Customer Focus

Jason Lemkin created and runs SaaStr, the world’s largest community for B2B/SaaS founders, and is the managing director of SaaStr Fund, a $90 million venture capital firm specializing in early-stage enterprise investments. He is also the mastermind behind two major tech conferences each year—one in the Bay Area, drawing in over 15,000 people, and another in Europe, with a crowd of more than 3,000 SaaS executives, founders, and entrepreneurs. Before SaaStr, Jason wore many hats: CEO and co-founder of EchoSign (later bought by Adobe), vice president at Adobe Systems, co-founder and president of NanoGram Devices Corp., vice president of NeoPhotonics, and a senior director at BabyCenter. In our conversation, we discuss:

• How far you should go without a salesperson

• Signs it’s time to hire salespeople

• Why you need to hire two salespeople

• How to compensate your salespeople

• How to interview salespeople

• When to hire a VP of Sales

• How to prevent their flaming out

• How to scale your sales org

• How to improve the relationship between your sales and product teams

• Much more

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• CommandBar—AI-powered user assistance for modern products and impatient users

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Find the full transcript at: https://www.lennyspodcast.com/building-a-world-class-sales-org-jason-lemkin-saastr/

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Where to find Jason Lemkin:

• X: https://twitter.com/jasonlk

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jasonmlemkin/

• Website: https://www.saastr.com/

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Where to find Lenny:

• Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com

• X: https://twitter.com/lennysan

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/

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In this episode, we cover:

(00:00) Jason’s background

(06:18) The importance of sales in B2B businesses

(11:23) Signs that you should start hiring salespeople

(14:19) Attributes to look for in early sales reps

(19:08) Hiring a VP of Sales

(26:43) The role of a VP of Sales

(30:06) Interviewing salespeople

(45:16) Determining sales compensation and quota

(53:34) Transitioning from 100% commission to a smaller percentage

(56:58) Indicators of a hard-to-sell product

(59:39) Scaling the sales organization

(01:05:26) Understanding sales roles and titles

(01:10:02) Product involvement in sales, and vice versa

(01:20:32) Thoughts on product teams taking on P&L responsibilities

(01:27:23) One thing founders can do to become better at sales

(01:31:02) The ideal trial length for a free trial sales team

(01:39:50) Closing thoughts

(01:41:43) Lightning round

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Referenced:

• Marc Benioff on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/marcbenioff/

• Snowflake: https://www.snowflake.com/en/

• Yamini Rangan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/yaminirangan/

• Salesforce: https://www.salesforce.com/

• HubSpot: https://www.hubspot.com/

• Twilio: https://www.twilio.com/

• Cloudflare: https://www.cloudflare.com/

• GitHub: https://github.com/

• Columbo: https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1466074/

• What is Davos and why is it important? Your guide to the World Economic Forum’s annual meeting: https://www.euronews.com/next/2024/01/15/what-is-davos-and-why-is-it-important-your-guide-to-the-world-economic-forums-annual-meeti

• Adobe: https://www.adobe.com/

• Satya Nadella on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/satyanadella/

• Glengarry Glen Ross on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Glengarry-Glen-Ross-James-Foley/dp/B002NN5F7A

• The Wolf of Wall Street on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/Wolf-Wall-Street-Leonardo-DiCaprio/dp/B00IIU9FQY

• A step-by-step guide to crafting a sales pitch that wins | April Dunford (author of Obviously Awesome and Sales Pitch): https://www.lennyspodcast.com/a-step-by-step-guide-to-crafting-a-sales-pitch-that-wins-april-dunford-author-of-obviously-awesom/

• Pipedrive: https://www.pipedrive.com/

• Sam Blond on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/sam-blond-791026b/

• Gong: https://www.gong.io/

• Zendesk: https://www.zendesk.com/

• ZoomInfo: https://www.zoominfo.com/

• Apollo: https://www.apollo.io/

• Daniel Chait on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/dhchait/

• SAP: https://www.sap.com/

• Lessons on building product sense, navigating AI, optimizing the first mile, and making it through the messy middle | Scott Belsky (Adobe, Behance): https://www.lennyspodcast.com/lessons-on-building-product-sense-navigating-ai-optimizing-the-first-mile-and-making-it-through-t/

• VistaPrint: https://www.vistaprint.com/

• Procore: https://www.procore.com/

• Matt Mullenweg on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mattm/

• Wordpress: https://wordpress.com/

• SaaStr University: https://app.saastruniversity.com/collections/20252

• From Impossible to Inevitable: How SaaS and Other Hyper-Growth Companies Create Predictable Revenue: https://www.amazon.com/Impossible-Inevitable-Hyper-Growth-Companies-Predictable/dp/1119531691

