# Welcome Welcome to our open-source API-style docs for startup's scaling their Go-to-Markets, starting with B2B SaaS. We've compiled hands-on learnings from over 50 hyper-growth companies like Mistral AI, Clio, and Chainguard—serving as their RevOps team. We've managed planning, process, systems, reporting, and enablement—built dozens of playbooks, and now are releasing them for free. Our goal is to arm Go-to-Market teams (Sales, Marketing, CS, Partnerships) with all of the tactics and tools to hit the ground running at each stage of growth. These will be monitored and updated frequently. For up-to-date information, sign-up to our changelog. {% @mailchimp/mailchimpSubscribe cta="Receive changlog updates" %} ### Jump right in
Getting StartedUsing RevOps Docs/pages/Zvukm7MAGL6ooitMTmpY
Growth ModelingThe Go-To-Market Blueprint/pages/7aUFmnCMx9m4smGncsXL
Go-to-Market LifecycleThe Customer Journey/pages/JjjojIyKxaiBPzzLwvtg
# Quickstart Getting started with RevOps Docs. RevOps Docs are a simple way to navigate all of the Go-to-Market and revenue best practices as you're building your startup. Get started with one of our sections below. If you don't know where to start, we'd strongly suggest the [Growth Model](/growth-modeling/building-a-growth-model) section. This is the core of where to start each time you need to re-architect the way you generate revenue. It helps you know where to focus attention, your time is limited—so this ensures you're focused on the right problem at the right time. **We refer to this process of iteration the** [**RevOps Flywheel**](/strategic-walkthroughs/revenue-operations-flywheel)**:** 1. **Adjust or Start with the Growth Model** * Create a plan to get from $X-ARR to $Y-ARR Revenue -> Bookings -> Pipeline -> Leads -> Awareness 2. **Augment the Growth Infrastructure** * Adjust systems, tools, processes, and structures to accommodate growth plan 3. **Analyze Performance to Growth Model** * Measure key assumptions in the plan and see what’s working or not 4. **Align on Growth Drivers** * Align on what’s working or not and what should be tested next / then back to step one {% hint style="info" %} Learn better with video? [Checkout](https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCcl40c3JkHjzctEG211LkJg) our Youtube for weekly video releases. {% endhint %} ### Docs Overview
Growth ModelingThe Go-to-Market blueprint/pages/7aUFmnCMx9m4smGncsXL
Go-to-Market LifecycleYour Customer Journey/pages/m5XXAQGkjbczQ6weBKTq
Lead AttributionWho came from where?/pages/hVdCozPhJqhY9OpQPTVO
Measuring MetricsKey data to drive decisions/pages/0xwWeFBPXM6AlZtyd1W1
GTM Tech StackUsing the right systems/pages/ONkNRbgJ34Kg8GIYaL2l
Aligning Sales/Marketing Moving teams in unison/pages/wvR4AtqwsZFkruwLgNZt
System DemosOverviews of top systems/pages/qh5OhtoRENgJxMjYZLYf
CRM TipsWork better in your CRM/pages/53CYwPTmO2UW6v1Ndxqx
Strategic WalkthroughsGaining a GTM advantage/pages/FgEtRAbR24xgA9IcNEDK
# About LeanScale Learn more about the team behind RevOps Docs ### Reimagining RevOps Aligning VCs and their portfolio companies with world-class Revenue Operations We’re passionate about attracting the best startup talent and taking a team approach to developing the most comprehensive RevOps capabilities. We’re not just consultants or contractors, we’re on the same team as our customers, and invested in their growth journey. {% embed url="" %} We're partnered with the worlds fastest growing VC's portfolio Startups including companies like Mistral AI, Chainguard, Clio, AssemblyAI, and dozens more. RevOps Docs are a way for us to give our insight into startups to everyone for free. Our goal is to help startups approach their Go-to-Market's in a more thoughtful way, ensuring their lack of infrastructure doesn't hold them back in hitting their ambitious goals. # Building a Growth Model Doing this process correctly is truly what separates the good from great companies. Below step by step guide to growth modeling and capacity planning using the LeanScale template. {% embed url="" %} **A Comprehensive Guide to Building a Growth Model** Growth Modeling is the key of building your plan to hit your targets each year. This is the #1 mistake we see being made—a lack of a super clear plan, no matter how "early on" you may be. #### **Key Inputs** The input section of the model requires the following general data about the company and the growth plan: * **Current ARR:** The current annual recurring revenue (ARR) of the company. * **Growth Goal:** The desired growth goal for the company. * **SQL to Close:** The sales qualified lead (SQL) to close conversion rate. * **Sales Cycle:** The average length of the sales cycle in days. In addition to the general data, the input section also requires the following assumptions: * **SQL to MQL Conversion Rate:** The marketing qualified lead (MQL) to SQL conversion rate. * **Created Pipeline to SQL Conversion Rate:** The created pipeline to SQL conversion rate. * **Customer Success Carry Ratio:** The number of customers booked per customer success manager (CSM). #### **Key Outputs** The output section of the model provides the following high-level top-down initial goals and quarterly results: * **Total Bookings:** The total bookings for the year. * **Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs):** The number of MQLs needed to generate the desired bookings. * **Created Pipeline:** The amount of created pipeline needed to generate the desired MQLs. * **Customers Booked:** The number of customers booked for the year. * **Logo Growth:** The number of new logos acquired for the year. * **Customer Success Managers (CSMs):** The number of CSMs needed to support the growth plan. #### **Bottom-Up Sales Capacity Plan** The bottom-up sales capacity plan calculates the rep by rep productivity and the number of reps needed to hit the bookings goal. The following formula is used to calculate the number of reps needed: ``` Number of Reps = Total Bookings / (Rep Productivity * Sales Cycle) ``` Where: * **Total Bookings:** The total bookings for the year. * **Rep Productivity:** The average number of bookings per rep per year. * **Sales Cycle:** The average length of the sales cycle in days. #### **Bottom-Up Created Pipeline Plan** The bottom-up created pipeline plan calculates the created pipeline by channel and source, as well as the funding to production ratio. The following formula is used to calculate the created pipeline: ``` Created Pipeline = MQLs * Created Pipeline to SQL Conversion Rate ``` Where: * **MQLs:** The number of MQLs needed to generate the desired bookings. * **Created Pipeline to SQL Conversion Rate:** The created pipeline to SQL conversion rate. The following formula is used to calculate the funding to production ratio: ``` Funding to Production Ratio = Created Pipeline / Funding ``` Where: * **Created Pipeline:** The amount of created pipeline needed to generate the desired MQLs. * **Funding:** The amount of funding available for the growth plan. #### **Customer Success Carry Plan** The customer success carry plan calculates the number of customers booked, logos brought in, and CSMs needed to support the growth plan. The following formula is used to calculate the number of customers booked: ``` Customers Booked = SQLs * SQL to Close Conversion Rate ``` Where: * **SQLs:** The number of SQLs needed to generate the desired bookings. * **SQL to Close Conversion Rate:** The SQL to close conversion rate. The following formula is used to calculate the number of logos brought in: ``` Logos Brought In = Customers Booked / Customer Success Carry Ratio ``` Where: * **Customers Booked:** The number of customers booked for the year. * **Customer Success Carry Ratio:** The number of customers booked per CSM. The following formula is used to calculate the number of CSMs needed: ``` CSMs Needed = Logos Brought In / Customer Success Carry Ratio ``` Where: * **Logos Brought In:** The number of new logos acquired for the year. * **Customer Success Carry Ratio:** The number of customers booked per CSM. # Growth Model Assumptions {% embed url="" %} Growth modeling is a crucial tool for businesses aiming to expand and reach their objectives. By deconstructing the funnel and harmonizing executive leadership with functional teams, a comprehensive plan that is both ambitious and feasible can be crafted. ### Reverse Engineering the Funnel The initial phase of growth modeling involves a reverse engineering of the funnel, commencing with the revenue objective and then calculating the requisite number of bookings, SQLs, MQLs, and brand awareness to reach that target. Understanding your sales cycle and conversion rates is key. Once you know how many leads it takes to seal a deal, you can reverse engineer the process to pinpoint the number of SQLs, MQLs, and brand awareness required to meet your revenue target. ### Aligning Executive Leadership and Functional Teams With a solid grasp of our growth model, we work to unite our executive leadership and functional teams. This involves ensuring everyone is in sync with the goals, objectives, and strategies that will lead us to our desired outcomes. One effective way to do this is to use the W method. The W method involves asking a series of questions that start with the letter W, such as: * What are our goals? * Why are these goals important? * Who is responsible for achieving these goals? * When do we expect to achieve these goals? * Where will we be when we achieve these goals? By addressing these queries, we can forge a collective comprehension of the growth model and guarantee that we are all striving toward the same objectives. ### Capturing Assumptions Despite the wealth of data at our disposal, there will always be a need to make certain assumptions when constructing a growth model. These could pertain to a range of factors, from product launches to the time it takes for sales teams to scale, to market conditions. It's crucial to identify these assumptions and keep a record of them. This way, you can monitor their effects on the plan and make any necessary adjustments to stay on course toward your objectives. ### Continuously Monitoring and Adjusting Growth modeling isn’t a one-time thing. It’s an ongoing process that requires continuous monitoring and adjustment. As you execute your plan, you’ll need to track your progress and make adjustments as needed. This means being agile and responsive to changes in the market, your competition, or your own business. By continuously monitoring and adjusting your growth model, you can ensure that you're always on track to achieve your goals. Growth modeling is a powerful tool for businesses looking to scale and achieve their goals. By reverse engineering the funnel, aligning executive leadership and functional teams, capturing assumptions, and continuously monitoring and adjusting, we can create a comprehensive plan that will give our business the best chance possible to succeed. # Growth Model Approaches {% embed url="" %} We will cover three main approaches: top-down planning, bottom-up planning, and the W method. Each approach has its own advantages and disadvantages, and the best choice for a particular startup will depend on its specific circumstances. ### Top-Down Planning Top-down planning starts with the highest level company direction and strategy. The executive leadership team or board sets high-level strategic initiatives and targets, such as marching towards an acquisition, an IPO, or raising money. These targets are then trickled down to the functional teams, who develop operating plans that support the overall top-down goals. **Advantages:** * Provides a clear direction and focus for the entire company * Ensures that all teams are aligned with the company's strategic objectives * Facilitates resource allocation and prioritization **Disadvantages:** * Can be inflexible and slow to adapt to changing circumstances * May not take into account the unique perspectives and insights of functional teams * Can lead to a lack of ownership and buy-in from functional teams ### Bottom-Up Planning Bottom-up planning starts with the functional teams analyzing historical data and identifying opportunities for growth and efficiency improvements. Each team develops a detailed plan based on their analysis, and these plans are then consolidated into a comprehensive plan for the entire company. **Advantages:** * Allows functional teams to identify and leverage their unique expertise * Provides a more realistic and achievable plan based on historical data * Fosters a sense of ownership and buy-in from functional teams **Disadvantages:** * Can be time-consuming and complex to coordinate * May not align well with the company's overall strategic direction * Can lead to a lack of consistency and standardization across teams ### The W Method The W method combines the benefits of top-down and bottom-up planning. It starts with top-down guidance from the executive leadership team, but then allows functional teams to develop detailed bottom-up plans that are aligned with the company's strategic objectives. The executive leadership team reviews these plans and provides feedback, which may lead to adjustments to the top-down guidance. This iterative process continues until a final comprehensive plan is developed and approved. **Advantages:** * Combines the benefits of top-down and bottom-up planning * Provides a clear direction and focus for the entire company * Allows functional teams to identify and leverage their unique expertise * Fosters a sense of ownership and buy-in from functional teams * Is flexible and adaptable to changing circumstances **Disadvantages:** * Can be time-consuming and complex to implement * Requires a high level of collaboration and communication between teams **Conclusion** The choice of planning and growth modeling method depends on the specific circumstances of the startup. Top-down planning is best suited for startups that need a clear and focused direction, while bottom-up planning is best suited for startups that want to leverage the expertise of their functional teams. The W method is a good choice for startups that want to combine the benefits of both top-down and bottom-up planning. # Growth Model Segmentations {% embed url="" %} One of the most important parts of your growth model: segmentation. Segmentation is about understanding your customer base and breaking it down into groups that are similar in meaningful ways. This allows you to tailor your marketing, sales, and customer success efforts to each segment, making them more efficient and effective. ### Segmentation Methods There are a number of ways to segment your customer base. Here are a few key segmentation methods: #### **1. Firmographics** Firmographics are the collective traits of a company, encompassing its size, sector, and geographic location. By categorizing your customer base according to these features, you can gain insights into your business's performance across various company profiles. For instance, you might discover a higher conversion rate with large enterprises over smaller businesses. #### **2. Geographic Information** Geographic segmentation is about breaking down your customer base by location. It's a smart move if you're working across regions or countries, as each place might have its own unique sales patterns, conversion rates, and other influencing factors. #### **3. Sector** By segmenting our customer base by industry, we can gain a clearer understanding of our performance across various sectors. For example, financial institutions may have longer sales cycles and more red tape, while e-commerce or tech companies may be more agile in their decision-making. #### 4.Product For those of us with a multi-product business, segmenting our customer base by product can be a game-changer. It helps us understand how each product is faring—some might be flying off the shelves, while others are better suited for specific industries or regions. ### Aligning Your Growth Model to Segmentation Once you’ve got your customer base sorted into segments, it’s time to adjust your growth model accordingly. This means customizing your marketing, sales, and customer success strategies to fit each segment. For instance, you might need to tweak your marketing campaigns, sales pitches, or onboarding processes to better suit each group. By segmenting your customer base and aligning your growth model accordingly, you can increase the efficiency and effectiveness of your marketing, sales, and customer success efforts. This will ultimately lead to accelerated growth for your VC-backed startup. Segmentation is a cornerstone of a robust growth model for a VC-backed startup. By gaining a deep understanding of your customer base and segmenting it into meaningful groups, you can personalize your marketing, sales, and customer success strategies for each segment. The outcome? Enhanced efficiency, effectiveness, and accelerated growth. # Sales Capacity Plan Learn how to build an effective sales capacity plan to hit your revenue targets. {% embed url="" %} Sales capacity planning is a critical component of revenue operations for startups. It involves determining the number of sales representatives and the resources they need to achieve revenue goals. This blog post will provide a step-by-step guide to sales capacity planning, including: * Setting quotas and attainment * Incorporating ramp time and recruitment * Designing territories * Calculating capacity needed for goal achievement * Determining pipeline needed to achieve quotas * Developing a commission plan and incentives Following these steps, startups can optimize their sales capacity and increase their chances of success. ### Step 1: Setting Quotas and Attainment The initial phase of sales capacity planning involves establishing quotas and attainment goals for the sales team. Quotas represent the sales objectives each representative is tasked with reaching, while attainment reflects the percentage of quota actually accomplished. In setting these benchmarks, we must consider past performance, market factors, and our company's overarching revenue objectives. It's crucial to be pragmatic; unrealistic targets can result in exhaustion and high turnover. ### Step 2: Incorporating Ramp Time and Recruitment Ramp time is the duration it takes for a new sales representative to reach full productivity. This encompasses training on the company's offerings and the process of establishing a robust pipeline of promising leads. When we plan for sales capacity, we're careful to account for this ramp time, ensuring our new team members are integrated and ready to contribute without delay. This way, we're better equipped to meet our targets without any gaps in coverage. ### Step 3: Designing Territories The next step is to design sales territories that maximize the efficiency of the sales team. This involves dividing the market into manageable geographic areas and assigning each area to a specific sales representative. We carefully consider population density, the clustering of industries, and the whereabouts of our key customers. Our aim is to create territories that are not only balanced in workload but also in potential revenue. ### Step 4: Calculating Capacity Needed for Goal Achievement With quotas, ramp time, recruitment, and sales territories in place, we can now calculate the capacity needed to achieve our goals. This means figuring out how many sales representatives we need to hire to meet our revenue goals. To calculate capacity, you will need to factor in the following: * The average sales quota per representative * The ramp time for new hires * The expected attrition rate * The number of sales representatives currently on the team ### Step 5: Determining Pipeline Needed to Achieve Quotas Beyond just the capacity for goal achievement, we must also consider the pipeline required to meet quotas. This entails estimating the number of qualified leads the sales team needs to generate in order to close sufficient deals and reach their targets. To determine pipeline, you will need to factor in the following: * The average sales cycle length * The win rate for closed deals * The number of qualified leads generated per sales representative ### Step 6: Developing a [Commission Plan](/strategic-walkthroughs/sales-commission-plans) and Incentives The final piece of the puzzle is to craft a commission plan and incentives that will inspire the sales team to reach for the stars. This can encompass base salaries, commissions, bonuses, and other creative incentives. When developing a commission plan, it is important to consider the following: * The company's overall compensation philosophy * The sales team's performance goals * The budget for sales compensation By following these steps, startups can develop a sales capacity plan that will help them achieve their revenue goals. # Marketing Plan {% embed url="" %} Achieving revenue goals requires a well-structured and data-driven marketing plan. This plan serves as a roadmap for generating sales-qualified leads (SQLs) and ultimately driving bookings. In this comprehensive guide, we will delve into the key components of an effective marketing plan, providing you with the knowledge and tools to construct your own plan and drive your startup's growth. ### **1. Understanding the Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) Target** The foundation of your marketing plan lies in determining the number of SQLs required to hit your revenue targets. This target, often referred to as the "closed-won" marketing target, serves as the guiding metric for all marketing initiatives. By clearly defining this goal, you can align your marketing efforts with the overall sales objectives of your organization. ### **2. Channel Distribution and Efficiency Expectations** Once you have established your SQL target, the next step is to allocate these leads across various marketing channels. This includes Paid advertising, events, website traffic, sales, customer success referrals, and partnerships. Assigning specific targets and efficiency expectations to each channel ensures that your marketing efforts are focused and effective. ### **3. Cost per Sales Qualified Lead** To determine the marketing budget required to achieve your SQL target, it's crucial to calculate the cost per sales qualified lead. This metric is derived by dividing the historical marketing budget by the number of SQLs generated per channel. By analyzing this data, you can optimize your budget allocation and maximize the efficiency of your marketing campaigns. ### **4. Marketing Calendar and Timing** Just as sales capacity planning considers ramp-up time for sellers, marketing initiatives also have a lead time before they start producing SQLs. Aligning your marketing calendar with the sales cycle is essential to ensure a steady flow of qualified leads. This involves understanding the time it takes for marketing initiatives to generate SQLs and incorporating this lag time into your planning. ### **5. Constructing a Marketing Plan** To illustrate the process of constructing a marketing plan, let's consider a simple four-quarter model with an additional fifth quarter for illustrative purposes. We'll start by inputting the bookings targets for each quarter, followed by calculating the SQL targets based on the conversion rate and sales cycle. Next, we allocate the SQL targets across different marketing channels based on assumed percentages. Finally, we calculate the overall marketing budget required to achieve these goals, taking into account the historical efficiency of each channel. A well-structured marketing plan is a powerful tool that enables startups to align their marketing efforts with their revenue goals. By understanding the SQL target, optimizing channel distribution, calculating the cost per SQL, and aligning the marketing calendar, you can effectively generate qualified leads and drive bookings growth. Remember to continuously monitor and adjust your plan based on data and performance metrics to ensure ongoing success. # Customer Success Plan {% embed url="" %} Customer success is a vital part of any business, and for startups, it’s even more critical. A solid customer success plan can help you keep your customers, grow your revenue, and expand your business. In this post, we'll discuss the key elements of a customer success plan, including: * Customer Segmentation * Service Level Agreements (SLAs) * Customer Health Scores * Onboarding and Training * Customer Feedback * Customer Success Metrics We’ll also provide tips for creating a customer success plan that’s tailored to your specific business needs. ### Customer Segmentation The initial stride in devising a customer success plan is to segment your customers. This approach allows for a more personalized strategy that caters to the distinct needs of each group. There are many different ways to segment customers, but some common criteria include: * Company size * Industry * Product usage * Customer lifecycle stage By segmenting your customers, you can create tailored customer success plans that address the unique needs of each group. ### Service Level Agreements (SLAs) Service level agreements (SLAs) are contracts that define the level of service that customers can expect from your business. SLAs can include metrics such as: * Uptime * Response time * Resolution time * Customer satisfaction SLAs are crucial for setting clear expectations and ensuring our customers are content with the service they receive. ### Customer Health Scores Customer health scores are a valuable tool for gauging the strength of our customer relationships. These scores are based on a range of factors, including: * Customer satisfaction * Product usage * Customer churn rate Customer health scores can be a valuable tool in identifying which customers are at risk of churning and taking proactive steps to retain them. ### Onboarding and Training Onboarding and training are essential for ensuring that customers are successful with your product or service. A well-executed onboarding and training program can help customers: * Get started quickly * Use your product or service effectively * Achieve their desired results Onboarding and training programs should be tailored to the specific needs of our customers. ### Customer Feedback We believe that customer feedback is crucial for refining your customer success initiatives. It can provide valuable insights to: * Identify areas where you can improve your product or service * Develop new features and functionality * Improve your customer support There are many different ways to collect customer feedback, such as: * Surveys * Interviews * Focus groups * Social media ### Customer Success Metrics Customer success metrics are a way to measure the effectiveness of your customer success efforts. These metrics can include: * Customer satisfaction * Customer retention * Customer lifetime value Customer success metrics can be a guiding light, helping us monitor our progress and tweak our customer success plan as needed. ### Additional Tips for Creating a Customer Success Plan * Engage your customers in the process of crafting your customer success plan. This ensures the plan is in harmony with their needs and aspirations. * Ensure your customer success plan is adaptable, ready to pivot as the business environment evolves. The key is to keep it in sync with the ever-changing needs of your customers. * Share your customer success plan with the entire team. It's important that everyone in the company knows the goals and objectives of the customer success plan. * Invest in the right tools and resources to bolster your customer success efforts. This may include customer relationship management (CRM) software, customer support software, and training programs. * Keep your finger on the pulse of your customer success metrics and be ready to pivot when needed. Your customer success plan is a dynamic, ever-evolving guide to excellence. # Go-to-Market Lifecycle {% embed url="" %} The Go-to-Market (GTM) Lifecycle, which is the foundation of your revenue operations and the basis for all your GTM reporting. By the end, you’ll have a deep understanding of how the GTM lifecycle isn’t just about sales stages, but also about marketing, customer success, and implementation teams. We’ll define clear entry criteria for each stage within each segment of your GTM lifecycle, analyze the GTM lifecycle measurements, and provide a roadmap for building stages that align with your business goals. ### Overview of the Go-to-Market Lifecycle The GTM lifecycle is a comprehensive view of the marketing, sales, renewals, customer lifecycle, and proof-of-concept (POC) or proof-of-value (POV) stages in a single framework. ### Deep Dive into Each GTM Lifecycle Stage Let’s take a closer look at each section of the GTM lifecycle. We’ll go through each stage in detail, but keep in mind that not every stage may be relevant to your business. We’ll call out where that’s the case and provide some guidance on how to think about it. ### Golden Stages: Critical Milestones in the GTM Lifecycle At LeanScale, we focus on key stages in the GTM lifecycle, which we call “golden stages.” These stages are critical milestones and metrics that are important to track. Some of the most important golden stages are sales-qualified lead (SQL), closed-won, early adoption stage, and the first time-to-value (TTV) event. We’ll go into more detail on these stages later in this guide. ### Establishing Clear Entry Criteria for Each Stage To ensure we’re managing and tracking our GTM lifecycle effectively, we need to establish well-defined entry criteria for each stage. These criteria should be the objective benchmarks that determine when an opportunity or customer moves from one stage to the next. Clearly defined entry criteria will help us report accurately, make data-driven decisions, and ensure alignment across the teams involved in the GTM process. ### Measuring the Go-to-Market Lifecycle Measuring the GTM lifecycle is critical to understanding how you are performing and how effective your GTM strategy is. In this section, we will discuss the key metrics and measurements that can help you understand the health of your GTM initiatives. These metrics include sales cycle duration, conversion rates between stages, customer acquisition cost (CAC), customer lifetime value (CLTV), and other relevant measures. By understanding these measurements, you can identify areas for improvement, optimize your GTM strategies, and allocate resources effectively. ### Building Meaningful Stages for Your Business In this final section, we'll provide a framework for creating GTM lifecycle stages that are specific to your business goals and situation. We'll cover the best practices for defining stages that truly represent your sales process, customer journey, and revenue model. By taking a customized approach to stage creation, you can be confident that your GTM lifecycle will be a valuable asset in driving growth, optimizing revenue, and reaching your business targets. The go-to-market lifecycle is a critical construct that spans various stages and touchpoints, extending beyond traditional sales processes. By gaining a comprehensive understanding of the GTM lifecycle, establishing clear entry criteria, measuring key performance indicators, and building meaningful stages aligned with your business objectives, you can elevate your revenue operations and drive sustainable growth for your organization. ### Sales Lead GTM Lifecycle Example
#### **Lead Stages**
StageDescription
Anonymous VisitorLeads who have visited your website but have not provided identifiable information yet.
LeadAny person added to your database who is not automatically identified as a non-prospect (e.g. existing customer, competitor, repeated junk, etc.).
MQL
(Marketing Qualified Lead)		The handoff point from Marketing to Sales. It is a lead that has been automatically qualified based on ICP fit and intent-level. This is often informed by a Lead Scoring Model.
SAL
(Sales Accepted Lead)		Sales has received the MQL, has not immediately disqualified it as junk, and has begun reaching out to the MQL.
SQL
(Sales Qualified Lead)		Stage 0 opportunity. A discovery call or product demonstration has been scheduled between the prospect and a sales rep.
#### **Sales Stages**
StageDescription
SAL
(Sales Accepted Lead)		Sales has received the MQL, has not immediately disqualified it as junk, and has begun reaching out to the MQL.
SQL
(Sales Qualified Lead)		Stage 0 opportunity. A discovery call or product demonstration has been scheduled between the prospect and a sales rep.
SAO
(Sales Accepted Opportunity)		Stage 1 opportunity. A discovery or demo call has occurred, the sales rep determines that the prospect meets sales qualification criteria (e.g. BANT) and intends to continue progressing with the sales cycle. This is typically where a pipeline value is assigned to the opportunity in the form of an estimated contract value.
Evaluation / Use CaseStage 2 opportunity. An evaluation has kicked off to prove value based on the expected use case.
Proposal / NegotiationStage 3 opportunity. A proposal has been sent, and negotiations are in place.
Closed WonProspect has agreed to terms and signed a contract.
#### **Renewal Stages**
StageDescription
RenewalA renwal evaluation has kicked off to prove value based on the expected use case.
Proposal / NegotiationA proposal has been sent, and negotiations are in place.
Closed WonProspect has agreed to terms and signed a new contract.
# Lead Lifecycle {% embed url="" %} Lead lifecycle stages are a method to monitor a potential customer's journey through your sales funnel. They enable you to pinpoint where leads are in the purchasing process and what steps are needed to advance them to the next stage. There are many different ways to define lead lifecycle stages, but the following are some common examples: * Marketing lead: Any contact in your system, whether they have engaged with your content or not. * Marketing engaged lead: This is a lead that has interacted with your content in some way, such as downloading a white paper, listening to a podcast, or watching a video. * Marketing qualified lead: These leads are highly interested and have expressed a readiness to engage with sales. * Sales accepted lead: This is when a salesperson formally acknowledges the lead, often by scheduling a meeting. * Sales qualified lead: This is the most critical phase in the lead lifecycle. Here, a salesperson has stepped up, had that first meeting, and has opened an opportunity because the customer is keen to keep the conversation going. ### Entry Criteria The entry criteria for each lead lifecycle stage will vary depending on your business and sales process. However, here are some general guidelines: * Marketing lead: There are two main ways to qualify a lead as a marketing lead: * Action-based criteria: This is when a lead takes a specific action, such as downloading a white paper or registering for a webinar. * Scoring model: A more intricate approach that considers various factors like website activity, content engagement, and firmographics to qualify leads. * Marketing engaged lead: These are the leads that have interacted with your content, for example, by downloading a white paper, watching a video, or attending a webinar. * Marketing qualified lead: These leads have shown a more serious level of interest, perhaps by requesting a demo, signing up for a free trial, or directly contacting your sales team. * Sales accepted lead: Leads that have been accepted by a salesperson and are now being actively worked. * Sales qualified lead: These are the leads that your sales team has deemed a good fit for your product or service and are ready to move to the next stage of the sales process. The lead lifecycle stages are a powerful resource for sales pipeline management and lead progress tracking. By grasping the nuances of each stage and their respective entry criteria, a more effective sales and marketing strategy can be developed. **Lead Stages**
StageDescription
Anonymous VisitorLeads who have visited your website but have not provided identifiable information yet.
LeadAny person added to your database who is not automatically identified as a non-prospect (e.g. existing customer, competitor, repeated junk, etc.).
MQL
(Marketing Qualified Lead)		The handoff point from Marketing to Sales. It is a lead that has been automatically qualified based on ICP fit and intent-level. This is often informed by a Lead Scoring Model.
SAL
(Sales Accepted Lead)		Sales has received the MQL, has not immediately disqualified it as junk, and has begun reaching out to the MQL.
SQL
(Sales Qualified Lead)		Stage 0 opportunity. A discovery call or product demonstration has been scheduled between the prospect and a sales rep.
# Sales Lifecycle {% embed url="" %} Sales stages are a critical building block of any successful revenue operations (RevOps) strategy. They provide a structured way to track and manage the progress of sales opportunities as they move from initial contact to closed deals. In this guide, we’ll take a deep dive into the concept of sales stages, why they’re important, and the different methodologies for moving deals from one stage to the next. We’ll also look at best practices for defining entry criteria and using qualification methodologies to make your sales process more efficient. ### Understanding Sales Stages Sales stages are the stepping stones of a sales opportunity's journey, from the spark of interest to the ink on the contract. Each stage has its own checklist of actions, key moments, and criteria that must be met before moving forward. By laying out these stages clearly and implementing them effectively, businesses can gain a deep understanding of their sales process, pinpoint areas for improvement, and fine-tune their sales strategies. ### Significance of Sales Stages Effective sales stages offer several key benefits for businesses: 1. Enhanced Visibility: Sales stages offer a crystal-clear depiction of the sales pipeline, enabling both sales teams and management to track opportunity progress and pinpoint any potential obstacles. 2. Improved Forecasting: Accurate sales stage data allows us to make better predictions about future revenue, which in turn helps us allocate resources more effectively and make better business decisions. 3. Streamlined Sales Process: Clearly defined sales stages help streamline the sales process by offering a standardized framework for sales representatives to adhere to, ensuring uniformity and efficiency. 4. Increased Sales Productivity: By monitoring the time invested in each sales phase, we can pinpoint areas for enhancement and streamline our sales process to reduce sales cycles and boost productivity. ### Entry Criteria for Sales Stages Here's a tip: setting clear entry criteria for each sales stage is key to keeping tabs on progress with precision. These criteria lay down the conditions or actions that must be met before an opportunity advances to the next stage. For instance, to move from the "Demo Completed" stage, you might need to check off "Customer has attended and engaged in a product demonstration." ### Qualification Methodologies for Stage Movement Alongside action-based criteria, businesses can also embrace qualification methodologies that help guide opportunities from one stage to the next. These structured approaches help us assess the potential of a sales opportunity and decide if it meets the necessary criteria to move forward. Some of the common qualification methodologies include: 1. MEDDPIC (Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, Champion): MEDDPIC is a sales methodology that helps reps identify and qualify opportunities based on Metrics, Economic Buyers, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, and Champion. 2. BANT (Budget, Authority, Need, Timeline): BANT evaluates the potential client's financial scope, decision-making capacity, necessity for the product or service, and the urgency of the purchase. 3. CHAMP (Challenges, Authority, Money, Prioritization): CHAMP is our go-to method for getting to the heart of what a prospect is facing, who’s calling the shots, what’s in the budget, and how urgent the need is. ### Best Practices for Sales Stage Management 1. Alignment with Business Goals: Ensure your sales stages are in sync with your overarching business objectives and sales strategy. 2. Customizable Stages: Customize your sales stages to align with your unique sales process and target market. 3. Clear Documentation: We provide detailed documentation for each sales stage, including entry criteria, responsibilities, and expected outcomes. 4. Regular Reviews: Regularly reviewing your sales stages to ensure they are effective and making adjustments as needed. 5. Integration with CRM: Integrate your sales stages with your customer relationship management (CRM) system for seamless data tracking and management. Sales stages are a fundamental aspect of successful RevOps, offering businesses a structured framework to handle sales opportunities and refine their sales process. Through the establishment of precise entry requirements, the use of robust qualification methods, and the application of best practices, companies can elevate their sales projections, boost efficiency, and, in the end, reach their revenue targets. **Sales Stages**
StageDescription
SAL
(Sales Accepted Lead)		Sales has received the MQL, has not immediately disqualified it as junk, and has begun reaching out to the MQL.
