Attract The Ultimate Executive to Run & Build Your Inside Sales Team

ATTRACT THE ULTIMATE EXECUTIVE
to Run and Build Your

Inside Sales Team
Ken Krogue
President & Co-founder
InsideSales.com

Trish Bertuzzi
President & Chief Strategist
The Bridge Group, Inc

insidesales.com

Introduction
Page 2

From Ken Krogue

Trish Bertuzzi is one of my favorite people. sitting in the audience taking notes when counsel, motivate or replace salespeople
She is one of the reigning thought leaders she is on stage. to build the best team possible.
and most respected people in the industry.
She is a lot of fun and a wonderful person. One of her specialties is hiring and on- Also available in this eBook are tips from
boarding. Her annual research study on Ken Krogue on how to create the ultimate
And she is incredible at what she does. compensation in the inside sales and lead inside sales department once your execu-
generation space is one of the bibles of tive has been hired. From where to gather
She teaches executives and managers how the industry. So a few months ago we were lists and leads to how to create an efficient
to build incredible inside sales teams that chatting and had this crazy idea to col- sales culture, all executives and inside
get results. She is one of the best in laborate on an eBook together on the very sales professionals will learn the best prac-
the world. topics that could help the industry con- tices of inside sales essentials.
tinue to grow.
I stalked her for months on LinkedIn and This eBook is based on content originally
followed her amazing LinkedIn Group I like to partner with the best... found in a joint webinar with Trish and Ken.
called Inside Sales Experts, the largest Thanks Trish.
online inside sales group in the world. I Access the webinar,
was really careful not to step outside of www.insidesales.com/webinar.
her group rules because she is a stickler
In this eBook
for participating the right way. That is why Trish Bertuzzi will share what a great
her group is the best there is. Executive hiring process should look like.
Great managers know how to recruit top
She and I speak at the same events a performers, lead a multi-generational
couple of times a year, and I never miss workforce, encourage reps to grow, and

InsideSales.com | The Bridge Group, Inc. Share this eBook:

Table of Contents
Page 3

Introduction From Ken Krogue��2 Published by InsidesSales.com
About the Authors�� 4 34 East 1700 South
Provo, Utah 84606
Step 1: Scoping�� 5 887-798-9633
Step 2: Recruiting��7
Step 3: Evaluating�� 9 Copyright 2013 All Rights Reserved

Step 4: Onboarding�� 10
How to Create the Ultimate Inside Sales Department�� 12
Where to Get Leads�� 14
Defining Your Selling Model�� 15
Compensation Strategies�� 16
Quality, Speed, Price�� 17
Culture�� 18
BANT vs. ANUM�� 19
7 Rules to Increase Contact Ratios�� 20
Top Sales Manager Obstacles�� 21
Summary Credits�� 22


About the Authors
Page 4

Ken Krogue Trish Bertuzzi
President and Co-Founder President and Chief Strat-
of InsideSales.com
egist of the Bridge Group,
—
www.kenkrogue.com Inc.
—
blog.bridgegroupinc.com

Ken is a results driven sales leader and Author Jonathan Franzen said “one-half of a
visionary for the inside sales industry. The passion is obsession, the other half is love.”
research and data driven approach he uses With that in mind, ask anyone who’s met Trish
has led to best practices of contacting and and they’ll tell you - she is passionate about
closing leads. He pioneered the powerful inside sales. Over the last two decades, Trish
sales automation PowerDialer which greatly has promoted inside sales as a community,
increases the effectiveness and efficiency of profession and engine for revenue growth. In
inside sales professionals. Ken is also a regu- the process, The Bridge Group has worked
lar contributor to Forbes.com. with 200+ B2B clients to build, expand and
optimize their inside sales efforts.


Step 1: Scoping

When you go to hire the ultimate sales your market, who you sell to, your brand-
executive, it’s important to objectively ing and name recognition, etc..

“Managers scope out the job. I have this conversation
all the time when talking about hiring pro-
files. The first thing you need to know is
Clear role definition, up front, combats
‘role pollution’ down the line. Sales Lead-
that managers manage and ers, almost by definition, are going to be

Manage directors direct.

