Amanda Pexa Weber

I think sales leaderboards are genius for so many reasons. But I also don’t want to get hung up on the numbers. I think it’s easy to feel the urgency to up your numbers. But I feel like that’s how you get commission breath. I think about this a lot. And I just gotta trust that the urgency should be on the activities and not the numbers. The numbers are just a result of the activities. If I continue to: -Connect with more people through outreach -Ask inquisitive and purposeful questions -Seek to understand the person -Prioritize the relationship -Provide great service I see no other option but to believe that if I continue to do all of those things… ...everything will take care of itself. And I feel like this is true for everything and for every goal. Winners and losers have the same goals. It’s their habits and actions that differentiate them. It’s mastering the basics.

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This really resonates with me. understanding the broader industry trends and potential disruptions can significantly differentiate us from the competition. It's about being the strategic partner that execs can rely on! #SalesTips #ExecutiveInsights #ValueSelling #ProactiveApproach #StrategicSelling

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Being able to call something out in a sales call is underrated tactic & skill. Too often, AE's early in the career are afraid of not being an "expert." When a prospect says something that is unclear - they don't ask for clarity. When theres an elephant in the room - it goes unrecognized. I believe most salespeople to have strong EQ. However, its not just EQ that will make you call something out. You have to have the humility and courage to say something like: - "I don't understand." - "I'm confused here." Then, you can deploy: - "Can you help me connect the dots?" - "Would you mind clarifying what you mean by X...?" You will not be "all-knowing". When you sense something, say it. #sales #saas #techsales #accountexecutives #sdrs

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Confession Time: Teams Meetings… Am I the Only One? 🤣 As a B2B sales rep and a Police Officer with 16 years on the force (yes, I’ve seen some things), I’ve learned to handle just about any situation — but Teams meetings? Now that's a different kind of challenge. You know the drill: The "You're on mute" dance (guilty as charged!) The awkward silence as someone talks over someone else... again 🤦‍♂️ The frozen screen surprise — suddenly, you’re not sure if your Wi-Fi is glitching or if you’ve been frozen in time like a confused mannequin. I swear, every meeting feels like an interrogation… but without the donuts. Here's the deal: Whether you’re selling, managing, or just trying to survive the Monday morning "sync-up," the key is to stay calm, embrace the chaos, and remember — there's always someone who hasn't figured out how to unmute. 😂 At least in sales, I can always "circle back" with an email! Good luck this week! #Teams #SalesLife #B2BSales #Remote #Meeting

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Dear Salesperson, VERY few people actually have a consultative sales process. But everyone believes they do. What most people practice is this: A **conversion** process with a consultative style. Hear me out. - You know how to ask good questions - You know how to let the prospect do much of the talking - You identify what problem they want solved - You ask why that matters The catch is: Your line of questioning conveniently leads the prospect to your product or service. What this misses: The directional vision of the leader you’re working with. You can’t truly consult with someone if you don’t have a deep, clear understanding of what they’re trying to accomplish. Here’s how to make the shift: Bring out all the viable options that could resolve the issue at hand. Earnestly evaluate each. Discuss with them: - Doing nothing, leaving the problem alone - Using your competition  - Going an alternative path that doesn’t involve someone like you  - Using your company Run hard after the truth. Bring some subject matter expertise. Offer some real world stories that illustrate each of the above paths and get their feedback. Help people make good decisions. And here’s the great news: If you know who (the client) you’re looking for really is and what they actually care about... ...and work at a solid company... ...you won’t have anything to worry about. Lean hard into all the alternatives. Do it confidently. No one else will, and you'll help support some great decision making. ---- PS - Go Vols. And if anyone knows the guy in the background posing with me and Bob Kesling, please tag him in a comment.

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More insightful thoughts from John Barrows. This is the reality we live in today!