SQL
(Sales Qualified Lead)		Stage 0 opportunity. A discovery call or product demonstration has been scheduled between the prospect and a sales rep.
SAO
(Sales Accepted Opportunity)		Stage 1 opportunity. A discovery or demo call has occurred, the sales rep determines that the prospect meets sales qualification criteria (e.g. BANT) and intends to continue progressing with the sales cycle. This is typically where a pipeline value is assigned to the opportunity in the form of an estimated contract value.
Evaluation / Use CaseStage 2 opportunity. An evaluation has kicked off to prove value based on the expected use case.
Proposal / NegotiationStage 3 opportunity. A proposal has been sent, and negotiations are in place.
Closed WonProspect has agreed to terms and signed a contract.
# Customer Lifecycle {% embed url="" %} Building and maintaining successful customer relationships requires a strategic approach to customer lifecycle management. Customer lifecycle stages provide a framework for measuring the health and progression of your customers throughout their journey with your product or service. ### What are Customer Lifecycle Stages? Customer lifecycle stages are distinct phases that customers go through during their relationship with your business. These stages represent the key milestones and touchpoints that customers experience as they move from initial engagement to long-term loyalty. By understanding and managing these stages effectively, you can optimize the customer experience, increase customer retention, and drive business growth. ### Common Customer Lifecycle Stages While customer lifecycle stages may vary depending on the industry and business model, here are some common stages that many organizations use: **1. Pre-Onboarding:** This stage begins when a prospect engages with your customer success team, whether it's during the implementation process, onboarding planning, or simply an introductory conversation before the deal is closed. **2. Onboarding:** Once a prospect becomes a customer, they enter the onboarding stage. This is where they are introduced to their customer success manager or service team, and a roadmap is outlined for implementing the product or service and defining success criteria. **3. Implementation:** This stage involves the technical or process-oriented work required to ensure that the customer can successfully use your product or service. The goal is to achieve "first time to value" as soon as possible. **4. Early Adoption:** After achieving first time to value, customers move into the early adoption phase. This is when they start to realize the actual value of your offering and become more proficient in using it. **5. Mature Adoption:** When customers become experts in using your product and are deriving maximum value from it, they enter the mature adoption phase. At this stage, the risk of churn is significantly reduced. ### Entry Criteria for Each Stage Each customer lifecycle stage has its own entry criteria that determine when a customer moves from one stage to the next. Here's a closer look at the entry criteria for each stage: **1. Pre-Onboarding:** No specific entry criteria are required, as this stage encompasses any work involving the customer success team prior to closed one. **2. Onboarding:** Entry into the onboarding stage occurs automatically when a prospect becomes a customer. The focus is on getting customers up to speed and realizing value from your product or service as quickly as possible. **3. Implementation:** Customers move to the implementation stage when they require technical or process-oriented assistance to connect, integrate, and set up the product to meet their needs. **4. Early Adoption:** This stage is reached when customers achieve first time to value and demonstrate a reduced risk of churn compared to those still in onboarding or implementation. **5. Mature Adoption:** Customers enter the mature adoption phase when they have become proficient in using your product, are realizing its full value, and have a low risk of churn. Customer lifecycle stages are a powerful tool for understanding and managing the customer journey. By defining and monitoring these stages, you can tailor your customer success strategies to meet the specific needs of your customers at each phase. This proactive approach leads to improved customer satisfaction, increased retention rates, and ultimately, sustained business growth. Remember, customer lifecycle management is an ongoing process that requires continuous monitoring, adaptation, and optimization. By leveraging customer lifecycle stages, you can build strong, long-term relationships with your customers and drive success for both your business and your customers. # Proof of Concept Lifecycle {% embed url="" %} In the world of B2B SaaS, companies often go through a proof of concept (POC) phase before fully committing to a product or service. This phase allows both the vendor and the customer to assess the product's fit for the customer's needs and to identify any potential issues or challenges. For most B2B SaaS companies, there is some level of proof of concept, proof of value, or pilot phase in the product or service that they're offering. It's important to have stages designated for this process alone so that you can track progress and measure success. ### Designating Prospects The first stage in the POC process is designating whether a prospect is moving into this phase or not. This decision is often made by sales engineers or the customer success team. It's important to track how many prospects are going into the POC process and to assess whether this process is paying off. ### Operational Steps Once a prospect is in the POC process, you'll want to outline a few operational steps that designate the type of process that you go through. These steps should be clear and concise, and they should help you measure progress and identify any bottlenecks. Some common operational steps in a POC process include: * Technical integration phase * API connection phase * Data transfer phase ### Value At the end of the POC process, you'll need to assess whether or not the POC showed value. This assessment should be independent of the closed won or closed lost stages that you had earlier. You want to know if your POCs are able to show the value that you're expecting to show, and if so, whether that's related to closed won business. ### Entry Criteria The entry criteria for the POC process will vary depending on your company and your product or service. However, it's important to have clear and documented entry criteria so that all teams are following the same process. Some common entry criteria for a POC process include: * A minimum number of users * A certain level of revenue * A specific industry or vertical ### Reasons for Success or Failure When you move a prospect to the "able to show value" or "unable to show value" stage, it's important to document the reasons for either of those cases. This information will help you improve your POC process and increase your chances of success. ### Conclusion The POC process is an important part of the sales cycle for B2B SaaS companies. By following the steps outlined in this guide, you can increase your chances of success and improve your overall RevOps efficiency. # Lifecycle Measurement {% embed url="" %} The GTM lifecycle process is the backbone of revenue operations. It includes all stages from lead generation to customer retention, providing valuable insights into the effectiveness of your revenue operations and identifying areas for improvement. By measuring key metrics at each stage, you can optimize your GTM strategy and drive growth. Production by Stage Tracking production volume by stage provides insights into the overall productivity and efficiency of your GTM process. Key metrics include: * Volume of marketing qualified leads (MQLs) * Volume of sales qualified leads (SQLs) * Number of closed opportunities * Number of customers moving into early adoption Stage Conversion Understanding the conversion rates between stages is key to identifying bottlenecks and areas for improvement. Key metrics include: * Conversion rate from MQL to SQL * Conversion rate from SQL to closed opportunity * Conversion rate from closed opportunity to customer * Conversion rate from onboarding to early adoption Time in Stage Measuring the time it takes to move between stages provides insights into the efficiency of your processes. Key metrics include: * Time from proposal sent to negotiations completed * Time from onboarding to implementation Reasons for Drop-Off Identifying the reasons why leads or customers drop off at specific stages can help you address underlying issues and improve your GTM process. Key metrics include: * Reasons for not moving from MQL to SQL * Reasons for not moving from onboarding to early adoption Cost to Enter Stage Evaluating the cost of acquiring customers at each stage helps us assess the efficiency of our GTM efforts. Key metrics include: * Cost per MQL * Cost per SQL * Cost per closed opportunity * Cost per customer acquisition Segmentation Segmenting data by individual contributors, customer segments, or regions provides deeper insights and allows us to identify specific areas for improvement. By measuring and analyzing these key metrics at each stage of the GTM lifecycle process, you can optimize your revenue operations, drive growth, and achieve your business goals more effectively. Regularly monitoring these metrics and taking data-driven actions will enable you to continuously improve your GTM strategy and stay ahead of the competition. # Attribution Overview {% embed url="" %} We will delve into the concept of attribution for B2B companies and explore various attribution models commonly employed to measure marketing effectiveness. By understanding attribution, businesses can gain valuable insights into which marketing channels, campaigns, and activities contribute most significantly to driving desired outcomes, such as revenue, pipeline generation, and lead acquisition. ### What is Attribution? Attribution is the process of identifying and assigning value to different touchpoints or interactions that a customer experiences throughout their journey toward purchasing a product or service. It enables marketing and sales teams to understand which channels, campaigns, and activities are most effective in driving conversions and optimize their strategies accordingly. ### Common Attribution Models for B2B Companies There are several attribution models that B2B companies can use to measure their marketing efforts. Let’s take a look at the three most widely used models: 1. Direct Source Attribution (First Touch or Last Touch) Direct source attribution, also known as first touch or last touch attribution, is a straightforward model that attributes 100% of the credit for a conversion to a single touchpoint. In the first touch model, the initial touchpoint that generates a new lead or purchase opportunity receives full credit. Conversely, in the last touch model, the final touchpoint prior to conversion is credited. 2. Influence Attribution Influence attribution is the practice of giving equal credit to all touchpoints that occur along the buyer’s journey. This method can lead to over-inflated revenue attribution, as it effectively duplicates the credit for each touchpoint. 3. Distributed Attribution (Multi-Touch Attribution) Distributed attribution, also known as multi-touch attribution, is the practice of distributing credit across all touchpoints along the buyer's journey. The percentage of credit allocated to each touchpoint can be evenly distributed or weighted based on the timing of its occurrence or its perceived intent level. ### Applying Attribution Models: An Example To illustrate how these attribution models differ, let's consider the following example buyer journey: * A lead is acquired through a trade show event sponsored by the company. * Post-event, an email is dispatched, nudging the lead to explore our website. * Fast forward three months, and the lead returns to the website, this time submitting a form requesting a personalized product demo. * The sales lead then attends a regional event hosted by the company during the active sales cycle. * Post-event, the prospect becomes a customer and makes an initial purchase. Direct Source Attribution: In this instance, the sale is entirely credited to either the trade show event (first touch) or the last touchpoint before qualification (form submission). Influence Attribution: Every significant touchpoint along the buyer's journey receives full credit for the sale, resulting in a quadrupled attributed revenue amount. Distributed Attribution: Credit is evenly distributed across all touchpoints, with each receiving 25% of the credit. ### Choosing the Right Attribution Model The choice of attribution model depends on the specific measurement objectives and the maturity of the company's go-to-market organization. Lean Scale recommends building and maintaining all three attribution models to address various measurement needs: * Direct Source Attribution: Ideal for predicting funnel conversion rates, establishing performance benchmarks, and fine-tuning short-term strategies. * Influence Attribution: This is a great way to compare similar campaigns, but it's not the best method to measure return on marketing investment (ROMI). * Distributed Attribution: Best used for measuring ROMI and marketing's contribution to revenue, but it does take longer for the data to mature, as we must wait for the entire buyer journey to unfold. ### Building an Attribution Model If your company doesn’t have an attribution model in place, it’s a good idea to start with direct source attribution. By setting up high-quality first touch and last touch data capture processes, you can measure marketing performance, set performance targets by channel, and use data-driven insights to optimize your funnel. Attribution is a critical part of understanding marketing effectiveness for B2B companies. By using the right attribution models, businesses can optimize their marketing strategy, allocate resources more effectively, and improve overall ROI. If you need help building attribution models and managing data processes, Lean Scale can help. # Lead Source Taxonomy {% embed url="" %} ### Lead Source Taxonomy and Attribution Methodologies Organizing lead sources into a well-structured taxonomy is key to understanding marketing and sales performance. This guide provides a comprehensive framework for setting up a lead source taxonomy and creating a campaign design that aligns with it. #### Organizing Lead Sources into Taxonomy Levels Lead Source Grouping: Begin by organizing your lead sources into broad categories that align with your business's key functions, like sales, marketing, customer success, and referrals. This offers a snapshot of your leads' origins. Lead Source: The next tier should encompass specific lead sources, be it events, paid advertising, or the dedicated outreach of your SDR team. These sources are generally linked to a set budget. Lead Source Details: Lastly, we should define the specific channels or campaigns that fall under each lead source. For instance, under events, we may have trade shows, customer events, or prospect events. #### Understanding the Audience for Each Level Executive Level: At the highest tier of your lead source taxonomy, executives gain a comprehensive view of where leads originate. This empowers them to evaluate whether leads are predominantly generated by marketing, sales efforts, or product-led growth strategies. Functional Leaders: For those in the trenches, the next level down offers a more granular view. Here, you can pinpoint specific channels and sources to understand where leads are coming from and adjust your marketing budgets accordingly. Marketing Operations: The most granular level of lead source taxonomy is designed for marketing operational use. It empowers marketers to scrutinize the performance of individual channels, pinpoint successes and failures, and refine their strategies based on the insights gleaned from funnel metrics. #### Ensuring Mutually Exclusive and Comprehensive Taxonomy When setting up your lead source taxonomy, it's important to ensure that: * Mutually Exclusive: Each lead source should be clearly defined and distinct from others. Selecting one lead source should not imply that it could be another. * Comprehensively Exhaustive: Each lead should have a specific place in your taxonomy. There should be no instances where you're unsure which lead source to tag a particular lead to. Adhering to these principles ensures a well-structured lead source taxonomy that delivers meaningful data to various members of your team, empowering you to make strategic, well-informed choices for your marketing and sales endeavors. # Reporting and Data Analytics {% embed url="" %} Reporting in data analytics is a powerful tool that can help you predict the future, assess the current state of your business, and make solid recommendations for growth. However, the effectiveness of your reporting depends on tailoring it to your audience. In this guide, we will discuss how to present your data in a way that is relevant and meaningful to different audiences, including executive leadership, functional managers, and individual contributors. ### Audience The first step in creating effective reporting is to identify your audience. What are their goals? What information do they need to make decisions? Once you understand your audience, you can begin to tailor your data accordingly. #### Executive Level Reporting Our executive leadership team seeks out concise, high-level data that illuminates the path ahead and underpins strategic decisions. They're more inclined towards the future—forecasts and trends—than a retrospective on past performance. When we present to them, we're mindful to keep the focus broad, steering clear of minutiae that could obscure the overarching view. #### Functional Managers Functional managers are the backbone of our organization, overseeing specific departments or divisions. They require data to monitor their progress towards goals and to guide their teams. Reporting for functional managers is designed to be performance-to-plan oriented, offering a comprehensive view of individual and team achievements. #### Individual Contributors For the individual contributors, the focus is on personalized reporting that zeroes in on their unique targets and duties. This might encompass their sales achievements, conversion metrics, or the duration of their sales cycle. The goal is to arm them with the insights they need to make informed choices and drive results. #### Less is More When we share data with others, we should remember that less is often more. Overloading our audience with information can be counterproductive. Instead, we should focus on presenting the most relevant and impactful data. One slide with 10 key insights is more effective than 10 slides with one data point each. #### Conclusion Crafting your data to resonate with your audience can produce reports that are genuinely beneficial and actionable. This, in turn, will enhance decision-making, elevate performance, and realize your business aspirations. # Sales Metrics {% embed url="" %} ### 1. Bookings to Plan * Definition: The value of signed contracts, representing expected revenue. * Segments: Company level, territories/regions, individual goals. * Importance: Key performance indicator reflecting business goals. ### 2. Sales Cycle and Conversion Rates * Definition: Time and percentage of conversion from sales qualified lead to closed opportunity. * Segments: The stages between a sales qualified lead and a closed deal. * Importance: Informs marketing team's sales qualified lead goals and planning. ### 3. Weighted Pipeline Forecast and Coverage * What is it? A predictive measure of whether we’ll hit our bookings target, calculated by applying weights to open opportunities based on stage, qualification, and deal health. * Segments: Opportunities in the system with weights assigned. * Significance: Aids in the assessment of progress towards our booking goals. ### 4. Pipeline Created * Definition: Measures the speed of generating new sales qualified leads. * Segments: By rep, lead source. * Importance: Ensures enough pipeline coverage and evaluates lead source performance. ### 5. Win-Loss Analysis * Definition: The examination of opportunities that were not secured, to pinpoint the reasons behind the outcome. * Segments: Lost opportunities. * Importance: Provides insights for improving sales strategies and product offerings. ### 6. Pipeline Development Over Time * Definition: Compares pipeline changes over time, such as month-to-month or quarter-to-quarter. * Segments: Time increments. * Importance: Identifies trends and patterns in pipeline movement. # Created Pipeline {% embed url="" %} ### Create Pipeline to Plan (SQL Goals) Beyond sales figures, marketing teams should monitor the creation of SQLs (Sales Qualified Leads) as a pivotal gauge of their effectiveness. Establish clear, measurable objectives for the generation of SQLs, segmented by marketing channel and region, to craft a pipeline plan. This approach will enable the tracking of advancements and facilitate any necessary adaptations to achieve overarching booking objectives. #### 1. Establish Clear SQL Goals We begin by establishing clear objectives for the quantity of SQLs we aim to generate. These targets are informed by past performance, market analysis, and the overarching goals of our sales and marketing strategies. We ensure our aims are SMART: specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound. #### 2. Segment Goals by Channel and Region After setting your SQL goals, it's time to dissect them by marketing channel and region. This granular approach will reveal the performance of each channel and region, guiding you to allocate resources where they're most effective. Common marketing channels include events, SDRs, paid advertising, referrals, and sales-sourced SQLs. 3. Monitor the Path and Adapt as Needed We keep a close eye on how we’re doing against our SQL goals and adjust as needed. That might mean we change the amount of time or resources we’re putting into certain channels or regions, or even change our marketing strategy entirely. We use data and analytics to help us make these decisions and to make sure we’re making the right ones. #### 4. Celebrate Success When you've reached your SQL goals, it's time to celebrate. This will help to keep your team motivated and focused on achieving future goals. Here is a table that summarizes the key points discussed in this article: | Key Point | Description | | -------------------------------------- | ---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | | Set clear SQL goals | Establish specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART) goals for the number of SQLs you want to create. | | Break down goals by channel and region | Segment your SQL goals by marketing channel and region to pinpoint areas of success and those that require a boost. | | Track progress and make adjustments | Keep an eye on how you're doing with your SQL goals and make adjustments as needed based on data and analytics. | | Celebrate success | When you reach your SQL goals, take some time to celebrate your success to motivate your team and keep them focused on achieving future goals. | By following these steps, one can create a pipeline plan that will help generate more SQLs and reach overall bookings targets. # Weighted Pipeline {% embed url="" %} ### Weighted Pipeline and Coverage A clear understanding of your sales pipeline is crucial for accurate forecasting and goal setting. Traditional pipeline management involves simply adding up the values of all opportunities in your pipeline, which can give a misleading picture of your true sales potential. This is where the concept of weighted pipeline and coverage comes into play. Weighted pipeline is a more sophisticated approach to pipeline management that takes into account the stage of an opportunity, historical conversion rates, and deal health. By incorporating these factors, you can gain insights into the likelihood of closing deals and make informed decisions about resource allocation and forecasting. ### Calculating Weighted Pipeline To calculate your weighted pipeline, follow these steps: 1. Identify the key factors that influence deal conversion: First, let's pinpoint the factors that weigh most heavily on the likelihood of a successful close. These could be the stage of the opportunity, the size of the deal, the segment of the customer, and the performance of the sales representative. 2. Determine historical conversion rates: By analyzing past sales data, you can determine the historical conversion rates for each stage of your sales pipeline. This will give you a clear understanding of how likely an opportunity is to move forward. 3. Assign weights to each factor: Based on our analysis, we assign weights to each factor. For example, we might assign a higher weight to later stages of the pipeline since they have a higher probability of closing. 4. Calculate weighted pipeline: Multiply the value of each opportunity by its corresponding weight to calculate the weighted pipeline value. ### Calculating Coverage Ratio The coverage ratio is a simple calculation that compares your weighted pipeline to your sales quota. It’s a great way to see if you have enough pipeline to hit your revenue goals. To calculate the coverage ratio, divide your weighted pipeline by your sales quota. #### Using Weighted Pipeline and Coverage for Planning and Forecasting Weighted pipeline and coverage metrics are essential for effective planning and forecasting. Here are a few ways you can use these metrics: 1. Assess pipeline health: Weighted pipeline and coverage ratios give us a clear picture of the strength of our sales pipeline. By keeping a close eye on these metrics, we can spot potential gaps and take proactive steps to keep our pipeline healthy. 2. Set realistic sales targets: Weighted pipeline helps us set realistic sales targets based on our historical conversion rates and deal health. This ensures that our sales team is focused on pursuing high-quality opportunities that have a greater chance of closing. 3. Allocate resources effectively: Weighted pipeline allows us to distribute our resources, like our sales reps and marketing efforts, in a more effective manner. This way, we can concentrate on opportunities with the greatest potential for success. 4. Improve forecasting accuracy: Weighted pipeline and coverage metrics are invaluable for sales forecasting. They allow us to consider factors such as stage, conversion rates, and deal health, leading to more precise forecasts and better-informed business decisions. Weighted pipeline and coverage are powerful metrics that can significantly improve the effectiveness of your RevOps team. By incorporating these metrics into your sales pipeline management process, you can gain a deeper understanding of your sales potential, set realistic goals, and make data-driven decisions for success. # Marketing Metrics {% embed url="" %} ### Measuring Marketing Performance Marketing is a cornerstone of success for any startup. By keeping an eye on the right metrics, marketing teams can uncover valuable insights, spot areas for growth, and refine their strategies for the greatest impact. Here are six key metrics that startup marketing teams should be measuring to propel growth and success: ### 1. Pipeline Creation and Distribution Just as our sales teams have their sights set on new bookings, our marketing teams are equally focused on pipeline creation. By setting clear goals in this area, we can measure the volume of qualified leads that our marketing efforts are generating and gain valuable insights into the effectiveness of our various channels and lead sources. Segmenting our pipeline creation by channel, lead source, and sales representative can help us ensure that we’re distributing our opportunities evenly and identify any areas where we may need to make adjustments. ### 2. MQL to SQL Conversion Rate and Cycle Marketing qualified leads (MQLs) are those who have demonstrated an interest in a company’s products or services, but are not yet ready to make a purchase. By tracking the conversion rate of MQLs to sales qualified leads (SQLs) and the cycle time associated with this conversion, marketing teams can gain valuable insights into the efficiency of their campaigns. ### 3. Channel Efficiency Not all marketing channels are created equal. Some may yield a higher number of SQLs, while others may be more cost-effective. Channel efficiency evaluates the number of SQLs generated by each channel, the corresponding MQLs required, and the budget invested. By understanding channel efficiency, marketing teams can allocate resources effectively and focus on the most impactful channels. ### 4. Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) to Lifetime Value (LTV) Ratio The CAC to LTV ratio is a valuable metric for evaluating the profitability of customer acquisition. It compares the cost of acquiring a customer with the total revenue that customer is expected to generate over their lifetime. It is important to strike a balance between CAC and LTV to ensure sustainable business growth. Marketing teams can influence this ratio by improving campaign efficiency and focusing on acquiring high-value customers. ### 5. Lead Impact Matrix The lead impact matrix is a powerful tool that combines the conversion rate of a specific channel with its overall impact on lead generation. This matrix helps us identify the most efficient and effective channels, so we can focus on strategies that will yield high-quality leads. By analyzing the lead impact matrix, we can optimize our channel mix and maximize our return on investment. ### 6. Number of Campaigns to Generate an SQL In today’s competitive landscape, it often takes multiple touchpoints to convert a prospect into an SQL. Understanding the average number of campaigns needed to achieve this conversion is essential for marketing teams. This metric provides insights into the complexity of the buyer’s journey and the diversity of campaigns required to engage and nurture prospects effectively. # Lead Impact Matrix {% embed url="" %} ### Lead Source Impact Matrix In today’s competitive business environment, generating high-quality leads is essential for driving revenue growth. However, not all lead sources are created equal. Some lead sources may be more efficient in generating leads, while others may produce higher-quality leads. The Lead Source Impact Matrix is a powerful tool that helps businesses assess the performance of their lead sources and make informed decisions about where to allocate their marketing resources. #### What is the Lead Source Impact Matrix? The Lead Source Impact Matrix is a two-axis matrix that plots lead sources based on their conversion rate and production. Conversion rate measures the percentage of leads from a particular source that convert into customers, while production measures the total number of customers acquired from that source. By overlaying lead sources on this matrix, businesses can swiftly pinpoint their most fruitful and efficient channels. This insight can then inform strategic decisions about where to invest and where to dial back. #### How to Create a Lead Source Impact Matrix Creating a Lead Source Impact Matrix is simple. Here’s how you can do it: 1. Step 1: Identify Your Lead Sources. Make a comprehensive list of every avenue that brings potential customers to your door, from organic searches to paid ads, social media, email campaigns, and referrals. 2. Gather data on conversion rates and production. For each lead source, keep tabs on the leads that come in, how many of those become customers, and the total revenue each source brings in. 3. Plot the lead sources on the matrix. Use the x-axis to chart conversion rates and the y-axis to represent production. Each lead source should be depicted by a point on the matrix. 4. Analyze the matrix. Once you've got your matrix all set, it's time to dig in. Look for those lead sources that shine with both a high conversion rate and production levels—these are your stars, your most efficient and productive leads. On the flip side, identify those sources that are lagging in both conversion and production—these are the ones that need a closer look. #### Using the Lead Source Impact Matrix to Optimize Your Lead Generation Strategy The Lead Source Impact Matrix is a valuable tool for making informed decisions about where to allocate your marketing resources. Here are a few tips: * Invest in your most efficient and productive lead sources. These are the lead sources that are generating the most leads and customers for your business. By investing more resources in these lead sources, you can increase your overall lead generation and customer acquisition. * Scale back your least efficient and productive lead sources. We all have those lead sources that just aren’t pulling their weight. By trimming the fat here, you can redirect those resources into more fruitful endeavors. * Test new lead sources. The Lead Source Impact Matrix is a valuable tool for evaluating the potential of new lead sources. By monitoring their performance, we can swiftly discern whether they merit further investment. The Lead Source Impact Matrix is a robust instrument that empowers businesses to fine-tune their lead generation strategies. By discerning the most efficient and productive lead sources, informed decisions can be made on resource allocation, ultimately leading to the generation of more leads and customers. # CAC to LTV {% embed url="" %} ### Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC) to Lifetime Value (LTV) Ratio In the business realm, the interplay between customer acquisition cost (CAC) and lifetime value (LTV) is a vital consideration for strategic marketing and sales decisions. This article is designed to furnish a thorough understanding of the CAC to LTV ratio, covering its definition, calculation, significance, and strategies for optimization. #### Understanding CAC and LTV Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC): CAC is the sum of all expenses related to acquiring a new customer. This encompasses marketing initiatives, sales commissions, and any other outlays tied to securing new business. Lifetime Value (LTV): LTV is the total revenue a customer will bring to a company throughout their entire relationship. It takes into account the customer's average purchase value, purchase frequency, and customer retention rate. #### Calculating the CAC to LTV Ratio The CAC to LTV ratio is the CAC divided by the LTV. If the ratio is 1, it means the cost of acquiring a customer is equivalent to the revenue that customer will bring in over their lifetime. A ratio under 1 implies the company is making more from a customer than it spent to acquire them, while a ratio over 1 indicates the cost to acquire is more than the lifetime value of the customer. #### Significance of the CAC to LTV Ratio The CAC to LTV ratio is a crucial metric for assessing the effectiveness and profitability of customer acquisition efforts. It offers insights into several key aspects: Customer Profitability: A favorable CAC to LTV ratio indicates that the company is acquiring customers at a cost that allows for profitability. It ensures that the revenue generated by customers exceeds the cost of acquiring them. Marketing and Sales Effectiveness: The CAC to LTV ratio is a key metric for assessing the effectiveness of marketing and sales strategies. A high CAC to LTV ratio may indicate inefficiencies in customer acquisition that need to be optimized. Investment Decisions: The CAC to LTV ratio is a powerful tool for making smart choices about customer acquisition investments. By concentrating on channels and strategies that offer a higher LTV and a lower CAC, companies can allocate resources more effectively. #### Strategies for Optimizing the CAC to LTV Ratio Several strategies can be employed to optimize the CAC to LTV ratio, including: Targeting High-Value Customers: Concentrating on customers with a higher likelihood of repeat purchases and increased revenue can markedly enhance the LTV. Improving Customer Retention: By implementing strategies that bolster customer retention, such as top-notch customer service, loyalty programs, and personalized experiences, we can extend the customer lifetime and increase LTV. Reducing Customer Acquisition Costs: By streamlining marketing and sales processes, optimizing ad campaigns, and negotiating better terms with vendors, we can reduce CAC without compromising customer quality. Upselling and Cross-Selling: Encouraging our existing customers to purchase additional products or services can increase revenue without incurring significant acquisition costs. # Customer Success Metrics {% embed url="" %} ### Customer Success Metrics Customer success is a pivotal function for any business that seeks to retain its customers and bolster its revenue. By monitoring the appropriate metrics, one can gauge the efficacy of these efforts and adapt as necessary. In this article, we'll discuss some of the most important customer success metrics, including: * Net retention rate * Gross retention rate * Customer health * Customer lifecycle stages * Cost to carry ratios * Survey data ### Net Retention Rate Net retention rate (NRR) is a key indicator of how much revenue we keep from our existing customers over a specific period. It factors in both the revenue gained from customers who increase their spending (expansion revenue) and the revenue lost from customers who decrease their spending (contraction revenue). NRR is a vital gauge of customer satisfaction and the health of their business growth. A robust NRR suggests that we are effectively meeting the needs of our customers and delivering substantial value. ### Gross Retention Rate Gross retention rate (GRR) is a measure of how many of our customers continue to do business with us over a given period of time. It doesn't take into account expansion or contraction revenue. GRR is a significant benchmark, reflecting your efficacy in retaining customers. A high GRR is a testament to your ability to meet and exceed customer expectations, ensuring their continued satisfaction. ### Customer Health Customer health is a yardstick for how content your customers are with your product or service. There are various ways to gauge customer health, but some common methods include: * Customer satisfaction surveys * Customer support tickets * Product usage data Customer health is a key metric, offering valuable insights into how customers view your product or service. A robust customer health score signals contentment and satisfaction among your customer base. ### Customer Lifecycle Stages Customer lifecycle stages track the different phases that customers experience in their relationship with your business. The typical customer lifecycle stages include: * Awareness * Acquisition * Onboarding * Implementation * Early adoption * Growth * Retention * Churn Understanding your customer lifecycle stages can help you identify areas where you can improve your customer experience and increase retention. ### Cost to Carry Ratios Our cost to carry ratios help us understand how much it costs to support a customer over time, encompassing customer success, support, and product development expenses. These ratios are vital as they shed light on the profitability of our customer base. A high ratio suggests we're investing more in supporting our customers than we're reaping in revenue from them. ### Survey Data Survey data can offer valuable insights into customer satisfaction, needs, and pain points. Some common types of customer surveys include: * Net Promoter Score (NPS) * Customer satisfaction surveys * Product usage surveys Survey data can be the key to unlocking areas for improvement in your customer experience and bolstering retention. # Net Retention {% embed url="" %} ### Net and Gross Retention Net and gross retention rates are two important metrics for measuring customer success. Net retention rate measures the percentage of revenue retained from existing customers over a specific time period, while gross retention rate measures the percentage of customers retained over the same period. #### Time Frame Both net and gross retention rates are time-bound metrics, meaning that they must be measured over a specific time period. The most common time periods used are monthly, quarterly, and annually. When reporting on net or gross retention rate, it is important to specify the