A question for my enterprise sales peeps… How’d you do this year?

I’ve been asking that a lot lately.

As we enter into the final month of the year, I’m trying to get a bellwether for year-end results and next year planning.

And the #1 run-away response…

“Yeah… it was ok… but it could have been better.”

Ouch!  To me there’s a sting to that.  Nothing is worse than lackluster results.

As I dug deeper on “why?”… I was a little surprised.

What I didn’t hear was that everyone’s business was torched by a bad economy, staffing issues, shut downs, lack of market activity, the pandemic, global warming or the fall of civilization…

What I actually heard was all the common reasons sales teams miss – the right messaging, metrics, playbook, GTM plan, hustle and planning – just not maybe in those words.

And my takeaways?

The economy is actually pretty healthy – at least in the B2B technology sector where I mostly hang my hat – and that the sales and growth challenges, well… those are as old as time. 

Seems most companies and reps that I talked to just need a little sharper blocking, tackling and maybe a couple new plays to run in order to beat their goals and feel really good about the business. 

So, are you ready for that?!!  Want to set yourself up for a breakout… and the best quarter ever?

I mean… if we’re honest, 2021 is pretty much in the bag at this point. If your deals are not in the final stages, it’s probably just not going to happen. (And for goodness sakes, don’t be forecasting that garbage.)

So let’s talk about how we take the final time left in 2021 to set up for the absolute biggest quarter ever!

Let’s take a look at 3 tactical steps enterprise reps can take – right now – to establish sales dominance in 2022.

And I’ll even put a BOLD CLAIM on these… I promise they WILL work.

Why?

Because they are fundamental.  These are binary sales activities that every great team (and rep) should be executing.

They’re also tested. I have used these to tremendous success for the last 10 years in both the companies that I’ve run and my consulting practice.

And yes, I’ll be working on these over the next month as well.  Preparing for my best quarter ever.

So, let’s go!  Let’s get it on… I give you the 3 tactical steps to set up your best quarter ever.

If you execute these 3 tactics successfully, they are sure to put you on the path to acquiring your best customers and crushing your goals in the New Year.

Step 1: Build a Dream 100 Campaign

I’m certain that every rep and sales team has a prospect list and an ideal client profile.

But, do you have a separate list of your BEST prospects? Are they your DREAM prospects? Are they the prospects that will CHANGE your year? And what are you doing DIFFERENT with these dream prospects?

When’s the last time you put some deep energy and thought into hand selecting and vetting your best buyers? And what did you do to reach them that was beyond the pale?  

Yes, you need to have a dream list… but you have to couple that with a dream campaign.

Make no mistake, the action here is a Dream 100 Campaign, not just a Dream 100 List.  So, let’s talk about both.

Your Dream 100 List should be more than your ICP. It should be a combination of three things.

1. First, it should be a list of customers whose problem you know you can solve. Whatever your product or service does, you know these customers will 100% reap all benefits. And I don’t mean their PROFILE fits your outcome. I mean you know THIS COMPANY fits. 

This will require some research. As much as you can, you need to understand their current situation and gaps, prior to selection.

The best reps I know are ninjas at finding out these details. And surprisingly… it isn’t that hard. It just requires some effort.

I’ll challenge you to call and talk to your prospect’s sales people, their admins, and the first tier contacts on an informational only basis. Do not call to sell. Call to find out about the company!!

(The easy script: “I’m just so impressed with how you do business, I’m curious about some things…”).

Your final list should be the cream of the crop best prospects where you know if you could get an audience, you could demonstrate huge value.

2. Second, your list should be whales. I’m not looking for the mean size deal here. I am saying these accounts are game changers. Let’s find the 100 companies we know we can help… that are also outliers.

A word of caution here. DO NOT just go pull the top 100 by size.  As noted, there is a nuance here. You have to discern that you can solve the problem AND they are big.  

You need to make sure they are in the Goldilocks’ zone… they need your solution, they’re big but not too complex… i.e. they represent a sophisticated fit… they are just right.

3. You can identify the buying team and you are sure about it.

Your research will hopefully point you to some of these contacts.  Just make sure you can identify the executive buyer, technical buyer, financial buyer, users and supporting roles.

Many times when selling big, the walls are high and it limits your ability to make connections. Of course nothing is going to be a lay-up, just make sure your data tool allows you to see and identify the team.

Now that you have a highly curated list of great wealth, let’s talk about the Dream 100 Campaign.

