30 Minutes to President's Club with Nick Seeli, Jen Allen, and Maddie Jackson

Introduction

• Host: Nick Seeli
• Co-host: Jen Allen
• Guest: Maddie Jackson (AE at Webflow)
• Topic: Selling to different buying roles, actionable sales strategies

Top Three Actionable Takeaways from Maddie

1. First Line of Cold Email

• Make it all about the prospect
  • Likely the only part they read
  • People tend to correct misinformation
• Benefits:
  • Earns their trust
  • Shows you understand them
• Examples:
  • Mention their website's core web vital issues
  • Reference recent company acquisitions and system integrations

2. Ask to Meet Sooner

• Inspired by the book "Amp It Up" by Frank Slootman
• Setting up next steps immediately:
  • Shortens deal cycle
  • Maintains momentum
• Example:
  • If someone mentions a manager, ask if they can meet today

3. Give Gets Equilibrium

• Important to get something back when giving something
• Negotiation starts early
• Structure:
  • Align your resources according to theirs
  • Frame as valuable for the prospect
• Examples:
  • Offer trial access in exchange for a mutual engagement plan
  • Provide SE access for technical validation

Deeper Insights on Give Gets Equilibrium

• Prepare a list of possible "gives" and "gets"
• Common gives include:
  • Trial access
  • Product and engineering resources
• Match gives and gets to sales cycle stages
• Mutual engagement plans for trial stages

Selling to Marketing and Technical Roles

• Challenges of different buyer personas:
  • Marketing: Focuses on brand and user experience
  • Technical: Focuses on implementation feasibility
• Strategies:
  • Get technical stakeholders involved early
  • Understand the current process and pain points

Detailed Example

• Explaining how Webflow can meet specific needs
• Ensuring smooth transitions between marketing and technical stakeholders
• Quantifying impact to build a business case

Champion Testing

• Differentiate between influencers and true champions
• True champions have political and technical clout
• Test by asking them to arrange high-level meetings
• If they fail, look for additional stakeholders

Managing Deal Cycles

• Be skeptical and validate your champions
• Leverage internal resources for executive engagement

End of Deal Cycle – Four W’s of Negotiation

• What: What are the terms and expectations?
• Why: Why are these terms important?
• Who: Who needs to sign off?
• When: When can these steps be completed?
• Use leadership as leverage to ensure all stakeholders are engaged

Meeting with the CFO

• Depend on the champion for preparation
• Present only necessary information

Bad Habits to Avoid in Sales

• Avoid trying to look good; focus on solving prospect’s problems
• Internally, share challenges and successes to work as a team

Recap and Final Takeaways

• Ensure high-level engagement for serious negotiations
• Prepare a list of give/get scenarios
• Properly test and validate champions
• Use precise language to book higher-level meetings

Outro

• Encourage listeners to sign up for 30 MPC newsletter