Managers manage existing process. They
pulled at from all sides. If you haven’t done
the early work on scoping the role, the
situation will be only exacerbated.
typically don’t create it. If you’re a start-

Directors up or a brand new organization and you
haven’t yet defined what repeatable, scal-
able success looks like you don’t need a
TIP
You can take a chance on a sales rep. You
can never take a chance on an executive.
manager. You need a director. You need

Direct” someone who has created process from
scratch and knows when things are going
awry and knows how to fix it.

When looking for an executive, you need
someone that is as closely aligned to per-
fect as possible based on where you are in


Step 1: Scoping

What it Means to Manage Remember
Being a great sales leader is not intuitive.
In the book “Challenger Sale” the authors Having had a great Sales Manager is very
talk about management fundamentals. different from knowing why a Sales Man-
When looking for someone to lead your ager was great. It is much easier to teach
sales team, you’re looking for someone someone your product and your market
with integrity, reliability and listening skills. than it is to teach them great
If they have those three traits they aren’t leadership skills.
going to be a great manger, let alone the
ultimate sales manager. Alternatively, if you do have a great inter-
nal candidate and you have the bandwidth
While it’s an excellent thing to provide available to work with them and be their
internal candidates with promotion, it’s mentor, go for it! The worst thing you can
important to remember that great sales do is promote someone and leave them
reps don’t necessarily make great manag- to figure it out on their own. You’re set-
ers. They may excel at selling skills, but if ting everyone, the group, the manager and
they don’t have those fundamentals you’re yourself, up for failure.
going to be at risk.


Step 2: Recruiting

Now that you’ve locked down scope, how • Create something visual and easy to
do you attract the ideal candidate? More share with SlideShare. Showcase
of the typical job description is not going your big name clients or your high
to cut through the noise. profile investors.

Remember, this isn’t going to be an easy • Package all this up into a ‘Position Kit’.
hire. Everyone is competing for the ulti- This is brief that says exactly what you
mate sales executive and there aren’t are looking for and what they will gain
enough to go around. It’s important that by taking this position.
your company, the position, and you per-
sonally stand out from the crowd. After you’ve created all these resources,
share them with your recruiters, social net-
How to Stand Out: work contacts, and LinkedIn groups. See
• Use “them” centric messaging not “us” if your contacts know of anyone who may
centric. How will they learn and grow be a good fit and then share the Position
in the position? Kit with them. This is much more engaging
and effective than just a text-based
• Incorporate video into your job job description.
description. Show the people, both
reps and senior leadership, behind
the job description. Have them answer
“Why is the position critical/exciting/
amazing?”


Step 2: Recruiting
How are you marketing positions?
Passing the ‘Sniff Test’
Once the candidates start coming in, it’s
important that you are ready to pass their
“sniff test”. Great managers and great Leveraging
executives are going to be trying to figure Networks LinkedIn Jobs
out a few things up front including:

• Is the role is focused or am I expected
20%
40%
to wear several different hats?

• Does this company know their target
market or am I going to have to figure
all this out?

• Is there support for this group? Or am 20%
I inheriting the red-headed stepchild?
Recruiters
• Does the infrastructure exist? What
CRM, marketing automation, produc-
tivity tools are available? 20%
Other