time period being measured. #### Calculation **Gross retention rate** is calculated by dividing the number of customers at the end of a time period by the number of customers at the beginning of the period. For example, if a company has 100 customers at the beginning of a month and 90 customers at the end of the month, its gross retention rate for that month would be 90%. **Net retention rate** is calculated by multiplying the gross retention rate by the average revenue per customer (ARPC). {% hint style="success" %} {% code overflow="wrap" %} ``` For example, if a company has a gross retention rate of 90% and an ARPC of $100, its net retention rate would be 90% * $100 = $90. ``` {% endcode %} {% endhint %} #### Visualization The best way to visualize net and gross retention rates is with a waterfall chart. A waterfall chart shows the starting ARR, churn, contraction, expansion, and ending ARR. The Y-axis of a waterfall chart is typically dollars, while the X-axis shows the time period being measured. #### Interpretation Net and gross retention rates can be used to measure the health of a company's customer base. A high net retention rate indicates that a company is successfully retaining its customers and growing its revenue. A low net retention rate can indicate that a company is losing customers and/or not growing its revenue quickly enough. #### Conclusion Net and gross retention rates are important metrics for measuring customer success. By tracking these metrics, companies can identify trends in their customer base and make adjustments to their customer success strategies as needed. # Partnership Metrics {% embed url="" %} ### Partnerships and Channel Team Metrics When measuring the performance of your Partnerships or Channel team, it is important to take a cross-section of each phase of the go-to-market lifecycle. This means looking at data from marketing, sales, and customer success, but with a focus on the partnerships lens. Some key metrics to track for your Partnerships team include: ### **Bookings** If you have a bookings target for your Partnerships or Channel team, you will need to track your progress towards that goal. This metric measures the total value of contracts signed with new customers through your partnerships. ### **Pipeline** Building pipeline is another important metric for Partnerships teams. This measures the total value of opportunities that are in the sales pipeline that have been generated by your partners. ### **SQLs** Tracking the number of SQLs (sales qualified leads) that are generated from your channel team is important if generating SQLs is a primary objective for your Partnerships operation. This metric measures the number of leads that have been qualified by your partners and passed on to your sales team. ### **Funnel metrics** You should also track all of the funnel metrics for deals that are coming in from Partnerships, including sales cycle, conversion rate, and customer lifecycle stage. This will help you understand how effective your Partnerships team is at generating and closing deals. ### **Partnership health** It's important to keep track of the health of your partnerships. A green-yellow-red system labeled by the partner manager is a good place to start. This will help you identify which partnerships are doing well and which ones may be in trouble. ### **Customer lifecycle stages** Take a look at the customer lifecycle stages for accounts that are coming in through Partnerships. Are there any differences in onboarding, implementation, or getting those accounts to early adoption? Make sure you're measuring that per partner. ### **Cost to carry ratios** This metric measures the cost of managing the partnership, including the cost of partner managers, partner marketing, and partner customer success. This will help you forecast the resources you will need in the future to manage your partnerships. By tracking these metrics, you can get a clear picture of the performance of your Partnerships or Channel team and make adjustments as needed. # Presenting Metrics {% embed url="" %} ### Understanding Data Maturity and Analytics in Revenue Operations This aims to provide an overview of data maturity and analytics in revenue operations, guiding readers on how to effectively leverage data to drive strategic recommendations and improve overall revenue performance. #### The Purpose of Data in Revenue Operations * Data is not merely collected for the sake of curiosity or data exercises. * The primary purpose of data collection and tracking in revenue operations is to make recommendations that enhance the overall revenue operation. #### Data Maturity Capabilities * Data maturity capabilities encompass various levels of data management and utilization. * The foundational level involves establishing a solid foundation of accurate data. * This includes having ready reports and dashboards to measure all relevant aspects of revenue operations. * However, stopping at this level is insufficient. #### Analytics and Insights * The next level of data maturity involves performing analytics on the collected data. * This includes measuring meaningful business metrics and deriving insights from the available data. * Based on these insights, strategic recommendations can be provided to improve revenue operations. #### Example: Sales Cycle Time Analysis * Consider a scenario where data reveals that the sales cycle time for a specific industry is longer compared to others. * The purpose of identifying this data is not merely to report the difference, but to explore potential solutions. * It may indicate a need for different training or education to accelerate the sales process and secure contracts. * As a result, a recommendation can be made to enhance the go-to-market lifecycle with new processes. #### Do's and Don'ts when Presenting Data **Avoid:** * Dumping data without context: Avoid overwhelming your audience with raw data without providing context or insights. * Lacking context: Remember that the purpose of data is to make recommendations, so providing business context is critical. * Expecting others to derive insights: You are more familiar with the data and operations, so presenting your own insights will make a significant impact. **Do:** * Tailor data to your audience: Customize the data presentation based on the audience, whether it's executives, individuals, or specific teams. * Align data to insights: Ensure that data is presented with insights and recommendations, even if they are not ultimately implemented. * Spark conversations: Use data to initiate discussions and collaborate with other teams to develop comprehensive recommendations that improve the revenue engine. # GTM Tech Stack Overview ### Go-to-Market Tech Stack The go-to-market tech stack is a critical component of revenue operations, enabling sales, marketing, and customer success teams to perform at their best. This guide provides an overview of the various tools and technologies that can be integrated with a CRM to enhance its functionality and drive business growth. ### CRM A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system is the cornerstone of any go-to-market tech stack. It serves as a centralized platform for managing customer interactions, tracking sales opportunities, and storing customer data. A well-designed and well-maintained CRM is essential for ensuring that the rest of the tech stack can perform at its highest level. ### Marketing Automation Marketing automation tools enable businesses to automate contact and lead management, landing page creation, and communication with potential customers. These tools can be integrated with a CRM to provide a seamless flow of information between marketing and sales teams. Some popular marketing automation tools include HubSpot and Marketo. ### Sales Engagement Sales engagement applications automate typical cadences or flows of the sales communication process. They can assist in prospecting, managing deal flow, and closing deals. These tools provide valuable data insights and help sales teams stay organized and efficient. Some notable sales engagement tools include AmpleMarket, Groove, Outreach, and Salesloft. ### Data Intelligence Data intelligence tools provide businesses with the data they need to find potential customers. These tools can integrate with a CRM, marketing automation platform, and sales engagement tools to ensure that teams are targeting the right prospects. Some popular data intelligence tools include ZoomInfo, Seamless.ai, and Clearbit. ### Customer Success Customer success platforms enable customer success teams to automate common tasks and workflows, identify potential churn risks or growth opportunities, and gain insights into the overall health of the customer base. These tools help businesses retain customers and maximize customer lifetime value. Some prominent customer success platforms include Gainsight and ChurnZero. ### Meeting and Coaching Meeting and coaching platforms enable managers to view recordings of meetings with prospects or customers. These tools provide valuable coaching opportunities for sales teams and help identify areas for improvement. ### CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote) Solutions CPQ solutions automate the quote-producing process, configure the right product or solution for customers, and ensure a streamlined contracting process. These tools help businesses streamline their sales processes and improve accuracy in pricing and quoting. ### Partner Management Partner management solutions help businesses manage channel partners, referral partners, and affiliates. These tools provide partners with access to the content they need, enable them to register opportunities and leads, and offer insights into partner performance. ### Revenue Intelligence Revenue intelligence platforms such as BoostUp and Clari enrich a CRM with valuable data to provide predictive analytics for forecasting and planning. These tools help businesses make data-driven decisions and optimize their sales and marketing efforts. #### Conclusion The go-to-market tech stack is a critical investment for businesses looking to optimize their revenue operations. By integrating the right tools and technologies, businesses can enhance their sales, marketing, and customer success efforts, driving growth and profitability. # When To Buy New Systems {% embed url="" %} ### When to Invest in Revenue Operations Technologies This document outlines guidelines for investing in revenue operations technologies for B2B technology companies at different stages of growth. The sections are divided into three categories: early stage, mid-stage, and late-stage. #### Early Stage (Seed to Series A) 1. **Customer Relationship Management (CRM)**: Invest in a CRM like Salesforce or HubSpot to centralize customer data and enable data-driven decision-making. 2. **Marketing Automation**: Implement a marketing automation platform like HubSpot, Marketo, or Pardot to manage outreach, lead nurturing, and marketing campaigns. 3. **Contact Data Enrichment**: Use tools like ZoomInfo, Seamless, or Apollo to obtain accurate contact information and enhance your marketing and sales efforts. 4. **Sales Engagement Platform**: Consider a sales engagement platform like Outreach, Salesloft, or Groove to automate tasks and improve sales rep productivity. #### Mid-Stage (Series B) 1. **Customer Success Platform**: Implement a customer success platform like ChurnZero, Gainsight, or Planhat to empower customer success managers (CSMs) and enhance customer retention. 2. **Configure Price Quote (CPQ)**: Invest in a CPQ solution like DealHub, Salesforce CPQ, or Aptis to streamline product and service configuration, pricing, and quoting processes. 3. **Coaching Platform**: Use a coaching platform like Gong or Chorus to record and analyze sales calls, enabling sales managers to provide targeted coaching and improve pitch effectiveness. #### Late-Stage (Series C and beyond) 1. **Revenue Intelligence**: Implement a revenue intelligence platform like Qlik, BoostUp, or Clary to analyze sales data, identify trends, and make data-driven decisions. 2. **Channel Management**: Consider a channel management platform like PartnerStack or Allbound to manage partner relationships, track commissions, and streamline data integration with your CRM. 3. **Content Management**: Invest in a content management platform like Seismic or Highspot to organize and distribute marketing content effectively. 4. **Training and Enablement**: Implement a training and enablement platform like MindTickle or BrainShark to facilitate ongoing employee training and product knowledge updates. 5. **Commission Management**: Use a commission management tool like Spiff or CaptivateIQ to automate complex commission calculations and manage incentive programs. Remember that the CRM is the foundation for all these tools and should receive continuous investment to ensure optimal functionality and alignment with your business needs. ### Overview of Tool Usage by Department The following table provides a general overview of which departments typically use specific revenue operations tools: | Department | Tools | | ---------------- | ------------------------------------------------------ | | Sales | CRM, Sales Engagement Platform, Coaching Platform, CPQ | | Marketing | CRM, Marketing Automation, Contact Data Enrichment | | Customer Success | CRM, Customer Success Platform | | Finance | CRM, Commission Management | | Operations | CRM, Channel Management | | Content | Content Management | | Training | Training and Enablement | Please note that this overview is not exhaustive and may vary depending on the specific needs and structure of your organization. # Driving System Adoption {% embed url="" %} #### Process Before Technology * **Step 1:** Prioritize process definition and documentation before evaluating technology. * **Step 2:** Evaluate tools' potential to empower existing processes rather than drive change. * **Step 3:** Select best-fit technology that aligns with your defined process. #### Stakeholder Alignment * **Step 4:** Engage all relevant stakeholders across different teams to gather comprehensive perspectives. * **Step 5:** Seek insights from unique roles that will interact with the technology. * **Step 6:** Foster informed decision-making by incorporating diverse viewpoints. #### Enablement and Training * **Step 7:** Develop enablement materials and training programs post-decision. * **Step 8:** Establish forums for users to interact and engage with the technology. * **Step 9:** Provide continuous training after deployment to ensure sustained proficiency. # CRM Considerations {% embed url="" %} ### Designing Your CRM: A Technical Guide **Introduction** A CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system is a crucial component of a company's tech stack, acting as the central hub for managing customer interactions and data. This guide provides technical guidelines for designing a CRM that aligns with your business processes and ensures optimal user experience, streamlined operations, efficient reporting, and robust security. **Key Considerations** When designing your CRM, there are three main aspects to consider: 1. **User Experience (UX)**: The CRM should be designed with the end-user in mind, providing an intuitive and efficient interface that enhances productivity and adoption. 2. **Reportability**: The CRM should offer robust reporting capabilities, allowing users to easily extract and analyze data to gain insights into customer behavior, sales performance, and overall business health. 3. **Data Security**: The CRM must prioritize data security to protect sensitive customer information and maintain compliance with relevant regulations. **Optimizing for Different Priorities** Depending on your business needs, you may prioritize one or more of these aspects. Here's how to optimize for each: 1. **User Experience (UX)**: * Design a user-friendly interface with clear navigation and intuitive workflows. * Ensure that the CRM is accessible on various devices, including desktops, laptops, and mobile devices. * Provide customizable options to allow users to tailor the CRM to their specific needs. 2. **Reportability**: * Implement a comprehensive reporting system that allows users to generate custom reports and dashboards. * Integrate data from multiple sources to provide a holistic view of customer interactions. * Ensure that reports can be easily exported in various formats for further analysis. 3. **Data Security**: * Implement robust access controls to restrict user permissions based on roles and responsibilities. * Encrypt sensitive data both at rest and in transit to prevent unauthorized access. * Regularly conduct security audits to identify and address vulnerabilities. By following these guidelines, you can design a CRM that meets the unique needs of your business and empowers your teams to achieve operational excellence. Remember, the perfect CRM doesn't exist, but by carefully considering user experience, reportability, and data security, you can create a system that drives growth and success. # User-Oriented CRM {% embed url="" %} A user-oriented CRM (Customer Relationship Management) system prioritizes delivering an optimal user experience for sales representatives, customer success managers, and marketing professionals. This is achieved by streamlining layouts and workflows, automating data population, and minimizing the number of clicks and time spent within the CRM to complete tasks. #### Benefits of a User-Oriented CRM **1. Enhanced CRM Adoption:** A user-friendly CRM encourages user adoption and incorporation into daily workflows, increasing the likelihood of successful technology adoption. **2. Increased Individual Contributor Productivity:** When users can easily navigate and utilize the CRM, they can leverage its tools to enhance their productivity and accomplish tasks more efficiently. **3. Reduced Ramp Time and Training:** An intuitive and user-friendly CRM reduces the time and effort required to train users, as the system's design guides users through their roles without the need for extensive process training. #### Potential Drawbacks While prioritizing user experience is crucial, it can potentially lead to certain drawbacks: **1. Reduced Data Capture:** Streamlining processes for user convenience may result in less comprehensive data capture, affecting reporting capabilities and decision-making. **2. Security Risks:** Implementing features like remote access and mobile capabilities can introduce security vulnerabilities if not managed properly. **3. Increased CRM Complexity:** Tailoring the CRM to individual user needs can significantly increase the overall complexity of the system, requiring careful management to maintain usability. #### Practical Tips for Enhancing User Experience **1. Gather User Stories and Shadow Workflows:** Understand user needs by observing individual contributors' workflows and using these insights to inspire CRM design. **2. Design Fields, Automations, and Objects to Follow Existing Processes:** Don't force new processes onto users; instead, design the CRM to complement and accelerate their existing successful workflows. **3. Automate Data Capture:** Whenever possible, automate data capture and enrichment processes to minimize manual data entry and improve data accuracy. **4. Customize Views to Specific User Roles:** Tailor the CRM interface to different user roles, ensuring that relevant information is easily accessible and workflows are optimized for their specific tasks. **5. Customize Reporting to Individual Needs:** Create personalized reports that cater to the unique data requirements of different users, including executive-level, operational manager-level, and individual contributor-level reporting. **6. Integrate Best-in-Class Third-Party Tools:** Pair the CRM with complementary tools that enhance usability and align with specific user personas and tasks. #### Conclusion By implementing these strategies, organizations can create a user-oriented CRM that enhances user experience, increases productivity, and promotes successful technology adoption. Balancing user experience with data capture, security, and overall CRM complexity is essential to ensure a well-rounded and effective CRM system. # Data & Reporting CRM {% embed url="" %} Enhanced CRM reporting empowers businesses with accurate and timely insights to aid decision-making, planning, and overall business understanding. However, achieving this enhanced reportability comes with its own set of considerations and challenges. This document outlines the benefits and challenges of enhancing CRM reportability, along with practical suggestions to optimize your CRM for effective reporting. #### Benefits of Enhancing CRM Reportability **Accurate Data for Decision-Making:** A CRM enriched with accurate data enables teams to make informed decisions based on real-time insights. **Enhanced Collaboration:** Improved reportability facilitates seamless collaboration among teams, boosting individual contributor effectiveness. #### Challenges of Enhancing CRM Reportability **Data Entry Burden:** Enhancing reportability often requires manual data entry from team members, which can divert their focus from other tasks. **Data Siloing:** In certain scenarios, data siloing may be necessary for security or compliance reasons, hindering overall reportability. **Technical Complexity:** Ensuring automated data capture and designing effective workflows adds layers of technical complexity to the CRM. #### Best Practices for Enhancing CRM Reportability **Timestamp Stage Movements:** Timestamp any transitions between stages in your go-to-market lifecycle to track funnel metrics effectively. **Lock Closed Won Data:** Restrict access to closed-won data to prevent inadvertent changes that could impact data integrity. **Automate Data Enrichment:** Leverage data enrichment processes to automatically capture address and phone number data. **Enable Field History Tracking:** Implement field history tracking to maintain a comprehensive record of data changes. **Copy Necessary Data Between Objects:** Ensure that crucial data is copied between related objects to enable segmented reporting. **Implement Mandatory Fields Strategically:** Introduce mandatory fields at appropriate stages in the process to capture essential information without overwhelming users. #### Conclusion By implementing these best practices, businesses can optimize their CRM for enhanced reportability while balancing user experience and system complexity. This data-driven approach empowers organizations to make informed decisions, improve collaboration, and achieve their strategic objectives. # Security-Focused CRM {% embed url="" %} CRM security is often overlooked by RevOps professionals and sales leaders. Still, it's crucial to understand and implement security measures to mitigate data breaches and data integrity issues that could significantly impact a business, its budget, and its ability to go to market. #### Challenges of CRM Security Implementing security measures can make the CRM more difficult for users, as it may involve more complex login requirements and data lockdowns. Balancing security with user experience is essential to ensure that security measures don't hinder individual contributor productivity. #### Security Recommendations * **Enable Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)** for all users. This adds an extra layer of security to prevent unauthorized access to your CRM. * **Regularly perform database backups.** Store the backed-up data in a secure location to ensure you have access to historical information in case of data breaches or data integrity issues. * **Fine-tune user permissions and security protocols.** Avoid having everyone as a super admin and ensure that users only have the level of access necessary for their roles. * **Minimize the number of admins.** Only a handful of people should have admin-level access to the CRM to reduce the risk of unauthorized changes. * **Keep sensitive dashboards private.** If you have data that needs to be kept separate, ensure that the general user base cannot access it. * **Review how third-party integrated tools use your CRM's data.** Ensure that these tools are keeping your data secure and understand how they leverage your data. #### Conclusion There's no perfect CRM, and the ideal security posture will vary depending on your business needs. Balancing user experience, reportability, and security is crucial to meet your business requirements effectively. # Alignment Overview {% embed url="" %} ## Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams ### Introduction We will discuss the importance of aligning sales and marketing teams in order to achieve a unified goal. We will also provide tips on how to create a shared vision, establish common goals, and measure success. Additionally, we will explore the challenges of aligning sales and marketing teams when the sales cycle is long. ### Creating a Shared Vision The first step to aligning sales and marketing teams is to create a shared vision. This means that both teams must have a clear understanding of the company's goals and objectives. They must also be able to articulate how their individual roles contribute to the achievement of these goals. To create a shared vision, it is important to have regular communication between sales and marketing teams. This can be done through meetings, emails, or even informal conversations. It is also important to share information about the company's goals and objectives with both teams. ### Establishing Common Goals Once a shared vision has been created, it is important to establish common goals. These goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). They should also be aligned with the company's overall goals and objectives. To establish common goals, it is important to involve both sales and marketing teams in the process. This will ensure that both teams are invested in the goals and that they are committed to achieving them. ### Measuring Success In order to track progress towards achieving common goals, it is important to measure success. This can be done by using key performance indicators (KPIs). KPIs are specific metrics that measure the progress of a particular goal. Some common KPIs for sales and marketing teams include: * Revenue * Leads generated * Conversion rates * Customer satisfaction * Customer retention It is important to review KPIs regularly in order to track progress and make adjustments as needed. ### Challenges of Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams There are a number of challenges that can make it difficult to align sales and marketing teams. These challenges include: * **Different goals and objectives:** Sales and marketing teams often have different goals and objectives. Sales teams are focused on generating revenue, while marketing teams are focused on generating leads. This can lead to conflict and misalignment between the two teams. * **Different cultures:** Sales and marketing teams often have different cultures. Sales teams are typically more aggressive and results-oriented, while marketing teams are typically more creative and analytical. This can lead to misunderstandings and communication problems between the two teams. * **Lack of trust:** Sales and marketing teams often lack trust in each other. This can be due to a number of factors, such as past conflicts, negative stereotypes, or simply a lack of understanding of each other's roles. This lack of trust can make it difficult to build a collaborative relationship between the two teams. ### Tips for Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams Despite the challenges, there are a number of things that can be done to align sales and marketing teams. These tips include: * **Create a shared vision:** The first step to aligning sales and marketing teams is to create a shared vision. This means that both teams must have a clear understanding of the company's goals and objectives. They must also be able to articulate how their individual roles contribute to the achievement of these goals. * **Establish common goals:** Once a shared vision has been created, it is important to establish common goals. These goals should be specific, measurable, achievable, relevant, and time-bound (SMART). They should also be aligned with the company's overall goals and objectives. * **Measure success:** In order to track progress towards achieving common goals, it is important to measure success. This can be done by using key performance indicators (KPIs). KPIs are specific metrics that measure the progress of a particular goal. * **Build trust:** Trust is essential for a successful relationship between sales and marketing teams. There are a number of things that can be done to build trust, such as being honest and transparent, communicating regularly, and resolving conflicts constructively. * **Encourage collaboration:** Collaboration is essential for aligning sales and marketing teams. There are a number of ways to encourage collaboration, such as creating cross-functional teams, holding joint meetings, and sharing information. ### Conclusion Aligning sales and marketing teams is essential for achieving a unified goal. By creating a shared vision, establishing common goals, measuring success, and building trust, you can create a collaborative relationship between sales and marketing teams that will drive your business to success. # How to Align? {% embed url="" %} ### Step 1: Structure **1. Reporting Structure** * Ensure both sales and marketing leaders report to the same individual (not the CEO) such as a Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) or Chief Operating Officer (COO) responsible for all revenue. * This unifies decision-making and avoids feuds between department leaders seeking CEO approval. **2. Decision-Making Authority** * Determine who drives decision-making based on your business model: * Sales-led growth motion: Sales team leads decision-making, especially regarding go-to-market or revenue strategy. * Product-led or high-velocity sales environment: Marketing team may have more influence due to revenue driven by marketing efforts. **3. Operations Team Reporting** * Avoid misalignment by ensuring sales and marketing operations teams report to the same individual (CRO or CMO) to prevent conflicting systems and data reporting. ### Step 2: The Right People **1. Interviewing Sales/Marketing Leaders** * Gauge if candidates see themselves as part of a cohesive team by asking about the performance of the opposite department at their previous companies. * Look for a tone of respect and shared responsibility, rather than blame-shifting. ### Step 3: Clearly Defined Go-To-Market Processes **1. Data Definitions and Processes** * Misalignment often arises from differing data definitions and handoff processes. * Ensure both teams have a clear understanding of key terms like "sales qualified lead." * Define routing and handoff procedures for various lead sources. ### Step 4: Incentive Structure **1. Goal Alignment** * Incentives drive behavior, so align incentives with desired outcomes. * Common misalignment occurs when marketing's lead generation goal differs from sales' ideal customer profile. * Consider tying marketing compensation to closed deals or making pipeline generation part of sales goals. * Offer bonuses for driving testimonials or case studies valuable to marketing. ### Step 5: Tools and Technology **1. Transparent Goal Tracking** * Implement visible and transparent goal tracking, preferably within your CRM (e.g., Salesforce, HubSpot). * Consider more sophisticated BI or pipeline sales management solutions like Looker, Heap, or Funnel Source for complex needs. * A shared, accurate view of progress fosters collaboration and alignment. **2. Routing and Handoff Optimization** * Use tools like LeanData or Chili Piper to optimize routing and handoffs between sales and marketing, ensuring efficient processes. # What is an SQL? {% embed url="" %} ### Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) **Definition:** A Sales Qualified Lead (SQL) is a potential customer who has been deemed to be a good fit for a company's product or service and is ready to move forward in the sales process. **Sales Perspective:** From a sales perspective, an SQL is someone who has met with a sales representative and gone through the qualification process. This process typically involves determining if the potential customer has a need for the company's product or service, if they have the budget to purchase it, and if they are authorized to make a decision. **Marketing Perspective:** From a marketing perspective, an SQL is someone who has met with a sales representative and has been deemed to be a good fit for the company's product or service. This determination is typically made based on the potential customer's needs, budget, and decision-making authority. **Importance of Clear Rules of Engagement:** It is important to have clearly defined Rules of Engagement (ROEs) for SQLs so that everyone involved in the sales process is on the same page. These ROEs should include: * The criteria for what constitutes an SQL * The process for qualifying SQLs * The roles and responsibilities of sales and marketing in the SQL qualification process **Benefits of Clearly Defined ROEs:** Having clearly defined ROEs for SQLs can help to: * Improve communication and collaboration between sales and marketing * Streamline the sales process * Increase the number of SQLs * Close more deals **Conclusion:** SQLs are a critical part of the sales process. By having clearly defined ROEs for SQLs, companies can improve their chances of success. # Building Marketing Operations {% embed url="" %} ### Marketing Operations **Overview:** Marketing operations is a critical function for any business that wants to be successful in today's digital age. It's responsible for a wide range of tasks, from managing marketing campaigns to tracking results. **Key takeaways:** * Marketing operations is responsible for a wide range of tasks, from managing marketing campaigns to tracking results. * It's important to have a clear charter and be able to communicate the value of marketing operations to senior leadership. * You need to be able to prioritize strategic initiatives while keeping the lights on day-to-day. * When you're building a marketing operations team from scratch, it's important to bring on a person who has been there and done that. * You can partner with an agency to help you with the day-to-day execution and buildout. **Roles and Responsibilities:** The following are some of the roles and responsibilities of a marketing operations team: * Managing marketing campaigns * Tracking results * Reporting on marketing performance * Developing and implementing marketing strategies * Automating marketing tasks * Integrating marketing systems * Providing support to sales and marketing teams **Benefits of Marketing Operations:** There are many benefits to having a marketing operations team, including: * Increased efficiency * Improved accuracy * Reduced costs * Better decision-making * Increased agility **Challenges of Marketing Operations:** There are also some challenges associated with marketing operations, including: * The need for a clear charter and strong communication skills * The ability to prioritize strategic initiatives while keeping the lights on day-to-day * The need to find and retain qualified staff * The need to stay up-to-date on the latest marketing trends and technologies **Conclusion:** Marketing operations is a critical function for any business that wants to be successful in today's digital age. By understanding the roles and responsibilities of a marketing operations team, the benefits of marketing operations, and the challenges of marketing operations, you can make informed decisions about how to build a marketing operations team that meets the needs of your business. # Defining GTM Process {% embed url="" %} #### Market Processes: A Source of Conflict Market processes can be a significant source of conflict between sales and marketing teams. This is because these processes often involve the handoff of leads from marketing to sales, and there can be disagreement about the quality of the leads, the timing of the handoff, and the process for managing and tracking leads. #### Misalignment on Data Definitions and Processes Another common cause of misalignment between sales and marketing teams is a lack of agreement on data definitions and processes. This can lead to confusion and errors in the lead generation and qualification process. For example, if the sales team is using a different definition of a sales qualified lead (SQL) than the marketing team, then this can lead to the sales team rejecting leads that the marketing team has qualified as SQLs. #### Routing and Handoffs To ensure alignment between sales and marketing teams, it is important to have clearly defined routing and handoff processes. This means specifying what happens when a potential qualified lead (PQL) comes in, what happens when someone fills out a form on your website, and who is responsible for managing and handing off those leads. By having these processes in place, you can avoid confusion and ensure that leads are being properly followed up on. #### Aligning All Aspects of the Process In order to achieve true alignment between sales and marketing teams, it is necessary to align all aspects of the process. This includes having a shared understanding of the goals, objectives, metrics, data definitions, processes, and routing and handoffs. By taking the time to align these aspects, you can create a more efficient and effective lead generation and qualification process. # Interviewing GTM Leaders {% embed url="" %} ### Leanscale RevOps Interviewing Guide **Introduction** This document provides a guide to interviewing sales or marketing leaders to gauge their ability to work as part of a team and see themselves on the same team as the opposite end of the go-to-market structure. **Interview Questions** **Sales Leader Interview Question** * How did the marketing team perform at your previous companies? **Marketing Leader Interview Question** * How did the sales team perform at your previous companies? **Evaluating Responses** The key factor to consider when evaluating responses to these questions is the candidate's tone. Specifically, you should be looking for the following: * **Do they have a tone of respect and reverence for the other department that they were not a part of?** * **Do they take any responsibility or discuss it as if they were on the same team together?** * **Do they make it seem like it's a completely different team that they were not responsible for?** **Red Flag** A red flag in the interview process is if the candidate goes straight to throwing the other team under the bus. This indicates that they may not be able to work effectively as part of a team. **Conclusion** By using these interview questions and evaluating responses carefully, you can identify candidates who are likely to be team players and see themselves on the same team as the opposite end of the go-to-market structure. # Finding The Right Talent {% embed url="" %} **Getting the Right People** Hiring the right people is crucial for successful team alignment. Look for individuals with the skills, experience, and attitude that fit your company's culture and goals. Consider the following factors when evaluating candidates: 1. **Technical Skills:** Assess their proficiency in the tools and technologies used by your sales and marketing teams. 2. **Communication Skills:** Effective communication is vital for team collaboration. Look for candidates who can clearly articulate their ideas and collaborate with others. 3. **Problem-Solving Skills:** Sales and marketing teams often face challenges that require creative solutions. Evaluate candidates' ability to analyze problems and develop innovative solutions. 4. **Adaptability:** The business landscape is constantly changing, so it's essential to hire individuals who can adapt to new strategies and technologies. 5. **Teamwork:** Sales and marketing teams work closely together, so it's important to hire people who can collaborate effectively and contribute to a positive team dynamic. By carefully selecting the right people, you can create a strong foundation for team alignment and success. # Data Enrichment Data Enrichment is a key part of setting the right foundation for your entire Go-to-Market. It's imperative to do this step well, otherwise every other part of your process will be affected. We will continue to demo and explore solutions that are leading the way in innovation.
