize it.
The use of data and analytics to make informed decisions about sales strategy and forecasting.
The importance of setting clear goals and metrics to measure performance and progress.
The need to continuously innovate and improve the sales process to stay ahead of the competition.
The use of technology to automate repetitive tasks and allow sales reps to focus on high-value activities.
The value of creating a positive and supportive culture within the sales team.
The importance of lead generation and nurturing leads to increase the quality and quantity of opportunities.
The role of sales managers in developing and leading the sales team.
The need to continuously iterate and improve the sales process in response to market changes and new insights.
November 30, 2023
1. **Inbound Selling Philosophy:** Roberge introduces the concept of inbound selling, emphasizing the importance of aligning sales strategies with the way modern buyers conduct research and make purchasing decisions.
2. **Data-Driven Sales:** The book highlights the significance of leveraging data in the sales process. Roberge discusses how data analytics can inform sales strategies, improve targeting, and enhance overall performance.
3. **Scalable Customer Acquisition:** Roberge explores the idea of building scalable customer acquisition processes. He discusses how companies can systematize and optimize their sales efforts to efficiently acquire new customers.
4. **Technology Integration:** The book emphasizes the role of technology in sales acceleration. Roberge discusses the integration of technology tools and platforms to streamline sales processes, improve communication, and enhance efficiency.
5. **Sales Team Hiring and Training:** Roberge provides insights into hiring and training sales teams for success. He discusses the importance of recruiting individuals with the right skills and mindset, as well as implementing effective training programs.
6. **Customer-Centric Approach:** The book advocates for a customer-centric approach to sales. Roberge discusses the importance of understanding customer needs, providing value, and building long-term relationships.
7. **Metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):** Roberge emphasizes the use of metrics and KPIs to measure and optimize sales performance. He provides a framework for identifying and tracking the most relevant metrics for a company's specific goals.
8. **Iterative Improvement:** The book encourages a culture of continuous improvement in sales processes. Roberge discusses the value of experimentation, iteration, and learning from both successes and failures.
"The Sales Acceleration Formula" provides a systematic and data-driven approach to building and scaling successful sales operations. Mark Roberge's insights, drawn from his experience as Chief Revenue Officer at HubSpot, offer practical guidance for companies looking to accelerate their sales growth in the modern business landscape.
2. **Data-Driven Sales:** The book highlights the significance of leveraging data in the sales process. Roberge discusses how data analytics can inform sales strategies, improve targeting, and enhance overall performance.
3. **Scalable Customer Acquisition:** Roberge explores the idea of building scalable customer acquisition processes. He discusses how companies can systematize and optimize their sales efforts to efficiently acquire new customers.
4. **Technology Integration:** The book emphasizes the role of technology in sales acceleration. Roberge discusses the integration of technology tools and platforms to streamline sales processes, improve communication, and enhance efficiency.
5. **Sales Team Hiring and Training:** Roberge provides insights into hiring and training sales teams for success. He discusses the importance of recruiting individuals with the right skills and mindset, as well as implementing effective training programs.
6. **Customer-Centric Approach:** The book advocates for a customer-centric approach to sales. Roberge discusses the importance of understanding customer needs, providing value, and building long-term relationships.
7. **Metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs):** Roberge emphasizes the use of metrics and KPIs to measure and optimize sales performance. He provides a framework for identifying and tracking the most relevant metrics for a company's specific goals.
8. **Iterative Improvement:** The book encourages a culture of continuous improvement in sales processes. Roberge discusses the value of experimentation, iteration, and learning from both successes and failures.
"The Sales Acceleration Formula" provides a systematic and data-driven approach to building and scaling successful sales operations. Mark Roberge's insights, drawn from his experience as Chief Revenue Officer at HubSpot, offer practical guidance for companies looking to accelerate their sales growth in the modern business landscape.
February 12, 2023
I find that a lot of educational business books are extremely redundant, offering only a few insightful ideas over the course of hundreds of pages. This book is not like that at all. It is divided into 5 sections, each of which has its own focus as it relates to sales and marketing (everything from the hiring process, to generating demand for your product). There is also a very detailed table of contents at the beginning making it super easy to go back and reference topics later. The figures and examples shown from Hubspot are very helpful, and I finished the book with a much better understanding of how to grow a sales department and market your product effectively through inbound strategies.
