Steli Efti
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Articles by Steli Efti
Better Bite Ventures, Shiok Meats CEO invest in animal-free dairy startup Phyx44
Phyx44 has already made whey and casein proteins (found in milk) at the lab scale, and these products can be used in ice cream, cheese, and baked goods The Phyx44 team Phyx44, a biotech-enabled food science startup based in Bengaluru, India, has secured US$1.2 million in seed capital led by Better Bite Ventures.
How to use email sequences to win more B2B sales deals
Today, the name of the game is automation. If your business is not embracing the power of automation then, like the proverbial weakest buffalo of the herd, you are going to get left behind and die. To make sure that you don’t find yourself at the back of the pack, I’m going to be teaching you about the power of email sequences. We all know how powerful email marketing can be. But imagine if you could reap all the benefits of email marketing without having to lift a finger?
Why Playing The Long Game Can Be Your Competitive Advantage
BRYSON CITY, NC - JUNE 1991: Retired Seaboard Air Line Railroad conductor Allen Watson checks the ... [+] Getty Images Playing the long game. It's not exactly a new idea, and I'm sure you've heard it mentioned hundreds of times before. The concept is fairly straightforward: Playing the long game means paying a small price today to make tomorrow's tomorrow simpler. If you can do this long enough to get results, it will feed on itself. And this concept can be applied personally and professionally.
A year of intense self-discovery with Ryan Robinson
Today I’m talking with my good friend Ryan Robinson, one of the most disciplined people I know, and also one of the most prolific content creators. But that’s not what this conversation is about. 2020 has been an intense year for Ryan, a lot of personal transformation, and I saw many parallels to changes and realizations is in my own life. 2021-02-06-8484-Intro Ryan Welcome everybody. This is another special episode of the inner work podcast today.
Remote Sales Team? Here’s How To Create A Winning Coaching Culture
Over the past year, more sales teams made the shift to remote than ever before. And with it, a lot of great advice on making remote work has been published. I love seeing how generous and freely sales teams around the world share what’s worked for them. But one thing I see that teams still don’t pay enough attention to is this: creating and maintaining a coaching culture. It’s not enough to give your reps all the tools and systems they need to get the job done and hit quota.
Sales Pitch Lessons You Can Use To Sell Better & Sell More (With Examples)
A great sales pitch should always be customer-focused. One of the keys to closing a deal is understanding what problems your prospect is dealing with, then connecting your pitch directly to those pains. But how do you actually get that info? The way you navigate the pitch can be the difference between closing a deal and getting so lost in the conversation that the prospect disappears for good.
How To Avoid Being Labeled “Too Salesy” By Being Self-Aware
Don't fake enthusiasm. Instead, engage your sales prospects authentically. getty It takes a lot of skill to be a good sales rep. As with anything, to be good at sales you need to practice, take risks, make mistakes, and learn from them. But, most of the time, sales reps get a bad reputation. The reason? They’re labeled as being "too salesy." Being "too salesy" can not only harm your chance at closing but also hurt your brand's reputation.
Forecasting Sales in a Product-Led Business
Sales forecasting is challenging on its own and especially so when you have to combine it with a product-led motion. Derek Skaletsky has developed a framework to combine both sales-led and product-led efforts in a single forecast. Forecasting sales. This has been a challenge for companies since…well, since we started selling things.
Why Doing Things That Don’t Scale Is A MUST In B2B Sales
“Startups take off because the founders make them take off. There may be a handful that just grew by themselves, but usually it takes some sort of push to get them going.” Paul Graham, co-founder of Y Combinator, speaks during a Studio 1.0 interview on Bloomberg ... [+] Television in San Francisco, California, U.S., on Wednesday, July 23, 2014. Y Combinator provides investment services offering financial assistance, analysis and advice to startup companies.
6 Things About Sales Pipeline Management Every Startup Needs To Understand In 2020
Your sales pipeline tells you which leads are in the process of purchasing, how many opportunities are currently on the table, and what you need to do to move those deals to close. But, are you really taking full advantage of your sales pipeline? Sales pipeline management isn’t the same as taking a quick glance at the pipeline and moving on with your day. It involves analyzing, tracking, and optimizing your pipeline consistently.