ClayAI-first enrichment/pages/hvnKHnzaMNIvdEXETOX7
TractionCompleteEnd-to-End quality control/pages/7Lp1HLrkxy6lHzUdNhgf
# Clay {% embed url="" %} ### Using Clay for Data Enrichment Clay is a data enrichment tool that helps businesses improve their sales and marketing efforts. It does this by providing users with access to a wide range of data sources, including contact information, company data, and intent signals. Clay also offers a variety of features that make it easy to clean and enrich data, such as duplicate detection, data validation, and data merging. #### Benefits of Using Clay Clay is a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes. It can help businesses improve their sales and marketing efforts by providing them with access to accurate and up-to-date data. Clay can also help businesses save time and money by automating the data enrichment process. Some of the benefits of using Clay include: * Access to a wide range of data sources * Easy-to-use data enrichment features * Time and cost savings * Improved sales and marketing results #### How to Use Clay Clay is a simple and easy-to-use tool. Here are the steps on how to use Clay: 1. Create an account. 2. Connect your data sources. 3. Enrich your data. 4. Export your data. #### Clay Features Clay offers a variety of features that make it a powerful tool for data enrichment. Some of the features of Clay include: * **Duplicate detection:** Clay can help you identify and remove duplicate records from your data. * **Data validation:** Clay can help you validate your data for accuracy and completeness. * **Data merging:** Clay can help you merge data from different sources into a single, unified view. * **Custom data enrichment:** Clay allows you to customize the data enrichment process to meet your specific needs. #### Clay Pricing Clay offers a variety of pricing plans to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. The pricing plans are based on the number of records that you need to enrich. #### Clay Support Clay offers a variety of support options to help you get the most out of the tool. The support options include: * Email support * Phone support * Live chat support * Documentation #### Conclusion Clay is a valuable tool for businesses of all sizes. It can help businesses improve their sales and marketing efforts by providing them with access to accurate and up-to-date data. Clay can also help businesses save time and money by automating the data enrichment process. # Traction Complete {% embed url="" %} ## Data Management for RevOps ### Introduction Data management is a critical aspect of revenue operations (RevOps). When done correctly, data management can help businesses improve data quality, reduce process complexity, and ultimately drive growth. ### Data Quality Data quality is the foundation of effective RevOps. Poor-quality data can lead to a number of problems, including: * Duplicate data * Account conflicts * Missed opportunities To improve data quality, businesses should use a data cleansing tool to identify and remove duplicate data, as well as normalize data values. ### Data Connectivity Data connectivity is another important aspect of data management. By connecting data from different sources, businesses can create a 360-degree view of their customers. This can help them to better understand their customers' needs and develop targeted marketing and sales campaigns. ### Process Orchestration Process orchestration is the process of automating tasks and workflows to ensure that data is handled efficiently and effectively. This can help businesses to save time and improve efficiency. ### Traction Complete Traction Complete is a data management platform that helps businesses clean, connect, and orchestrate their data. The platform can help businesses improve their data quality, reduce process complexity, and ultimately drive growth. ### Traction Complete Benefits Traction Complete offers a number of benefits, including: * Improved data quality * Reduced duplicate data * Automated data processes * Increased efficiency * Reduced costs * Improved decision-making ### Conclusion Data management is a critical aspect of RevOps. By following the tips in this article, businesses can improve their data quality, reduce process complexity, and ultimately drive growth. # Pipeline Generation # RB2B {% file src="/files/Apa4UuIprFO6yozUWLok" %} # Writer {% file src="/files/ggMQq8qxhHUfWfrqjA3L" %} # Conversational Intelligence Conversational Intelligence tools are a big part of learning what customers are thinking during and after the sales process. We'll explore some of our favorite solutions, and include demos for review.
GongExtract everything out of customer communications
UnthreadLeverage Slack/Teams for customer communications
# Gong {% embed url="" %} #### Overview Gong is a revenue intelligence platform that helps sales teams improve their productivity, drive revenue, and uplevel the team. It does this by capturing all of the communications interactions between reps and customers, and then using AI to analyze that data and provide insights. #### Key Features * **Improved productivity:** Gong can help reps stay on top of their deals by surfacing key information and providing recommendations on next steps. It can also help managers track their team's progress and identify areas where they need coaching. * **Driving revenue:** Gong can help reps close more deals by providing them with insights into their customers' needs and objections. It can also help them identify opportunities to upsell or cross-sell. * **Upleveling the team:** Gong can help managers identify the best practices that are being used by their top performers. It can also help them identify areas where their team needs coaching. #### AI-Powered Insights Gong's AI analyzes over 300 different signals in a deal to provide a likelihood score. This score helps teams predict deals with precision and identify warning signs. Gong's AI also allows users to ask anything about a deal or account. This feature helps teams prioritize, take action, and surface warning signs across deals. Gong's AI also provides customizable reports that help track and understand how a pipeline is building and changing over time. These reports include classics like funnel reports and pipeline changes week over week. #### Sales Engagement Platform Gong is a sales engagement platform that helps sales teams improve their performance. It provides a variety of features, including: * A sales playbook that helps sales reps follow a consistent process * A sales engagement platform that helps sales reps track their activities and manage their pipeline * A sales intelligence platform that provides insights into customer behavior Gong's AI-powered platform can help sales teams improve their performance by: * Identifying the most effective sales activities * Personalizing outreach to customers * Automating tasks * Providing insights into customer behavior #### Conclusion Gong is a valuable tool for sales teams of all sizes. It can help sales reps improve their performance and close more deals. # Unthread {% embed url="" %} #### Overview Unthread is a powerful platform that helps businesses manage their customer support and internal request management through Slack. It offers a variety of features to help businesses track and manage conversations, assign tickets to agents, set up automated responses, and track their performance. ### Key Features **Automatic Conversation Organization** Unthread uses AI to automatically organize conversations into tickets. This makes it easier for agents to track and manage customer requests. **Automated Responses** Unthread allows businesses to set up automated responses to common questions or provide customers with information about their account. Automated responses can also be used to escalate tickets to the appropriate agent. **Reporting and Analytics** Unthread provides reporting and analytics to help businesses track their performance. This can help businesses identify areas for improvement, such as response time, resolution time, and customer satisfaction. ### How to Use Unthread To use Unthread, businesses simply need to create an account and connect their Slack workspace. Once connected, Unthread will automatically start organizing conversations into tickets. Businesses can then assign tickets to agents, set up automated responses, and track their performance. ### Benefits of Using Unthread Unthread offers a number of benefits for businesses, including: * Improved customer support: Unthread helps businesses to provide better customer support by organizing conversations into tickets, assigning tickets to agents, and setting up automated responses. * Increased efficiency: Unthread can help businesses to improve their efficiency by automating customer support tasks, such as organizing conversations and sending automated responses. * Better tracking and reporting: Unthread provides reporting and analytics to help businesses track their performance and identify areas for improvement. #### Conclusion Unthread is a powerful platform that can help businesses improve their customer support and internal request management. It is easy to use and provides a variety of features to help businesses track and manage their conversations. # CPQ Configure, Price, Quote (CPQ) is one of the most complex and important part of the Sales Operations function. It is a common place for the Go-to-Market team to interact with finance. We explore some of our favorite tools that make this process easy.
DealhubCPQ suite for sales teams/pages/oaYZk8nCHXfRuJLx6OjS
SalesbricksCPQ built like Shopify/pages/ZDGn0Ehc7GYIauSEUkct
# Dealhub {% embed url="" %} ### Overview DealHub is a cloud-based sales quoting and proposal software that helps businesses streamline their sales process. It offers a variety of features, including: * CPQ (Configure, Price, Quote): DealHub's CPQ capabilities allow businesses to quickly and easily create quotes, proposals, and orders. * Contract management: DealHub's contract management features help businesses track and manage their contracts. * Billing: DealHub's billing features help businesses manage their billing and invoicing processes. * Digital deal: DealHub's digital deal feature allows businesses to share content with their customers in a more engaging way. DealHub is designed to be flexible and configurable, so businesses can adapt it to their specific needs. It is also easy to use, so salespeople can quickly and easily create quotes and proposals. ### Features **CPQ** DealHub's CPQ capabilities allow businesses to quickly and easily create quotes, proposals, and orders. The CPQ engine uses a guided selling process to help salespeople identify the right products and services for their customers. It also allows salespeople to create custom quotes and proposals that are tailored to the customer's needs. **Contract management** DealHub's contract management features help businesses track and manage their contracts. The contract management system allows businesses to store contracts in a central location, track the status of contracts, and set up reminders for important dates. **Billing** DealHub's billing features help businesses manage their billing and invoicing processes. The billing system allows businesses to create invoices, track payments, and manage credit card processing. **Digital deal** DealHub's digital deal feature allows businesses to share content with their customers in a more engaging way. The digital deal feature allows businesses to create interactive presentations that include videos, images, and documents. ### Benefits DealHub offers a number of benefits for businesses, including: * Increased sales: DealHub can help businesses increase sales by providing them with the tools they need to create accurate and professional quotes and proposals. * Improved efficiency: DealHub can help businesses improve efficiency by automating the sales process. * Reduced costs: DealHub can help businesses reduce costs by eliminating the need for paper-based contracts and invoices. * Improved customer satisfaction: DealHub can help businesses improve customer satisfaction by providing them with a more engaging way to view and sign contracts. ### Pricing DealHub offers a variety of pricing plans to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. The pricing plans are based on the number of users and the features that are included. ### Getting started To get started with DealHub, you can sign up for a free trial. Once you have signed up for a free trial, you can access the DealHub platform and start creating quotes, proposals, and contracts. ### API DealHub offers a RESTful API that allows businesses to integrate DealHub with their other business systems. The API can be used to create quotes, proposals, contracts, and other DealHub objects. The API can also be used to retrieve data from DealHub, such as customer data, product data, and order data. For more information on the DealHub API, please refer to the [DealHub API documentation](https://dealhub.io/integration-center/). # Salesbricks {% embed url="" %} ### Introduction Sales Bricks is a comprehensive CPQ software that offers a user-friendly interface and automates back-office tasks, streamlining the quoting and closing process for B2B sales teams. ### Key Features * **Seamless Configuration:** Sales Bricks empowers sellers to effortlessly configure proposals or quotes with a Shopify-like interface. * **Back-Office Automation:** The platform seamlessly automates revenue recognition, billing, and reporting tasks, freeing up sales teams to focus on strategic activities. * **Enhanced Collaboration:** Sales Bricks facilitates seamless back-and-forth communication with customers, enabling efficient revisions and edits to agreements. * **Real-Time Tracking:** Sellers can monitor their progress and track crucial deal-related metrics in real-time, ensuring efficient deal management. * **Diverse Product Support:** Sales Bricks supports the sale of various products, including usage-based products, user licenses, and platform access. * **Time-Saving Efficiency:** The platform significantly reduces the time required to create and send proposals, contracts, and invoices. * **Comprehensive Pipeline Visibility:** Sales teams gain clear insights into their sales pipeline, enabling effective planning and forecasting. * **Seamless Customer Relationship Management:** Sales Bricks assists in managing customer relationships by centralizing contact information, purchase history, and support tickets. ### Benefits * **Accelerated Deal Closure:** Sales Bricks enables businesses to close deals swiftly by streamlining the proposal, contract, and invoice generation process. * **Enhanced Pipeline Management:** The platform provides real-time visibility into the sales pipeline, allowing sales teams to optimize their strategies and identify areas for improvement. * **Streamlined Customer Relationship Management:** Sales Bricks seamlessly manages customer relationships, enhancing customer service and fostering long-term business growth. * **Robust Customization:** Businesses can effortlessly customize Sales Bricks to align with their unique needs and processes. * **User-Friendly Interface:** Designed with simplicity in mind, Sales Bricks offers an intuitive user interface, ensuring a smooth learning curve for sales teams.use the style of API docs similar to Stripe # Data Analytics Get the most out of your data to drive decisions. We will dig into the best solutions to work with your data.
RevVueTrack and Manage your revenue/pages/iWsyFJNxtDIZFgfL6yJx
QFlowRevenue planning and analysis/pages/4YDAYabyC4EwdwQNnxCO
# RevVue {% embed url="" %} ### Introduction The Revenue Recognition app is a powerful tool that can help businesses of all sizes track and manage their revenue. The app is easy to use and can be customized to meet the specific needs of each business. ### Features The Revenue Recognition app offers a variety of features that make it a valuable tool for businesses, including: * **Real-time revenue tracking:** The app allows businesses to track their revenue in real time, so they can make informed decisions about their finances and identify any potential problems early on. * **Reporting:** The app provides a variety of reports that can be used to track revenue trends and to identify areas where improvements can be made. * **Integration with other business systems:** The app can be integrated with other business systems, such as accounting software and CRM systems, to automate the revenue recognition process and reduce the amount of time that businesses spend on manual data entry. ### Benefits The Revenue Recognition app offers a number of benefits for businesses, including: * **Improved financial performance:** The app can help businesses improve their financial performance by providing them with the tools they need to track and manage their revenue effectively. * **Reduced costs:** The app can help businesses reduce costs by automating the revenue recognition process and reducing the amount of time that they spend on manual data entry. * **Increased efficiency:** The app can help businesses increase their efficiency by providing them with a centralized location to track and manage their revenue. * **Improved decision-making:** The app can help businesses make better decisions by providing them with the information they need to make informed financial decisions. ### Conclusion The Revenue Recognition app is a valuable tool that can help businesses of all sizes improve their financial performance. The app is easy to use, customizable, and can be integrated with other business systems.use the style of API docs similar to Stripe # QFlow {% embed url="" %} ### Qflow AI **Overview** Qflow AI is a comprehensive go-to-market finance platform that leverages AI to power revenue planning and analysis. It helps companies improve alignment between their go-to-market and finance teams, increase forecast accuracy, and optimize go-to-market efficiency. **Features** * **Data dictionary:** Provides a common language for go-to-market and finance teams. * **Revenue waterfall:** Tracks the progress of deals through the sales pipeline. * **Rolling forecast:** Allows companies to plan for the future. * **Scenario planner:** Allows companies to test different scenarios and see their impact on revenue. * **Generative AI assistant:** Provides insights and recommendations. **Benefits** * Improved alignment between go-to-market and finance teams * Increased forecast accuracy * Optimized go-to-market efficiency * Saved time * Improved decision-making * Addressed potential problems before they become major issues **Pricing** Qflow AI offers a variety of pricing plans to meet the needs of businesses of all sizes. # Salesforce # Create Opp from Contact {% embed url="" %} ## Opportunity Creation Directly from Contact Record ### Overview This document outlines a method for creating opportunities directly from the contact record in Salesforce, streamlining the opportunity creation process, and ensuring accurate attribution data. ### Benefits There are several benefits to creating opportunities directly from the contact record: * **Streamlined process:** All users will follow the same process for opportunity creation, ensuring consistency and reducing errors. * **Accurate attribution:** By tying the account record, opportunity record, and primary contact to the opportunity, attribution fields in Salesforce are accurately populated, providing valuable insights into lead sources and campaign performance. * **Customization:** Additional fields can be prepopulated based on the contact record, ensuring that opportunities are created with the necessary information. ### Prerequisites * Salesforce Administrator permissions * Familiarity with JavaScript ### Instructions #### 1. Create a Custom Button on the Contact Object 1. Go to the **Contact** object manager. 2. Click the **Buttons, Links, and Actions** button. 3. Click the **New Button** button. 4. Enter the following information: * **Label:** New Opportunity * **Name:** New\_Opportunity * **Display Type:** Detail Page Button * **Behavior:** Display in existing window with sidebar * **Content Source:** URL * **URL:** `/lightning/o/Opportunity/new?account={!Account.Id}&primary_contact_id={!Contact.Id}&stage_name={!Stage_Name}&probability={!Probability}&forecast_category={!Forecast_Category}&Name={!Name}&CloseDate={!CloseDate}` 5. Click the **Save** button. #### 2. Add the Custom Button to the Contact Page Layout 1. Go to the **Contact** object manager. 2. Click the **Page Layouts** button. 3. Click the **Edit** button next to the desired page layout. 4. Drag the **New Opportunity** button to the desired location on the page layout. 5. Click the **Save** button. #### 3. Customize the Opportunity Creation Form (Optional) The URL in the custom button can be customized to prepopulate additional fields on the opportunity creation form. To do this, add the desired field names, API names, and values to the URL, separated by commas. For example: {% code overflow="wrap" %} ``` /lightning/o/Opportunity/new?account={!Account.Id}&primary_contact_id={!Contact.Id}&stage_name={!Stage_Name}&probability={!Probability}&forecast_category={!Forecast_Category}&Name={!Name}&CloseDate={!CloseDate}&amount={!Amount}&type={!Type} ``` {% endcode %} ### Usage Once the custom button has been created and added to the contact page layout, users can create opportunities directly from the contact record by clicking the **New Opportunity** button. The opportunity will be created with the specified account, primary contact, stage name, probability, forecast category, name, and close date. Additional fields can be prepopulated by customizing the URL in the custom button. # Validation Rules in Flow {% embed url="" %} ### How to Create Validation Rules in Salesforce Using Flows #### Introduction Salesforce introduced a new way of creating validation rules using flows a few months ago. This blog post will show you how to create a validation rule flow to prevent users from moving an opportunity to the "Use Case Defined" stage without completing the "Terms in Months" field. #### Prerequisites * Salesforce org with the "Flow Builder" permission * Opportunity object with a "Terms in Months" field and a "Stage Name" field #### Step-by-Step Guide 1. Create a new flow from the Flow Builder. 2. Select the "Record-Triggered Flow" template. 3. Set the following flow properties: * Flow Name: Validation Rule Test * API Name: Validation\_Rule\_Test * Trigger: Record is updated or created * Object: Opportunity 4. Keep the entry conditions wide for simplicity. 5. Rename the flow to "Validation Rule Test". 6. Decide if you want one validation per flow record or if you want to use one flow that combines all the validation rules. 7. Create a validation rule for the specific scenario: * Criteria: Stage Name is changed * Condition: Terms in Months is null * Stage Name is equal to "Use Case Defined" 8. Save the validation rule. 9. When the conditions are met, include a "Custom Error" element in the flow. 10. Configure the custom error message: * Label: Custom Error Message * Display Type: In a window * Message: Please add Terms in Months to move into the Use Case Defined stage. 11. Activate the flow. #### Benefits of Validation Rule Flows There are two clear benefits of having validation rules as flows: 1. Validation rules in a flow can be executed first before every other flow, which prevents users from seeing confusing error messages. 2. You can have one flow that aggregates all the other validation rules on an object, making it easier to manage and maintain validation rules. #### Conclusion Validation rule flows are a powerful tool that can be used to improve the user experience and enforce data integrity in Salesforce. By following the steps in this blog post, you can easily create validation rule flows to meet your specific business needs. # Roll Up Summary Field {% embed url="" %} ## Declarative Lookup Rollup Summaries (DLRS) ### Overview DLRS is a tool that helps you overcome the limitations of Salesforce's out-of-the-box rollup summary fields. With DLRS, you can: * Roll up child objects into parent objects * Use filters to specify which child records to include in the rollup * Aggregate data from multiple fields into a single rollup field ### Installation To install DLRS, follow these steps: 1. Go to the Salesforce AppExchange and search for "Declarative Lookup Rollup Summaries". 2. Click on the "Install" button. 3. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. ### Configuration Once DLRS is installed, you can configure it to roll up data from your child objects. To do this, follow these steps: 1. Go to the Salesforce Setup menu and select "Objects and Fields". 2. Find the child object that you want to roll up data from and click on the "Rollup Summaries" tab. 3. Click on the "New" button. 4. In the "Name" field, enter a name for the rollup summary. 5. In the "API Name" field, enter an API name for the rollup summary. 6. In the "Lookup Relationship" field, select the parent object that you want to roll up data to. 7. In the "Relationship Field" field, select the field on the child object that links it to the parent object. 8. In the "Relationship Criteria" field, enter any criteria that you want to use to filter the child records that are included in the rollup. 9. In the "Rollup Details" section, select the field that you want to roll up data from. 10. Select the aggregation function that you want to use to aggregate the data. 11. In the "Number of Contract Records" field, enter the API name of the field that you want to store the rollup data in. 12. Leave the other fields in the "Rollup Details" section blank. 13. In the "Calculation Mode" section, select "Scheduled". 14. In the "Sharing Mode" section, select "System". 15. Click on the "Save" button. ### Usage Once you have configured DLRS, you can use it to roll up data from your child objects. To do this, follow these steps: 1. Go to the parent object that you want to roll up data to. 2. Click on the "Rollup Summaries" tab. 3. Click on the "Run Calculation" button. 4. Select the rollup summary that you want to run. 5. Click on the "Run" button. DLRS will then roll up the data from the child objects into the parent object. You can view the rollup data in the "Number of Contract Records" field on the parent object. ### Scheduling You can schedule DLRS to run automatically on a regular basis. To do this, follow these steps: 1. Go to the Salesforce Setup menu and select "Objects and Fields". 2. Find the child object that you want to roll up data from and click on the "Rollup Summaries" tab. 3. Click on the "Manage Child Trigger" button. 4. Click on the "Install" button. 5. Once the Apex triggers have been installed, click on the "Schedule" button. 6. Select the rollup summary that you want to schedule. 7. Select the schedule that you want to use. 8. Click on the "Save" button. DLRS will then run automatically on the schedule that you specified. ### Troubleshooting If you are having problems with DLRS, here are some things that you can check: * Make sure that the Apex triggers have been installed. * Make sure that the rollup summary is configured correctly. * Make sure that the child records that you want to roll up data from are included in the relationship criteria. * Make sure that the field that you want to roll up data from is selected in the "Rollup Details" section. * Make sure that the aggregation function that you want to use is selected in the "Rollup Details" section. * Make sure that the "Number of Contract Records" field is entered correctly in the "Rollup Details" section. If you are still having problems, please contact Salesforce support. # Close Date Change Counter {% embed url="" %} ### Create a Counter for Closed Date Changes This document describes the steps required to create a custom field in Salesforce to track the number of times the closed date of an opportunity has been changed. Additionally, it outlines the creation of a record-triggered flow to automatically update the custom field when the closed date is modified. #### Prerequisites * Salesforce Administrator permissions * Access to the Opportunity object #### Creating the Custom Field 1. Navigate to the **Setup** menu and select **Objects** > **Opportunity**. 2. Click the **Fields & Relationships** tab. 3. Click the **New** button. 4. Select the **Number** data type. 5. Enter the following field details: * **Field Label**: Number of Closed Date Changes * **API Name**: Number\_of\_Closed\_Date\_Changes * **Decimal Places**: 0 * **Default Value**: 0 6. Click **Save**. #### Creating the Record-Triggered Flow 1. Navigate to the **Setup** menu and select **Process Automation** > **Flows**. 2. Click the **New Flow** button. 3. Select the **Record-Triggered Flow** template. 4. Enter the following flow details: * **Flow Name**: Update Number of Closed Date Changes * **API Name**: Update\_Number\_of\_Closed\_Date\_Changes * **Object**: Opportunity * **Trigger**: Record is updated 5. Click **Create**. 6. Drag the **Formula** element onto the canvas. 7. Configure the formula as follows: * **Formula Name**: Closed Date Changed * **Formula Type**: Boolean * **Formula Expression**: {!Opportunity.CloseDate} != {!Opportunity.PriorCloseDate} 8. Drag the **Assignment** element onto the canvas. 9. Configure the assignment as follows: * **Variable Name**: Number of Closed Date Changes * **Value**: {!IF(ISBLANK(Opportunity.Number\_of\_Closed\_Date\_Changes), 0, Opportunity.Number\_of\_Closed\_Date\_Changes) + 1} 10. Click **Save**. 11. Click **Activate**. #### Adding the Custom Field to the Page Layout 1. Navigate to the **Setup** menu and select **Objects** > **Opportunity**. 2. Click the **Page Layouts** tab. 3. Select the page layout that you want to add the custom field to. 4. Drag the **Number of Closed Date Changes** field onto the page layout. 5. Click **Save**. #### Testing the Flow 1. Create a new opportunity or edit an existing opportunity. 2. Change the closed date of the opportunity. 3. Verify that the Number of Closed Date Changes field is incremented. #### Conclusion By following these steps, you can easily create a custom field to track the number of times the closed date of an opportunity has been changed. This information can be useful for reporting and analysis purposes. # Lead Stages {% embed url="" %} ## Lead Lifecycle Automation with Salesforce ### Overview This document provides technical details on how to set up lead lifecycle automation in Salesforce using custom fields and automation flows. This automation ensures that data is accurate, reportable, and that systems function smoothly and efficiently. ### Prerequisites Before proceeding with the automation setup, ensure that you have the following in place: * A Salesforce organization with the necessary user permissions and licenses. * A clear understanding of your lead lifecycle stages and scoring criteria. * A marketing automation tool (e.g., HubSpot) integrated with Salesforce. ### Custom Fields The following custom fields are recommended for effective lead lifecycle automation: * **Lead Lifecycle Stage:** A picklist field to track the current stage of the lead in the lifecycle (e.g., ML, ME, MQL, S, SQL). * **Primary Contact:** A lookup field to identify the primary contact associated with the lead. This field is optional but highly recommended for ease of reference and reporting. ### Automation Flows #### Lead Lifecycle Automation Flow This flow is triggered whenever a lead record is created, updated, or converted. It updates the lead lifecycle stage and timestamps based on the following conditions: * **ML:** If the status is changed to "Meeting Scheduled" or the HubSpot score is 20 or above, the "ML Date/Time" field is updated with the current timestamp. * **ME:** If the HubSpot score is between 20 and 50, or if the lead record is new or converted, the "ME Date/Time" field is updated with the current timestamp. * **MQL:** If the HubSpot score is above 50, a meeting is scheduled, or the lead is converted, the "MQL Date/Time" field is updated with the current timestamp. * **S:** If the status is changed to "Meeting Scheduled" or the lead is converted, the "S Date/Time" field is updated with the current timestamp. * **SQL:** If the lead record is converted and the "SQL Date/Time" field is empty, it is updated with the current timestamp. #### Opportunity Update Automation Flow This flow is triggered when a lead is converted into an opportunity. It populates the opportunity with the following information from the converted lead record: * **ML Date/Time** * **ME Date/Time** * **MQL Date/Time** * **S Date/Time** * **Primary Contact** (if not already set in the opportunity) ### Reporting A marketing executive dashboard can be created in Salesforce to provide insights into conversion rates, SQLs, S's, MQLs, and other relevant metrics. This dashboard helps marketing, sales, and other teams stay informed about the performance of lead generation and conversion efforts. ### Conclusion By implementing these custom fields and automation flows, you can ensure that your Salesforce system provides accurate and reportable data, enabling optimized decision-making and improved sales performance. # Sales Stages {% embed url="" %} ### Sales Stages Sales stages are defined actions that have been completed rather than showing something that has taken place. This provides a clear understanding of where everything is in the sales process and a better understanding of what's been completed. #### Sales Qualified Lead The first stage in the sales process is the Sales Qualified Lead stage. This means that the lead has been brought into the sales process. #### Demo Completed The next stage is the Demo Completed stage. This means that a demo has been completed. #### Use Case Defined The third stage is the Use Case Defined stage. This means that the use case for the potential customer has been clearly defined, documented, and shared with the customer. #### Proposal Sent The fourth stage is the Proposal Sent stage. This means that a formal proposal has been sent to the customer. #### Negotiations Completed The fifth stage is the Negotiations Completed stage. This means that the customer and the salesperson have verbally agreed upon the terms and conditions of the agreement and locked in the pricing of the product or service. #### Closed Won The sixth and final stage is the Closed Won stage. This means that a mutually executed contract has been signed. ### Entry Criteria for Each Stage The entry criteria for each stage can vary depending on the business. However, some common entry criteria include: * **Sales Qualified Lead:** The lead has been qualified as a potential customer and has a need for the product or service. * **Demo Completed:** A demo of the product or service has been completed. * **Use Case Defined:** The use case for the potential customer has been clearly defined, documented, and shared with the customer. * **Proposal Sent:** A formal proposal has been sent to the customer. * **Negotiations Completed:** The customer and the salesperson have verbally agreed upon the terms and conditions of the agreement and locked in the pricing of the product or service. * **Closed Won:** A mutually executed contract has been signed. ### Methodologies for Moving from One Stage to the Next There are two main methodologies for moving from one stage to the next: * **Action-based criteria:** If one action is completed, then the lead is moved to the next stage. * **Qualification methodology:** A qualification methodology is used to assess whether the lead is ready to move to the next stage. The best methodology for moving from one stage to the next will vary depending on the business. # Customer Stages {% embed url="" %} ### Customer Fields The following custom fields are used in the customer lifecycle management process: * **Customer Lifecycle Stage**: A picklist field that includes the following values: * Pre-Onboarding * Onboarding * Implementation * Early Adoption * Mature Adoption * **Customer Lifecycle Stage Timestamps**: A set of five date/time fields, one for each stage of the customer lifecycle. These fields are automatically updated when the customer lifecycle stage changes. #### Automations The following automations are used to manage the customer lifecycle: * **Pre-Onboarding Notification**: This automation triggers when an opportunity moves to the "Negotiations Completed" stage. It creates an account record, sets the customer lifecycle stage to "Pre-Onboarding", and sends an email alert to the customer success team. * **Onboarding Updates**: This automation triggers when an opportunity closes. It updates the account record with the following information: * Customer Lifecycle Stage: "Onboarding" * Customer Lifecycle Stage Timestamp: Current date/time * Account Type: "Customer" * CSM Name: The name of the CSM assigned to the account * Account Owner: The name of the account owner * **Customer Lifecycle Stage Timestamp Updates**: This automation triggers when the customer lifecycle stage changes. It updates the corresponding customer lifecycle stage timestamp field with the current date/time. #### Account Page Configuration The account page is configured to display the following sections based on the customer lifecycle stage and account type: * **Customer Success**: This section includes information that is relevant to the customer success team, such as the customer lifecycle stage, customer health, and renewal date. It is only visible when the customer lifecycle stage is populated and the account type is "Customer" or "Churn". * **Customer Lifecycle Stage Timestamps**: This section displays the timestamps for each stage of the customer lifecycle. It is only visible when the customer lifecycle stage is populated and the account type is "Customer" or "Churn". # Next Step Fields {% embed url="" %} ### Next Steps Historical Field This section will cover how to create and use custom fields and labels to track historical changes to the Next Steps field on opportunities in Salesforce. **Custom Fields** 1. **Next Steps Historical**: Long text area field with a maximum length of 131,072 characters. Stores historical comments added to the Next Steps field. 