Of course, The Dream 100 Campaign was popularized by one of the world’s greatest salesmen, the amazing Chet Holmes in The Ultimate Sales Machine. 

(Although the book is from 2007, it’s still a valid sales read and foreshadows a lot of convergence of sales and marketing that has taken place since it was published).

A Dream 100 Campaign combines a clever dimensional mailer with educational marketing to stand out, add value, and ultimately be so impressive that your dogged determination, persistence and impressive messaging will get you the audience.

[A quick example: Maybe you sell a mobile app. Send an ipad with a fully loaded demo. Include a personalized video that talks about your value prop and how you directly solve your client’s problem. Give them instructions on how to load the demo and use the app. My point… it’s not just the gift… it’s the tie in, messaging and proof that makes it valuable, gets their attention and is first-rate. Sure, maybe it costs you $1,000 for the promotion, but I know a lot of leaders that would gladly pay that for an enterprise executive audience.]

I’m not going to write this post on how to do a Dream 100 campaign, so I’ll give you some links.

• You can find a brilliant summary from Sarah Cy on Medium here. (Scroll and read summaries of Chapter 6 and Chapter 9).
• And you can get a free copy of the full book online here or buy a paper copy here. (Read Chapters 6 and 9).

There’s a reason a Dream 100 Campaign still works… it stands out… it’s radically different. 

First, you know you’re certain you can help the prospect. Your messaging will be both clever and direct and will articulate that. Through the messaging the prospect will understand that you can fill a deficiency that they absolutely need. 

Second, it’s “loud”. When a prospect gets a truly thoughtful, smart messages with a creative tie in… you don’t get lost in the crowd noise. You are 100% on the radar. And as a sales rep, isn’t that your first job?

Third, it leverages the principle of reciprocity – one of Chaldini’s 7 Principles of Persuasion. Simply put, when someone gives us something, we feel obliged to give back.

Now, I’m not suggesting that just because you sent some cool ass swag and poignant messaging that your largest prospects are just going to roll over. 

BUT, I promise you this… they will be indebted to take your call and hear you out… I’ve done this too many times – you’ll get the meeting. And isn’t that your second job as a sales rep? 

Finally, it works because if done correctly it’s extraordinary. We all want to work with impressive people and companies. How you do something is as important as what you do.  Your execution will impress them.

So have fun with it.  Be creative. Be daring. Be bold. Send out the messaging and swag that will turn heads.   

And on the mailings, I’d strongly suggest sending it to their personal address (unless you’ve qualified that they are back in the office).  The world is remote these days. You need to unabashedly meet them where they are.

A properly executed Dream 100 campaign will put you in front of all your best prospects… within the next 90 days.

And that should excite you.  

I’ve had tremendous success with these campaigns. Here’s a peek at what that looks like… 

• In one campaign we pulled 225 contacts at 100 companies. These were mostly Fortune 500 companies with executive level contacts.
• We sent 5 dimensional mailers that had super high end logoed swag and a message that smartly connected the gift to the intersection of the problem we solved. The mailers were spaced 1 week apart – for 5 weeks.
• During the mailers, we didn’t do any outreach. At the end of the 5^th week, we started following up with calls and emails.  
• Of the 100 companies, we scheduled immediate discovery sessions with 86.  Yes, we got in front of 86 of our top 100 clients within 90 days. 
• And over the course of the year, we closed 37 of those accounts.  37 whales!!  

Start your year with a Dream 100 list and campaign… it will change your trajectory.

Step 2: Build an Old Prospects Campaign

You know where you’re likely to find your best prospects and shortest sales cycle deals?

In the boneyard.

That’s right, the best prospects are one’s you’ve already talked to but didn’t sell.

There’s two quick reasons this is a great tactic.

First, they’ve already been qualified. You know there’s a need and (if the CRM notes are any good) you know exactly where you can add value.

Second, they’ve already gone down the buyer’s journey with your company. You’re not starting from scratch. There’s some familiarity with what you do and at some level they know you, like you, and trust you.

I like to pull old prospect campaigns in a couple segments:

• Scheduled a demo / discovery, but didn’t show
• Completed a demo / discovery, but didn’t move forward
• No decision – status quo
• Closed lost

Each of these prospects is a gem in its own regard and each has its own approach. 

The worst thing you can do is contact them and say “is now a better time?”