3 strategies for getting past gatekeepers
How often do you reach a decision-maker on the first call? It’s rare, I know. Most of the time, you connect with an executive assistant, office administrator, or intern. They’re the gatekeepers, right? The first obstacle between you and the close. They ultimately decide whether you’ll pitch your product or service to anyone else in the company.
Overcoming objections in sales: 40+ examples, tactics, and rebuttals
Nothing defeats an inexperienced salesperson faster than an unexpected objection. Most salespeople invest hours perfecting their pitch without a second though to what comes afterwards. But even a perfect pitch can be ruined by poor objection handling. If you’re tired of losing deals to responses like, “Your price is too high,” “Now isn’t a good time,” or, “We’ll buy if you add these features,” it’s time to get serious about overcoming objections.
How To Coach A Remote Sales Team: 7 Steps Successful Sales Leaders Are Taking Now
How long has it been since you stepped foot in your office? Normally, the move to remote happens gradually, with time to make clear plans, educate your team, and train them effectively. But with so many teams being moved to remote work on a moment’s notice due to the crisis, there was little time for sales leaders to plan and prepare for this major change. If your team is newly remote, do you have a clear plan on how you’ll continue to coach them?
5-Step Cold Calling Training to Prepare a New Salesperson
Onboarding a new member of your sales team is challenging on its own, but especially so when they have to call prospects out of the blue. Providing the right cold calling training can make or break the success of a new team member. Nobody likes cold calling. But just because it isn’t fun doesn’t mean it isn’t effective. A study conducted by the RAIN Group in 2018 found that “69% of buyers have accepted phone calls from new providers in the last 12 months.” Simply put?
How to onboard remote employees
I like to talk to our new hires after a couple of weeks, and I always ask them the same question: What’s surprised you the most? They’ve gone through the process of searching for a job, they found us, did their research, talked to us, and finally decided to accept an offer. But do expectations match reality? Here’s the most common answer I get: The most surprising thing has been how exceptional the onboarding process is.
How to crush remote team retreats
When we started doing Close team retreats, there wasn’t much planning involved. For the first three years, our entire company consisted of six people. We’d travel to another city—all six of us—and get some work done. For the most part, we carried on as if it was any other week. But as we’ve grown, things have gotten more complicated. We can’t just cram a bunch of people into a house and work side-by-side anymore. Today, we’re a team of 27—and we’re in 11 different countries.
'Outbound' Shouldn't Be a Dirty Word in Sales. Here's Why
© Getty Images close up man hand point to press button number on telephone office desk.hotline Inbound marketing works, but that doesn't mean your team should be treating outbound sales as taboo. By Steli Efti, co-founder and CEO of Close Truth be told, there’s recently been an obsession with inbound marketing, and sure, for good reason. Inbound marketing works. It involves attracting customers and leads through content creation, rather than having sales reps fight for their attention.
'Outbound' Shouldn't Be a Dirty Word in Sales: Here's Why
By Steli Efti, co-founder and CEO of Close Truth be told, there’s recently been an obsession with inbound marketing, and sure, for good reason. Inbound marketing works. It involves attracting customers and leads through content creation, rather than having sales reps fight for their attention. This type of marketing is about winning the customer’s trust, so when they’re ready to buy, your brand comes to mind. It’s about getting people to your brand instead of intruding with outbound tactics.
Why Being Adaptable Is An Underrated Superpower In Business (And Life!)
In the face of change, adapt Photo by khaled Mohammad Shaad from Pexels Over the last few years a lot of things have changed. The way people consume content. The way people sell. The way people buy. The way people research products. The way products are served up in Google. The algorithms that determine what does well on social media. The best way to conduct outreach. The role of technology in sales. The rise of inside sales… and so much more.
5 Sales Lessons from Leadfeeder’s Journey of Growing $150k MRR Without Salespeople
In the early stages of a SaaS company, when hiring sales reps is not an option, growing “organically” is key to achieving traction. But that type of growth can often be elusive. That’s why we asked Anna Crowe to share the story of how her team achieved that natural growth and the lessons they learned along the way. First things first, if you’ve arrived at this article eager for a quick fix to massive growth, reconsider proceeding. So, what gives?
