The Prospecting Masterclass ep. 26
Hey there Croners! Welcome to the 26th episode of The Prospecting Masterclass, the original Crono column that gives you insights and tips right from the best minds in sales.
In this episode, we’re proud to introduce you to Andy Laws, Senior Business Development Leader at Braze. With him, we’ll cover a hot sales topic: leadership.
Enjoy reading the interview!
Hey Andy, let's start with the "easy" question: 5 words to describe yourself!
Passionate about all things pipeline!
Can you give us a brief recap of your background in B2B Sales? How did you start?
I started in B2B sales through my now partner, Celina Schulz, recommending I take a look at it.
I was working in marketing for an enterprise business and she felt that my background as an elite athlete would lend itself to Software Sales. Fast-forward 4.5 years and she was right – I’ve loved every minute!
What would you suggest to someone starting today in B2B sales?
Find a company and leader you want to work for – don’t rush in and choose a sub-par product or manager to work for, it’ll totally tarnish your early experiences.
Look for an industry-leading product and hiring manager with a strong pedigree of proven success.
Beyond that, once you’re in the door, focus on controlling the controllable…
- Find out quickly who the top performers are and attach yourselves to them – what are their behaviours and daily routines?
- Don’t rush your onboarding process – be a sponge and lay good foundations;
- Work hard – in fact, aim to be the hardest working person in the room.
What are the top habits that drive success for SDRS?
The top SDRs do the simple things well.
They prospect every day, they focus on individual prospect’s needs and pains and they leverage relevant insights to capture attention.
They’re also consistent in their emotions – never too high or never too low. By having emotive equilibrium it then positively impacts their daily actions of doing their outreach. If you’re too high or too low, you’ll naturally be less productive!
Top SDRs also know they can’t just do it themselves – they find a healthy balance between execution and leveraging the resources around them across AE, Management, partnerships, marketing etc.
What bits of advice would you give to someone moving into leadership roles in sales?
The first thing to grasp is that leadership isn’t a badge of notoriety – it’s not about you. It’s about you serving the team you’re now responsible for.
Beyond that, it’s worth meeting that dynamic head-on if you’re moving from a peer to a leader. Work through how you’re going to work together and show a degree of vulnerability in admitting you don’t know everything and that you’re not always going to get it right.
Finally, understand the person not just the performer. Get to know them as people, their backgrounds, info on their family and what makes them tick. Building trust and depth to relationships is critical for productivity and more importantly job satisfaction.
How do you see B2B outbound sales changing in 2024? What challenges and trends do you anticipate?
I fully expect to see the influence and adoption of AI further accelerate this year. I’m seeing some really cool tools coming to market that will progressively change the way reps and teams operate.
The macro remains challenging with various variables still at large but there does seem to be a more positive narrative across markets that organisations will shift more to being on the front foot again. With growth in mind – that’s only ever a good thing in sales as its invariably coupled with investment in products and services!
Keep reading The Prospecting Masterclass!