Step 3: Evaluating

The best method for evaluating candidates Tip Highlights to Incorporate into your Inter-
is by creating a scorecard. This allows all It’s important that everyone on the interview Process
the people involved in the hiring process to view team be asking about the same
be aligned in their evaluations and for you competencies, but not the same questions. • Who developed the sales process for
to be able to objectively evaluate You want to take the time to investigate you team?
their feedback. specific areas and skills. There are multiple
questioning techniques that will allow you • Who overviewed the adoption of
When in the interview process, it’s to accomplish this. No need to be repeti- that process?
important to look for someone whose tive and ask the standard “Where do you
experience most closely aligns to your see yourself in 5 years?” type questions. • What does your onboarding process
company’s. For example, if they are famil- This is an opportunity to learn about the look like and what’s your role in
iar with selling into the B2B space but you candidate. Don’t blow it. that process?
sell into higher education, their skills may
not translate. While this doesn’t necessar- The Interview • What are you getting from marketing
ily disqualify somebody from being your So much of the focus on hiring an execu- in terms of leads and support?
ultimate executive, it’s important to think tive is around what questions to ask. That
about how their previous experience aligns could be a whole eBook on itself. For some The ability to answer the questions above
with your company. You’ll also want to hear ideas of what to ask your prospect during is going to further differentiate if they are
their views on how they handle the interview, we put together this article. a manager or a director. Additionally, the
the transition. interviewer will be able to figure out the
candidate’s level of experience.


Step 4: Onboarding

A best practice their priorities. Don’t turn them
after hiring your into paper pushers or spread-
executive is to sheet jockeys. Let them be a
put them through strategic thinking executive and
the exact same create an effective inside sales
onboarding as the sales reps department.
they will be working with. This
will allow them to quickly identify Don’t forget ongoing support. I
what works in the process and often advise Sales Managers,
what doesn’t while simultane- “Remember, be a coach not a
ously coming up to speed. ghost.” The advice holds true for
Senior Leadership as well. Don’t
This is a win/win. They get to bring this executive onboard,
experience and fix your onboard- give them a big slap on back,
ing process all at the same time. and then disappear until the
first forecast review. That would
Tip be doing them and their team a
Free eBook on Onboarding Sales Reps
Once you hire an inside sales grave disservice.
executive, it’s important that you
let them do what you hired them
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one set of goals and then invert


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How to Create the Ultimate
Page 12

Inside Sales Department

What Do You Sell? Who Do You Sell To? Tip
Do a ‘deep dive’ of your current customer
When first starting a new position as an Figuring out your target market is critical. pool and run a summary of which indus-
executive at a new company, it’s important There are several questions you should be tries, company sizes, and titles currently in
to start thinking big picture. able to answer such as: your customer database. This will give you
a good indication of where to focus your
What is it that you sell? • Do you sell into the B2B space or are efforts. Focus on the ones that are your
you more B2C? best customers.
When Masahiko Goto from Makita asked
his employees, “What is it that we sell?” • What size of company do you target?
they responded, “Power Tools and Drills.”
Interestingly enough, they were wrong. • What is the title, title level and title
Goto responded, “We sell a hole in the function of the decision maker
wall.” you’re targeting?

To figure out what need you fulfill, look It’s important that you are able to answer
at the end result of what you sell so you these questions in order to effectively
know what you’re doing to add value to strategize and target your sales and mar-
the world. keting efforts.


How to Create the Ultimate
Page 13

Inside Sales Department

Find the Need EXISTING CREATE
EXISTING CREATE
As an executive, when starting to build Redirect aRedirect a river
river Dig a well Dig a well
your inside sales department, there are
two paradigms to consider when finding
needs:

• A river of existing need that is
already flowing

• Digging a well to try to create need.

From experience, it’s much easier to tap
into an existing need, if possible.

Tip
To find a need, go out to Google Keyword
Tool and type in the words that would lead
people to your company. This shows if If you do have to create need, your model
your product/service is an existing need by will be heavily focused on educating
if people are already searching on those prospects.
terms searching for solutions.


Where to Get Leads

To Find Think about your existing assets when
thinking of where to get leads. Existing
lead generation assets include:
List / Leads
One of the first things every sales execu-
tive should do when starting a new
position is test the list and lead sources

the Best •
•
•
Web Leads
Email Database
Tradeshow Lists
currently being used by their new
company.

• List Vendors Randomly pick 300 leads from each list

Source for
•
•
Lead Vendors
Social
and see which lists result in the highest
contact ratios. This is absolutely critical to
the success of a sales department.
It’s also important to consider the size of

Leads it’s leads that are bringing in the type of deals
that keep sales afloat. However, the most
important thing to consider is what lead
Whether you’re the new executive of a
startup that is building everything from
scratch, a turn-around company that
sources produce the best leads. To deter- you’re hoping to get out of stagnant

Important mine this, it’s important that you test.