The key to success - Master the fundamentals and play infinite games
Why you need to start playing infinite games Photo by Rok Romih from Pexels Mindset is the most important factor in achieving goals and dreams. It's at the heart of your success. It's at the heart of your ability to bounce back. It’s at the heart of your pursuit of constant growth. It’s what will determine whether we’re among the best or the rest. One of the most impactful mindset shifts is the transition away from being easily bored and playing finite games. Let’s unpack that a bit.
The Real Reasons That CEO Isn't Responding to Your Emails
© Getty Images Businesswoman Checking E-mail Online on Laptop If your emails are too long, too generic and too much about you, don't expect to get a response. By Steli Efti, co-founder and CEO of Close Do you know who checks their email practically every day? CEOs. Email is the preferred method of communication for many executives. Sure, a lot of work gets done face to face, over the phone and even via video conference, but email is an equalizer that many CEOs are comfortable with and use daily.
The Real Reasons That CEO Isn't Responding to Your Emails
By Steli Efti, co-founder and CEO of Close Do you know who checks their email practically every day? CEOs. Email is the preferred method of communication for many executives. Sure, a lot of work gets done face to face, over the phone and even via video conference, but email is an equalizer that many CEOs are comfortable with and use daily. So, why is that CEO you’re trying to get in touch with not responding?
Tired of Sales Rejections? Here’s What You Need to Know
A simple two-letter word that stops us in our tracks. “No.” Today I want to talk about rejection. In the context of sales, but also the larger context of business, and life. We all hate getting rejected. You, me, everyone you’ve ever met. It’s human nature. Hard-wired right into our brains. 🧠fMRI studies reveal that getting rejected triggers the same neurological pathways in your brain that light up when you experience physical pain. 💊Taking painkillers actually soothes the pain of rejection.
How tiny startups can close huge enterprise deals
One of the most instructive experiences of my early selling career was losing a sale to Google. That one deal could have launched my first company into international success and been worth tens of millions of dollars. But I screwed it up. Google headquarters in Mountain View, California. (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez, File) ASSOCIATED PRESS I walked right into one of the common pitfalls of selling to enterprises: I thought I was selling to the company.
5 mega-successful entrepreneurs who launched their careers in sales
sales stories entrepreneurship hustling superstars In 2011, over 400,000 businesses were launched in the US. Two years later, one-third of those businesses had gone under. Waverly Deutsch, clinical professor of entrepreneurship at The University of Chicago Booth School of Business, attributes this to a lack of salesmanship. She argues that many young entrepreneurs are innovators, engineers or designers—people used to working alone with their ideas.
7 Steps to Building a Sales Team When You Know Nothing About Sales
Many startup founders and small business owners don't know anything about sales. That's not necessarily a bad thing. You didn't start your company to be a salesperson. You started it to solve a problem. And you'll have a sales team to back you up and generate the revenue you need to succeed. But if you don't know anything about sales, how are you supposed to build that sales team? CB Insights found that 23% of startups fail because they didn't built the right team.
How to avoid the "just checking in" circle of death
Hey there - I’m just checking in on our last conversation… Hey there - I’m just checking in on whether you saw our proposal… Hey there - I’m just checking to see if you had a chance to review our… Ok. We get it. You’re just checking in. But here’s the thing: So are hundreds and hundreds of other sales people trying to get your prospect's attention.
The Counterintuitive Mind Hack You Can Use to Overcome Your Fear of Public Speaking
By Steli Efti, co-founder and CEO of Close Public speaking is scary. It just is. Few people are born with the ability to comfortably get up in front of a crowd, give a speech and take questions without breaking a sweat. The rest of us must seek to overcome our fears of public speaking. And that's easier said than done. I get paid tens of thousands of dollars to speak in front of thousands of people every year, but I started out as scared as anyone else.
