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As a consultant, one of my key roles is discovery: a fancy-sounding word that simply means asking questions. Sometimes client answers to important questions about their business are unintentionally vague. So I ask more questions to unpack what’s going on. One topic that frequently warrants scrutiny is the degree to which the client has implemented an account-based go-to-market strategy.
Sales leaders from the Bay Area’s fastest growing companies once again gathered last Friday for TOPO’s fourth Sales Council. These Councils offer a unique forum for sales leaders from high growth companies to learn from each other and share best practices. Each Council features three speakers who share the processes, plays, organizational elements, and technologies they use to drive key revenue metrics.
The proliferation of sales development teams in B2B companies over the past decade has been unprecedented. While the sales development (SD) function has existed for at least 30 years, many great companies safeguarded their sales development process as a “secret sauce.” Today, sales development is considered a requirement for any normally functioning B2B sales and marketing organization, and SD practices have become virtually standardized across companies. In fact, TOPO’s research has shown that 100% of high-growth organizations have sales development organizations.
Over 25 demand generation leaders from the Bay Area’s fastest growing companies gathered last Friday for TOPO’s eleventh Marketing Council. These Councils offer a unique forum for marketing leaders from high growth companies to learn from each other and share best practices. Each Council features three speakers who share the processes, plays, organizational elements, and technologies they use to drive key revenue metrics.
In nearly every TOPO engagement with clients who are launching an account-based GTM strategy, a common question we hear goes like this: “How can we learn from others’ mistakes so we can realize the benefits of account-based (e.g., higher ACV, LTV) faster?” We love hearing this question because we have, indeed, observed the habits of many clients as they implement their account-based programs. We’ve seen them get awesome results and we’ve seen them struggle, too. Here is a summary of their struggles, with recommendations for how your company can overcome them.
I get asked quite often for my learnings in launching TOPO. With 3 years of hindsight, I believe there were 4 critical tactics that allowed us to launch quickly into the market and grow our business out of the gate. For some context, TOPO was bootstrapped and Scott and I (the founders) made a “No Top Ramen” agreement, which meant that we would build this business to make money immediately. This pact drove urgency to get out into the market, and forced us to make quick but solid decisions that were also realistic since there was only two of us. There were some bad decisions, but there were four that stood out that any business starting out can execute.
Over 30 sales development leaders from the Bay Area’s fastest growing companies once again convened last Friday for TOPO’s Sales Development Council #15. These Councils offer a unique forum for sales development leaders from high growth companies to learn from each other and share best practices. Each Council features three speakers who share the processes, plays, organizational elements, and technologies they use to drive key revenue metrics.
Over the last year, account-based go-to-market strategies have become the hottest topic in B2B sales and marketing. This shift is occurring as sales and marketing leaders realize the shortcomings of traditional, volume-based, lead-centric demand generation programs. While these programs have, in some cases, delivered a large number of leads to sales, key strategic metrics, such as close rates and lifetime value, have not met expectations.
The 2017 TOPO Summit is less than three months away! This year’s Summit will build on the success of last year’s, where over 650 sales leaders attended 33 different sessions and workshops to learn how the world’s best companies grow as fast as they do. This year, Summit will take place April 12-13 at Pier 27 in San Francisco, where you’ll be able to learn from, and collaborate with, over 1,000 sales and marketing leaders.
Orchestration is the sequenced coordination of different activities, programs and campaigns across marketing, sales development, sales and customer success to drive engagement with multiple stakeholders in target accounts. Orchestration is key to a successful account-based strategy.
