We all know account-based (ABx) strategies are hot.

Search for “account-based technology” on Google, and before you know it, targeted display ads will fill your browser, vendor branded socks will arrive in your mailbox, and dozens of new SDR cadences will flood your inbox. 

No doubt, the technology behind ABx is amazing. But what gets less attention is how the SDR role needs to evolve to support it. I want to share one company’s journey. Meet Zignal Labs.

Zignal Labs, Inc. provides a cloud-based platform that analyzes social and digital media in real-time and delivers data-driven insights. By way of orientation, their average deal is six figures and the sales cycles run 6–8 months. Jamie Varley, Director of Account Development at Zignal, shared how his group integrates into the company’s account-based approach.

Read More

If your company markets to, sells, or otherwise engages prospects in Europe, GDPR should be on your radar. 

I know these conversations are taking place in legal and IT departments, but I  haven't seen much awareness for SDR or AE VPs, Directors, or Managers.  So, this is your polite wake-up call. If you haven't paid much attention to the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), that is likely to change. And soon.

This brief post is my attempt to give you an assist.

High Level. What's GDPR?

The EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) sets out a new, unified privacy law for Europe. The new law is relevant not just to businesses established in Europe; it will also apply to entities worldwide that provide goods and services to individuals in Europe, and online platforms and other website operators that are accessible from Europe. - McDermott Will & Emer

Net-net, GDPR applies to any organization that retains, processes, or profiles the data of individuals in Europe. Broadly, this seems to include the European Union and the European Economic Area. As you might suspect, prospecting (including cold, outbound emailing) most certainly involves profiling, processing, and retaining individual data.

Read More

Last July, I posted a survey on this blog. My aim was to learn how most sales organizations are handing vacation for their selling reps.

• When a rep takes a vacation, are they offered quota relief?
• If yes, what are the policy specifics?
• If no, how are leaders ensuring reps take successful vacations?
  
  

I thought a few dozen companies would respond and I'd have some interesting results to share with the community. It turned into something bigger. Over 200 sales leaders (team leads, managers, directors, VPs) and 340+ individual contributors (AEs, SDRs, CSMs, etc.) participated. I combed through more than 250 individual, anonymous comments. Additionally, I interviewed seven senior leaders on the topic—four on the record and three off.

I’ve compiled the results in our new ebook PTO and Sales.

Read More

BDRs, LDRs, SDRs - whatever you call them, the metrics that drive the SDR role are always in demand.

Today, I'm excited to launch our latest research focused on Sales Development organizations. This is our seventh round of research since 2007. The key themes we'll explore include:

• Rep profiles: experience, tenure, ramp time, career path
• Structure: in/out/blended, headcount, territories
• Compensation: base, OTE, regional variations
• Quotas: average quotas, components, % attainment
• Technology stack: categories, adoption, impact
   

We worked hard to make this year’s survey easier and it will take roughly 4-5 minutes to complete. If you lead a sales development group, please participate

Read More