The one critique I would have is that I wish there was more time invested in the discussion of each topic as it relates to smaller businesses. Obviously, Hubspot has an enormous sales team, so some of the chapters (particularly in sections 2 and 3 about training and management) are not very applicable to small teams.
This is definitely a book that I would revisit again as our business continues to grow. The most helpful chapters for me (that I plan on revisiting) while growing a sales team at a startup would be:
Chapter 2 - Five traits great salespeople have and how to interview for them
Chapter 4 - The ideal first sales hire
Chapter 8 - Motivation through sales compensation plans and contests
Chapter 10 - Flip the demand generation formula - get buyers to find you
The one critique I would have is that I wish there was more time invested in the discussion of each topic as it relates to smaller businesses. Obviously, Hubspot has an enormous sales team, so some of the chapters (particularly in sections 2 and 3 about training and management) are not very applicable to small teams.
This is definitely a book that I would revisit again as our business continues to grow. The most helpful chapters for me (that I plan on revisiting) while growing a sales team at a startup would be:
Chapter 2 - Five traits great salespeople have and how to interview for them
Chapter 4 - The ideal first sales hire
Chapter 8 - Motivation through sales compensation plans and contests
Chapter 10 - Flip the demand generation formula - get buyers to find you
May 4, 2020
A great perspective on why B2B businesses need to change
While this book is 5 years old at this point, the ideas are still spot on. Somehow, very few companies do things the right way, despite how ingrained these thoughts are within Silicon Valley water cooler talk. The core concept is that buyers are empowered and technical product advantages don’t last, so sales and marketing need to be differentiators. But to do that, you have to truly educate potential buyers rather than “selling” or “marketing” to them.
The big change since the book published is that a few of the tactics are harder to execute, so more creativity is required. The internet has become way noisier and each market has more companies vying for attention. The trick of hiring unemployed journalists as content marketers is also widespread. Nonetheless, the theories are sound and this book is a foundational read for anyone in the tech industry.
While this book is 5 years old at this point, the ideas are still spot on. Somehow, very few companies do things the right way, despite how ingrained these thoughts are within Silicon Valley water cooler talk. The core concept is that buyers are empowered and technical product advantages don’t last, so sales and marketing need to be differentiators. But to do that, you have to truly educate potential buyers rather than “selling” or “marketing” to them.
The big change since the book published is that a few of the tactics are harder to execute, so more creativity is required. The internet has become way noisier and each market has more companies vying for attention. The trick of hiring unemployed journalists as content marketers is also widespread. Nonetheless, the theories are sound and this book is a foundational read for anyone in the tech industry.
December 26, 2024
Book audience is sale managers. So, if you are searching about selling techniques it is not for you.
Author explains about hiring, training and managing a sales team. He shares his experience in building and scaling a sales team with you and it is interesting.
I am disagreeing with author in some part of the book. For example, At the start of the chapter 10 author said “Outbound marketing just doesn't work anymore.” I cannot agree with this sentence. It depends on how you do outbound marketing and selling. Or author said “Buyers do not need to talk to a salesperson, read an advertisement, or visit a booth at a trade show.”. Yes, we can talk in this way about some product that are cheap or simple or for some services but about expensive and complicated products we cannot talk in this way. But I think author talks in this way because he works in SaaS business and in this section, you can use inbound marketing and selling.
Author explains about hiring, training and managing a sales team. He shares his experience in building and scaling a sales team with you and it is interesting.
I am disagreeing with author in some part of the book. For example, At the start of the chapter 10 author said “Outbound marketing just doesn't work anymore.” I cannot agree with this sentence. It depends on how you do outbound marketing and selling. Or author said “Buyers do not need to talk to a salesperson, read an advertisement, or visit a booth at a trade show.”. Yes, we can talk in this way about some product that are cheap or simple or for some services but about expensive and complicated products we cannot talk in this way. But I think author talks in this way because he works in SaaS business and in this section, you can use inbound marketing and selling.
May 26, 2019
The Sales Acceleration Formula: Using Data, Technology, and Inbound Selling to go from $0 to $100 Million comes from practical experience of Mark Roberge setting up a Predictable, Scalable sales team at Hubspot. Relevant for B-2-B sales.
