Just a superb holiday period last week, as I took unfair advantage of the fact that I live on the NH beach by lugging my book-filled beach bag out the door every afternoon and laying claim to my time-tested perfect location of sand and surf.
- Perfect for catching up on my long list of required reading assignments
- Necessary for the final edits to the fall syllabus which went out on the 5th
- Relaxing from being at the tip of the spear for the last quarter.
June ended what I always regard as the most important sales quarter of the year:
There's simply nothing better, more exciting, more defining...and more humbling, but also more rewarding than the profession of Sales!
"Points-on-the-Board", "Quota", "Scorecards", "Battle Plans" and "Playbooks" are frequently used terms and tools we use daily as we battle the inevitable counting of the clock against deals won.
In today's ever-changing world of sales, the excitement is even more so, since I can instantly dial into exactly where I am in my customized Hubspot scorecard reviewing a list of my own personal KPIs. Want to learn more about Hubspot? Just connect with me for a quick intro and deep dive into analytics.
I now take all those comments about Q2 sales, where every day, I work, I consult, and I teach, and I now bring all that to the world of early-stage venture fundraising as I have found myself at the point of the spear as co-founder of yet another exciting startup. Every day, just as I'm gearing up for another series of fundraising calls, the media warns me about the still-looming fear of a recession, high interest rates, the cost of oil, the impact of the weather, and whatever else is headline-worthy. None of which has anything to do with the reality of the fact that someone at the point of the spear needs to make calls, follow up with not one or two outreaches, but six to ten calls, provide a variety of emails, POVs and more and more data...and, the bottom line of which just get the deal done.
Pitchbook, my daily read and the industry bible, told me last week that the outlook for early-stage funding is both more and less difficult in varying metrics and comments??? Good news and difficult news!. Nothing my team and I don't know already from living at the tip of the spear every day just like other founders doing the same thing and every salesperson is going to do today!
Just a quick note on the best of best in selling today! All it takes is discipline, the right tools, a powerful team behind you...and a personal love of being at the point of the spear!
www.derbymanagement.com
Derby Entrepreneurship Center@Tufts.