The Most Effective 'Growth Hack' That Most People Always Overlook
What is a growth hack? It’s an unorthodox or underutilized way of acquiring as many users or customers as possible while spending as little money as possible. Great. Now here’s the thing that most people overlook: Most growth hacks are rooted in concepts that are ANCIENT—or as I like to describe them, TIMELESS. It seems like every other month I read an article talking about new hacks, new techniques, new ideas and new channels, but a growth hack doesn’t need to be attached to new tech.
Stop Chasing Shortcuts, Start Chasing Timeless Practices
By Steli Efti, Co-Founder and CEO of Close When the journey to success seems long, it's tempting to chase shortcuts. We live in a world where gratification can happen with the tap of a button, and waiting a few seconds for a video to buffer can send us into a rage. A swipe left and you can find a date. A swipe up and you can order a product. A double tap and you can kick-start an interaction. Unfortunately, there's no Tinder for success. There's no quick and easy way to win in the world of sales.
In sales, ego is the enemy of greatness
Having an ego is all about wanting to be perceived as the best. It’s not wanting to outsell every other salesperson and their dog. It’s not wanting to hustle every hour of every day to get that big commission check or land the corner office. Ego is the inability to listen, act or take direction because of pride. Wanting to crush your goals and be great at what you do doesn’t have to come at the expense of everyone else.
Why Referrals Are The Most Valuable Form Of Marketing (And How To Get More)
Which marketing or sales tactic do you think has the highest ROI? Inbound marketing? Email campaigns? PPC ads? The truth is this: there’s a standout winner that can’t be touched by any other method. That winner is referrals. Referral sales require almost no financial investment, but they bring in very valuable warm leads. Unfortunately, most salespeople go about getting referrals all wrong.
Sales email subject lines: 50+ tips, examples, and biggest mistakes
When sending sales emails, make sure your subject line isn't foiling your efforts. Though the subject line is sometimes overlooked when sending cold emails, we think it's arguably the most important part, as it can determine whether or not your email will be opened at all. Here’s how to craft the perfect subject lines, plus examples you can use for your own emails.
3 Proven Principles for Successfully Selling to Startups in 2019 (and Beyond)
Most B2B startups initially sell to other startups before going after more established companies. And for good reason—it’s a logical first step to pursue other companies that are like-minded and in similar situations. Plus, startups tend to be smaller, more approachable, have less bureaucracy when it comes to making purchasing decisions (meaning they’re often quicker to close), and then more forgiving when things go wrong after they’re a paying customer.
How we used the power of the follow up to get the Close.com domain
Just a few weeks ago, we announced our rebrand as Close and shared the news that we purchased the close.com domain name. First off, thank you for all of the overwhelmingly positive feedback and praise! We’ve been fielding tons of great questions, messages, and tweets over the past couple of weeks, so please keep them coming.
How Being A Vulnerable Leader Helped Me Build A Multi-Million-Dollar Startup
Leaders like to convey a sense of strength, courage, and unwavering confidence. All behavioral characteristics that are designed—whether intentionally or not—to inspire employees to take action and place faith in the greater mission of the company. While this sounds like an obviously positive trait on the surface, unfortunately, many of the CEOs, founders and managers that exhibit these characteristics conversely equate vulnerability with weakness.
Don't just sell your product-sell your philosophy, too
I was at a conference recently and a startup came to me with an interesting problem. They were a very successful startup. They’d scaled up to 100 team members. They’d raised a lot of money. Their product had a lot of traction in the market. This was definitely a company that was going somewhere. But they were having a problem selling to some of their prospects. In short, their potential buyers wanted more features from their product.
How To Find Great Mentors (A Step-By-Step Guide For Not-Yet-Successful People In 2019)
If you’re trying to connect with great mentors, it’s going to take more than a cold email and a prayer. There’s one thing you must have: Follow-up. When it comes to finding great mentors, the truth is this: Building real relationships takes time and effort. If your goal is to build long-lasting relationships with influential people who can help you grow personally and professionally, it’s going to take more than a quick five-minute conversation at a conference.
How to develop a winning sales mindset: Critical self talk vs pep talk
We’ve all been there: you’re in the middle of a sales call, and you start rambling. You only realize it after you’ve been going on for a few minutes. You kick yourself, try to focus on the topic at hand, and wonder why you always have trouble sticking to the topic. You worry that the client is bored and question whether you’ve botched the call. That kind of critical self-talk distracts you from the task at hand, and may lead to a bad sales call that doesn’t get a deal.
