It’s been awhile since I’ve written anything, especially about BD/sales, but I’m going to start writing about things I’m learning and am being reminded of again more regularly .
One of the most interesting drivers for the people we try to sell and market to is identity. Specifically what type of person does the person you’re trying to influence say they are?
Example identities:
I’m a numbers driven executive.
I’m a doer.
I’m an early adopter of new tech that’s going to give me an edge.
Most people want to remain consistent with the identity they claim for themselves…especially when they declare it amongst their peers.
Smart marketers and sales people use this to their advantage when they communicate by linking the desired action they …
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Once upon a time, I was an introduction fool. I made every classic mistake in the book…and in the process probably pushed people away from me that I ultimately wanted to build a relationship with : (
Photo Credit: jo3design via Compfight cc
To demystify some of the mistakes I made, I’m sharing a 12 minute video on The Do’s and Don’ts of Making Introductions.
This is taken from the relationship building section of my new series on How to Land A Business Development Job and serves as a follow up to the last video I shared on the challenging realities of landing startup jobs.
Relationships are important for countless reasons, but within the context of landing a startup job, they’re incredibly value because they …
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I get about 5 emails or facebook messages a week from people looking to get advice on landing startup jobs…
I guess playing excel like a concert pianist gets old pretty quick.
Photo credit: RateMyPlacement
To combat this inbound assault, I created a free 8 email series that includes some of my best tips on how non-technical people can break into startups (sign up here!).
Besides being a free resource overstretched startup folk can point their friends too, this email series is an introduction to apply for a 5 week program I created on how to break into startup business development.
2 Dynamics People Trying to Break Into Startups Must Understand
Today I wanted to share 4:38 of video from the 5 week program …
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A bunch of people that subscribe to my newsletter have told me that their favorite part is the business tactics I share in the “Tactic of the Month” section….
So I thought I’d share the first 5 on this here tablet in case you missed them.
Business Tactic 1: Good Cop / Bad Cop
In business development you’re bound to encounter some situations where you’re not going to make the other party happy (i.e. you can’t accomodate a request, you need an update on where a deal stands that they’re not ready to give etc).
People like doing business with people they like.
Thus, it’s in your best interest to be likeable. This why playing good cop / bad cop can be such an effective …
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A little less than 3 years ago, I decided I wanted to become an entrepreneur.
If I’m truly honest, the catalyst for this pursuit wasn’t motivated by seeing young people accomplish amazing things, but rather serious dissatisfaction with my first job.
My first job in a nutshell:
I was bored as sh*t. I felt like my ideas were never taken seriously and my capacity to create progress within the business was limited by bureaucracy.
I felt like I was wasting my life. It was terrible.
I wanted something more fulfilling I wanted to have ownership of something. I wanted to feel the tangible impact created by my efforts. I wanted to be part of something bigger than myself and be excited about work each day.
These feelings …
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A little over a year ago I met Ryan Jeffery, Vice President of Business Development at Belly, a startup focused on enriching the loyalty experience for both local businesses and consumers.
When we met I could tell Ryan was a sharp guy…and I’ve been really impressed by the growth that Belly has achieved in the beast that is local. Naturally I thought he’d be fun to do an interview with : )
In this interview we talk about:
How they initially pitched and sold local businesses in MVP mode (WARNING: includes ipad glue stories)
The first thing they did after they got their very first customer
How they scaled once they had initial product/market fit
Insight into their hybrid inside/outside sales distribution strategy (and why this …
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Every month I put put a business development newsletter that features jobs, tools, articles, and the fan favorite “BD Tactic of the month”….
Since putting out my last one, 3 business development jobs and one internship have been sent my way that I thought people would benefit from knowing about. They are:
Skillshare – Business Development Manager (New York)
Awe.sm – Manager/Director of Business Development & Sales (SF)
Flurry – Senior Director Publisher Relations West (SF)
If you want to check out some old issues of BDNewsletter that 500+ others have enjoyed, feel free to check them out below:
BD #7: A Better Way to Ask for Meetings, Channel Partnerships, and 2 BD Jobs
BD #6: A Better CHECKING IN email, 7 BD Jobs, and …
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I recently had the chance to chat with Andrew Dumont, director of BD at SEOmoz.
I’ve been following him from a distance after discovering his blog so it was awesome to get some facetime to rap BD, life, and other coolness.
In this interview we talk about:
His introduction to working in tech at the ripe age of 18 years young and various startup experience since then (Tatango -> Seesmic -> SEOmoz)
How to manage business development relationships when you’re company pivots…a lot
What the heck business development at SEOmoz actually means
How he evaluates channel partnerships and the expected conversion rate he anticipates for channel deals. A lot of startup founders need to understand this if they pursue this distribution strategy
The greatest …
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