Remember
growth, or a company that’s already doing
well but wants to do better the process is
always the same.
While testing is typically a marketing

to Test strategy, it’s very important that sales
executives learn this.
Tip
Test your lists and leads to see which ones
are working and which are not.


Defining Your Selling Model

Defining your selling method poses some Selling Methods
really big questions. Is your selling method
a specialist or general model?

In a research study InsideSales.com con-
ducted with Dr. James Oldroyd, it was
discovered there was a seven point differ-
ence between the close ratios between the
specialist model vs. a generalist model. Generalist Model Specialist Model
The sales rep is someone who finds This model has a specialized rep han-
That means if the average generalist is and qualifies the lead, closes the deal, dling each step: finding and qualifying,
getting a twelve percent close ratio, a spe- and delivers the customer to support. closing the deal, and delivering to cus-
cialist model in the same space is getting a tomer support.
nineteen percent close ratio. So that’s not
seven percent, that’s seven points.

When designing your inside sales depart-
ment, you may decide that a hybrid model up and coming account executive (both
is best. These decisions need to be made of these are closers), and two or three
early on. business development reps. These sales
professionals are supported by engineers,
At InsideSales.com, we have teams with developers, and implementation managers
a veteran regional sales manager, an and specialists to assist them.


Compensation Strategies

Depending on the type of sales reps The Harvard Business Review did a study
you will be hiring, there are a few differ- a few years back that discovered that
ent models to follow when determining pay itself was not the key motivator for
compensation. employees. However, lack of enough pay
or lack of pay that’s aligned was a big
Lead Generation Reps de-motivator. The areas of personal rec-
1. Base Salary ognition, achievement, personal growth
2. Effort Bonus (20% of base salary) and learning (mentioned previously) were
3. Lead Bonus much stronger overall motivators.
4. Revenue Share
Motivate Your Reps
Closer
1. Base Salary
InsideSales.com PowerStandings
2. Base Commission Bring gamification to your team.
3. Accelerator (depending on level
• Capture reps competitive energy
above quota)
• Real time performance ranking
• Results oriented environment

Click for Details


Quality, Speed, Price

As an executive, it’s important to define
Quality
who you are as a company, or as a division
of that company.

Years ago, the comedian Red Skelton from
NBC said, “Quality, Speed or Price. Pick
any two.” What this means is if you’re a
price and speed based company then qual-
ity may suffer. Alternatively, if you’re a
quality centered organization with a low
price, you aren’t as worried about speed.

Tip
It can be very difficult to do all three. Few
companies have accomplished it. Decide
now what areas you are going to focus on
and stick to your decision.
Price Speed


Culture
Once a high-end, ultimate sales executive Tip As a sales manager, ask yourself, “Where
comes on board, the first thing they have The culture of your department directly is my culture? Which area motivates my
to deal with is culture. There are two kinds impacts your customers. Always perform employees to want to come to work and to
of culture: the culture of the company and a net promoter score test to see how excel to get the job done?”
the culture within the sales organization. your culture is impacting your customer’s
experience. The best mix of motivators is love and duty.
The culture found within the sales orga- When fear and hate start entering into a
nization can either be a huge asset or a company’s culture it can create a
huge liability to an executive depending on
4 Levels of Motivation toxic environment.
how it’s shaped. When determining how to motivate your
employees to increase efficiency and
The good news? The sales executive is the productivity, it’s important that sales exec-
one who shapes the culture more than utives understand the different levels of
anybody else. motivation. While they all get results, they
create very different feelings of the culture
At InsideSales.com, we have built our own of your organization.
culture – we call it “scrappy.” We work
extremely hard, invest in technology, and
4 Levels of Motivation:
perform community service. All of these
• Love • Duty
activities contribute to our culture and
• Fear • Hate
shape what it is.


