IN THIS ISSUE
Today's Driven brings you this article on a highly relevant and timely topic for chief executive officers (CEOs), chief revenue officers (CROs), and sales leaders:
Enterprise SaaS: Do this now to make your number for the quarter and the year. Get your pipeline and forecast in order. Do so by following the advice of John McMahon, a 5-time CRO at successful enterprise SaaS companies.
In addition, you'll find these 3 short takes:
- How much should remote-selling skills matter when you hire new reps? And what remote-selling skills should you be looking for?
- Are your audiences burning out on online events? If so, what are your best alternatives for 2021 and beyond?
- Sure, you want the C-suite to see your content. But be realistic. And follow these tips for the odd chance you catch their attention.
Dave Vranicar at Driven
REVENUE
Get on top of your Q3 revenue forecast now. Your end-of-quarter self will thank you.
You can do 6 things right now to help ensure you achieve your revenue quota at the end of September.
It starts with not kidding yourself about what can close this quarter, and focusing only on what you can.
The suggestions come from John McMahan, a 5-time chief revenue officer (CRO) at high-profile enterprise SaaS companies that went public.
McMahon is a former board member at HubSpot and is now a director at Snowflake, Mongo DB, Cybereason, Lacework, and Sigma.
Who should read this
You're likely to get most value from this link if...
- You're a chief executive officer (CEO), a CRO, or a sales leader.
- Your B2B SaaS company sells high-consideration deals with high average contract value.
- You're not confident in your sales team's ability to forecast revenue accurately.
- You're concerned you could miss your revenue number for fiscal Q3.
Why it matters now
If your company's fiscal year is the same as the calendar year, you have almost half the year to finish strong. But in Q3, you have just 49 selling days—minus time off for holidays and vacation.
To ensure success, you must act fast.
More
For details on John McMahon's 6 urgent steps to take now, go to [this article on the Driven blog]. It'll take about 5 minutes to read.
This is an online article, not a mind map.
You'll have free access for 2 weeks. After that, it's likely to come down.
drivensaas.com
SHORT TAKES
How much should remote-selling skills matter when you hire new sales reps?
The skills you needed for successful selling changed suddenly in 2020.
With nearly everyone selling remotely, it became important to build relationships and manage attention through online video calls.
As you hire sellers for the future, how much attention should you pay to the remote-selling skills of your candidates? And specifically what skills should you look for?
Why it matters
If remote selling or hybrid selling are here to stay—as many experts suggest—you have new hiring criteria to consider.
Who should read this
This link is likely to benefit anyone who hires sellers and sales leaders.
More
The Chief Sales Officer. Second quarter 2021. Gartner. [Downloadable PDF. 26 pages. No charge.]
See these related articles inside:
"3 Skills Frontline Sellers Need for Successful Virtual Selling."
"The Path to Effective Virtual Selling."
"Common Questions CSOs Are Asking About Talent, Hiring and Virtual Selling."
Are your audiences burned out on online events?
Who wants to attend online events anymore?
Marketers say the number is far smaller than it was a year ago. About 90% of the say buyers are getting sick of online events.
Why it matters
When in-person events shut down in 2020, many shifted online. With the emergence of powerful new Covid-19 variants, it's unclear how in-person events will fare in the balance of 2021. So how much can you count on people to attend online events?
And what other demand-gen tactics are worth considering?
Who should read this
These materials are useful for anyone who leads demand-generation efforts in your company.
More
"9 in 10 Demand Gen Marketers Believe Online Event Fatigue is Real." Marketing Charts. July 26, 2021. Online article.
2021 State of Demand Gen. Activate and Marketing Charts. July 2021. [Downloadable PDF. 30 pages. No charge.]
This article includes survey results about the tactics demand-gen marketers will favor in the coming months.
C-suite executives probably won't consume much of your sales and marketing content. But in case they do, make it memorable.
No matter how much effort you put into creating content for C-level executives, the odds are against their seeing it.
Lower-level people are much more likely to see your content first. If they find it interesting, they percolate it upward.
Regardless of who sees your content first, it helps to make it memorable. An article and podcast with Dr. Carmen Simon, a researcher in brain science, gives you 5 tips for doing so.
Who should read this
This information will be most useful for content marketers and anyone else who's trying to reach the C-suite with messages they'll remember.
One key takeaway
If your offering is complex, the temptation is to simplify your message. But oversimplification can work against you.
“Simplicity is a snoozer,” Simon says.
Marketers should not try to simplify complexity, but rather manage it.
An audience may remember just 10% of what you present. So B2B be deliberate in developing and delivering your content so you can control that 10%.
More
"Almost 90% of Content Consumption Said to Take Place Outside the C-Suite." MarketingCharts. June 14, 2021.
2021 State of B2B Content Consumption and Demand Report. Netline. July 2021. [Downloadable PDF. 55 pages. No charge.]
"C-Suite Marketing: Carmen Simon on Brain Science, B2B Marketing, and Memorable Communication." Rob Leavitt. July 28, 2021. ITSMA blog. Online article summarizing a podcast episode.
"C-Suite Marketing Episode 21: Dr. Carmen Simon Explains the Brain on Marketing." C-Suite Marketing blog. 46 minutes.
Dave Vranicar at Driven
ABOUT DRIVEN
Driven is a fortnightly digest for busy revenue leaders in business-to-business (B2B) SaaS.
It's likely to be most useful if your company sells higher-ticket products that require moderate to heavy involvement of professional sellers.
Driven is here to help you:
- Achieve your revenue goals.
- Overcome your obstacles and challenges.
- Fix expensive problems.
- Be the best version of yourself.
About links, recommendations, and commissions
When I provide links to content from vendors, does it imply a recommendation or endorsement?
Not necessarily. I share links to sources I think you'll find useful or interesting.
If I recommend or endorse a product or service, it's only because I trust it to deliver good value.
If I think something I recommend may not be a good fit for some Driven readers, I'll share my caveats.
I may receive a small commission if you buy something I've recommended. My commissions cost you nothing. If your purchase could earn me a commission, I'll tell you.
Dave Vranicar at Driven