Make It Happen Mondays - B2B Sales Talk with John Barrows

JB Sales' newest trainer, Shelly Gupta Correa, joins John this week to talk about her journey on growing up as a first generation Indian-American not conforming to cultural norms, tough career decisions and changes, and evaluating her values and priorities in life. Shelly's greatest lessons have come from taking different risks in life as well as becoming a parent, and she's ready to encourage and motivate others who have been thinking of starting a new path. JB Sales couldn't be more excited to welcome Shelly to the team. 

Tim O'Neil, CRO at Alation, joins John this week to continue to conversation from the last few weeks about the new career path of the SDR. They discuss a new model of how to grow organizations internally to break the predictable growth model that could be the novel way companies go to market. This episode is: for leadership to take back to your org and think about if this is a good idea to implement, and if you’re a rep, you should pay attention to the companies that are currently going this route.

Following up on last week’s episode (211) on product-led growth, Kris Rudeegaap joins John this week to talk about product-led growth changing the industry and the structure of sales organizations. Kris is the CEO and Co-Founder of Sendoso, a sending platform that helps sales & marketing teams send out direct mail, swag, handwritten notes, and more. Prior to founding Sendoso, Kris spent 10 years in sales himself, which lends to his being more open to new sales tactics and trends. Don’t miss this episode if you want to learn how you can grow your career as the traditional path of the SDR is shifting quickly.

Doug Landis, Growth Partner at Emcap, joins John this week to discuss the shifting roles of sales due to product-led growth and how companies can adjust in order to evolve. This episode is especially important for the mid-tier 50% of reps that want to further their sales career. Doug and John discuss how over half of the reason people buy anything is due to the experience, and Doug talks about how he qualifies that experience. They dive into balancing leadership, where to continue to build your career, and intentionality about assessing your values at work.

Todd Caponi joins John once again on Make It Happen Mondays almost 2 years after his first appearance (Episode 112) to talk about radical transparency and leading with one’s flaws in sales. “Perfection isn’t a thing”, and Todd goes on to explain why talking about what you can’t do or don’t have can actually create a stronger foundation for a relationship in sales. This episode includes tactical ideas you can utilize to build trust and reduce sales cycles. Grab your copy of Todd Caponi’s “The Transparency Sale”, one of John’s favorite books, and pre-order his upcoming book, “The Transparent Sales Leader”, available Spring 2022.

Our guests this week are Alexine Mudawar, Major Account Executive at Displayr, and Gabrielle Blackwell, SDR at Gong. This week we have two smart powerful women chat with John on how to become an advocate for women in business, starting by the leadership selected to set examples, creating a safe and welcoming environment, and ensuring conversations about diversity and inclusion are continued. Other topics mentioned are how to approach defensive males in the workplace, and leading by example, even as a peer. You don't want to miss out on learning from this important conversation conversation about empowering women in sales.

Our guest this week is Debra Roberts, a conversation expert and creator of the Relationship Protocol, helps savvy business people navigate important conversations. This week with John she talks about how to approach conflict, triggers and why people react certain ways, as well tactical things to open up communication & build trust in a short period of time. Debra gives actionable advice on how to best communicate between management levels and clients in the workplace.

Our guest this week is Brian Trautschold, Cofounder at Ambition which is enterprise gamification for sales teams, joins John this week to talk about keeping remote employees motivated and accountable, and how companies and brands that incorporate gamification are changing the world. Gamification can foster teamwork and create an outlet for friendly rivalries. To create a healthy environment, promote competition alongside metric-driven coaching and encouragement amongst sales reps. Brian reveals his tips and strategies for pushing yourself throughout the day.

Our guest this week is Hang Black, VP of Revenue Enablement at Juniper Networks and author of Embrace Your Edge, joins John this week to talk about adaptability within the customer lifecycle and personalization: telling people how you like to be connected with. Hang details how diversity, innovation, and creativity come into play in this new age of Gen Z sellers and buyers, especially as we re-enter into this “hyper hybrid world”.

Our guest this week is Brian Burkhart, Founder and Chief Word Guy at SquarePlanet which focuses on presentations, strategy, and messaging. He joins John this week to talk about core values, growth mindset, and elevating others. Brian explains how one sets the tone as the leader yet emphasizes staying flexible throughout your entire career. You don't want to miss this conversation as it solidifies the connection between elevating others to be the most well-rounded version of themselves in life and in sales.

Our guest this week is Scott Gillum, CEO and founder of Carbon Design, who talks about what makes a good salesperson and what makes a good buyer, how personality-based marketing can be utilized, how to conduct solid research on brands and people, and also share their differing thoughts on the role of the SDR. Scott and John also discuss different selling methods and models in this enlightening conversation.

Our guest this week is Robbie Crabtree, a former trial lawyer turned founder of Performative Speaking. After years of convincing jurors and working on both sides of the attorney fence, Robbie elevated his talents and now helps visionary leaders become excellent speakers. Bridging the connection between persuasive speaking and sales, Robbie also provides in this episode tips and advice on how to craft conversations and presentations.

Our guest this week is Beth Waterfall, Executive Director @ Elevate Northeast & Founder of Beth Waterfall Creative. Beth is a thought leader on the legalization and advocacy of marijuana and provides education in this episode around the history of cannabis and how it affects our economy, psyche, wellbeing and lifestyle. John and Beth also discuss where the industry is headed and the opportunities the "Green Rush" presents.

Our guests this week are Simon Mulcahy, Chief Innovation Officer @ Salesforce, and Karen Semone, Senior Director of Innovation at Salesforce. This conversation between John and these two dynamic, free-thinking leaders is filled with invention, thought leadership, innovation, and content. Both Karen and Simon emphasize genuine curiosity, curating the entire experience from start to finish, and share what they believe to be the three most important evolving trends.

Our guest this week is Mark Roberge, Managing Director at Stage 2 Capital and Professor at Harvard Business School. John and Mark discuss the future of sales, best practices, and how one size and strategy does not fit all companies. They emphasize how agility, disruption and innovation have moved to the forefront of careers and business. Mark delivers wise advice to up and coming sales professionals.