The One CEO Skill Everyone Should Develop
Having launched a fast-growing, highly profitable business-to-business (B2B) software company with employees in a dozen countries and thousands of customers all over the world, there's one skill that has been more valuable than anything else: my ability to work well with others. This enables me to get people to consistently deliver the best work product they're capable of, often times exceeding their own expectations. And the secret to my success in working with others is surprisingly simple.
A Simple, Reliable Way To Deal With Discount Requests
If you’ve worked in sales, you’ve heard it a million times: “Can you give me a discount?” Everybody wants a deal. And in a competitive marketplace, you’re probably tempted to give them one. If you don’t, what’s to keep your prospect from going to a competitor? A small discount could save the entire sale. But trust me when I say that’s no way to deal with discount requests.
The Top 37 Sales Books for Mastering the Game Of Sales in 2019
There are thousands of books on B2B sales out there. But some books that aren’t specifically about B2B shouldn’t be overlooked. They can contain helpful information that can be taken cross-industry if need be. We asked well-known industry experts about their favorite sales books and they provided us with a great list of recommendations. Here are a whole bunch of books that’ll keep you busy until well into next year. Recommendations by Industry Experts 1.
19 strategies, tactics, and tips on how to launch a product in 2019
As a founder, there’s nothing more exciting (and stressful) than launching a product. You’ve sat back for a few rounds, watched the game get played, and now you’ve got a winning hand and are ready to go all in. But betting with even the best odds is still a gamble. And without a solid product launch plan, you’re leaving too much to chance.
What is a sales dialer? How it works, and why you need one
It’s a no-brainer: If your sales reps over-achieve their quotas, you’ll have more prospects. That’s why the best sales managers spend time and money motivating their teams and sending them to training seminars to perfect the craft of cold calling. But even with their sales reps calling prospects and leads every day, many businesses still don’t see the revenue growth they aim for. Why?
4 Basic Skills of CEOs Who Can Sell Well
The CEO of any company is expected to sell at all times. The primary objective of any business is sales. You begin by selling to yourself, then you sell your cofounders. Later, you’ll sell your first client and you’ll continue until you retire. The job of any CEO is sales. This primer will help you understand your role and sell better. First, Sell Yourself The most effective sales technique out there is conviction and true belief.
Improve your cold email response rates with these social proof techniques
When you send a sales email, you could have the most compelling subject line. The most enticing content. The most exciting CTA. But if I don’t know you and your company, I’m always going to be left with one question: Why should I trust you? If you want to get a better response rate for your sales emails you need to answer that question. And one of the best ways to do that is with social proof.
Cold calling: How to respond to "I don't have time"?
Unless you’re cold calling someone whose office is on fire, there’s a good chance they have time for you. Nine times out of ten, “I don’t have time” is just polite-speak for “you’re not a priority right now.” If prospects were really busy, they’d simply hang up—or ignore your call altogether. So how do you make your cold call a priority? Prove you’re worth their time If prospects knew they could make $8 for every $1 spent on your product or service, would they still avoid your call? Of course not.
Announcing Close.io’s Predictive Dialer: The biggest leap in sales productivity since the invention of the phone!
That’s a big claim, I know. Lend me your ear for a minute and I’ll tell you why it’s more than justified. Today, we’re talking about predictive dialing. How it’s used to help sales teams reach more people (faster and without wasting time), why it’s been one of the best-kept secrets of large sales teams for years and exactly why we’ve decided to launch it native in Close.io. But, first things first.
5 crisis communication lessons from Apple, Uber, and other industry leaders
You probably heard about the recent Zenefits, Apple, or Uber crisis and thought, “Wow, that sucks. But it wouldn’t happen to me.” BS. Crises happen in every business. Hopefully yours won’t be as dramatic as insurance scams or unconstitutional demands, but shit eventually hits the fan. You need a plan in place before that happens. The most important part of that plan? How you’re going to communicate with your customers during the crisis.
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