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Mike Gallardo writes the best sales newsletter that lands in my inbox, and has an extremely actionable sales course that I just purchased. I've been following Mike for a while now, ever since he started his sales newsletter (written on beehiiv obviously). His course is absolutely caked in best practices for sellers and sales leaders. How to build foundational outbound strategies. How to become a 1% end-to-end seller from foundation to closed won. How to respond to objections and negotiate like a master. Everything. And not only that, there are countless templates and frameworks that he and his team use, and they work. I'm stoked to get further into his course and level up myself and my team. If you're looking for a course to check out, buy his and use my referral link because I get paid if you do. 😏 https://lnkd.in/eaR7rGwa

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Want to learn more about success for #presales teams? Do you feel the need to listen to Brian Copeland's amazing advice? Brian talks about his book📖 and how it can help you #sales #salesengineer

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People don’t realize what “closing skills” are in sales, and they’re not “is persuasive.” Reps with closing skills CONSISTENTLY know, can choreograph and advise on how the deal gets signed and returned. And their forecast accuracy reflects those skills.

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Having a fluffy pipeline isn't doing you any favors. Especially when it comes to forecasting. Pushing deals month to month, hoping they will close. Hoping you'll get them re-engaged. Hoping your contact is finally able to push it through. One of my reps calls this "smoking hopium" 😂 It's creating false hope for you, your manager and the business. Hope is not a strategy folks! Pipeline management is hard. Forecasting is hard - but even harder with a fluffy, messy pipeline. If you have a clear view into your pipeline, I promise, forecasting will be much easier - and more accurate! Your pipeline is not a prospecting list. It's critical to know your deals so you're spending time in the right areas- not chasing & relying on hope. Here are 6 questions to think about when reviewing opportunities in your funnel to make sure you truly know them, and determine where they belong:  1. Are they engaged? Meaning, you've spoken with them in the last couple weeks and they're responsive. 2. Is there a next step on the calendar that has been accepted/agreed upon by the prospect? If no- gut check- is it truly an opportunity or is it a lead? 3. Is there a known challenge (that THEY have articulated) they're facing and agree that your product can solve it? 4. What is their timeline (not yours) to buy & implement a solution, and what happens if they don't meet that timeline? 5. Do you know their decision criteria, and are you aligned?  6. Do you have a clear line of sight to what it takes to get the agreement signed? I.e. what steps they need to take internally, and what they need from you. What else would you add?

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The decision to use ZoomInfo has never been easier. 🚀 But just in case you're still on the fence, hear it straight from the source! Check out the customer testimonials at the link below.

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Subject lines matter Word count matters Deliverability matters Formatting matters It’s easy to get lost in crafting the perfect email But what matters most? ✅ Whether your message resonates with your prospect (is it relevant) ✅ Are you highlighting a potential problem they should solve now and why it’s better than the status quo 👉🏼Don’t feature dump your prospect in an email I’d rather see a problem solving dump than a feature dump The difference? One focuses on what your solution is and other focuses on what it solves for Which do you think your prospect cares more about? #sdr #sales

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Here's a nifty LinkedIn Sales Navigator trick for you: 1. Open the site and go to lead filters at the top. 2. Under "Current Company", use your own employer as a test. 3. Under "Title", put VP+.   (Note: If your company is large, add VP+ and narrow down by location and relevant sales titles to avoid too many results.) 4. Click Save. Now, you'll receive notifications every time a new leader joins your organization. Here's what to do next: - Send them a connection request to welcome them to the organization. Once they accept your request, go back to lead filters. - Under "Connections of", select the new executive's name to see their connections as you're now 1st degree connected. - Under the Workflow tab, go to accounts list and select your territory. - Under "Title", enter all relevant titles of people you're trying to meet with. Voila! You'll now have a list of people your new executive is connected to, along with insights on how strong that connection may be (former colleague, same city, same college, etc.). If you've never tried this with your direct leaders, give it a go! There are many ways you can use these searches to find warm leads. A little detective work can yield great results, and you'll also make a positive impact on new executives by asking for introductions and showing genuine interest in their network. LinkedIn Sales Solutions for the win! #sales #linkedintips #SalesNavigator #Networking #SalesTips

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What’s the number 1 thing Sales Leaders Look for in candidates? From my conversations – it isn’t the typical “resilent, hard working” comments Its curiosity. Curiosity shines when you ask questions about stuff you don’t know internally or externally to clients. Going above and beyond to ask that 1 more question to clients/candidates or colleagues.