This book answers 4 top questions:
1) How to build sales hiring model
2) How to build sales training model
3) How to build a model to make sales reps accountable
4) How to build model for steady leads pouring in
WIIFM: Hiring model explained pretty well, I am taking it from this along with Training model (the Data driven training).
This book answers 4 top questions:
1) How to build sales hiring model
2) How to build sales training model
3) How to build a model to make sales reps accountable
4) How to build model for steady leads pouring in
WIIFM: Hiring model explained pretty well, I am taking it from this along with Training model (the Data driven training).
January 8, 2021
As a person who is always more connected to marketing rather than sales, it was beneficial. Mark Roberge proved his model work by pushing Hubspot towards a unicorn valuation path. Funny thing, even his haters (e.g., Dan Lyons in "Disrupted") had to agree that the formula he had implemented in the company worked.
What I personally enjoyed: it's simple, actionable, and provides both tactical and strategic approaches. I think that the process for hiring a salesperson or when it comes to marketing/sales SLA approach - simply awesome.
What I miss: it was too short! I really wanted more case studies, more examples of the situation. I would also like to see the data, but I understand it was not possible due to the confidentiality policy.
As I'm thinking of our sales operations or our clients, I know that ROI from this piece will prove extremely useful for sure.
What I personally enjoyed: it's simple, actionable, and provides both tactical and strategic approaches. I think that the process for hiring a salesperson or when it comes to marketing/sales SLA approach - simply awesome.
What I miss: it was too short! I really wanted more case studies, more examples of the situation. I would also like to see the data, but I understand it was not possible due to the confidentiality policy.
As I'm thinking of our sales operations or our clients, I know that ROI from this piece will prove extremely useful for sure.
December 6, 2022
In the world of sales books, this one is decent?
Recognizing that the genre is inherently bad, I'll say Roberge at least makes actual points. He correctly states that they may not apply to your business -- a lot are a product of place/time, and Hubspot got very lucky in that way.
(I just fundamentally don't believe that most of building a business is skill -- I think so much of it is circumstance! He spends a lot of time being like "we rule bc we are innovative" but babe, you started a SaaS company in the late aughts! You rode a wave! Whatever.)
This is a laundry list of what worked for them. Vaguely useful, if only to provoke a reaction.
I'd recommend this but for people who are building sales teams of 4+ people, not folks at the very early stage. I'll probably revisit this one day and get more out of it.
Recognizing that the genre is inherently bad, I'll say Roberge at least makes actual points. He correctly states that they may not apply to your business -- a lot are a product of place/time, and Hubspot got very lucky in that way.
(I just fundamentally don't believe that most of building a business is skill -- I think so much of it is circumstance! He spends a lot of time being like "we rule bc we are innovative" but babe, you started a SaaS company in the late aughts! You rode a wave! Whatever.)
This is a laundry list of what worked for them. Vaguely useful, if only to provoke a reaction.
I'd recommend this but for people who are building sales teams of 4+ people, not folks at the very early stage. I'll probably revisit this one day and get more out of it.
January 5, 2020
This book packs a serious punch for anyone involved in Inside Selling.
I know I will keep referring back to it for tactical insights on hiring, training and building inbound sales and content marketing teams, as well as in creating experimentation frameworks.
It’s only limitation is that it very much chants the Hubspot mantra, meaning many of the examples might not be directly applicable to your business.
In particular, it was fascinating to read how Roberge instituted a training program for new sales recruits to create their own digital presence using Hubspot so that they could develop deeper empathy with their customers when they sold.
This might not apply to my own business but it certainly helped me understand a driver of Hubspot’s enormous success.
I know I will keep referring back to it for tactical insights on hiring, training and building inbound sales and content marketing teams, as well as in creating experimentation frameworks.
It’s only limitation is that it very much chants the Hubspot mantra, meaning many of the examples might not be directly applicable to your business.
In particular, it was fascinating to read how Roberge instituted a training program for new sales recruits to create their own digital presence using Hubspot so that they could develop deeper empathy with their customers when they sold.
This might not apply to my own business but it certainly helped me understand a driver of Hubspot’s enormous success.
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