• Pavilion: https://www.joinpavilion.com/

• Top 10 Learnings about Free Trials with Tomasz Tunguz: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tfQNJpnxmMw

• The Terminal List on Prime Video: https://www.amazon.com/The-Terminal-List-Season-1/dp/B09HYNH8TK

• Top Gun: Maverick on Paramount: https://www.paramountmovies.com/movies/top-gun-maverick

• OpusClip app: https://www.opus.pro/

• OnePlus Open smartphone: https://www.amazon.com/OnePlus-Dual-SIM-Unlocked-Smartphone-Hasselblad/dp/B0CHN7M531/

• SaaStr conferences: https://www.saastr.com/events/

• Marketo: https://go.marketo.com/about-marketo-landingpage-emea.html

• Zoomtopia: https://zoomtopia.com/

• Money20/20: https://us.money2020.com/

• Shoptalk: https://shoptalk.com/

• Jeff Lawson on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffiel/

• Eric Kwan on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/erickwan/

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Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com.

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Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.

I've worked on a lot of things over the years. Made investments, sat on boards, and ran companies. The one commonality in the success of all of these is how well the team members get along. Today on the podcast I'm sharing my recent Keynote that I gave for GoPuff employees in Philly! I share my two cents on the importance of being close to the customer emphasizing that whoever is the closest to the customer wins. I also share some business and marketing strategies to win in 2024. Hope you enjoy this one!

THINGS I TALK ABOUT:

1. The Value of Attention in Achieving Success
2. Personal and Professional Journey
3. Entrepreneurship and Business Strategy
4. Market Trends and Consumer Preferences
5. Operational Challenges and E-commerce Opportunities
6. Importance of Team Culture and Dynamics
7. Patience and Long-Term Business Outlook
8. Scaling the Unscalable in Customer Experience
9. Personal Growth and Networking
10. Sports Analogies for Business Success
11. Reflection on Personal Behaviors and Biases
12. 2024 Call to Action

0:00-1:10 Intro

1:10-6:01 Marqeta's beginning

6:01-9:15 First customers

9:15-16:25 "Magic" product market fit

16:25-24:58 Building customer relationships/Pricing

24:58-32:18 Advice for founders

0:00 - 1:28 Introduction

1:28 - 9:14 History of Mercury

9:14 - 19:07 Mercury's first customers

19:07 - 22:15 Scaling up

22:15 - 25:48 Pricing journey

25:48 - 31:37 Lessons and advice

It’s easy (and kind of fun) to laugh at the misfortune of CEOs and other high up business types when they bring it on themselves – so let’s do that now. Herein lies some of the worst business decisions ever made, hindsight being 20/20, of course.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

On today's episode, I’m sharing a throwback Tea with GaryVee where I’m answering your questions. I share my thoughts on the balance between work, school, and fun, and urge you to live life without overthinking. I also discuss the importance of not beating yourself up over perceived failures or downtime. Your readiness and desire will naturally align when the time is right. Then I talk about confronting negativity within your relationships and explain the importance of honesty and positivity. We also dive into the world of content creation. I share my unique perspective on personal growth and the importance of being true to yourself, even when faced with family expectations. This is a really fun episode and hopefully very helpful for a lot of people. I hope you enjoy it!

Your company's culture is the bedrock of everything you do. So you can't afford to just let your culture emerge — you need to build it with the deliberate approach of a product designer. Then you need to bring that culture to life by winning buy-in from your team.

This is exactly what Dharmesh Shah did at HubSpot — as laid out in the famed HubSpot Culture Code. This living document continues to inspire founders and business leaders to adopt a product design approach to building their own vibrant and adaptable company cultures.

In this episode, Dharmesh talks through the inspiration behind the Culture Code, and reveals how he built and rebuilt some of its most inspiring elements — all while keeping his team invested.

Read a transcript of this episode: https://mastersofscale.com/

Subscribe to the Masters of Scale weekly newsletter: https://mastersofscale.com/subscribe

See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

CLASH OF THE TITANS - Go To moorevleeds.com to find out more

Rob joins Dan Heelan on his podcast for a conversation all about business, marketing and money. They discuss a wide range of topics including the biggest threat to business right now, how and why every entrepreneur needs to learn to manage their emotions and unique ways to market yourself and your business.