2. **Next Steps Last Updated**: Datetime field that stores the date and time when the Next Steps field was last updated. **Custom Labels** 1. **Line Break**: Custom label with a value of two dashes separated by a return. Used to create line breaks in formulas. **Flow** 1. **Record Triggered Flow**: Triggered when an opportunity is created or updated. 2. **Entry Condition**: Triggers when the Next Steps field is changed. 3. **Assignment Elements**: * **Next Steps Historical**: Updates the Next Steps Historical field with a formula that includes the date, user who made the change, stage of the opportunity, and the text added to the Next Steps field. * **Next Steps Last Updated**: Updates the Next Steps Last Updated field with the current date and time. **Formula for Next Steps Historical Field** The formula for the Next Steps Historical field is as follows: ``` TEXT(TODAY()) & '-' & USERFIRSTNAME() & ' ' & USERLASTNAME() & '-' & TEXT(Record.StageName) & '-' & Next_Step__c & SUBSTITUTE(Line_Break_Short__c, '--', '') & Next_Steps_Historical__c ``` This formula includes the following elements: * Today's date in text format * First name of the user who made the change * Last name of the user who made the change * Stage name of the opportunity * Text added to the Next Steps field * Line Break custom label to create line breaks * Next Steps Historical field value The formula uses the SUBSTITUTE function to replace the two dashes in the Line Break custom label with an empty value, which creates a line break in the formula. #### Usage To use the Next Steps Historical field, simply add comments to the Next Steps field on an opportunity. The comments will be automatically added to the Next Steps Historical field, along with the date, user who made the change, and stage of the opportunity. You can also use the Next Steps Historical field to create reports and dashboards to track historical changes to the Next Steps field. # Lead Source Taxonomy {% embed url="" %} ### Lead Taxonomy in Salesforce #### Introduction Lead sources are a critical component of Salesforce, as they allow organizations to track the origin of their leads and measure the effectiveness of their marketing campaigns. In this document, we will explore the technical aspects of configuring lead sources in Salesforce, including the objects and fields involved, field dependencies, and validation rules. #### Objects and Fields The following objects are related to lead sources in Salesforce: * Leads * Accounts * Contacts * Opportunities * Campaigns Each of these objects has a "Lead Source" field, which stores the source of the lead. Additionally, each object has a "Lead Source Detail" field, which provides more information about the lead source. #### Field Dependencies Field dependencies are used to control the values that can be selected in a picklist field based on the value of another picklist field. For example, if the "Lead Source" field is set to "Demand", the "Lead Source Detail" field can only be set to certain values, such as "Email Marketing", "Blog Gated Content", "Podcast", or "Webinar". To create a field dependency, navigate to the object that you want to add the dependency to and click on the "Fields" tab. Then, click on the "New" button and select "Field Dependency". In the "Field Dependency" dialog box, select the "Lead Source" field as the controlling field and the "Lead Source Detail" field as the dependent field. #### Validation Rules Validation rules are used to enforce data quality and integrity in Salesforce. For example, you can create a validation rule that requires the "Lead Source" field to be populated before an opportunity can be closed. To create a validation rule, navigate to the object that you want to add the validation rule to and click on the "Validation Rules" tab. Then, click on the "New" button and enter a name and description for the validation rule. In the "Formula" field, enter the formula that you want to use to validate the data. For example, the following formula would require the "Lead Source" field to be populated before an opportunity can be closed: ``` AND( ISBLANK(LeadSource), ISPICKVAL(StageName, "Closed Won") ) ``` #### Conclusion By following the steps outlined in this document, you can ensure that your lead sources are configured correctly in Salesforce and that your data is accurate and complete. # Proof of Concept Stages {% embed url="" %} ### POC Object The POC (Proof of Concept) object in Salesforce contains several custom fields that are used to track the progress of a product-led capability through various stages. These fields include: * POC **with Account Record:** This field links the POC to an account record. * **Opportunity Record:** This field links the POC to an opportunity record. * **POC Name:** This field specifies the name of the POC. * **POC Stage:** This field indicates the current stage of the POC. * **POC Comments:** This field allows users to add comments or notes about the POC. * **POC Start Date:** This field specifies the start date of the POC. * **POC End Date:** This field specifies the end date of the POC. * **POC Result:** This field indicates the outcome of the POC (e.g., "success" or "failure"). * **POC Stage Timestamps:** These fields capture the timestamps for each stage of the POC. ### Automation To ensure that all the POC stage timestamps are recorded accurately, even if users skip stages, a record trigger flow is created. This flow triggers whenever a record is created or updated in the POC object. The entry condition for the flow is when the POC stage of the record is different from the POC stage of the prior record. The flow then uses assignment elements to update all the POC stage timestamps at the same time. Each assignment element uses a formula to determine whether to update the timestamp based on the current PC stage and the value of the corresponding timestamp field. ### Custom Button To make it easier for users to create a POC from the opportunity object, a custom button is created. This button is an action that creates a new record in the POC object. The button is configured to be visible only if the opportunity stage is not equal to "SQL" or "Discovery Demo Completed". When the button is clicked, it opens a form that allows the user to enter the required information for the POC, including the account record, POC name, POC stage, start date, and end date. The button also includes a success message that is displayed after the POC record is created. ### Opportunity Page Layout The POC records are also added to the opportunity page layout so that users can easily see all the POC that are running for a particular account. The POC records are displayed in a box on the opportunity page, and each record shows the POC name, POC stage, and POC start and end dates. ### Conclusion This document provides a technical overview of the POC object, including the custom fields, automation, custom button, and opportunity page layout that are used to manage and track product-led capabilities in Salesforce. # Displaying Record Information {% embed url="" %} ## How to Bring Other Objects and Data into Salesforce Records ### Overview This document provides instructions on how to bring other objects and data into Salesforce records using related records and an update action. This method can be used to display information from related objects on a record without creating new custom fields. ### Prerequisites * Access to a Salesforce organization with Lightning enabled. * An understanding of how to create related records and update actions. ### Step-by-Step Instructions 1. **Navigate to the record you want to add the related record to.** 2. **Click the Edit button.** 3. **In the Related Records section, click the New button.** 4. **Select the object you want to relate to the record.** 5. **Enter the necessary information for the related record.** 6. **Select the Update Action you want to use.** 7. **Click the Save button.** 8. **The related record will now be displayed on the record.** ### Example In this example, we will add the account information to an opportunity record. 1. **Navigate to the opportunity record you want to add the account information to.** 2. **Click the Edit button.** 3. **In the Related Records section, click the New button.** 4. **Select the Account object.** 5. **Enter the account name and other relevant information.** 6. **Select the Update Account action.** 7. **Click the Save button.** 8. **The account information will now be displayed on the opportunity record.** ### Considerations * The related record will only be displayed on the record if the user has permission to view the related object. * The update action will only be executed if the user has permission to edit the related object. * This method can be used to bring other objects and data into records, such as contacts, leads, and custom objects. ### Troubleshooting If the related record is not displayed on the record, check the following: * The user has permission to view the related object. * The related record has been saved. * The related record is not hidden by a page layout or field-level security. If the update action is not executed, check the following: * The user has permission to edit the related object. * The update action is active. * The update action is not hidden by a page layout or field-level security. # Display Dynamic Lists {% embed url="" %} ### How to Display Different Records from Different Objects Inside Your Salesforce Page #### Overview This guide provides instructions on how to use the Dynamic Related List feature in Salesforce to display records from different objects on a single page. This can be useful for creating custom views of data or for providing users with easy access to related information. #### Prerequisites * Access to a Salesforce org with the "Customize Application" permission * Knowledge of the Salesforce object model and field names #### Steps 1. Navigate to the **Setup** menu and select **Object Manager**. 2. Select the object that you want to add the dynamic related list to. 3. Click on the **Fields & Relationships** tab. 4. Under the **Related Lists** section, click **New**. 5. In the **Related List Type** field, select **Dynamic Related List**. 6. In the **Related List Name** field, enter a name for the related list. 7. In the **Parent Object** field, select the object that is related to the object you are adding the related list to. 8. In the **Related Object** field, select the object that you want to display records from. 9. In the **Related List Label** field, enter a label for the related list. 10. In the **Related List Type** field, select either **List** or **Tile**. 11. In the **Number of Records to Display** field, enter the number of records that you want to display in the related list. 12. In the **Related List Fields** section, select the fields that you want to display in the related list. 13. In the **Sort By** field, select the field that you want to sort the records by. 14. In the **Sort Order** field, select either **Ascending** or **Descending**. 15. In the **Filter Criteria** section, enter any filter criteria that you want to apply to the related list. 16. In the **Component Visibility** section, select the users or groups that you want to be able to see the related list. 17. Click **Save**. #### Example In this example, we will add a dynamic related list to the Opportunity object that displays the most recent 10 PCs for the Opportunity's account. 1. Navigate to the **Setup** menu and select **Object Manager**. 2. Select the **Opportunity** object. 3. Click on the **Fields & Relationships** tab. 4. Under the **Related Lists** section, click **New**. 5. In the **Related List Type** field, select **Dynamic Related List**. 6. In the **Related List Name** field, enter **PCs**. 7. In the **Parent Object** field, select **Account**. 8. In the **Related Object** field, select **PC**. 9. In the **Related List Label** field, enter **PCs for Account**. 10. In the **Related List Type** field, select **List**. 11. In the **Number of Records to Display** field, enter **10**. 12. In the **Related List Fields** section, select the following fields: * PC Name * PC Stage * Start Date * End Date 13. In the **Sort By** field, select **Start Date**. 14. In the **Sort Order** field, select **Descending**. 15. Click **Save**. After saving the dynamic related list, you will be able to see the most recent 10 PCs for the Opportunity's account on the Opportunity page. #### Conclusion Dynamic related lists are a powerful tool that can be used to create custom views of data and provide users with easy access to related information. By following the steps in this guide, you can add dynamic related lists to your Salesforce pages and improve the usability of your org. # Messages to End Users {% embed url="" %} ## Display Messages to End Users in Salesforce #### Overview This document provides instructions on how to display messages to end users in Salesforce using the reach text component. The reach text component allows you to display any text on a page, and it supports rich text formatting options such as bold, italic, and strikethrough. #### Step-by-Step Instructions 1. Navigate to the opportunity record where you want to display the message. 2. Click the "Edit Page" button. 3. In the "Page Elements" section, click the "Add" button. 4. Select "Reach Text" from the list of components. 5. In the "Reach Text" dialog box, enter the message you want to display. 6. Select the formatting options you want to apply to the message. 7. Click the "Save" button. 8. Click the "Back" button to return to the opportunity record. The message will now be displayed on the opportunity record. #### Component Visibility You can control the visibility of the reach text component using the "Component Visibility" settings. This allows you to specify when the message should be displayed, such as when a record is created, updated, or deleted. To set the component visibility: 1. Click the "Component Visibility" button. 2. Select the criteria you want to use to control the visibility of the component. 3. Click the "Save" button. The reach text component will only be displayed when the specified criteria are met. #### Use Cases There are many use cases for the reach text component. Here are a few examples: * Display a message to users when a record is created, updated, or deleted. * Display a message to users when a record reaches a certain stage in a process. * Display a message to users when a certain field on a record is updated. * Display a message to users when a certain user profile is assigned to a record. * Display a message to users when a record is assigned to a certain team. The reach text component is a versatile tool that can be used to communicate important messages to users in Salesforce. # Create Custom Buttons {% embed url="" %} ### How to Create a Custom Button in Salesforce to Improve User Experience #### Overview This guide provides step-by-step instructions on creating a custom button in Salesforce to enhance the user experience. The use case demonstrated in this guide is creating an easily accessible button that allows sales users to input descriptions into opportunity records more efficiently. #### Prerequisites * A Salesforce account with the necessary permissions. * A screen flow with three elements: * Record ID variable (text type, available for input) * Get Records element to store opportunity data * Screen element to allow users to input a new description * Update Records element to update the opportunity with the new description #### Step-by-Step Guide **1. Create a Screen Flow** * Create a new screen flow in Salesforce. * Add the following elements to the flow: * **Record ID Variable**: Create a text variable named "recordId" (ensure the exact spelling matches). This variable will be used as a placeholder for the opportunity ID and must be available for input. * **Get Records Element**: Use this element to store all opportunity data. Set the object to "Opportunity," the ID field to "recordId" (the variable created in the previous step), and select "Get only the first record." You can choose to store all fields or just specific fields like the description. * **Screen Element**: This element allows users to input the new description. Use a text component, hide the header, and make the text field required. Set the default value to {!opportunity.Description} (replace "opportunity" with the API name of your opportunity object) to display the existing description as a placeholder. * **Update Records Element**: Use this element to update the opportunity. Select the opportunity object, filter by ID using "recordId," and update the description field with the value from the screen component (e.g., {!Place\_Update\_Description}). **2. Create a Custom Action** * In the Opportunity object manager, click on "Buttons, Links, and Actions." * Click on "New Action." * Choose the "Opportunity Update Description" screen flow created in the previous step. * Enter a label (e.g., "Update Description") and click "Save." **3. Add the Custom Button to the Opportunity Page** * Go back to the Opportunity page layout. * Click on "New Action" next to the existing buttons. * Select the "Update Description" action created in the previous step and click "Done." * Position the button as desired and click "Save." **4. Test the Custom Button** * Refresh the Opportunity page. * The custom button should now be visible. * Click on the button to open the screen flow. * The existing description should be displayed as a placeholder. * Edit the description and click "Save." * The description of the opportunity should be updated accordingly. #### Additional Notes * This guide demonstrates a basic example of creating a custom button for the Lightning Experience. For the Salesforce Classic interface, a different approach may be required. * The use cases for custom buttons are extensive, including creating new records, updating multiple fields, utilizing custom fields, and more. * Custom buttons can greatly enhance the user experience by providing quick and easy access to frequently performed actions. # Tips for Data Loader {% embed url="" %} ## Data Loader Tips and Tricks ### Tip 1: Use Bulk API If you have more than 10,000 records to load, it is recommended to use Bulk API for better efficiency. To enable Bulk API, go to **Settings** in Data Loader, scroll down, and select **Use Bulk API**. You can also choose to enable serial mode, which ensures that Bulk API operations are processed one after another instead of in parallel. ### Tip 2: Use Multiple Data Loaders Simultaneously You can use multiple Data Loaders simultaneously to upload multiple files at the same time. Each Data Loader can be configured independently, so you can use Bulk API in one and the regular API in another. ### Tip 3: Adjust Batch Size You can change the batch size of your operation to optimize performance. The maximum batch size is 2,000 for Bulk API and 200 for the regular API. For heavier objects like opportunities, it is recommended to reduce the batch size to 50, 20, 10, or even 1, depending on the complexity of the object and your Salesforce instance. ### Tip 4: Adjust Time Zone When uploading date/time fields, it is important to adjust the time zone in Data Loader to match the time zone in Salesforce. This ensures that records are updated with the correct timestamps. To adjust the time zone, go to **Settings** in Data Loader and copy and paste the time zone from Salesforce. ### Tip 5: Update Fields with New Values To update fields with new values that are not standard in Data Loader, you need to enable the **Insert new values** checkbox in **Settings**. Note that this option is only available when using the regular API, not Bulk API. # Salesforce Inspector Reloaded {% embed url="" %} ### Salesforce Inspector Reloaded Salesforce Inspector Reloaded is a Google Chrome extension that can help Salesforce admins make their lives easier and more productive. It offers a variety of functionalities, including: * Quick links to object names, fields, record types, and list record types * The ability to see all data in a Salesforce record * Exporting Salesforce records using SQL queries * Importing data into Salesforce from CSV files * Checking org limits #### Getting Started To get started with Salesforce Inspector Reloaded, follow these steps: 1. Go to the Google Chrome Web Store and search for "Salesforce Inspector Reloaded". 2. Click on the "Add to Chrome" button. 3. Once the extension is installed, go to your Salesforce org and reload the page. 4. A small toggle will appear on the top-right hand side of your screen. Click on it to open the Salesforce Inspector Reloaded sidebar. #### Quick Links The quick links feature allows you to quickly navigate to different parts of the Salesforce UI. To use this feature, simply click on the name of the object you want to go to. For example, if you click on the "Lead" object, you will be taken to the lead object page. #### Show All Data The show all data feature allows you to see all of the data in a Salesforce record. To use this feature, simply click on the "Show All Data" button. This will display all of the fields for the object that you are currently viewing. #### Exporting Data The export query feature allows you to export Salesforce records using SQL queries. To use this feature, simply click on the "Export Query" button. This will open a dialog box where you can enter your SQL query. #### Importing Data The data import feature allows you to import data into Salesforce from CSV files. To use this feature, simply click on the "Data Import" button. This will open a dialog box where you can select your CSV file and choose the object that you want to import the data into. #### Checking Org Limits The org limits feature allows you to check the org limits for your Salesforce org. To use this feature, simply click on the "Org Limits" button. This will open a dialog box where you can see the current limits for your org. #### Conclusion Salesforce Inspector Reloaded is a powerful tool that can help Salesforce admins make their lives easier and more productive. It offers a variety of functionalities that can help you save time and effort. If you are a Salesforce admin, I highly recommend that you install Salesforce Inspector Reloaded today. # SFDC Navigator for Lightning {% embed url="" %} ## Salesforce Navigator for Lightning ### Overview Salesforce Navigator for Lightning is a Chrome extension that can help you navigate Salesforce more quickly and efficiently. It allows you to quickly access objects, fields, flows, and records directly from a search bar, without having to click through multiple menus. ### Installation To install Salesforce Navigator for Lightning, follow these steps: 1. Open the Chrome Web Store. 2. Search for "Salesforce Navigator for Lightning". 3. Click on the "Add to Chrome" button. 4. Follow the on-screen instructions to complete the installation. ### Usage Once installed, you can use Salesforce Navigator for Lightning by following these steps: 1. Open Salesforce in your browser. 2. Press **Command**+**Shift**+**Space** to open the Salesforce Navigator search bar. 3. Type in the name of the object, field, flow, or record you want to access. 4. Press **Enter** to open the selected item. #### Examples Here are some examples of how you can use Salesforce Navigator for Lightning: * To go to the **Home** page, type "Home" in the search bar and press **Enter**. * To go to the **Lead Fields** page, type "Lead Fields" in the search bar and press **Enter**. * To go to the **Lead Test** flow, type "Lead Test" in the search bar and press **Enter**. * To create a new **Account** record, type "New Account" in the search bar and press **Enter**. * To log in as a different user, type "Login as \[username]" in the search bar and press **Enter**. * To search for a record, type "?" followed by the record name in the search bar and press **Enter**. #### Additional Features In addition to the basic navigation features, Salesforce Navigator for Lightning also offers several other features, such as: * **Open in a new tab:** Hold **Command**+**Return** (Mac) or **Control**+**Enter** (Windows) when selecting an item to open it in a new tab. * **Search across multiple objects:** Type multiple object names in the search bar to search across multiple objects simultaneously. * **Filter search results:** Use the filter operators **AND**, **OR**, and **NOT** to narrow down your search results. ### Conclusion Salesforce Navigator for Lightning is a powerful tool that can help you save time and improve your efficiency when working in Salesforce. By providing quick and easy access to objects, fields, flows, and records, Salesforce Navigator for Lightning can help you get the most out of your Salesforce experience. # Bypass Validation Rules {% embed url="" %} ### Bypass Validation Rules with Permission Sets #### Overview This document explains how to use a permission set to bypass any validation rule that you have in place in Salesforce. This can be useful in cases where you need to allow certain users to update a record without having to meet the validation criteria. #### Prerequisites * You must have the "Manage Permission Sets" permission. * You must have the "Edit" permission on the object that you want to bypass the validation rule for. #### Steps 1. Create a new permission set. 2. Add the "Bypass Validation Rules" custom permission to the permission set. 3. Assign the permission set to the users who need to bypass the validation rule. 4. Edit the validation rule and add the following formula to the "Error Condition Formula" field: ``` NOT(ISPICKVAL(PermissionSetGroup.BypassValidationRulesV2, TRUE)) ``` This formula will evaluate to true if the user does not have the "Bypass Validation Rules" permission set assigned to them. In this case, the validation rule will be triggered and the user will not be able to save the record. #### Example In the example below, we will create a permission set that allows users to bypass the validation rule on the Opportunity object that prevents users from saving an opportunity without an implementation fee. 1. **Create a new permission set.** * Click on the **Setup** gear in the top right corner of the Salesforce home page. * Select **Users** > **Permission Sets**. * Click on the **New** button. * Enter a name for the permission set, such as "Bypass Validation Rules V2". * Click on the **Save** button. 2. **Add the "Bypass Validation Rules" custom permission to the permission set.** * Click on the **Custom Permissions** tab. * Select the "Bypass Validation Rules V2" permission. * Click on the **Add** button. * Click on the **Save** button. 3. **Assign the permission set to the users who need to bypass the validation rule.** * Click on the **Users** tab. * Select the users who need to bypass the validation rule. * Click on the **Assign Permission Set** button. * Select the "Bypass Validation Rules V2" permission set. * Click on the **Assign** button. 4. **Edit the validation rule and add the following formula to the "Error Condition Formula" field:** ``` NOT(ISPICKVAL(PermissionSetGroup.BypassValidationRulesV2, TRUE)) ``` * Click on the **Setup** gear in the top right corner of the Salesforce home page. * Select **Objects** > **Opportunity**. * Click on the **Fields & Relationships** tab. * Select the "Implementation Fee" field. * Click on the **Validation Rules** tab. * Click on the **New** button. * Enter a name for the validation rule, such as "Implementation Fee Required". * Select the "Error Condition Formula" field. * Enter the following formula: ``` NOT(ISPICKVAL(PermissionSetGroup.BypassValidationRulesV2, TRUE)) ``` * Click on the **Save** button. #### Testing To test the validation rule, create a new opportunity and try to save it without entering an implementation fee. You should see an error message that prevents you from saving the opportunity. Now, assign the "Bypass Validation Rules V2" permission set to the user who is trying to save the opportunity. Try to save the opportunity again. This time, you should be able to save the opportunity without entering an implementation fee. #### Conclusion By using a permission set, you can easily bypass any validation rule that you have in place in Salesforce. This can be useful in cases where you need to allow certain users to update a record without having to meet the validation criteria. # Sales Manager Notes Field {% embed url="" %} #### Creating Manager-Only Fields in Salesforce **Introduction** This guide will show you how to create a custom field in Salesforce that is only accessible by managers. This can be useful for storing sensitive information or notes that you don't want everyone to see. **Step-by-Step Instructions** 1. Go to the **Opportunity Fields** page. 2. Click the **New** button. 3. Select the **Text** field type. 4. Enter a name for the field, such as "Manager Notes". 5. Select the **Long Text Area** input type. 6. Check the **Keep 3 Visible Lines** checkbox. 7. Click **Next**. 8. In the **Field-Level Security** section, select the **Visible** checkbox for the manager profile. 9. Also, select the **Visible** checkbox for the System Administrator profile. 10. Click **Next**. 11. Add the field to the opportunity layout. 12. Click **Save**. **Usage** Once you have created the field, you can add it to the opportunity layout so that managers can see it. To do this, go to the **Opportunity Layouts** page and edit the layout that you want to add the field to. Drag and drop the field into the desired location on the layout. Managers will now be able to see the field on the opportunity record page. They can add notes to the field, but other users will not be able to see them. **Conclusion** This is a simple but effective way to create a custom field in Salesforce that is only accessible by managers. This can be useful for storing sensitive information or notes that you don't want everyone to see. # Renaming Fields and Objects {% embed url="" %} ## Renaming Standard Fields and Objects in Salesforce ### Overview This document provides instructions on how to rename standard fields and objects in Salesforce, including: * Accounts * Opportunities * Amounts ### Instructions #### Renaming Accounts 1. In Salesforce, go to **Setup** > **Quick Find**, and enter "Rename". 2. Click on **Rename Tabs and Labels**. 3. In the **Rename Tabs and Labels** page, click on **Add**. 4. In the **Add Rename Rule** dialog box, select **Accounts** from the **Object** dropdown list. 5. In the **New Name** field, enter the new name for accounts (e.g., "Companies"). 6. Click **Save**. #### Renaming Opportunities 1. In the **Rename Tabs and Labels** page, click on **Add**. 2. In the **Add Rename Rule** dialog box, select **Opportunities** from the **Object** dropdown list. 3. In the **New Name** field, enter the new name for opportunities (e.g., "Deals"). 4. Click **Save**. #### Renaming Amounts 1. In the **Rename Tabs and Labels** page, click on **Next**. 2. In the **Rename Fields** page, select **Amount** from the **Field** dropdown list. 3. In the **New Name** field, enter the new name for the amount field (e.g., "Annual Recurring Revenue"). 4. Click **Save**. ### Results After following these instructions, the standard accounts, opportunities, and amounts fields and objects in Salesforce will be renamed to the specified values. ### Additional Information * You can also rename custom fields and objects in Salesforce. * When renaming fields, be sure to update any reports, dashboards, or other Salesforce components that use the renamed fields. * If you are renaming a standard object, you will also need to update any Apex code or Visualforce pages that reference the renamed object. # Getting Faster to Record ID {% embed url="" %} ### Salesforce ID Paster Extension **Description**: The Salesforce ID Paster extension for Google Chrome allows users to quickly access Salesforce records by pressing a keyboard shortcut. **Installation**: * Open the Google Chrome Web Store. * Search for "Salesforce ID Paster." * Click "Add to Chrome." **Usage**: * Copy the Salesforce ID of the record you want to access. * Press Control + Shift + Y (or Command + Shift + Y on a Mac). * The extension will open the Salesforce record in a new tab. **Troubleshooting**: * If the extension is not working, make sure that you are using the latest version of Google Chrome. * If you are still having problems, contact the extension developer. ### Custom Site Search **Description**: Custom site search allows users to create a shortcut to a specific Salesforce instance in Google Chrome. **Setup**: * Open a new tab in Google Chrome. * Click the three dots in the top-right corner of the browser. * Select "Settings." * Go to "Search engine" and then "Manage search engines." * Click "Add." * In the "Add a new search engine" dialog box, enter the following information: * Name: The name of the shortcut. * Keyword: The keyboard shortcut you want to use to access the shortcut. * URL: The URL of your Salesforce instance, followed by "/%s". For example, "". * Click "Add." **Usage**: * Press the keyboard shortcut you specified in the previous step. * Enter the Salesforce ID of the record you want to access. * Press Enter. * The shortcut will open the Salesforce record in a new tab. **Troubleshooting**: * If the shortcut is not working, make sure that you are using the latest version of Google Chrome. * If you are still having problems, contact the Salesforce administrator for your organization. # Hubspot # Disable Picklist Options {% embed url="" %} ### Disable HubSpot Picklist Options While Retaining Deactivated Values in Records That Already Use Them #### Overview HubSpot does not allow users to disable picklist values; they can only be merged or deleted. This article provides a workaround to achieve this by creating a new field, updating existing records, setting up conditional logic, and creating an automation. #### Prerequisites * HubSpot Admin or Advanced user permissions * Access to the HubSpot account in question #### Steps 1. **Create a New Field** * In the deal properties, create a new dropdown select field called "Product Filter." * Set the only option to "Disabled." 2. **Update Existing Records** * Update all existing records with the new field and set the value to "Disabled" for the products you want to deactivate. 3. **Set Up Conditional Logic** * Edit the existing product property and go to conditional options. * Add a new conditional option based on the "Product Filter" field. * Select the products you want to keep activated (e.g., excluding the products you want to deactivate). 