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War Dogs is a perfect movie to convey why commerical sales reps should never, and I say NEVER Sell to the Federal government. That goes to any other salesperson who does not understand all the nuances which go into selling into the Federal government. It's easy for any regular salesperson to get tempted into selling into the government given a myopic focus on publicly available government budgets or budget ranges shared in the procurement process for products and services. A million dollars here, a million dollars there. One billion dollars here, a billion dollars there. Closing one or two deals will help you blow out your quota alone, yet the shady practices in commercial sales won't get you far in government sales. You can't schmooze your way into your customers' hearts or buy them lavish dinners. You can't source non-compliant products and/or services and sell them to your customers for cheaper than your competitor either! Although these commercial tricks don't work in Federal government sales, there are other tricks to the trade which make working sales in Federal government sales a skillset worth pursuing. I have been doing it for 14+ years and can never imagine going back to anything else. On a side note- Oh do I miss the simplier days of FedBizOps

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5 Reasons you should be using Mutual Action Plans in your sales process 1. Qualification 2. Setting Expectations 3. Facilitates Multi-threading 4. Establishing a mutual timeline 5. Improves deal forecast accuracy What did I miss?

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End of week reminder for all my sales friends that if you have to choose between one or the other, get your lead flow sorted out before you worry about “perfecting” closing. You’ll get way better at closing through practicing 100 times than you will with theory and planning for 100 hours. —— p.s. - if you’ve never done sales before and you DO want a cheat code to get closing practice without figuring out prospecting, get a door-to-door sales or gym membership sales job. You’ll get dozens upon dozens of practice reps per day and will level up pretty quick when that 50th door slams in your face daily (saying this from experience).

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We adjust reps' quota based on holiday months.   It’d be inhumane not to.   However, we don’t zero out quota during holiday months.   The quota is lowered because there are fewer selling days in those months.   Our reps still see success during the holidays, and we expect A-effort every day they’re in the office.   Because people are still willing to meet.   That willingness doesn’t stop regardless of the Holiday Season.   Businesses still have problems they want to solve.   Problems don’t magically disappear because it’s the holidays.   So, yes, success can be found during the holidays.   Will it be as much as other months?   No.   That’s okay.   But success/quota attainment during the holidays still happens.   Keep dialing.   Keep contacting your prospects.   Don’t stop because it’s the Holidays.

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One of the biggest gaps I see in sellers today is their lack of "business acumen". Looking back at my last 10+ years in sales, I realize that learning and developing business acumen is the thing that has benefitted me the most. For me, business acumen is the ability to understand current business situations and use that information to make meaningful suggestions that attach to strategies and initiatives that create positive outcomes. It is the foundation for all the successful sales campaigns, conversations and cycles I have been a part of. The reason it is so beneficial in sales is that it starts by thinking about what leaders and executives need to solve for at the top level (aka what they will pay to solve for). You then distill that down into how your product or solution can meet those needs at a strategic level, while also serving the end users and daily practitioners. By doing the research about key industries, sectors, companies and personas that matter to you, you will build your business acumen naturally. I didn't set out to learn or develop it, I was just fortunate that it was a byproduct of the way I was taught to engage with prospects and buyers. If you are struggling to build or convert pipeline, take a step back and think of how you are messaging your product or solution through a business lens. Doing this will hopefully create more successful outcomes, but also organically help to hone your business acumen. #karpediem

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