BANT vs. ANUM
BANT ANUM RANDUM
B = Budget A = Authority R = Rarely
A = Authority N = Need A = Any
N = Need U = Urgency N = Need
T = Timing M = Money D = Decision Maker
U = Urgency
M = Money
How do you qualify your leads and how The BANT model was reexamined and it From many years of experience in inside
do you forecast? A model that has been was found that only 25% of companies sales, we’ve found if you find the right
around for over 25 years is BANT make purchase decisions based on their decision maker and build the need, the
annual budget. Therefore, a new model urgency and money tend to appear. Addi-
needed to be created to reflect these tionally, there is a third model that some
findings called ANUM companies base their business on
called RANDUM

If you’re randomly qualifying your leads then your forecast capabilities are almost 50/50.
You could practically flip a coin and predict the outcome. It’s important that you define
your qualification model so that you can accurately forecast.


7 Rules to Increase
Page 20

Contact Ratios

From industry research, conducted by the 1. Immediacy – Respond to leads within 5 minutes. The odds of contacting a lead within
InsideSales.com research division, called a the first 5 minutes versus waiting 30 minutes drops 100 times.
ResponseAudit, we’ve found the average
company takes 48 hours and 44 minutes 2. Persistency – A best practice is to make six calls on all outbound leads and nine calls on
to respond to their web-generated leads. inbound leads. Always leave three voicemails and emails. Any more than that and you
Additionally, only 27 percent of web-gener- become a pest.

ated leads are ever contacted.
3. Optimal – Include a field on web forms asking your prospect when the best time to reach
them is. If they want to be contacted, they will tell you when to call.
These rules will dramatically increase the
number of leads you are able to contact 4. Time of Day – From internal research, InsideSales.com has determined the beginning
and create a better contact ratio than the and the end of the work day are the best time to make contact.
industry average.
5. Day of Week – From the same internal research, InsideSales.com has determined that
Tip Tuesday is the worst day of the week. Wednesday, Thursday and Fridays are the best.
Check out InsideSales.com’s LocalPres-
ence product which allows sales reps to 6. Direct Dial – As a best practice, have your reps ask for direct telephone numbers to
display a local number when calling into a decision makers. This will increase contact ratios and help avoid gatekeepers.
long distance area code.
7. Caller ID – Research has shown that by displaying a local number of the Caller ID of the
For a more in-depth discussion on increas- person you’re trying to reach, the chances of them answering improve 57.8 percent.
ing contact ratios, download our cold
calling and contact ratio eBook.


Top Sales Manager Obstacles
Top Problems of the Inside Sales Industry
100% InsideSales.com’s research study, “The
Top Problems of the Inside Sales Industry,”
surveyed sales reps and managers across
75% the United States to determine what obsta-
cles are most common in the industry.
56.9%
50%
48.3% Specifically, the top three problems sales
41.1% managers are having in the industry are:
36.0%
23.4% 1. Finding good leads
25% 20.9% 2. Hiring the Right People
14.0%
9.4% 3. Accurately Reporting Information

0% Download the executive summary of the
Finding Hiring the Making Sure Properly Compensating Employee Using the Right Other research report to view a complete over-
Good Leads Right People Information is Training Reps Sales Agents Turnover Equipment
Reported Correctly view of the research.


Summary Credits
Page 22

From this eBook, you now understand the best practices in hiring CO NTENT
the ultimate executive and creating an effective inside sales Ken Krogue |
department. http://kenkrogue.com

Trish Bertuzzi |
What now? www.bridgegroupinc.com
From implementing these best practices, you can now confidently
hire, onboard, and set your newly hired executive loose to be the
strategic thinker you hired them to be. WRITERS
Alex Orton |
This eBook was based on a webinar originally presented by Trish Jessica Winn |
Bertuzzi and Ken Krogue. View the webinar at www.insidesales.
com/webinar. CO PY EDITO R
Jessica Dyer |

Designer
Scott Humphries |


Inside Sales Metrics Boost Contact Rates
for SaaS Companies
Focusing on Inside Sales in SaaS Download Free eBook
companies, this report is based on
research of 197 B2B companies.

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