Hey there 👋
There’s nothing like time spent with your team in-person, especially while kicking off a new year and celebrating some big milestones.
We just had our bi-annual company offsite / SKO in SF last week, and there were so many memorable moments, including:
🚂 The legend Skip Miller running a training (pun intended) for the entire team
🙌 Time meeting our customers IRL
🥳 Celebrating our recent Series A & Accord’s 3rd bday in style
📅 Aligning on goals & plans and getting energized for an exciting 2023!
Feeling even more motivated about our journey and helping revenue leaders hit their targets via repeatable deal execution!
Before we get to the good stuff, I’d love your quick feedback (2 mins max of your time!)
We’re planning some updates to this newsletter in the near future 👀 and since YOU are the reason it exists, can you please answer these 2 questions?
- What’s the #1 reason why you read this newsletter?
- What’s the #1 sales/revenue problem or topic on your mind right now?
Just reply to this email with your answers – I’ll read & respond to every one.
THANK YOU for your help and continued support! 💙
⌛ What do time travel & sales have in common?
This was definitely a highlight of our company offsite:
The one & only Skip Miller stopped by for an epic sales training session with the entire Accord team (including engineering, design, marketing, etc) – and they LOVED it. 🤯
The crystal-clear frameworks Skip provides about sales and what buyers need made a big difference in how WE think about building, positioning, and selling Accord.
So I wanted to share one of those frameworks: time travel and the concepts of ATL / BTL (above the line / below the line stakeholders).
What does time traveling have to do with sales? 🤔
BTLs (think front-line managers, AEs, etc) live in the present. ⏰
They care more about the inputs – the details about HOW things get done.
ATLs (sales leaders, CROs, etc) live in the past & future. 🔮
They care more about outcomes – that your solution will provide the RESULT they’re looking for.
Knowing what ATLs and BTLs each care about and how to communicate & build value for them is so important for everyone to know, not just sales.
And as a bonus: learning concepts like these gives your entire team a shared framework and language to use when working together cross-functionally. ✨
📚 What we’re reading
I believe EVERYONE in the B2B sales world should read this book – so much that we bought a copy for every single Accordion! 🤪
A few months ago I read John McMahon’s The Qualified Sales Leader. It was a game-changer for me, and I started recommending it to everyone.
Here's why:
✅ Breaks down the complicated world of B2B sales into simple, digestible frameworks
✅ Gives anyone the ability to execute at the highest level, not just the most experienced industry vets
✅ Awesome strategies & tactics for running pipeline reviews & diagnosing problems in your deals / sales process
Thinking of it as our new sales bible – had a lot of fun handing these out to the team at our offsite last week & can’t wait to hear their feedback on it! 📚
Have you read this? If so, what did you think?
Thanks for reading From Vendorship → Partnership 👋 Happy selling!
Ross Rich (CEO and Co-founder)
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