4. **Create an Automation** * Create an automation that triggers when a new deal is created. * Set the "Product Filter" property to "Disabled" for the new deal. 5. **Set Product Filter Properties** * Set the properties in the "Product Filter" field to "View Only" in the property settings under "Manage Access." #### Testing * Create a new deal to verify that the "Product Filter" field is automatically filled with "Disabled" and that the deactivated products cannot be selected. #### Conclusion By following these steps, you can effectively disable HubSpot picklist options while retaining deactivated values in records that already use them. This workaround provides more control over picklist values and helps maintain data integrity. # Create Yesterday's Date {% embed url="" %} ## Creating Custom Field for Yesterday's Date in HubSpot ### Overview This document provides instructions on creating a custom field in HubSpot that displays yesterday's date. The custom field will be based on the "Today's Date" field created in a previous video. ### Prerequisites * HubSpot account * Access to HubSpot settings ### Step-by-Step Guide #### 1. Navigate to HubSpot Settings * Log in to your HubSpot account. * In the top-right corner, click the **Settings** icon. #### 2. Access Properties * In the left sidebar, click **Properties**. #### 3. Create New Field * Click the **+ Add field** button. #### 4. Configure Field Details * In the **Field name** field, enter "Yesterday's Date". * In the **Field type** dropdown, select **Calculation**. * In the **Calculation type** dropdown, select **Custom equation**. * In the **Output type** dropdown, select **Date**. #### 5. Build Formula * In the **Formula** field, enter the following formula: ``` {{today's date}} - 1 ``` * This formula subtracts one day from the "Today's Date" field to calculate yesterday's date. #### 6. Test Formula * Click the **Test** button to validate the formula. * Verify that the formula returns the correct yesterday's date for different today's dates. #### 7. Save Field * Click the **Save** button to create the custom field. #### 8. Verify Field Update * Navigate to a contact record. * Observe that the "Yesterday's Date" field is not yet updated because it depends on the "Today's Date" field. #### 9. Update "Today's Date" Field * Update the "Today's Date" field for the contact. #### 10. Refresh Contact Record * Refresh the contact record. #### 11. Observe Updated "Yesterday's Date" Field * Verify that the "Yesterday's Date" field is now updated to the day before the updated "Today's Date" field. ### Conclusion By following these steps, you can create a custom field in HubSpot that automatically displays yesterday's date based on the "Today's Date" field. This field can be useful for filtering records, creating automations, and other purposes in HubSpot. # Create Today's Date {% embed url="" %} ## Create a Date Field That Automatically Updates with the Current Date in HubSpot ### Overview This guide demonstrates how to create a date field in HubSpot that automatically updates with the current date. This can be useful for various purposes, such as tracking the date of a customer's last interaction or generating reports based on the current date. ### Prerequisites * HubSpot account with access to create custom fields and automations ### Steps #### Creating a Custom Date Field 1. In your HubSpot account, navigate to **Settings** > **Objects** > **Contacts**. 2. Click the **Create Field** button. 3. In the **Field Type** dropdown, select **Date**. 4. Enter a **Field Label** (e.g., "Today's Date"). 5. Click **Save**. #### Creating an Automation to Update the Date Field 1. Navigate to **Automation** > **Workflows**. 2. Click the **Create Workflow** button. 3. Select **Contact-based** as the workflow type. 4. In the **Trigger** section, select **Schedule** and set the **Frequency** to **Daily**. 5. In the **Criteria** section, add two conditions: * **Field** is **Today's Date** * **Value** is **is not known** 6. In the **Actions** section, add a **Set Property** action: * **Property** is **Today's Date** * **Value** is **Date of Step** 7. Click **Save & Publish**. ### Result The automation will now run daily and update the "Today's Date" field with the current date for all contacts that meet the criteria. You can use this field in various ways, such as creating lists, filtering contacts, or triggering other automations based on the current date. # Revenue Operations Flywheel {% embed url="" %} ## RevOps Flywheel The RevOps Flywheel is a four-step process that helps businesses achieve continuous growth. ### Step 1: Adjust Your Growth Plan The first step in the RevOps Flywheel is to adjust your growth plan. This means revisiting and refining your plan to stay ahead of internal and external changes. This is not just an annual planning process; you should continuously adjust your plan as you have access to new data. A growth plan is simply reverse engineering a revenue Target into an integrated operating plan. This includes looking at bookings created, pipeline, leads, brand awareness, headcount, and everything else it takes to build the infrastructure to go from A to B for your growth. ### Step 2: Augment Your Growth Infrastructure The second step in the RevOps Flywheel is to augment your growth infrastructure. This means continuously improving your systems and processes. Your business is always changing, and the market and best practices for RevOps will always be evolving. If you do not continually augment your growth infrastructure, you will quickly fall behind. ### Step 3: Analyze Your Performance The third step in the RevOps Flywheel is to analyze your performance. This means tracking all of the assumptions and data in your growth plan continuously. You need to be able to measure and track everything in your growth plan. This is usually a systems and process exercise that must be adapted and augmented every time your growth plan changes. ### Step 4: Align on Growth Drivers The fourth step in the RevOps Flywheel is to align on growth drivers. This means ensuring your team is unified on what drives growth and interpreting the data with the business and Market context it needs. Once you have access to all of the data due to your growth infrastructure and performance to plan tracking, you need to use your judgment to make decisions. #### The Continuous Cycle The RevOps Flywheel is a continuous cycle. Once you are aligned on what's working and what's not working, it's time to go back to the first step of the Flywheel and plan your next stage of growth. # Post-Fundraise Playbook {% embed url="" %} ### Post-Fundraising Operations We outline the key steps and challenges involved in the post-fundraising operations of a startup, focusing specifically on the period immediately following the successful completion of a fundraising round. **1. Due Diligence Findings Report** * After the fundraising process, the investors conduct due diligence to verify the details provided in the proposals and assess the company's financials, sales and marketing data, and technology. * The due diligence findings report highlights areas of opportunity, challenges, and recommendations for improving the business to meet mutual goals with investors. **2. Financial Model** * Create a financial model that aligns with the growth projections shared during fundraising. * This model should determine capital allocation, growth strategies, and investments needed to achieve projected goals. **3. Go-to-Market (GTM) Operating Plan** * Develop a robust GTM operating plan that aligns with the financial model and growth projections. * Key components of the GTM operating plan include: * **Growth Target Alignment**: Define bookings, expansion, and churn management goals based on strategic considerations. * **Demand Generation Plan**: Determine how to generate the required number of leads (MQLs, SQLs, etc.) to hit growth targets. Identify the most efficient marketing channels and allocate capital accordingly. * **Sales Capacity Plan**: Ensure adequate sales capacity to convert generated leads into closed deals. Understand hiring needs, rep quotas, and activity levels. * **Customer Success Plan**: Outline the people and/or technology required to ensure customer success. This can be reactive based on demand. **4. Hiring and Recruitment** * Develop a comprehensive hiring and recruitment plan to find, onboard, train, and retain top talent. * Address key questions such as: * How to find the right people with the right background? * How to ensure successful onboarding and training? * How to retain top performers and manage low performers? **5. Challenges in Post-Fundraising Operations** * **Aligning Targets and Assumptions**: Many plans involve assumptions due to new initiatives. Regularly test important assumptions and adjust the plan as needed. * **Interconnectedness**: Ensure alignment between marketing, sales, customer success, and hiring/recruitment plans. Disconnects can have ripple effects. * **Hiring Speed**: Begin recruiting top talent as soon as possible, considering the time required for them to leave their current role and join your company. * **Speed of Planning and Decision-Making**: Delays in aligning on plans and making decisions can hinder execution. Prioritize planning and decision-making to move the process forward. **6. Conclusion** Companies that demonstrate effective planning and execution capabilities attract future investors and increase their chances of successful exits, such as strategic acquisitions or IPOs. Conversely, companies that struggle with planning and execution may face challenges such as down rounds or fire sales. # Building Board Decks {% embed url="" %} ### Board Deck Structure #### Executive Summary * Brief overview of the entire deck covering: * Company performance highlights * Key decisions that need to be made * Request for help from the board #### Financial Performance * Revenue * Expenses * Profits #### Strategic Goals * Mission statement * Vision statement * Values #### Company Operations * Products * Services * Customers #### Risks and Opportunities * Competitive landscape * Regulatory environment * Technological advancements #### Call to Action * Clear statement of what the board of directors needs to do next ### Visuals * Charts * Graphs * Tables ### Proofreading * Check for accuracy * Check for clarity and conciseness of visuals ### Additional Tips * Use clear and concise language. * Keep the slides visually appealing and easy to understand. * Make sure the deck is well-organized and flows logically. * Be specific when asking for help from the board. * Avoid asking the board how they think the quarter went, for help with reporting or data analysis, or what metrics to measure. * Use a template by department to determine which slides are must-haves and which can be appendix slides. ### Board Meeting Preparation * Assign a board deck keeper. * Start working on the deck well in advance of the meeting. * Have a data one-pager readily available. * Focus on the story and decisions that need to be made. * Do a dry run with the team. * Send out the deck well ahead of time. # Building Dashboards
CEO Dashboard/pages/p54O7pV8LyerVaqco26a
Executive Dashboard/pages/dojGwrvnE54YkOC7vnnd
Marketing Dashboard/pages/E397IWYFYqRfjA0n5XIM
Sales Dashboard/pages/lwQ8HpCVFsILC99jz5Ea
CS Dashboard/pages/dNo6UuKfiIHHHHJHkPNS
Funnel Analytics/pages/FEAfhO8KKP0dJ3AA309r
# CEO Dashboards {% embed url="" %} ### Dashboard for Tech CEOs #### Overview This dashboard provides key metrics for B2B SaaS companies to track and monitor their business performance. The metrics included in this dashboard are: * ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) * New Business Bookings * SQLs (Sales Qualified Leads) or Created Pipeline * Funnel Efficiency (Sales Qualified Lead to Closed Won) * Churn Rate #### ARR (Annual Recurring Revenue) ARR is the most important metric for B2B SaaS companies. It is the total amount of recurring revenue that the company generates each year. ARR is calculated by multiplying the number of customers by the average revenue per customer. **Key points to consider:** * ARR is the most important metric for B2B SaaS companies because it drives the company's valuation. * ARR should be the Northstar KPI for the entire business. * It is important to track the net change in ARR after all new business, expansion, contraction, and churn. * The net change in ARR is the most important metric for measuring the growth of the business. #### New Business Bookings New business bookings are the new contracts that the company signs each month. New business bookings are the lifeblood of a B2B SaaS company, as they are the primary driver of growth. **Key points to consider:** * New business bookings should be tracked closely to ensure that the company is meeting its growth goals. * New business bookings can be segmented by rep, marketing channel, or lead source. * It is important to understand which reps, channels, and sources are generating the most new business. #### SQLs (Sales Qualified Leads) or Created Pipeline SQLs or created pipeline is the number of leads that have been qualified by the sales team and are considered to be potential customers. Created pipeline is a leading indicator of future bookings, as it represents the potential revenue that the company can generate. **Key points to consider:** * Created pipeline should be tracked closely to ensure that the company is generating enough leads to meet its growth goals. * Created pipeline can be segmented by marketing channel or lead source. * It is important to understand which channels and sources are generating the most created pipeline. #### Funnel Efficiency (Sales Qualified Lead to Closed Won) Funnel efficiency is the percentage of sales qualified leads that turn into closed won deals. Funnel efficiency is a measure of the effectiveness of the sales process. **Key points to consider:** * Funnel efficiency should be tracked closely to ensure that the sales team is converting leads into customers efficiently. * Funnel efficiency can be improved by optimizing the sales process, reducing the sales cycle, and improving the quality of leads. #### Churn Rate Churn rate is the percentage of customers who cancel their subscriptions each month. Churn rate is a critical metric for B2B SaaS companies, as it can have a significant impact on the company's growth. **Key points to consider:** * Churn rate should be tracked closely to ensure that the company is not losing customers at an unsustainable rate. * Churn rate can be reduced by improving the customer experience, providing excellent customer support, and offering competitive pricing. #### Conclusion This dashboard provides key metrics for B2B SaaS companies to track and monitor their business performance. By tracking these metrics, companies can identify trends, make informed decisions, and achieve their growth goals. # Executive Dashboards {% embed url="" %} ### Executive Go-to-Market Dashboard #### Overview Get a comprehensive overview of your business performance with key metrics from Marketing, Sales, Customer Success, and Funnel Analytics. #### Key Metrics * **Closed Won Annual Recurring Revenue:** Total closed-won ARR for the selected time period. * **Year-to-Date Pipeline:** Total value of all opportunities in the pipeline for the selected time period. * **Current Weighted Pipeline:** Total weighted value of all opportunities in the pipeline, taking into account the probability of closing each opportunity. * **Total Number of Customers:** Total number of customers for the selected time period. * **New Logos Added:** Number of new customers acquired during the selected time period. * **Churned Accounts:** Number of customers lost during the selected time period. #### Closed Won New Business Analyze closed-won business in detail with breakdowns by region, lead source, and firmographic segment. * **Closed Won ARR by Region:** Total closed-won ARR for each region. * **Closed Won ARR by Lead Source:** Total closed-won ARR for each lead source. * **Closed Won ARR by Firmographic Segment:** Total closed-won ARR for each firmographic segment (Enterprise, Midmarket, SMB). #### Created Pipeline Monitor the velocity of pipeline building with breakdowns by region, lead source, and business segment. * **Created Pipeline by Region:** Total value of new opportunities created in each region. * **Created Pipeline by Lead Source:** Total value of new opportunities created for each lead source. * **Created Pipeline by Segment:** Total value of new opportunities created for each business segment (Enterprise, Midmarket, SMB). #### Open Pipeline Understand the stages and values of your open pipeline opportunities. * **Open Pipeline by Stage:** Total value of open opportunities in each stage of the sales funnel. * **Total Raw Unweighted Pipeline:** Total value of all open opportunities, regardless of stage. #### Churn Analysis Discover insights into customer churn by region and reason to identify improvement areas. * **Churn by Region:** Total churned revenue for each region. * **Churn by Reason:** Total churned revenue for each churn reason. #### Sales and SDR Leaderboards Track your top performers and ensure your team is meeting expectations. * **Sales Leaderboard:** Ranks sales representatives based on closed-won ARR for the selected time period. * **SDR Leaderboard:** Ranks sales development representatives based on the number of opportunities booked and meetings scheduled. #### Final Recommendations * Salesforce dashboards have a limit of 20 reports. Choose the reports that provide the most comprehensive view of your business and make the most of the available space. # Marketing Dashboards {% embed url="" %} ### Marketing Executive Dashboard The Marketing Executive Dashboard provides key metrics and insights into the performance of marketing campaigns and their impact on pipeline generation and revenue. Here's a detailed breakdown of the dashboard's sections and metrics: #### 1. Conversion Rates * **MQL to SAL Conversion Rate**: This metric represents the percentage of Marketing Qualified Leads (MQLs) that convert into Sales Accepted Leads (SALs). It provides insight into the effectiveness of marketing efforts in generating qualified leads for the sales team. * **SAL to SQL Conversion Rate**: This metric measures the percentage of SALs that convert into Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs). It indicates the success of the sales team in qualifying leads and moving them further down the sales funnel. #### 2. Created Pipeline * **Created Pipeline (Sourced by Marketing)**: This section provides an overview of the pipeline generated by marketing efforts. It includes the following metrics: * **Pipeline Value**: The total dollar value of the pipeline created by marketing. * **Number of Opportunities**: The number of opportunities created by marketing. * **Closed Revenue**: The total revenue generated from closed deals sourced by marketing. * **Closed Opportunities**: The number of opportunities closed by marketing. #### 3. SQLs, SALs, and MQLs by Region, Lead Source, and Customer Segment These sections provide a detailed breakdown of SQLs, SALs, and MQLs by various dimensions, including: * **Region**: Allows you to analyze the performance of marketing efforts in different geographic regions. * **Lead Source**: Helps identify the most effective lead generation channels and sources. * **Customer Segment**: Enables you to assess marketing performance for specific customer segments. #### 4. SDR Leaderboard If your SDRs (Sales Development Representatives) are part of the marketing department, you can include an SDR leaderboard to track and motivate individual performance. This section can display metrics such as the number of SQLs or meetings booked by each SDR, ranked by month or quarter. #### 5. Year-to-Date Mix of Lead Sources A pie chart in this section provides a visual representation of the distribution of SQLs and closed-won deals across different lead sources. This helps identify the lead sources that are contributing the most to pipeline generation and revenue. # Sales Dashboards {% embed url="" %} ## Sales Executive Dashboard ### Key Aggregated Metrics * **Closed Deals by Timeframe**: Provides a quick overview of closed deals for the current month, last month, current quarter, last quarter, current year, and last year. Allows users to assess sales performance over time. ### Goal Tracking * **Monthly, Quarterly, Yearly Bookings Goals**: Users can set and track monthly, quarterly, and yearly bookings goals against closed won opportunities in Salesforce. This allows users to monitor progress towards revenue targets. ### Pipeline Overview * **Current Unweighted Pipeline**: Displays all open opportunities in the sales pipeline. * **Current Weighted Pipeline**: Displays the weighted pipeline, which takes into account the probability of each opportunity closing. This helps users forecast future sales more accurately. ### Deep Dive into Reps' Pipeline * **Current Weighted Pipeline by Month and by Rep**: Provides a detailed analysis of each rep's weighted pipeline by month, allowing users to assess the performance and expected close dates of individual reps. * **Current Unweighted Pipeline by Rep**: Displays the total open pipeline for each rep. ### Leaderboards * **Year-to-Date Leaderboard**: Showcases the top-performing reps for the year, with a breakdown of the quarters in which they closed deals. * **Quarterly Leaders**: Highlights the rep who led each quarter in terms of closed deals. ### Additional Notes * The Sales Executive Dashboard is a valuable tool for tracking and analyzing sales team performance. * By providing key aggregated metrics, goal tracking, pipeline overview, and leaderboards, this dashboard empowers users to make informed decisions and drive sales success. # CS Dashboards {% embed url="" %} ### Customer Success Dashboard This dashboard provides a comprehensive overview of customer success metrics. It is designed to help customer success managers (CSMs) and executives track key performance indicators (KPIs) and identify areas for improvement. #### Key Metrics The dashboard includes the following key metrics: * **Accounts**: The total number of accounts open. * **Customers**: The total number of customers in the company. * **Churn**: The number of accounts that have churned year to date. * **Churn Rate**: The percentage of accounts that have churned year to date. * **Customer Health Score**: A score that measures the health of each customer account. * **CSM to Carry Ratio**: The ratio of CSMs to accounts. #### CSM Health The dashboard includes a breakdown of customer health by CSM. This allows CSMs to see which accounts are in poor, average, or good health and to focus their efforts accordingly. #### CSM Carry Ratio The dashboard includes a breakdown of the number of customers each CSM is carrying. This allows managers to ensure that CSMs are not overloaded or underutilized. #### Customer Health by Segment The dashboard includes a breakdown of customer health by region and firmographic segment. This allows managers to identify segments that are more likely to experience churn or have lower customer health scores. #### Recent Churned Accounts The dashboard includes a list of the most recent churned accounts. This allows CSMs and executives to quickly identify and address any issues that may have led to churn. #### Additional Features In addition to the key metrics listed above, the dashboard also includes the following features: * **Drill-down capability**: Users can drill down into any of the metrics on the dashboard to get more detailed information. * **Customization**: The dashboard can be customized to include additional metrics or to change the way data is presented. * **Exporting**: Users can export the data from the dashboard to a CSV file or to a PDF. #### Conclusion This dashboard is a valuable tool for CSMs and executives who need to track key customer success metrics. It provides a comprehensive overview of customer health and churn, and it allows users to drill down into the data to get more detailed information. The dashboard can be customized to meet the specific needs of any organization. # Funnel Analytics {% embed url="" %} ### Funnel Analytics Dashboard #### Key Conversion Rates * Conversion rates from MQL to SAL, SAL to SQL, and SQL to Closed Won, providing a year-to-date blended view across segments. #### Top Performing Lead Sources * Visualizes the performance of different lead sources based on SQL to Closed Won conversion rates and revenue production. * **Example**: * **Sales Outbound**: 25% conversion rate and significant revenue production. * **Paid Advertising**: Higher revenue production but lower conversion rate. * **SDR Outbound**: 14% conversion rate and low revenue production. #### Comparative Analysis * Compares top-performing lead sources with lower-performing ones to identify areas for improvement. * **Example**: Sales Outbound vs. SDR Outbound. #### Comprehensive Breakdown * Applies the same analysis methodology to other funnel stages (e.g., MQL to SQL, SAL to SQL) and different time frames for a comprehensive view of lead source performance. #### Final Thoughts * Emphasizes the importance of using the dashboard pack to make data-driven decisions and boost business success. # ChatGPT as a Salesforce Admin {% embed url="" %} **ChatGPT for Salesforce RevOps** **Introduction** ChatGPT is a powerful language model that can be used for a variety of tasks, including generating text, answering questions, and writing code. In this blog post, we will explore how ChatGPT can be used to improve RevOps processes in Salesforce. **Use Cases** ChatGPT can be used for a variety of RevOps tasks in Salesforce, including: * **Creating validation rules:** ChatGPT can be used to quickly and easily create validation rules for Salesforce objects. This can help to ensure that data is accurate and consistent, and can also help to prevent errors from being entered into the system. * **Writing formulas:** ChatGPT can be used to write complex formulas for Salesforce fields. This can be helpful for automating tasks, calculating values, and performing other data manipulations. * **Generating reports:** ChatGPT can be used to generate reports from Salesforce data. This can be helpful for analyzing data, identifying trends, and making informed decisions. * **Creating dashboards:** ChatGPT can be used to create dashboards that visualize Salesforce data. This can help to make data more accessible and easier to understand, and can also help to identify trends and patterns. * **Answering questions:** ChatGPT can be used to answer questions about Salesforce data and functionality. This can be helpful for troubleshooting problems, learning about new features, and getting assistance with complex tasks. **Benefits** There are a number of benefits to using ChatGPT for RevOps tasks in Salesforce, including: * **Speed:** ChatGPT can quickly and easily perform tasks that would otherwise be time-consuming and manual. This can free up RevOps teams to focus on other tasks that are more strategic and impactful. * **Accuracy:** ChatGPT is a very accurate tool, and can help to ensure that data is accurate and consistent. This can help to improve the quality of RevOps processes and decision-making. * **Flexibility:** ChatGPT can be used for a variety of tasks, and can be customized to meet the specific needs of each RevOps team. This makes it a versatile tool that can be used to improve a variety of processes. * **Cost-effectiveness:** ChatGPT is a cost-effective tool that can help RevOps teams to save time and money. This can be a significant benefit for small businesses and organizations with limited resources. **Conclusion** ChatGPT is a powerful tool that can be used to improve RevOps processes in Salesforce. By using ChatGPT, RevOps teams can save time, improve accuracy, and gain flexibility. This can lead to improved efficiency, increased productivity, and better decision-making. # Sales Commission Plans {% embed url="" %} **Commission Plans for Revenue Operations** **Overview** Commission plans are a critical component of any revenue operations (RevOps) strategy. They can be used to incentivize sales teams to achieve specific goals, such as increasing revenue, closing deals, or expanding customer accounts. Commission plans can also be used to reward sales teams for their efforts and contributions to the company's success. There are many different types of commission plans that can be used, and the best plan for a particular company will depend on a number of factors, such as the company's size, industry, and sales goals. Some of the most common types of commission plans include: * **Fixed commission rate:** This type of plan pays sales reps a fixed percentage of the revenue they generate. For example, a sales rep might earn a 10% commission on all sales they close. * **Variable commission rate:** This type of plan pays sales reps a commission that varies based on their performance. For example, a sales rep might earn a 5% commission on sales up to $100,000 and a 10% commission on sales over $100,000. * **Residual commission:** This type of plan pays sales reps a commission on the revenue that they generate over a period of time. For example, a sales rep might earn a 5% commission on all sales they close for the first year after the sale is made. * **Team-based commission:** This type of plan pays sales reps a commission based on the performance of their team. For example, a sales rep might earn a 10% commission on all sales closed by their team. **Considerations for Creating a Commission Plan** When creating a commission plan, there are a number of factors that should be considered, including: * **Simplicity:** The commission plan should be easy to understand and administer. * **Results-orientation:** The commission plan should be tied to specific results, such as revenue, closed deals, or expanded customer accounts. * **Incentive:** The commission plan should provide sales reps with an incentive to achieve the desired results. * **Fairness:** The commission plan should be fair to all sales reps and should not favor one rep over another. * **Scalability:** The commission plan should be scalable and able to accommodate the growth of the sales team. * **Protection:** The commission plan should protect the business from paying out commissions on deals that are not profitable. * **Over-performance:** The commission plan should provide sales reps with an opportunity to earn additional compensation for over-performance. **Additional Considerations** In addition to the factors listed above, there are a few other things to keep in mind when creating a commission plan. * **Make sure the commission plan is aligned with the company's overall sales goals.** The commission plan should be designed to help the company achieve its sales goals. * **Communicate the commission plan to sales reps clearly and regularly.** Sales reps need to know what the commission plan is and how it works in order to be motivated to achieve the desired results. * **Monitor the commission plan regularly and make adjustments as needed.** The commission plan should be monitored regularly to ensure that it is working as intended and that it is motivating sales reps to achieve the desired results. **Conclusion** Commission plans are a powerful tool that can be used to incentivize sales teams to achieve specific goals. By following the guidelines outlined in this document, you can create a commission plan that is effective, fair, and scalable. # Building Sales Territories {% embed url="" %} ### Valuing Your Territories for Fair Sales Team Assignments #### Introduction Creating fair sales territories is crucial for ensuring equal opportunities for success among your sales team. The foundation of this process lies in accurately valuing your total addressable market (TAM) by account. This document outlines the key steps involved in valuing territories, enabling you to assign them equitably and effectively. #### Step 1: Define Your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) The ICP is a fundamental framework that helps you identify your best-fit customers. It considers various factors such as industry, company size, revenue, and technology stack. By clearly defining your ICP, you gain a deep understanding of who you are selling to, the problems they face, and their propensity to purchase your offerings. #### Step 2: Identify Data Sources for ICP-Matching Once your ICP is established, the next step is to gather data from reliable sources to identify companies and individuals that align with your ideal customer profile. This step involves mapping out the number of potential customers, their locations, and their potential value to your business. #### Step 3: Create a Valuation Methodology for Accounts This step is the most intricate and judgment-based part of the process. Developing a valuation methodology for accounts requires a combination of quantitative and qualitative factors. You can leverage various frameworks to assist in this process, but ultimately, you must tailor your methodology to align with your specific business goals and offerings. #### Step 4: Value Your Territories With your valuation methodology in place, you can now assign values to your territories. This involves analyzing the data collected in the previous steps to determine the potential revenue and growth opportunities associated with each territory. #### Step 5: Assign Territories to Your Sales Team Based on the valuations, you can now fairly and equitably assign territories to your sales team. This ensures that each salesperson has an equal chance of success and contributes effectively to your overall sales objectives. #### Conclusion By following these steps, you can establish a data-driven and strategic approach to valuing your territories. This enables you to create fair sales territories, optimize your sales team's performance, and drive revenue growth for your business. # Sophie Buonassisi - Venture Capital and GTM {% embed url="" %} ### Outline Summary **Intro** Sophie Buonassisi, a marketer turned investor, joins a discussion centered on venture decision-making and GTM (go-to-market) strategy for B2B SaaS. The exchange frames investing as an art plus science, highlighting the interplay of market waves, founders, and product. The goal: reveal what VCs look for, red flags, and how early signals shape bets. **Center** * **Investment framework: the surfing metaphor** * The *wave* = macro trend and timing (AI, infrastructure, regulatory tailwinds, distribution shifts). * The *surfer* = the founder (vision, tenacity, capability to ride the wave). * The *surfboard* = the product (evolves but must match the wave and surfer). * Early-stage focus: two core elements—**team** and **timing**. When the wave and surfer align, success follows. * Emphasis on opportunism: even strong surfers must catch the right waves. * **Stack ranking and signals** * While all parts matter, the founder remains crucial at precedency/seed stages. * Key signals for the “surfer”: * **Earned secrets**: deep, non-obvious insights into the problem space. * Lived experience (prior founders in the domain) and obsession with the problem. * High agency and relentless execution. * Outstanding references; back-channel signals are especially valuable early. * “Spikiness”: exceptional, not well-rounded, end-of-one strengths. * Real-world examples: founders who built related products or had unique domain feats (e.g., owning a large server infrastructure) illustrate exceptional operator traits. * The core verdict: the founder’s unfair advantage in execution, especially against AI-driven tech declines. * **The surfboard: product and traction signals** * Revenue is helpful but not predictive early on; quality of traction matters more. * Prefer deep engagement with a few customers over broad, loose logos. * Enterprise validation and founder-led sales are strong positives. * Usage depth, retention, and rapid shipping velocity signal product-market fit and GTM capability. * Shipping velocity correlates with learning speed; early teams must iterate rapidly both product- and GTM-wise. * At seed, numerous non-revenue signals can validate market fit and GTM potential. * **Go-to-market and velocity in a changing world** * Engineering is no longer the bottleneck; GTM execution becomes the limiter. * Velocity across product and GTM reduces future risk and unlocks scalable growth. * **Red flags in the process** * The fundraising process itself is a signal: organized, sales-like outreach is essential. * Bad indicators include poor responsiveness, back-channel red flags, or “bridge burning.” * Connection and chemistry with the investor team are critical for a long-term partnership. * **Sophie’s personal journey** * Vancouver roots, global exposure, and a triangle of three anchors: **innovation**, **education**, and **community**. * The belief that life/growth resembles a guiding triangle, with continuous learning and relationship-building at the core. * Current roles: GTM Fund and GTM Now (media), plus a network of 350+ SAS leaders. **Outro** * The wave-surfer-surfboard metaphor resonates as a concise lens for evaluating startups: market momentum, founder earned secrets, and a shipping-capable product. * Early traction signals, especially evangelist customers and enterprise validation, matter more than raw revenue at seed. * The GTM Fund model—hands-on, practitioner-led support across portcos—offers a powerful, in-the-trenches advantage. * Sophie invites connections via LinkedIn, underscoring the value of a collaborative ecosystem for aspiring founders and operators. *** **Notes on structure** * This outline captures the core concepts, signals, and storytelling from the conversation. * The central metaphor is maintained as the organizing device for evaluating early-stage SaaS investments. * Practical takeaways emphasize actionable signals over abstractions, with attention to GTM velocity and founder durability.
