Start with putting in at least a consummate amount of effort into learning selling as you would learning a new programming language. Like your second language, not your fifth. Read, watch, study, practice (in the mirror, with friends, online). Learn to sell anything, not just your thing. There is a wide range of literature, ranging from academic to motivational. Try to reverse engineer a sale that took place. Like why is a football game called the ServPro First Responders Bowl? Someone closed that deal. How, who was involved in the decision, why did they agree to proceed, what are their anticipated benefits and outcomes? What else could that money have gone towards that proved less valuable than naming rights? If you had to sell the naming rights to a football game, who would you approach, or who might approach you?
Read case studies on the scale of sales you’re pursuing. A $10 /mo subscription is sold very differently than a $10m contract, but is often bought for the same fundamental reasons. Case studies illuminate the sales cycle at a given scale, and give a glimpse into timeframes, competition, and customers to expect.
Research your competition, big and small. How many people do they employee in sales and marketing roles? Pick one and look at their LinkedIn. What did they do before their current role? How do they sell themselves? What is their quota or target? How many people are they connected with. And who.
Research the crap out of potential customers. What are their hopes and fears? Which align with your offering? Who would trust their decision on a vendor for your product?
Then you can begin the real work of selling which is to favorably differentiate your offering against alternatives to qualified buyers. Spend your precious time with people who have the means, motivation, and mass to make a sale impactful to your company. Many sellers waste the majority of their time pursuing people that can never proceed with a deal, ie unqualified. That is true in both sales and marketing. Learning what a qualified buyer looks like, and where and when to find them is among the most valuable activities in selling.
Finally, sell. If you’re doing it right you’re doing helping your customer achieve the best possible outcome while profiting from it. Sell. It’s rewarding in profound ways. It’s survival. It’s adaptation in action. It’s thrilling.
All of your code is just trapped electrons sitting idle. When you sell, you shape them to fit someone’s reality with value, then they start to move and have real effects. I’m emphasizing this because selling tends to be something developers and founders love to avoid, but it is the lifeblood of a business, what makes it a business instead of a hobby. Getting proficient at selling can be one of the most life-changing pursuits, not just because you can attract money easier, but it puts you in touch with the ur currents of value, the shape of progress. You’re already on the right track by asking good questions here, that’s 90% of the technique.
Read case studies on the scale of sales you’re pursuing. A $10 /mo subscription is sold very differently than a $10m contract, but is often bought for the same fundamental reasons. Case studies illuminate the sales cycle at a given scale, and give a glimpse into timeframes, competition, and customers to expect.
Research your competition, big and small. How many people do they employee in sales and marketing roles? Pick one and look at their LinkedIn. What did they do before their current role? How do they sell themselves? What is their quota or target? How many people are they connected with. And who.
Research the crap out of potential customers. What are their hopes and fears? Which align with your offering? Who would trust their decision on a vendor for your product?
Then you can begin the real work of selling which is to favorably differentiate your offering against alternatives to qualified buyers. Spend your precious time with people who have the means, motivation, and mass to make a sale impactful to your company. Many sellers waste the majority of their time pursuing people that can never proceed with a deal, ie unqualified. That is true in both sales and marketing. Learning what a qualified buyer looks like, and where and when to find them is among the most valuable activities in selling.
Finally, sell. If you’re doing it right you’re doing helping your customer achieve the best possible outcome while profiting from it. Sell. It’s rewarding in profound ways. It’s survival. It’s adaptation in action. It’s thrilling.
All of your code is just trapped electrons sitting idle. When you sell, you shape them to fit someone’s reality with value, then they start to move and have real effects. I’m emphasizing this because selling tends to be something developers and founders love to avoid, but it is the lifeblood of a business, what makes it a business instead of a hobby. Getting proficient at selling can be one of the most life-changing pursuits, not just because you can attract money easier, but it puts you in touch with the ur currents of value, the shape of progress. You’re already on the right track by asking good questions here, that’s 90% of the technique.