The best approach is one that adds value. What new helpful market insight can you bring to them based on your past interaction? How can you genuinely assist them with making their job and business easier without spitting commission breath all over them?  Start there.

If you’ve been in enterprise sales for any length of time you know you don’t always get the real answer for losing a deal.  And even if they did go with a competitor, those scenarios don’t always work out.

I once watched an SDR double the productivity of the next closest rep by consistently re-working “demo no shows”.  This was in an environment that was 100% inbound with more than enough leads to call on, but by recycling “old inbounds” (as he called them), he was able to set new sales records monthly. 

And what we found on these deals was that as they were passed to the AE the close rate was identical to other any other lead source, BUT the sales cycle was much shorter.

So, do yourself a favor and take a trip to the boneyard and build a list of prospects that already know your company and brand.  You might find that the side door is wide open.

Step 3: Get Real About Your Sales Velocity

Alright, strap in because this is where the tough love comes in.

If you had a mediocre sales year last year… that’s on you. 

I want to be clear, sales and sales success is a math equation.

Sure you need a good product and a strong message.  You need to combine it with the right go to market plan… and of course hustle…

BUT, when you remove all the BS… its math.

Your success comes down to your personal sales velocity.  And you need to get real about it if you want to be a high flyer.

Want to set up the best quarter and year ever? Nail your sales velocity.

There are 4 core metrics for sales people:

1. Number of opportunities in the funnel
2. Average deal value (ACV)
3. Win rate
4. Sales cycle

In order to have your best quarter (and year) ever, you need to start measuring these and building your own accountability weekly.

Go back and pull your personal stats for 2021… plug them into the equation. By understand the number of deals you had in the funnel at any time, the sizes, the win rate and the sales cycle… you’ll also understand what you’re likely to close this month and quarter.

Now go build the model on your current sales velocity.

• How many deals in the current funnel?
• What’s the ACV?
• Based on last year’s win rate…
• And last year’s sales cycle
• Where are you going to finish?

You’re going to need a certain balance of deals and ACV to hit your targets. And you’ll need to measure those against your close rates and sales cycles. (And you should update these regularly, based on a 12 – 24 month rolling history).

A constant and realistic assessment of where you’re at will tell you where you need to spend your time… it’ll also serve as motivator to get up and get after it when you’re behind.

You should evaluate this data weekly and bring it to every 1:1. A good portion of your 1:1 should be to talk with your sales leader about where you need help from the rest of the team to hit the targets.

Self-regulation is one of the keys to sales mastery. 

It’s not enough to just be committed to daily activity, you need to be take a higher level look and understand what the metrics say about predicted performance. 

If you want to have the best quarter ever you need to be the duke of your own data… get real about your sales velocity… and let that drive the focus and activity.

Not a single player game.

Achieving greatness is rarely a solo effort… and this is no different.

You will need to collaborate with your sales, marketing and operations teammates to exercise these steps and set up the best quarter ever.

The Dream 100 Campaign will definitely be a dual effort from marketing and sales. You’ll need marketing help with the set-up, distribution and mechanics of the mailers as well as the messaging, content and CTAs.

To build an Old Prospects Campaign, you’ll need to enlist your sales ops, SDR and marketing team as well. They can help with prospect identification, list and lead pulls, outreach and messaging. 

In order to nail your Sales Velocity, you’ll also need to engage you sales ops team and sales leadership.  They can assist you with pulling the metrics, building some reporting (if you don’t already have it), and providing a gut check to your early assumptions.

And the collaboration will be a huge win. Building a team effort to attack the market and drive new top line revenue is always a healthy endeavor.

Every single time I’ve leveraged these tactics, I reaped the additional benefits that come from teammates working together for a common goal. 

And I know you will to.

Conclusion = Best Quarter Ever!

So there you have it… 

The tactics you can work on – right now – to set up and deliver your best quarter ever!

Follow through and there’s 3 outcomes. 

You’ll end up with:

1. A definitive plan of attack to land your largest new customers
2. A focused approach to engage the buyers with the shortest sales cycle, and
3. A self-regulating framework to monitor and drive you to that beastly performance zone.

Right now everyone is taking a breath. Make the best of the December slow down and start building.

Your best quarter ever is right there… go get it!

Of course, if I can answer any questions or share additional information about building Dream 100 Campaigns, old prospect campaigns, or sales velocity… just reach out.

Email me, call me, or hit me up on the socials.

TM