Full Transcript Today I'm joined by Sophie Buenosis. Sophie has built her career at the intersection of marketing and growth and\ has brought that expertise to the world of venture. She's part of the team at\ GTM Fund, a venture fund that's all about helping B2B SAS companies scale by\ surrounding founders with the best go-to market operations in the business.\ Sophie brings a unique perspective as both a marketer and an investor, working directly with portfolio companies to\ help them navigate the realities of scaling and winning in a competitive SAS market. I'm excited to dig into her\ insights on what VCs are really looking for in startups and uncover what might be some red flags from an investor\ perspective. Sophie, thank you so much for being here. I'd really love to dive\ right into the topic because I'm so excited to get your perspective on all this and I know our audience is going to\ be excited too. And from an investor perspective, we work really closely with VCs as well. And I know there's always a\ bit of an art and a science to the work that you do, finding the right fits, finding the right companies. But just\ high level, how do you approach the\ decision-m process of making an investment? There's certainly both an art and a\ science to it. You got that right. And we often frame it through a surfer analogy. So there's a wave, surfer, and\ a surfboard. The wave is the macro trend, the why now that creates the\ opportunity. It could be falling AI, infrastructure costs, regulatory\ tailwinds, or new distribution shifts. So without the right wave, the best\ surfer in the world can't necessarily win. The surfer is the founder. Their skill, vision, tenacity to ride that\ wave. And the surfboard is the product. super important, but a little bit more flexible as naturally it will evolve and\ adapt over time. At the early stage, it really comes down to two things, team\ and timing. You can have a great team and the wrong timing or a massive wave and the wrong surfer and neither works.\ Like the magic really happens when both line up. Yeah, I love that metaphor because it\ makes a ton of sense. and some things aren't completely in certain people's control. So, they do have to be\ opportunistic. Just like a surfer out there trying to catch the biggest wave for a surf competition, you do need all\ of those working in tandem. I'm curious, do you have any way of like stack\ ranking these? If you were to think which one might be more important than the other or which combinations might\ you want to index towards, how do you think about that when you're evaluating potential investments? They are all\ incredibly incredibly helpful when we think about stack ranking them. I mean\ the founder is always incredibly incredibly important but especially at the precedency stage. So that is\ certainly one of the most important important parts. If I were to go through\ the signals that we look for in that surfer overall there's a couple key things. Number one would be earned\ secrets. So founders who have stumbled upon a deep non-obvious insight into the\ problem space. Sometimes it's through lived experience like we've got Mark Andre of Gaia, a portfolio company who\ built and sold his own ISP and then created the software to run it. Sometimes it's obsession like founders\ who just dive so deeply into a problem that they discover truths that others might have missed.\ Always high agency, relentless personalities, that's a big one. people like Mayh Khabib of writer who just\ simply will not stop until they figure it out. Outstanding references, of course, an\ important one. Back channel references matter more at the seed stage than later stages because it's one of the cleanest\ data sets that we actually have on a person's ability to execute. And then I'd say spikiness. And we're\ not looking for founders who are well-rounded and everything. We really want end of one people who are world\ class at something. The one founder we backed um Adam from owner he ran the\ world's largest Minecraft server as a teenager. That kind of obsessive unique\ achievement is a signal of an exceptional operator. And ultimately while vertical thesces matter the\ equation matter the deciding factor for the surfer is whether a founder has an\ unfair advantage in execution because ultimately tech modes are declining\ especially now with AI. It really is your go-to market strategy and exec\ execution that determines whether you win or not. I think that's so true and it's\ something we've been talking about on the podcast quite a bit where the barrier to entry to build a SAS product\ before just used to be so high. You need teams and teams of engineers. It would take months if not years of development\ before you had something that was even at an MVP level. Then it required investment. you couldn't even really get\ started unless you had a significant amount of investment in the early side. But you're right, now the barriers of\ entry are much lower. More people can get involved in the game, which I think is a good thing. I think it means we're\ going to get even more creativity and better products. The competition is going to be higher and the ones that\ make it to your point will be executing at the highest level. um not maybe they\ had some unfair advantage to get started a little bit earlier, but the ones who can really execute. I want to double click on this because I I feel like this\ is such a cool way to to frame it and think about it when you're talking about earned secrets\ that I've never heard it phrased that way. Um, but I think it's really explanatory of why some founders have\ that secret sauce and just seem to like skip potholes and move faster, higher\ velocity versus others that might get stuck earlier on. I'm curious if you could dive a little bit deeper into\ where those earn secrets come from and maybe some good examples you've had with founders you've worked with before, too.\ You bet. Earn Secrets, we iterated upon a starting point which was more of a\ repeat founder. I think that's what you'll typically hear from VCs is we like to back repeat founders. And don't\ get me wrong, that is certainly a signal, but we've evolved that to be earned secrets because we're seeing more\ and more now that it's not necessarily about your track record because of AI,\ because of a lot of these these new developments like you called out around product not being the barrier anymore.\ It really is that distribution or that earned secret, if you will, that creates\ the leverage. And there's two things I mentioned them uh a little earlier but\ overall would be you know lived experience and obsession. So lived experience to break that down even\ further would be someone who has been there done that maybe they've founded a company in the space so they've worked\ intimately in it. They've operated in the space and so they have this whole network and know everyone you know Mark\ Gaia and Fastreak a lot of our companies are people who have founded companies\ before and so they've got that lived experience of the problem. They felt it so deeply. You know, we've got founders\ that created a product to solve a use case and pain point that their mom was\ having and things like that where they really felt the pain intimately. When it's the obsession part of the track,\ that's where founders for whatever reason just get really obsessed with the problem space and accordingly build the\ solution. And so we've got, for example, you know, two incredible founders building the product's called anything.\ and it overall helps you create mobile and web apps just through text. It\ launched just a couple weeks ago. They had over three million views, over 500,000 users within 4 days. And neither\ of them were founders before. They were simply technical builders who are obsessed with democratizing access to\ building. And so that would be an example of the other part which is the obsession. So lived experience\ obsession. I love that. And speaking as a founder myself, I definitely before starting\ Lean Scale um felt the pain at a visceral level for the type of work that\ we do helping B2B ventureback startups scale quickly with rev ops, sales ops,\ marketing ops, and I was the person in seat. I'm in a VP of ops role, not able\ to do my job because I don't have the right technical expertise. I don't have the roadmap to do what I need to do\ next. The space changes so frequently and there's so many go to market tools too. I just felt like I never had a\ partner there with me and I had to figure it out all on my own. Um, and I\ think knowing that and feeling that pain, it just one, you know there so you know\ it's real. You're not guessing. You're not trying to like see if this is a problem or not. But also when you're\ talking to somebody about it, you can speak with deep conviction because you have felt that pain and the other part\ earn secrets too for us and for me personally yeah I was a VP of revops at\ three companies before stepping into the role. So I already had a network. I had worked with investors before. They had\ seen my work at their port codes. That helped us get into a lot of deals at the early stage. And without that, it would\ have been very, very, very difficult to get that early traction. And from a\ personal experience, I had two kids when I started Lean Scale. So I had to make sure that, hey, this thing needs to make\ some revenue and get some traction before I quit my full-time job and hop all time into this. So I also had that\ level of pressure where I need to get this working early. I can't take too much time to see if it kicks off later.\ Yeah. Well, that's a great example. That's a fantastic example of, you know, the visceral pain and clearly the the\ positive impact and outcome as you know lean scale just just booming.\ Well, I think that's an excellent just framework to think about the surfer and\ they can be out there. I mean, you do when you're earlier on, you do have time to pivot a little bit. So, you can take\ a look at what those waves are and adjust if you need to. And if you have the right surfer, I think um I think you\ can really have confidence that when there's challenges, because there will be, they'll be able to figure it out.\ Now, definitely. And so if I were to actually stack rank them, I know we went deep on\ the surfer, it would be the surfer first, the wave, and then the surfboard.\ Though they all matter, and they're synergistic. From a replacement, you know, a wave can come at different\ frequencies, different times. It might take two years for the right wave to come, but if you don't have the right\ surfer in place, whether it's six months or 18 months down the line, they're not going to be able to surf.\ That's absolutely right. And I sometimes these really good waves like there's for\ a lot of people the AI wave right now is maybe making certain things easier for\ them to be successful at least in the early stage. So, you might have some decent surfers that are carrying that\ wave, but those waves will come and go and will they be able to do this as a\ 10-year journey and, you know, keep up and follow the next wave and do this in a repeatable way because I remember when\ I started Lean Skill, some of the advice founders gave me is you think it's hard now when you start, it only gets harder\ as you grow. Every stage just gets even more difficult. It doesn't get easier. And I remember thinking, "Wow, this is\ pretty hard right now." So, I can't imagine it getting harder. Uh, but it's true. And so, you have to have somebody who's resilient can make it through\ those next stages of growth and adapt as the markets change and they have new waves that they need to go catch\ a thousand%. And that's where the lived experience and obsession comes in because it doesn't get easier. And so\ you need to have that level of obsession at the core or interest and passion behind the topic to keep going and keep\ persevering through. 100%. Now tell me about the surfboard.\ So if it looks like, hey, we have a decent wave, there's a lot of market backing going on right here, we have a\ good surfer, um they have the earned secrets, they have the experience. Now, when you're looking at the surfboard\ itself and you're looking at the product, you're looking at the company and I know I I know you're focused\ pretty early stage, so sometimes you may not have all of these like amazing repeatable metrics where you could just\ hop into their CRM and figure out what's going on, but what what gives you some confidence that they're getting traction\ and what are some positive signals? You know, people always ask about revenue.\ Mhm. And revenue is nice, but it's not predictive. We'd rather see 100k from 10\ deeply aligned customers who rave about your product than, you know, 500k from more of a bit of a grab bag of unaligned\ logos. In fact, sometimes we we take 10 design partners who aren't paying anything as long as they tell us, you\ know, they'd essentially die if your product went away over say a half million of looser revenue because that's\ more predictive of product market fit. And so, yes, revenue is always better,\ but like you said, we're quite early. You know, preede oftentimes is pre-product. And at seed, it's the\ quality of the traction that matters more than the number. There's a couple other non-tangible signals too. You\ know, revenue is always the big one people ask about, but other things that we look for are enterprise validation\ when it makes sense for an enterprise motion. Like one of our portfolio companies, Atrix, for example, closed a\ seven figure deal preundra. It's pretty compelling. Yes. Uh founder sales is another one of\ course. So count can the founders sell the vision themselves? Usage and depth.\ Usage, depth, and retention. So even if it's a small cohort, our users engage\ daily, weekly, monthly. And last, shipping velocity is a big one because\ there is a extremely strong correlation between great companies and speed of iteration. So fast shipping pretty much\ equals fast learning. And if a team is slow to ship early, it is a little bit\ of a concern. So when we see teams that are shipping quickly, it is indicative of them being able to move quickly and\ accordingly learn quickly. So bottom line I'd say just to underpin it all\ though is you know at seed we're not we're not really asking acute points like how much revenue we're really\ asking does this traction predict that you'll find product market fit. Yeah, I\ love that. And I think some companies might not know, especially if they're starting out, especially if they're\ first-time founders, how valuable some of those signals might be. Um, and just\ getting the confidence, hey, if your early customers are really excited about your product, if you're able to, I think\ that's a huge sign. If you're able to sell into an enterprise company, it's not easy for them to buy things. So, if\ you're able to convince an enterprise customer to, you know, take a leap of faith on your product, I think that's a\ huge signal. Um, and I do think all of those subjective things are really,\ really good early signs. And I love that you highlight shipping philosophy because going back to what we were talking about earlier, it's only going\ to get harder. It's only going to get harder for your product and your customers are only going to demand more\ and be completely bombarded by your competitors every single day showing\ their new approaches and new things that they're launching. And I think that velocity with AI in the mix is only\ going to become even more important. So before like these big monumental things\ that you could start to adapt your product to would come out, you know, every year, every two years. Now it\ feels like there's a new thing that you can really get out of your product in a matter of months. Like there's a new\ model to use. There's a new way to code that's different. Um there's a whole new ecosystem of things that you need to be\ integrating to or working with. It feels like to keep up you have to be moving so\ much faster than companies before. Absolutely. And at the early stage too a\ lot of the time you haven't built out your go to market and so you're shipping on the product side. you've got a small\ go to market motion, maybe it's design partners, but your shipping velocity on\ the product side will be indicative of your ability to ship on the go to market side too. It's just a holistic speed of\ execution that you have. And so it is helpful to be able to see can they execute at the highest level on the go\ to market side because ultimately tech modes are declining. Engineering is no longer the bottleneck like it used to\ be. Really the bottleneck now is going to be more of your goto market strategy and execution. So that shipping velocity\ gives us confidence not only in the product iteration which is incredibly incredibly important but also in their\ ability to execute on the go to market side as they grow in future. Yeah, there's plenty of iteration to be\ happening there too and that's exactly why we partner with companies because people what I find I find it funny\ sometimes um just because I've been in the problem for long enough but like okay great um when my systems are all\ set up and done like then like you guys will be gone and we'll be good to go forever. Not even close.\ as your company's growing and changing, you add new products, new SKs, new sales teams, new ways of getting leads, new\ channels, like every single day there's new tools that come out on the market that can help you get an edge, every\ single day there's something to iterate on your go to market. Um, and the job is never done. And just like on the product\ side, it only gets harder and more difficult as you scale. Exactly. I think you'll hear more and\ more at least we hear more and more at the BC side and through our media even is people's biggest regret was not\ investing in Robops earlier and so it is you know not something that you can\ implement and you know boom band-aid fix later don't need it really is this needs\ to be your foundation it's the foundation that fuels your entire go to market strategy and it's going to have\ to grow with your go to market strategy as you get new channels and everything so we uh we definitely lean pretty heavy\ on that side with our portfolio companies. Yeah, I'd love to hear it. And the ones that that do really well, you're\ maximizing future investment opportunities, you're maximizing your growth, you're maximizing your decision- making ability. So, I think making the\ right calls and then just having the visibility, um it makes all the difference when you're on that journey.\ Absolutely. So, we talked a lot about positive things, um, positive signals that you\ see, and I know you're probably talking to hundreds and hundreds of companies,\ and hearing ideas all the time, meeting with new founders all the time. What are some red flags when you're in the\ process? When you're working with a founder, you're running the process. What are some big major red flags that\ you run into that maybe make you question doing a deal or not?\ Maybe not a red flag, but more of a preface to the red flags. And I'll get into the specifics, but is that overall\ process is a signal. And if you don't run your process well, there can be red flags in there because how you run your\ fund raise is indicative of how you'll run your company. So if a founder is unorganized or unresponsive during the\ fundra that that's a bad sign for us at least that gives us a little bit of unease because fundraising is just go to\ market pointed at investors. The best founders run it like a sales process. You know they build a target investor\ list. They mapworm intros and champions. They tailor their pitches to different firms decision processes. They run\ discipline funnels from intro to close. They they get it. They run the process just like their goto market execution.\ So when we watch a company's or founders's process, we're not just evaluating them. We're also seeing how\ they run a sales a partnerships a customer acquisition process.\ That's really really enlightening. I don't think I've ever really thought of it that way, but showing showing how\ they run the process as a huge signal of how they run go to market and showing what the future of that go to market\ motion would or could look like. Not only is it potentially like making the process difficult, but also shedding\ light on everything else. I don't know if a lot of founders are going into\ their processes thinking of it that way. like, hey, this is an opportunity to show off how I'm going to do everything\ at our company. I I don't know. I don't know if they do. I don't think so either, but it's definitely one of the biggest pieces of\ advice we would we would recommend to anyone. And it's a lot of people run it incredibly well and and some people\ could use some tightening up in areas, but overall it is such a fundamental important part of the process. So that\ can have some red flags in it. doesn't necessarily is more of more of I would\ say the overall most important part of thinking about red flags because that is your entire end to end process. Now\ there's areas within that process that can give red flags you know negative references of course uh back channeling\ uncovers a lot it's a huge huge you know channel and important factor like I mentioned earlier for early stage in\ particular just gives us that data set on somebody in their lived experience and if prior colleagues consistently\ flag concerns you know it is a little bit tougher to ignore that. The others are again a little bit more um obvious\ things if you will but really important things and things that we still see all the time. So bridge burning in the industry you know the venture ecosystem\ is is small and even if you're right it is rarely worth burning bridges. So\ aggressiveness completely fine but overplaying your hand. So for example, expressing that you need a answer by a\ certain date like a really short date, Friday for example, is usually obvious if it's not true uh because it can\ easily be back channelneled and everyone on the venture ecosystem is in talks and coordinating together. So that would be\ one area. And then the last one is of course rapport. You know, one of the most important things we at least view\ this as a 10 plus year relationship. And if we don't like each other or you know you don't like me or us like the\ partnership won't work as well. And so chemistry and mutual respect really matter. Yeah. And I have seen that play out. So\ I won't name any names or try to give any insights but I have worked with some\ VCs where it felt like hey we're really really strong partners. I felt like I've\ completely unlocked perspectives and learned a ton and they helped me skip\ roadblocks and skip potholes and just have added tremendous value. And then\ other ones where I felt like it was a chore to work together. And I don't\ know, maybe they felt that way about me, too. So that's okay. But I think just that rapport is more important than I\ think some people might realize because this could turn into an incredible partnership that unlocks your future\ growth stages. You know, having those adviserss there for your next round of funding for running an exit process.\ Like you want to have people in your corner when it matters most and people that you trust. So sometimes like\ indexing towards other aspects of the partnership. Um but not having that part dialed in I I think can be a big miss\ definitely and same goes for hiring internally right the extent that you have a cohesive relationship with anyone\ that you're building with especially at that early stage you know your co-founder same thing with your investors kind of think of them at the\ early stage like your co-founders they're in the trenches with you you know they are on your team and so that\ relationship is just incredibly important yeah and I I love bridge burning, negative references,\ like just be a good human. Uh go take care of people. That's what it all boils down to.\ Yeah, it's going to go out. People want to work with people of high integrity. And of course, you're going to have to make tough decisions. You're going to\ have to people will need to get fired. You'll have to break partnerships. You'll have to do that. But always try\ to do it in a way that keeps your integrity high and, you know, leaves\ doors open as as needed. Definitely. I've been learning a ton on\ this whole conversation. I know everybody listening is going to be learning a ton as well and your perspective is just really insightful. I\ always love just figuring out where people came from. So, how I'd love to hear how you got into the type of work\ that you're doing, what attracts you to it, what you find exciting about it, and\ just the quick story of Sophie. Yeah. Yeah. Happy to share. You've got a\ little slice of Vancouver here behind me. So, uh that's where I'm from. I'm residing there. Yeah. Nice sunny day for\ us. But spent a couple years living abroad in Europe and came back to Vancouver a\ few years ago, though we're often on the road be just being a US fund and we invest globally. But growing up here in\ Vancouver, I played competitive soccer. And what I kind of realized through that was it wasn't actually the sport itself\ that drove me. It was really the process. And I realized that after leaving and\ just getting so interested, curious about many other things and being the only one not playing soccer anymore and\ things like that. But a coach once told me, "Fall in love with the process." And that stuck with me. That idea of just\ getting 1% better every day of embracing the journey more than the outcome.\ That's something that I've applied to everything in my life. And that perspective has helped me see patterns\ of what I was naturally drawn to and what I was borderline obsessive about. And there's three things, innovation,\ education, and community. And so I've explored each of these in different ways over the years. You know, working with\ tech companies that are pushing the boundaries of innovation. I joined a startup incubator, spent a couple um\ years, close to a decade, actually involved in global education, nonprofit. Even things like cultivating community\ locally through, you know, group dinners and hikes. All of these threads might\ look nonlinear on the surface, but together they really shaped a path that led me me here and to our conversation\ today and to where I am in the venture ecosystem with GTM Fund and our media brand GTM now because those are right at\ the intersection of the three things that I've always been drawn to. They're the anchors, innovation, education, and\ community. So innovation now you know I get to help founders as they push the boundaries of technology on the\ education side we're building GTM now it's our media brand which makes insights accessible to anyone anywhere\ in the world similar to what you're doing with your incredible YouTube channel and finally community right\ we're cultivating a network of over 350 of the best SAS leaders in the world as LPs and another ecosystem of go to\ market operators and founders and investors who subscribe to our content so there is you know Those three areas\ have all converged into one role, which is is pretty cool. And I like to think\ of life not as a straight line, but more as a triangle in terms of the areas of\ interest for anyone. And I say life because the things in your triangle,\ they may be careered, but they might not. Regardless, they're just life. And\ so I call it a guiding triangulation framework whenever I'm, you know, helping and and coaching anyone. even\ though it could probably use the catch your name and it just simply starts with reflecting. So asking yourself what are\ the things you're coming back to with curiosity? What's consistently energizing you or bringing you joy? And\ just writing those down looking for patterns and you know there might be things like commu creating a digital\ community of goto market professionals or a media channel like you are right and hosting quarterly dinners super\ different different audiences but both are rooted in community at the core. So\ through that exercise, you'll kind of see the anchors for yourself and those those forces that just keep pulling you\ back again and again, no matter what stage you're in. Um, and so for me, those are innovation, education, and\ community. And anyone's might be completely different, but it's been a really cool guiding principle for me to\ find what is fulfilling at the deepest level and a role now that sits right at\ the middle of of all three of those areas. I love it. and you know when you're in\ the right spot and you feel everything clicking. Um it's like magic is happening, work is easy, life is easy.\ Um because the things that you enjoy doing are naturally adding value to everyone around you. And it's just it's\ a really good synergy for some people. I've gone through seasons of this in the past too. If you feel like, hey, work is\ just a chore every day or it's really tough. you know, I feel like I'm putting in so much more effort, but not moving\ mountains as much as I feel like I should be. Um, then yeah, going back to your triangle and seeing like what\ you're interested in. I think that's a great framework to be thinking about it because I think everybody has a uniqueness and when you can get that\ uniqueness in a place that also creates value, it's a really beautiful thing.\ Absolutely. Well, Sophie, this has been awesome. Thank you so much. Just to recap, when\ you're out in the market, you're talking to hundreds and hundreds of startups and founders every single day. And I loved\ the metaphor of the wave, the surfer, the surfboard, making sure you have\ market momentum, making sure you have a founder that has the earned secrets. I think that's probably the favorite thing\ that I've pulled from this talk today. Um, and then the surfboard is just ready there to catch the wave and then and\ then catch the ride. Um, I think a lot of what you're mentioning too about,\ hey, what does that early traction look like? It's not always revenue. It doesn't always show up exactly like that. But if you have equal revenue, but\ this population over here, your customers are just absolute evangelists of your product. You have people saying\ that they just couldn't survive without what you're doing. You're shipping iterations at a high velocity. Like,\ that's what traction really looks like and can be more predictive. And I think that's a really good framework for any\ for any founder that's listening to this or anybody who's working at a startup like making sure you're focused on those\ things your product your customers how are you doing everything you can to add the most value and also I have to say go\ to market fund is everywhere and I've only heard good things from any of your port codes from any of the LPs which is\ a really unique thing like having actual people in the trenches and go to market\ being LPs in the fund. So, they have such an incentive to just give all their expertise and shared experience to your\ port codes. That's unbelievably valuable. There's so much that I wish I would have had or been able to tap into\ earlier in my career and I just love the mission you guys have and how you're approaching taking your port to the next\ level. So, if anyone's listening who's looking for a partner, um I would definitely check out GTM Fund. I think\ they're incredible. And of course, Sophie, what's the best way to get in touch with you?\ Best way to get in touch is through LinkedIn. Feel free to shoot me a note. Happy to help. Jump on a call, answer\ any kind of questions. And overall, Anthony, really appreciate the conversation. Appreciate all that you do in the ecosystem on the venture side for\ us, for our VC partners, just incredible. And like I said, RevOps is is people's biggest regret later on. So,\ we're trying to help people understand the importance of it earlier and earlier. You've been a great partner on it.\ Preventing regrets. That's what we're here doing here at Lanskale. So awesome. Well, thank you so much, Sophie.\ Tagline. Appreciate you doing this and um can't wait to catch up soon.\ Thank you, Anthony.
# Guy Rubin - GTM, Sales, Marketing, and Revenue Operations Benchmarks {% embed url="" %} ### 2025 Benchmark Report Insights — Outline Summary **Intro** * This transcript records a live discussion at Dreamforce about the 2025 benchmark update for B2B SaaS sales. The speakers emphasize real-time data, ICP qualification, and operational improvements. They stress the value of in-person sharing after a remote session, and aim to empower sales leaders with actionable metrics to raise performance across their teams. **Center** * *Scope and data foundation* * Analyzed **440,000 opportunities** representing over **$43B** in revenue. * Surveyed **118 CROs** on ICP definitions and practices. * Focus: trends in win rates, average deal value (ACV), sales cycles, quota attainment, and velocity. * *Key headline trends* * **Win rates**: slight decline vs. last year. * **Average deal value (ACV)**: surged up front (≈54% rise year-start) but growth cooled; first-half increase under 2%. * **Sales cycles**: lengthening modestly after a prior dip. * **Quota attainment**: about **75% of sellers miss quota**—a critical efficiency risk. * *Sales velocity and performance gaps* * Top performers handle roughly **3x as many deals** as average sellers; ACV is nearly **2x higher**; win rates \~**50% higher**; cycles are \~**40% shorter**. * The velocity gap yields a large delta in revenue potential; leaders should codify top performers’ practices to lift the rest. * *Efficiency and causes* * **Sales efficiency** down by \~**13%** due to higher ACV, lower win rates, and longer cycles. * Contributing factors: more buyers on committees, mid-market leaps, and longer decision cycles. * Recommendation: diagnose where to intervene (deal quality, process, or enablement) to recover efficiency quickly. * *Consistency, data integrity, and governance* * Only about **14%** of sellers generate the majority of new logo revenue; major allocation inefficiency. * Emphasis on universal, consistent deal reviews and a single truth for data—data governance as a prerequisite for insights, benchmarks, and credible AI outputs. * *ICP, qualification, and full-cycle selling* * ICP clarity is uneven; two-thirds of CROs report low confidence in ICP definitions. * The trend toward **full-cycle selling** improves outcomes: \~38% higher win rates when sellers influence top-of-funnel and maintain post-sale relationships. * Renewal/expansion dynamics: senior executives (SEA-level) pre-renewal QBRs dramatically boost cross-sell/up-sell likelihood; poor senior engagement raises churn risk. * *Top-of-funnel channels and expansion strategy* * Warm channels (partners, community, referrals) outperform outbound and paid search. * Expansion from existing accounts now surpasses new logo revenue for the first time; engagement with C‑level stakeholders correlates with higher lifetime value (LTV) and lower churn. * *Discovery discipline and qualification rigor* * Top performers are more disciplined about discovery—both in questioning and in logging in the system of record. * AI excels at capturing and scoring data, but human sellers must drive meaningful conversations; logging should be automated to preserve consistency. * *Practical actions and leadership guidance* * Establish a data-driven, granular ICP with personas and pains—not just markets. * Benchmark and normalize qualification across teams; do not let data quality weaken forecast reliability. * Invest in consistent deal reviews, gating criteria, and early “kill fast” discipline to avoid late-stage slips. **Outro** * A closing reminder: scan the QR code to download the Edge One update for free, and apply the insights to improve ICP sharpening, ruthless deal qualification, and predictability. * The speakers thank the audience, committing to continued, in-person collaboration and ongoing sharing of future benchmarks. The core takeaway: refine ICP with precision, standardize qualification, and drive efficiency for better revenue outcomes.
Full Transcript Guys, so excited to be here with you. We are doing a podcast on the road. We just got off the Dream Force trade show floor and there's so much going on especially around AI agents. I don't think I've heard the words AI and agents more than in the last 24 hours. So, it's been an amazing show already. And today we're going to be talking about the 2025 benchmark report. We're going to be diving deep into the stats and all of the latest trends that we are seeing. So guys, super excited to dive deep in it. Really happy that we're able to do this in person. Uh last time we did it remote, but out here in San Francisco for Dreamforce, had to take the opportunity. No, I really appreciate it. And uh it's lovely to share the latest updates with the community. Um, so every year we do the benchmark port kind of January, February time and then this time of year we do an H1 update where we dive deeper into very specific topics and and this year the topics that everyone's talking about are qualification um and um ICP. So it's uh we're going to take everyone through the latest data that we've seen from from uh from all the data that we've been analyzing over the last year. Amazing. Anyone who is in B2B, SAS, tech, if you have a sales team, these benchmarks will really help you know if your team is competing on the level you expect and then some of the tactical ways you can improve them. So guy, I think it'd be great if we just hop into some of the insights and then we can chat about each one. Sounds good. Right. Okay. So I'm going to jump in and uh and and start uh take you through the latest data. So we literally launched this uh this report two days ago while we're here at Dreamforce. So uh let's go straight ahead. So um first of all just to kind of set the scene uh to produce the latest updates we analyzed 440,000 opportunities uh that represented over $43 billion worth of revenue. So lots of data, lots of analysis in there. It's a huge set. We also did uh a survey um of 118 CRO as well uh talking about ICP. So we're going to dive into their responses. So hopefully that's useful for the community as well. So uh there's t there's s up the top. What are the headlines uh of the data that we're looking at? Um we can see that win rates have dropped slightly um compared to this time last year. Uh it's not a massive drop but it has dropped slightly. Um now at the beginning of the year the average deal values were much much higher than the the um uh than they were the year before. We saw a 54% increase in average deal values. So everyone was moving much much more up market. Uh we've seen that trend continue. Uh there's a slight increase in average deal values but it's slowed down a lot. So we're now just less than 2% increase in average deal values in the first six months of the year. Um then when we look at average sales cycles again they take a little bit longer um not a huge jump but uh uh they'd actually dropped uh last year and they've now taken a little bit longer. We can see that in the data. Um but the the the data points that are most concerning is that 3/4 of sellers are still missing quotota. Wow. Okay. And that's just not sustainable. And and when we look at it and dive into it, we talk a lot about sales velocity. As you know, I'm a big fan of that data point things. um the the the velocity the delta between our top performers and our average sellers now is trending at nearly 11x. So uh uh that's something that we can all work on and and try and bring our B players up to a player standard. Yeah, absolutely. And I think if for context, I mean only a couple points lower on conversion and a little bit more time on cycle scaled across a large organization that has a huge impact. So, anytime you can just make a few small adjustments, you'll see massive value across your whole go to market t um I think your deal velocity uh or the velocity metric that you track really sums that up really well, but just those small adjustments can have a huge impact. Yeah, absolutely. And and so people always ask about this sales velocity data point that we so um I always like to share it to give people for some visibility and kind of break down in a bit more detail. Um so what we can see here is that um our top performers are now working on nearly three times more deals than the average sellers. Well, okay. And and um and the ACB that they're working on is nearly twice as large. Um while their win rates are nearly 50% higher. Um and then if you combine that with the average sales cycle is is 40% shorter. Uh that's where if you bring that all together, that's where that delta is coming from. So there's so much inefficiency within our sales teams and and what we all see is these kind of uh outstanding top performers and then this long tale of underperformers uh and and what we need to do as leaders is help those underperformers to to replicate what the best practices are that the top the top performers just know in their heads, right? We need to systemize that and our job as leaders is to bring everybody along that journey. Yeah. And if you can do that with just a you know again it doesn't take a lot of uh game to have a huge revenue impact. Exactly. Exactly. And and what we find is that when you turn these insights into pictures for your organization very quickly, everybody that wants in the sales team, they want to win. And when you can show them, look, here's how the top performers are doing this. This is how what they're doing to win faster. Okay. Then everybody else wants to kind of come along on that journey, right? Okay. So, uh we also talk about this efficiency uh data point as well this year. So, uh we can see the sales efficiency is actually dropping and that's a concern. Um and again, there's a calculation as to how that's created. Um, and we look at the while average deal values have gone up slightly, the win rates have dropped and the average sales cycle is taking longer. And when you bring all that together, we can see that the sales efficiency now has dropped by nearly 13%. Do you think there's anything in particular that's driving these metrics? Do you think there is anything that is causal that is making the efficiency metric drop that much? Well, I think you break it down by the individual points, right? So, um, deal banners jumped dramatically last year. So, we've already had that leap into kind of mid-market, everyone's kind of trying to sell larger deals to to much larger businesses. Uh, but we can see that with the win rates dropping um and South is just taking a little bit longer. It's it's a real challenge in the market. I think there's a number of issues here. I think there's a lot of change going on. Um, and budgets are uh there's the the buying committee is getting larger again. Um, and that's a concern because it just takes longer to get everyone bought in than getting the deals done. Yeah, that makes a ton of sense. Yeah. and you get more people in in the budget decision, more people to say no, extends it and then efficiency drops quite a bit. A 12% drop is pretty significant. It's material. Yeah. And and so start understanding your data points and and you'll understand which of the data points you need to work on is it would be my my takeaway. Okay. So let's have a look at the um the data itself. Um one of the biggest challenges that CRO are facing at the moment is that just 14% of their sellers are now generating 80% of their new logo revenue. Okay, so that's insane. that is and and frankly not sustainable, right? I mean, we all live in that world. You're investing a lot of money into people who either I'm sure there's a component where you didn't make the right decisions on hiring, but also just mainly probably not equipping them with what they need to be successful and then replicating what's going on with the top performers so that way they can increase their sales efficiency. Um, but that's a much bigger gap than I think people realize. Yeah, I agree. And the challenge we got is um we need it really shouldn't matter who the seller is or who the manager is. Every pipeline inspection meeting should be consistent. Everyone should be asked the same questions. Everyone should be uh uh using the same benchmarks when they're doing their uh their pipe reviews. And that's just not happening. Yeah. People are spending far too much time with happy ears or talking about the deals that going well, not focusing on stuff that's slipping. Um and and then when it comes to forecasting, um you know, not all deals are equal. uh you know, if if the deals match ICP, you're going to get a better win rate. Um if there's a momentum through the deal process, you're going to have a higher a higher win rate as well. And if you're still managing your pipeline or your forecast based on kind of stage gates, um uh um then you're never going to get accurate forecasts, right? So, uh yeah, there's a lot more that can be done, lots of inconsistency, but if if if it was one word I wanted to to to communicate this month, it's about introducing that level of consistency across the board. find ways of of making uh of reviewing every deal in the same format irrelevant to who the seller is all the manager and it takes a lot of work to do that. I mean you have to have the right tools in place to make it happen and u be really diligent with the process. So it's not it usually an easy thing. there's a lot of um change management that can take place to implement that but it's so important and it could impact the revenue so much so quickly right and and what we find is it's not difficult but it it but there's no shortcuts right so you know we have to start with good consistent maintained up-to-ate data okay I know it's boring but we've got to get the data thing solved right and and we can't live in a world where the sellers are responsible for maintaining the data it just doesn't work we you know whether it's AI or machine learning you need an engine responsible for keeping the data consistent and if you're if you're living in a world where the leadership team don't agree that the data represents the the truth, you only have one truth that everyone agrees to, you're not the racist, right? Okay. But if you can solve the data issue, then you can convert that data into insights that can then be converted into benchmarks and then we all can agree what what what the expectations are at every stage of a sales cycle. Yeah, I think um you mentioned it earlier and I'm excited to dive into this, but uh really focusing on ICP the qualification. So once you have the data, once you have some standards on what the data is and you agree on where you're seeing the numbers move, knowing that, hey, these are two areas where I can really really make an impact. Yeah, we could train our sellers a little bit differently. We can adjust where marketing is uh spending their investments so that way we can get this efficiency metric back to our agency. Yeah, I think that's spot on. And and and if you can't measure it, then you're not going to be able to change it quickly. So you need that visibility. Okay, let's crack on. Well, one of the other data points we saw from the data from the uh from the insights that I thought was really interesting is how much we've moved towards a um a full cycle sales motion now. So, we can see nearly half of the businesses have are expecting their sellers to have some sort of influence on top of funnel. So, generating their own opportunities and then continue to own some level of the relationship after the deals are signed. Yeah. And that's a big departure. You know, we we go back to the old days of of you know the the Salesforce approach to life. everyone was a kind of single purpose vehicle and customers will pass from one to the next to the next. Oh, we got to run through the sales socket. We got the hunter farmer model and then everything in between. Um, but I think there was so much pressure for companies to get more efficient with their sales team that you just simply couldn't afford to have all these specialists. You need that person to be more