𝗖𝗼𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗖𝗹𝗼𝘀𝗲: 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗱𝘂𝗰𝘁 𝗙𝗼𝘂𝗻𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗠𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗘𝗺𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗰𝗲 𝗦𝗮𝗹𝗲𝘀

Product founders often hesitate to step into sales mode.

James Hawkins recently shared his insights as a first-time founder in How to do Sales with No Experience. This post summarizes his key points.

Facing Fears

You may love solving problems but dread the idea of "selling" your solutions.

You may be tempted to hire a salesperson to handle sales, but don't give in. Here's why:

• Direct conversations help you better understand the market and priorities

• You are uniquely qualified to describe the product genuinely and clearly

• You can best negotiate on functionality and pricing to close the right deals

Getting Meetings  

Start by reaching out to close relationships (family, friends, and coworkers), then expand to outreach through social media and direct messages.

Keep your outreach direct and concise. When someone responds, you should reply within 5 minutes. And although James doesn't like events, I think they offer a chance to discover new ideas and people useful in future sales.

Conducting Meetings

I like how he distinguishes between sales meetings (guide the prospect) and product meetings (explore problems).

While understanding the prospect's needs matters, you should transition early from exploration to explanation. You're there to present a solution.

You might lack confidence at first. However, "Use your lack of sales experience as an advantage—people will appreciate the honesty."

Closing Deals

Early in the discussion, verify that your prospect is the actual decision maker and has a real budget. If others at their company need to be involved, ask for help connecting with them and preparing for their questions.

Ask them to explain how your solution improves their business (e.g. revenues, savings, or efficiencies). This insight will be useful when pricing.

Pricing Effectively

Essentially, you have two ways to get started. You can match competitor pricing initially until you gather enough data to set your own.

Or you may experiment immediately with different price points. Just be careful not to undercharge and create a problem.

The worst approach would be exhaustive research and lengthy discussion. Be biased towards action.

Retaining Customers

I love that James says, “looking after your existing customers should be your number one priority.” Setting clear expectations, solving problems quickly, and installing feedback cycles should result in less churn and create more upsells and referrals.

Find the right tools to best manage customer success metrics.

Most deals won't close, which can be frustrating. However, handling sales teaches invaluable lessons about your product and market.

______________________________

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I wrote this post with AI editing. Photo by LinkedIn Sales Solutions. 

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