Rob and Dan Reveal:

• Why Rob is an authority on entrepreneurship and money
• The importance of clear marketing and messaging
• The traits needed to become a successful business person
• The art of compounding to build wealth
• How and why to consider tax when building a business

Also featured:

• Why many of the world's entrepreneurs are introverts
• Emotional regulation and personal development
• Taxes and expenses

BEST MOMENTS

“If no one knows you, no one can buy you”

“REALLY you can build a business around anything”

“The longer you do something the bigger it grows”

“Start, make money, then you can get a book keeper or an accountant to figure it all out”

“Money doesn’t disappear it just flows to different directions”

“Whatever you really want to do, do it now because tomorrow isn’t promised”

VALUABLE RESOURCES

https://robmoore.com/

bit.ly/Robsupporter  

https://robmoore.com/podbooks

 rob.team

ABOUT THE HOST

Rob Moore is an author of 9 business books, 5 UK bestsellers, holds 3 world records for public speaking, entrepreneur, property investor, and property educator. Author of the global bestseller “Life Leverage” Host of UK’s No.1 business podcast “The Disruptive Entrepreneur”

“If you don't risk anything, you risk everything”

CONTACT METHOD

Rob’s official website: https://robmoore.com/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/robmooreprogressive/?ref=br_rs

LinkedIn: https://uk.linkedin.com/in/robmoore1979

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

disruptive, disruptors, entreprenuer, business, social media, marketing, money, growth, scale, scale up, risk, property: http://www.robmoore.com

The Salesforce platform can empower businesspeople to create digital solutions without writing code. In this episode of Smart Talks with IBM, Malcolm Gladwell takes on this topic with Jacob Goldstein, host of What’s Your Problem?, and guest Phil Weinmeister, Head of Product, Salesforce Americas, at IBM. They discuss human-centric design, the low-code/no-code approach, and how IBM Consulting powers digital transformations with the Salesforce platform.

This is a paid advertisement from IBM.

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Michael Seibel and Dalton Caldwell are back for episode 2 of Rookie Mistakes to discuss common mistakes founders make when fundraising, and how to avoid them.

Apply to Y Combinator: https://www.ycombinator.com/apply/  
Work at a startup: https://www.ycombinator.com/jobs

Unicorns exist in business! Today, Alex (@AlexHormozi) talks about what unicorn closes are and what makes them so great! Learn how to achieve a perfect unicorn sales close scenario for yourself!

Welcome to The Game w/Alex Hormozi, hosted by entrepreneur, founder, investor, author, public speaker, and content creator Alex Hormozi. On this podcast you’ll hear how to get more customers, make more profit per customer, how to keep them longer, and the many failures and lessons Alex has learned on his path from $100M to $1B in net worth.

Timestamps:

(0:30) - What is close, to begin with?

(1:11) - Controlling your tone is important

(3:07) - The unicorn close

(4:59) - 2 awesome follow-up questions

(5:44) - It's normal to ask questions after they say "No"

Follow Alex Hormozi’s Socials:

LinkedIn | Instagram | Facebook | YouTube | Twitter | Acquisition

Welcome to the Business Broadcast Podcast! Each week James brings on the show an entrepreneur who shares their biggest challenges and struggles in business.

James coaches the business owner through these challenges by asking those hard hitting questions in order to get to the bottom of these problems and help the business owner soar to success.

Start your 14 Day FREE Trial for the Entrepreneurs University at: https://jamessinclair.net/

This episode of the Business Broadcast is truly inspirational as James speaks to Jonathon Spencer who as built a £5million business whilst losing his eyesight. Find out more in this episode!

Check out Jonathon's Business at: jonny@tastetheworld.uk / www.orbisstamford.co.uk

Today’s episode is episode #25 of Coffee & Commerce, co-hosted by myself and Zubin Mowlavi and today we are joined by Warren Kornblum, the former CMO of Toys R Us. We discuss Warren’s successes and failures during his time at Toys R Us, and give important advice on how to keep your ear to the ground. Enjoy! Let me know what you thought.

Tweet Me! @garyvee

Text Me! 212-931-5731

My Newsletter: garyvee.com/newsletter

Each week James brings on the show an entrepreneur who shares their biggest challenges and struggles in business.

James coaches the business owner through these challenges by asking those hard hitting questions in order to get to the bottom of these problems and help the business owner soar to success.

In this episode James talks with Abby Anderson who is a bookkeeper by trade and has setup her own business... but Abby struggles to sell, what's the solution?

For more info head to https://jamessinclair.net/

Find us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/jamesjimbosinclair/

Connect with James on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/_jamessinclair/

Watch James’ Latest Business Vlog https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCTm2gK928YuBSEU0lvdFJoA