dynamic. I also thought the service buyer, right? And you know, the buyer has a role to play here. Okay. Um, and you know, the buyer never gets handed over as well as you'd expect them to. Yeah. Um and you know just a point where they built a relationship with the seller all of a sudden now they're asked to work with someone that they not they don't work with before. It's not that we just uh that we we it's a fashionable thing to move from single purpose vehicles through to full cycle selling. We can actually see in the data that the sellers are have a 38% higher win rates when uh when they take on this this kind of full cycle approach. And so it it actually has a big impact on the numbers. The customer gets a much better experience because they got one person looking after them through the whole customer journey. I'm curious your perspective too on and if this comes up in the day as well on the renewals, upsells, expansions if you have that full that full sales cycle uh seller involved in those, do we see them outperform the classic CSM managing the revenue model? Yeah. So there's a number of things that are influencing that, right? So first of all, um we know that in B2V sales, uh relationships are still driving. Yeah. Okay. So what we need to do is maintain the right relationships with the right uh with the right people at the customer end. And and so for example we saw that um if the customer um if the last two QVRs before the renewal are done at the sea level uh we are four times more likely to open up a cross sale up selling with a 45% win rate and uh sorry seven times more likely to open up a crossell top with 45% win rate. Oh wow. Um, but if the if the two QBRs before the renewal had done it below the seauite, we're now four time likely to churn a customer. Yeah. And you really need someone senior and able to navigate those relationships to be able to keep that relationship going, get into the seuite and then capsule out. Yeah. In fact, we've got some data on that as well. So, um, we we'll jump into that. uh the um I wanted to talk a little bit about topofunnel and what we can see um yeah unsurprisingly that the the channel that that's uh performing the best are are the warmest leads. So the partner channel, the community channel, yeah, the referrals, those are the channels that are giving us the best return. Um and we're seeing the outbound teams are are really struggling. Oh yeah. Um and uh you know paid search is also um not giving us the same results as it used to. So you really want to understand attribution. If you can understand where your leads are coming from, you can you can really start to double down on the on the channels that work. Now the the partner channel is phenomenal, but it takes time. It takes a lot of time. Uh so yeah, and not everybody has the stomach for it. Agreed. And yeah, you can be six months in and it's not performing. It's not getting you any results. Keep keep going. You know, keep doing those experiments. And my what I encourage you to think about is don't go too broad to start with on the partner travel. you know, pick three or four partners that you really want to work with and go deep with them. You know, work it out. You know, break the back of that before you start to go broad. Yeah, makes sense. Totally agree. Great. So, as you mentioned earlier, one of the really interesting data points was that um over half of the revenue now isn't coming from new logos. Sorry, only over half of the new revenue isn't just coming from new logos. It's coming from existing accounts expansion. Um so, don't underestimate the value of looking after those existing accounts. um because there's so much revenue use unlocked within those accounts. That's a massive difference. So, do we happen to have a benchmark of what that looked like over time and are we seeing the mix of revenue indexing more towards existing customers this year? Yeah, much more. Yeah. So, um it's the first time it's ever been more than new revenue. Wow. So, okay. Um that is a that's a big milestone. I I'll be curious to see what happens next year um as we look at the data. But, um yeah, it's such a material part of their business. If you don't have emotions about expansion, um you're leaving money on tape. And as I mentioned earlier, um maintaining relationships at a high level with the right stakeholders once they're as the account, it almost um it increases your expansion potential by nearly 2x. Okay. So, it's really worth maintaining the engagement and monitoring which personas we're engaging with at the customer base. Um so, think about how strategic your QBRs are. Right? The QBR shouldn't be talking about, you know, how do we make the buttons work faster or come do a bit more training. You really want the QBR to be a strategic session where you're showing the leadership team of your customer how you're adding value. How are you helping them run faster? You ideally you're giving them content that they can reuse in their ball meeting. Okay. And if you do, then they're going to turn up at the next QBR, right? And that's the goal. Yeah. What are some data points where people can latch on to to measure how their engagement's doing? I know it's something uh you built an excellent model in the platform, but maybe just some ideas if they don't have a revenue intelligence platform right now. Um what are some benchmarks of what high engagement or a good relationship would look like? Yeah, so it's different for different businesses. Um but yeah, and you're right. Um under um under forecast which is the new name for episode um we uh uh we score engagement hub 100 uh and we take a feed of things like uh meetings taking place uh email traffic back and forth and uh and and and call data as well. Um so uh uh inbound activity is worth a lot more than outbound activity. A call that lasts 5 minutes isn't worth as much as a call that lasts an hour. Um so we're not necessarily measuring um intent. um we're not uh we're not doing sentiment analysis. We're just looking at transactions and activity. Okay. And so it's okay if a customer's upset, but if they're still engaging, that's a really good signal that we've got we still have that relationship. True. Because sometimes even when a customer is upset, it's an opportunity to win them over in an even bigger way. Absolutely. You know, we all know that things go wrong, but it's how we deal with them when they go wrong and have develop relationships in place that we can lean into when we need Right. Okay. So, don't underestimate the value of your existing customer base. uh there's there's potential to upsell if you're not generating half of your new revenue this year out of existing accounts. You're leaving money on the table. Uh and look at ways you can uh engage with the right sea levels. Think of of strategic value you can add to them uh so that they want to continue to engage with you. Love it. Okay. So uh to double down on that um looking at the um uh uh the speed in which we can close new business on uh whether it's an existing camp new logo. I thought this this this report might be uh this dashboard might be really interesting. So what we can see here is that on average the um the new logo win rate at 7 18% across the board. Um but on the expansion side it's sitting at 45%. Okay. So we are two and a half times more likely um to uh win a new piece of business uh or win an opportunity uh if the account that that opportunities with is an existing customer. Okay. We can also see the average time it takes to close a deal with an existing customer is much shorter. Um it's nearly half as uh takes uh just over half the time and we don't need as we don't need to as many as multi threaded with an existing account either. So it just shows that we it's a much more efficient uh opportunity to generate more revenue from the customers if we can focus on on that opportunity to crossell up. Yeah. Twice the conversion, half the sales cycle and less effort across multi-threading. Exactly. Yeah. So uh so it's really worth doubling down on on that red and strip. So um we talked about the data earlier. Okay. So you know when we we know that we got to have good consistent maintained up-to-ate data now because we need it for reporting we need it for benchmarks. Um and actually the AI needs it as well. Um but we can see that only 44% of contacts sorry we can see that 44% of contacts never make it into the CR. That's crazy. Isn't that mad? In today's world half of your data isn't in your CR. you're not and if it's not in the system of record, you're not even at the races. You don't know how multi-threaded you need to be because most of the stakeholders you're engaging with then never make it into the system of record. Yeah. So, we got to solve that. Um uh there are other tools out there that do it, but EPO or what's now forecast has an engine. We can troll through all the historical trafficics with mailboxes and the calendars over the last year or two. Even people that have left the business or people that don't use Salesforce like the finance department, we need to know if the finance department's engaging with a customer, right? because it will give us a good indicator that something might might be going wrong or maybe they're not paying their bills. Uh same with support or customer success. Let's make sure we're capturing 100% of the activity and the contacts the team are engaging with and monitor engagement or momentum. Now, you don't have to use our engagement score. Um but you can have a way of calculating, you know, the activity or traffic that's going through with the customer and which personas we're engaging with. And if we're not engaged with the right personas or if they're not responding um or if the level that they're engaging with is too low, you you might want to escalate that and maybe bring your own seuite in to help support and get you back up into the right channels and talking to the right people. Mhm. Exert understands. So uh we know that nearly half the contacts are missing and out of those um we can see that um about 26% of the contacts that are missing are decision makers. Right. So again, if you haven't got that data, you don't end up you team engaging. Yeah. So they're not just random contacts that aren't getting in. It's the really important ones, nuggets of gold that just aren't even making its way to Lucier. Absolutely. So, so find a way of fixing that because it'll get you at the races. So, as we start thinking about ICP, um what I thought would be helpful is to to highlight that, you know, most people are um are really struggling in this area. And so, if you are struggling, you're not alone. Okay. We can see that the two-thirds of CRO have little or no confidence in their ICP definition. Okay. And and uh this came from the survey that we did with the CRO. Wow. So there's work to be done. Now what a really good test you might want to do is you know ask the leaders and sellers around your organization customer success, sales, marketing. You ask them what ICP looks like and if you get anything but the same answer across the board, you need to do that work. Great. Okay. Great. And it's not a one and done. Yeah. Well, we did it two years ago. There's a there's a slide with, you know, what our ICP looks like. The other thing is don't get confused between TAN and ICP. I see that all the time, right? Um, yeah, we've got this massive uh addressable market, but that's all well and good, but but which are the deals that are actually going to give us the most profit? Which are the deals that and it might not be that obvious. You might have a land and expand motion, okay? Where uh but uh uh but the sellers might be selling to a load of businesses where you land but never expand, right? So knowing what those look like uh is the difference between working on accounts that are really profitable versus accounts that that you never think you're a term of. And I think people really don't understand the level of depth and detail. So a lot of times people will say yes we have our ISTP ICP figured out. So I'll use lean scales as an example of a shallow ICP and a deeper ISP. So yes we serve series A B and C starters. Okay. Some people would stop there and be like that's what our ICP is. Um not necessarily. Okay. Well which personas? Well we're typically selling to CRO or heads of revops. We're actually selling to CRO and heads of revops who are on their second or third startup in a leadership position because we are selling to people who have already felt the pain problem before. First time CRO, first- time heads of RevOps might not uh viscerally feel the pain that we're actually solving. So that's how our gets even more narrow. And then of course like who has invested in them and what growth rate are they likely to have because that expands upon the pain even more. When you go down into that level of depth, that's when your messaging can get even more pointed. That's when you can get much more powerful intent signals. And when you're talking to people who feel the pain so deeply, that's when the efficiency can go up versus maybe us just targeting a startup that's not really feeling the pain yet. It's a new person. and they don't really know what they're stepping into quite yet. That's going to be a much harder deal for us to sell than somebody who's ready to buy. No, I I love that. And uh going down to individual persona level on ICP is fantastic, right? That's that's what you want to be seeing. Um uh we have a similar challenge, right? So we sell to B2B SAS businesses a lot. Okay. I mean, we tell to any company that's in B2B and they have to be using um originally they had to be using Salesforce. Um, and when we looked at the market, we could see that HubSpot was becoming a CRM that more and more customers were using it. So, off you went and uh I spent nearly a million dollars doing an integration of Epster into Hub. Okay. Because that was going to work, right? You know, it's another it's just another market. We we'll double up our our our TAM. We'll double our ICP. It's going to be great. Yeah. The numbers are always Yes. So, uh we spent the money. uh we did the work and then what we found was that the average customer in that space were much smaller use if they were using our spots their CRM and and frankly the impact we can have on a business if they've only got five sellers is relatively limited okay you know ideally we want to be talking to companies with 25 50 sellers at a minimum um and so uh um that in that way we could have a a seven figure impact on on on revenue and and growth um and so uh what we found was uh the T was selling deals to to Huffle customers but they were much much smaller deals the churn rates were far too high. Um and and it was just a funny distraction. Uh and so what we ended up doing was cutting that off. Um so you know if if a inbound hotspot opportunity comes in, we'll still work on it but we don't target as ICP. Um and it took us three months of of focus and three months where we didn't hit we didn't close a new piece of business because we we you know those those hustle deals were coming through much much quicker. Yeah. Um but we kept focused on what our ICP was were Salesforce, midmarket and beyond. Um and all of a sudden, uh the deals started coming in again and much larger and much more um relevant because we could service them better, right? And and and then LTV as well, it's going to be stickier because you're solving a real problem that they really appreciate in value. So all of these things, I know it's very tempting, very tempting to want to just open up your TAM. I'd say get as narrow in niche as possible and just get so surgical about who you're helping and it's all going to show up in the efficiency metrics that you're talking about. Absolutely. ICP is going to have a big impact and and get everyone bought into it, right? You know, your customer success team will know what kind of customers uh are giving us the best return, the ones that are less needy, the ones that are mature enough to get the value from what you do. So, you know, make sure that that everyone is bought into that and it's something you need to continue to revisit as you as you build back canyon, you'll learn more and more about which personas are giving us the best return, what kind of businesses can we really service and support and get and deliver the most value to and and and the most LTB, right? So um we just to finish up on this slide we can see that um uh over half of the CRA we interviewed suggested that um their ICP definition is based on gut feel not data driven. Uh we need to so we need to focus on that as well. Um and again twothirds of of CRO are telling us that they review this at once a year or less. Okay. You're leaving money on the table if ICP is only reviewed once a year. All right. We need to go granular. we need to look into it deeper and and we need to refine it as we grow it because the market around us is changing. I think a lot of people don't understand why you need to address it so often. What are some of those factors that come up in a business that will force you to adjust or fine-tune what your super is? Well, um I think you picked up on it really well. So, you can start with, you know, what markets or industries do we service, you know, or what geographies do we start do we service? Um then um but when you when you start to look at the historically through the data, you'd be surprised to see that um organizations that sell to um organizations more often don't know what industries they make the most money out of, right? Or where where the conversion rates are much much higher with a certain industry versus another. And and because once you've got that information, you can start targeting your top offunnel dollars at industries where you get a high conversion rate. All right. Now, until you've got that data, so you might need to you might need to use kind of thermographic third party data to kind of uh uh review the deals that close while versus closed last. Uh but again, understanding which personas are giving us um uh the right um giving us the best outcomes as well. So, or particular crystal events uh you know, if somebody's just just hired a new CEO, maybe that's a good thing for you, maybe it's a bad thing. All of these things, it's just more and more granularity that helps us get much closer to what our ICP really is. and and revisiting it on a regular basis. You're going to have more data and therefore you go you can go for a lot of Yeah. No, and I think the iteration of it is like your market's going to move a little bit and then you're just going to get new insights as you have more data. One interesting uh bit for lean scale, we found that the cyber security industry was actually one where you had bigger deals, more LTD, slower sales cycle or faster sales cycles. And I think what was interesting is okay, let's go look at those personas. Usually they had more senior teams, more mature teams that founded the companies. It's not their first company that they found because cyber security has been around for a little bit. So you have teams that this isn't their first rodeo. But it took seeing that data to know which of those are correlated and then we could start to like you said focus our resources more in that area where we know we're going to find success. Yeah. I mean, you know, I wonder three years ago whether your ICP had any sort of uh uh data points in it that had anything to do with the fact that um uh that that the leadership team had been through this process a number of times before. This is a brand new data point that you you were able to pick up as you as you had more customers, right? And it suddenly becomes clearer that look when we find someone that matches this kind of persona, we have a better conversation and it leads to a faster sales process. Yeah. Okay. So um at the moment we're seeing just 23% of pipeline represents ICP. Okay. And um and that's creeping up again but it's still owned a very very small percentage. Um so again think about the what proportion of pipeline should be acceptable as ICP and how far away from ICP you going to allow the sellers to go. Yeah. Um and we'll talk a bit more about qualifications as we're going. So why should we care? Well, we can see that we're um that that logos that logo acquisitions that match ICP have an eight times more efficient sales process. Okay. So, um we are much quicker through the sales cycle. We're much more likely to win the deals when when I think you match and is high. That's an insane difference. That's a very very wide difference. So, start bucketing your deals. understand what metro supply look like uh make sure that we are putting the tension on the deals and batch and let's see if we can get more of that into into the pipeline when we look about uh when we look at LTB as well um this is another metric that misses a lot of sales leaders because all they're really interested in is getting that first deal over the line because I want to get the logo in I want to get the deal signed um but actually that the LTV of a customer the lifetime value of that customer could be materially different if not it be so really Understanding that we can see that the uh the lifetime value of customer is over five times higher when they match CP. That's huge. So it makes a difference. Uh so how to think about ways you can incentivize the sales team to focus on the deals that give we give the business the highest possible to your bit. Um we and parallel is made up of the fact that they they're twice as less likely to churn and four times as more likely to withstand. I don't think people have any idea about how if you just focused your marketing and sales team closer to a higher ICP account versus another one, the amount of value you can get out of that relationship. Uh these numbers are a huge difference. It's not marginal gains. It's monumental different than than your average deal. Our sellers are spending less than 15% of their time on activities that lead to revenue. So there is so much inefficiency uh and we've got such a good opportunity to actually impact that now we got access to the data. So um when we start talking about discovery um I wanted to highlight the the difference between our top and average performers in all of the skill set around discovery. So not just asking the right questions but but everything from active listening to um qualification uh uh their questioning techniques are stronger and their ability to identify pain points at the critical events. All of these things are that we can see from the data they're much much more consistent in the way they do things. So what I'd say is that um again teaching sellers how to qualify uh and discover uh the better is a whole set of skills. Okay. Uh but don't get confused with that skill set with the one that's around how you log that information in your system of record. Okay? They're two very different skill sets, right? And frankly, the AI is really good at the qual this the recording piece, but really bad at engaging the customer in general relations. So, let's let's focus our energies on teach on teaching our sellers how to capture this information, how they can be a lot more consistent and then we can use the AI to auto capture it, score it, tell us if they've done a good enough job discovery. Yeah. And it's a consistent approach when the AI does it for us rather than the sellers effectively marking their own homework by by putting their own scores against their own qualification rate. So, uh that's something I consider I think everyone should be thinking about. Um and we know why does it matter? Well, well qualified deals are uh six times more likely to close one. Okay. Uh which is just insane uh how much how important qualification is and how fast we skip through it. Yeah. One of the things we've done recently uh we built an engine to be able to to analyze the historical gone call recordings or zoom call recordings. Um so when we look at a customer that's made maybe pro gone through a thousand sales processes in the last year maybe they won 250 of them um we go back and look at call recordings associated to the deals and when you see a lot of the time what we see is deals that close loss late stage it's actually not a late stage issue it's a early stage qualification issue right okay so uh and different soas will be strong at different parts of the qualification and we'll need training in different areas so lean into your call recorders uh I'll get the AI to tell you what part of the qualification they might need assistance with and then take away the burden of logging that in the system of record for them that the AI can do it for them and do it in a rep that's why it's a huge cost to an organization to move a deal that's not qualified later in stages I mean a lot of these companies are doing proof of concepts proof of values you're getting involved they're doing multiple demos when if you would have found out earlier on that this isn't really a qualified deal in the first place you're wasting thousands of dollars on this unqualified opportunity maybe more uh a lot more and the opportunity cost, right? Cuz I'm working on this thing that's never going to close. I'm not working on something else, right? So there's huge uh opportunity uh loss there and and our job as leaders is to help them understand that. And and you know um buyers uh buyers can be quite difficult creatures and sometimes they'll bully the the seller into going through a process that then perhaps it doesn't match our structure. And what what we need to do as uh as as leaders is is enable our buyer sellers to have the difficult conversations early. You know, look, I'd love to go through your sales process with you, but unfortunately, if you don't give me access to the finance persona, I'm not allowed to go to the next stage, right? If it's not the right time for you, I understand maybe we can revisit this in 3 months, right? And and if they won't give you access to the right personas at the right time, um push back, right? Your time is just as valuable as theirs are. And and we just need to and we know, you know, they've never bought this thing before, right? you've sold it hundreds of times before, so you know how to run this process. And our job as sellers is to help the buyers to to streamline their way through that process. Uh not just to build up is problems and issues that we're going to have to deal with at late stage. Right? Another thing that um this impacts of course is predictability. And I always had an appreciation for it. I think you and I being founders um probably had a deep visceral appreciation for predictability. and I will spend a lot for predictability. And if you know the opportunities that are coming in are highly qualified and you can count on the pipeline that you can see, then you can make decisions. You know if you need to hire more people, you know if you need to, you know, pull back on certain investments or not, but even if you have a much bigger pipeline, but you have no clue what's going to close or what's not going to close, you can't make decisions and you can't grow in a predictable way. And the street's not going to value it either. So I think yes, let's say thought experiment. Maybe if you open up the pipeline a little bit more, you would close a little bit more, but you'd waste a lot of resource trying to do it and you have no predictability and you haven't. Yeah. And and the street wants predictability, they want efficiency, is they're looking at, you know, revenue per per employee now. Yeah. Um uh so these are these are data points that really matter. Um and yeah, we we um if your forecast if you're not within 10% of your number by week two or certainly week four of the quarter, um you got worked a bit. Um and and the truth is that not all pipeline is equal and you need to understand these signals. It's okay to work a deal with a slightly lower win rate. That's okay. As long as you know, as long as you know exactly, right? So, um I I wanted to to suggest that it's not just about how efficient those uh um those those deals are, but when we qualify better, we close deals faster. Okay? So, uh deals are closing 20 over 20% faster when we qualify them the way we should. And they're also twice as like less likely to slip if we've qualified them or we we built that that kind of buying process with the buyer. Um so, it really is uh is worth the data. What the data tells us is is worth the work. Now the the the the challenge is that we can see that that only about a third of opportunities make it past discovery with proper written and scored uh qualification. Okay. So we're so exactly as you said before right uh we're bringing all of these additional resources into the sales process all this inefficiency um and we're doing it um on a hoping that on a hope that this that we this Tesla is going to go for a structured process rather than qualifying correctly documenting it and spawning the right so it really matters so uh find ways of of capturing this information be stronger about the gates and triggers around the stages the challenges we say and introduce that level of consistency if people are skipping stages is maybe your stages are wrong. Red um but if they are the correct stages, let's agree what the gates and triggers are to leave one stage and move to the next and let's not allow the sellers to to skip stages or or impact their conditions if they do. Right. Right. That that way they'll they'll follow the the process we they tend to. So uh I also wanted to make the point that um discovery is not a oneanddone exercise. Um what we've got here are the are the five stages of a traditional sales process. And what I thought we'd do would be use for this is is to see the parts of the discovery that are really important at different stages. U so this will be different for each customer but we can see uh understand the level of discovery needed at the early stage and then by the time the customer closes what additional information do we need to understand right because we don't need to do it all day one uh but we need to understand what level of engagement required or what level of qualification we need to understand at each stage before we're allowed to leave that stage on to the next. Yeah. Also deals are dynamic. Things change as you're going through a deal. So absolutely in fact the top performers are the one are much more dynamic. They're much more uh flexible than the way that they are pros. And then as we look at u uh at the top performers um the the way that they the purpose of bringing this graphic up is to focus on the fact that the they're converting the lowest amount of opportunities out of that discovered payers. Okay. They are ruthless at getting rid of the deals that don't because they don't want to waste their time. Correct. Um but but as you can see on the graphic the impact on slippage is dramatic at the later stages. Okay. So by by qualifying in this case two-thirds of the opportunities we can see that the impact it has on slippage at later stage were able to work through those deals much much faster. Um and it serves them and as leaders we need to help those sellers be confident at closing their deals off as soon as lo, right? Yeah. See it as a win because you know okay that's something that's likely not going to close and I'm not going to waste money trying to close it. Don't see it as a missed opportunity. See it as an you are lucky that you're not pouring money into something that's not going to close it. Yeah. Agreed. Agreed. It's second best outcome, right? Yeah. Fail fast. Great. Great. Well, look, um, for the community that are watching, uh, uh, we've included a QR code and so anyone can download the edge one update for free. Um, just scan the code, um, and, uh, and it'll be in your inbox. So, uh, hope everyone enjoyed the the content. Your guy, thank you so much. So fun to go through this. Such insightful data that I think anybody can use and leverage in their own organization. And just to recap, fine-tune your ICP. Get it granular. It's not just formographic information. It's personas and pains and tent. And then make sure you are ruthlessly qualifying your deals so you can enhance your predictability and increase the sales efficiency. So guy, thank you so much. I had a great time at Dream Force with you. Happy we could do this in person and can't wait to do it again. Very good. Thank you.
# Growth Modeling and Unit Economics for Modern Startups {% embed url="" %} ### Outline Summary: Planning a Growth-Driven Revenue Engine **Intro**\ This transcript centers on building a growth plan that a board will buy into, with practical methods to align teams around a single direction. Speakers discuss common planning pains, the value of a reverse-engineered ARR target, and the role of unit economics in board-facing conversations. The session features Anthony, CEO and co-founder of Lindscale, and a Vasco advocate, who share frameworks, live modeling steps, and governance practices to make revenue planning both robust and repeatable. **Center** * **Key premise: ARR as the north star** * In SaaS and VC-backed contexts, ARR anchors the growth model; definitions of ARR must be solid, especially for consumption-based models. * Inputs to ARR include: current ARR, new ARR (new logos), expansion (upsell within existing customers), churn, and contraction. Each element must be understood per segment to build a credible bridge to the target. * **Two critical plan components (top-down + bottom-up)** * *Top-down reverse engineering*: Start with the board’s growth goal (e.g., 2x or 3x ARR) and deduce required inputs to reach it. * *Bottom-up staffing*: Determine the people and capabilities needed—sales reps, CS teams, SEs, tech sellers, and ramp times—so hiring aligns with the pipeline and bookings targets. * **Practical modeling guidance** * A simple growth model anchors on ARR targets; analysts fill in funnel metrics (SQL-to-close rate, sales cycle length, MQL-to-SQL conversions, average contract value). * Recognize the sales cycle: long cycles require pipeline pushes early; short cycles reduce immediate pipeline needs. Delays in ramp or hiring can derail quarterly targets. * Use scenario-building to test sensitivity: adjust conversion rates, cycle lengths, and ramp times to see how outputs shift. This helps in negotiations with the CFO/CEO and in board discussions. * **Budget and unit economics emphasis** * Beyond top-line growth, plan must account for all S\&M costs: people, channel costs, sales engineers, customer success, and related overhead. * Unit economics framework includes: net growth rate, LTV, CAC, CAC payback, NRR, GRR, revenue per employee, sales cycle, and the “magic number.” Split by channel to optimize resource allocation. * The board cares about sustainable growth, not just aggressive topline. Use industry benchmarks (e.g., win rates, quota attainment, ARR targets) to stress-test plans and defend trade-offs. * **Cadence, reporting, and live progress** * Move from static spreadsheets to dynamic cadences: scenario modeling, live dashboards, and daily progress-to-target emails. * A single source of truth reduces misalignment and speeds decision-making when bottlenecks appear (e.g., MQL quality or conversion gaps). * Consider “core business vs. new bets” to maintain clarity when pursuing new markets or segments. * **Practical tips and visuals** * Daily sales tracker: a forcing function that aligns leadership around the truth of pipeline health. * Benchmarks and templates: use published benchmarks to anchor inputs; Vasco offers a repo of benchmarks and a board-ready template. * **Mindset for growth** * There are no silver bullets; consistent, 1% improvements compound to substantial growth. Focus on intentionality, data integrity, and disciplined planning to move from “hellish” planning seasons to predictable, fast, and efficient growth. **Outro**\ Anthony and the presenter reiterate that revops exists to make growth predictable and scalable, not to corner teams in a single department. The aim is to empower leaders with credible models, transparent unit economics, and a live operating rhythm that earns board trust. The session closes with gratitude for Vasco’s tools, a reminder that clear data and disciplined cadence unlock fundraising credibility, and an invitation to keep refining the approach through ongoing measurement and iteration.
Full Transcript Thank you very much. Um I am extremely excited to be with you today. Uh it's a topic that is dear to our heart in revenue operation. It's how to build a growth plan that the board uh could buy. Um and here with me today we have Anthony. For those who don't know Anthony, Anthony is the CEO and co-founder of Lindscale. Lindscale is an amazing partner of Vasco. They're one of the best revenue operation agency out there in the world. They have amazing logos and I think what differentiates them really Anthony um you can tell is is they have an expertise in P and VC backed company and we know that when we raise capital as a VC backed company there's that capital clock that is ticking and you make sure that you go fast and you don't have a lot of trial and errors and they really understand that world and they help you actually build all the foundations that your company needs in order to go from C to series A series A to series B and so on and so on and they can act both as a strategic partner but also they can get their hands dirty into the CRM in order to set those foundations. So Anthony, super happy to be here with you. Uh we're going to kick it started but uh but it's going to be a good one. Yeah, GM thank you so much for being here. I don't think I could have said it better myself and I am unbelievably passionate about the topic we're going to be going over today and I don't think there's any platform in the world that facilitates this process better than Vasco. So, thank you for having me. Really excited to dive in and can't wait to see what some of the questions are in the chat as well. Awesome. Okay, so it's planning season again. Um typically it starts around mid October, beginning of November and from what I can recall and the various you know boards executive position that I had as a founder of a company it always starts with some kind of macro goals that comes from the top and that numbers feels always a bit arbitrary. You need to grow 60% year-over-year. You need to double your growth. You need to 3x your growth and that becomes kind of the mark that the entire company has to work backward from that mark is agreed upon leaders and then someone within the organization then needs to turn that mark into an Excel model and that's when the storm starts a lot of conversation happen we're talking about alignment everyone who want to throw their initiative everyone who want to have their say and then as you go through that the copies of that spreadsheet multiply and finance pushes back and so on and so on. And if you go through that loops, it always is kind of the same scenario. You go through an immense effort and in the end you approve your budget and you approve your plan in February or March which is almost already a full quarter inside the next fiscal year and the reality has already changed. So you've approved the plan that is already obsolete, right? And out of sync with reality. Um, and Anthony and I, we we had a lot of experience with that and we believe there is a better way. And that's what we want to show you here. It's to build a plan that not only gets alignment, but also kind of aligns everyone around the table on a single direction in order to avoid kind of the defocus and the drag of time that this exercise can can give. We're going to go through five parts. The first one we're going to be unpacking what is the growth goal and then we're going to be talking about kind of the two major pieces of every plan which is the top down reverse engineering that goal and the bottom up the staffing of people individuals in order to really give ourselves the chance to hit plan. This is going to be covered by Anthony and then afterward we'll conclude with some more strategic elements on reporting to that plan and it's called budget and unit economics and why they matter and in the end how do you can apply and get continuous reforcasting with scenario modeling and the ability to have a cadence to report to plan. So with that said I'm gonna hand over the mic to Anthony who's going to go through the the first parts. Yeah, appreciate it. Go. And before before I kick off, just to give some reference, before starting Lean Scale, I was actually a VP of RevOps for three ventureback companies. One of them I was ahead of RevOps where we led through a $500 million exit. And planning was key at all of them. Um, but I had so many missteps in the beginning. And there are so many subtle things that can really, really trip you up when you're going through the planning process. And I saw some of the comments already too, like, hey, how do we get leadership to look at the right data? How do we get the team aligned? And I think a lot of those components are actually some of the more important ones is just getting everybody on the same page and the growth goal and growth model and having a home for it to live in is an amazing way to do that and get everybody rowing the same direction. So uh if we go to the next slide, I think the main thing that we want to talk about um so most SAS AI any ventureback tech company the northstar target is going to be annual recurring revenue um and even in companies where a lot of it is a consumptionbased model. So I think that's something to keep in mind. You know the quick shortcut for your valuation, quick shortcut to where you are in your growth stage always gets condensed to ARR. So sometimes you may need a lot of meetings and definition building just to wrap your head around what ARR means for you in your company because when you have consumption based models uh you may have to put some definition around that. But these are the major components that is going to anchor what your growth model is. And then everything else is going to be built around whatever this top target is. So typically you raise money, you set targets to a board, those targets are in the context of ARR and then you have to ask yourself what is it going to take to get to that ARR number. So couple breakouts here. Some of them are obvious. Um some of them can be a little bit more nuanced. One is what is your current ARR? Uh so if you don't have that figured out and a lot of companies don't so don't feel self-conscious if you don't. It just means you need to spend some time defining it. But start with your current ARR and then decide where you need to build to. Then here are the changes that come along the way that you're going to need to plan for and forecast. First is new ARR. So sometimes that means it always means new logos. Sometimes it means new contracts with existing customers too. So people think about this section a little bit differently, but for simplicity, let's just say this is going to be new customers. So new ARR getting added into the mix. And this is just the beginning. A lot of teams tend to stop right here and don't realize the other components that are part of this build. So, next is going to be your expansion. Take a look at your existing customer base. How much do you anticipate this cohort to expand throughout the year? If you have a really good line of sight onto what that expansion number is, it can actually take a lot of relief off of new logo business if you feel like you're in a position to expand. Well, now on the flip side of that, you're also going to want to take a look at churn and contraction or downgrades. And that's taking a look at the same cohort of existing business. How much of that revenue do you expect to actually contract away? Uh how much churn do you anticipate? And you may need to make up that loss with even more new business. So having a really solid understanding of each of these components, being able to plan for these for your different segments of business is going to be vital to build that ARR bridge to your new goal from where you are today. So I know for some that might be basic, for others it might be new, but there's some nuances there that's really important to just make sure we capture. Um, and Gilm, I don't know if you have any comments on that or in your experience, if you see people making any missteps on any of these foundational metrics in the beginning. I think people often underestimate as you grow. Um, the ARR that churn and downgrades take away from your top line. uh the more you grow the more that 1% 2% 3% turn rate is actually complex and a lot of growth goals are toward generating new AR but a lot of leverage come from the second and the third line and getting that growth loop that really turns your existing customer into additional revenue I couldn't agree more before my time in revops I actually spent um a lot of my career in customer success owning the existing revenue and it absolutely compounds and compounds either way. If if you're expanding well and things are going well, then it can really take a lot of relief off of the new business. Um but if you're not, it leaves a pretty big gap that you need to fill. 100%. All right. So, the other thing to keep in mind, too, um, a lot of times we're going to say, "Okay, great. We're going to go from 10 million to 20 million because doubling always sounds good to the board. So, let's do that." And now we have to think about when do we actually anticipate that performance to come in. So, this is a huge area where people often get themselves into trouble because they say, "Hey, 10 to 20 million and then let's evenly spread that across the year." Um, and then immediately you're already starting to fall behind or running into issues. The other one too is sometimes people will say, "Hey, we have a lot of seasonality. Let's hope like at the back half of the year we're going to figure it out." and then you're also not getting a head start on how you need to be performing to achieve the target that you have as well. So, two things really to consider. Um, one is, do you have any seasonality in your business? Are there any major reasons why you'd expect exceptional performance in certain quarters over others? Sometimes that's the Q4 e-commerce season. Uh sometimes it's tied to an event or some event season where you tend to drum up a lot of business. Um but take a look at any macro external factors that could be creating that seasonality and then see where you want to spread the performance. That's one bucket. The other bucket is how do you anticipate ramping up your resources and ramping up your team? We're going to talk about that when we hop into a live example of a model real quick. But you don't you don't build resources and then immediately start to get the results from that. It takes time. if you're hiring reps, if you're testing new marketing channels, if you're deploying new customer strategies, if you're deploying new products, um all of these things take much more time than people tend to anticipate and you really need to time out the performance of that. So those two things can impact when you expect the performance to come in the year and how you plan throughout the year. So before I hop in, uh if anybody wants to get a copy that they can follow along as I go through, uh we have a very simple model. We also have a video on YouTube that walks you through it if you want to. Uh so that QR code will enable you to download a copy of a growth model so you can start building this on your own. Um and then I'll walk through some of the components. Now I'm going to go through the growth model that's on the QR code here. So, we're looking at the same uh same piece of paper, if you will, but I'm also going to step into a slightly more complex one because this one will give you the basics and give you an idea and unlock a few perspectives that are important. But when you start to build this for your company, you're likely going to need further segmentation and breakdown. So, I'm going to show two. This is an example of what you should have been able to download on the QR code. So, you'll have an exact copy of this. Um, it's a very simple growth model um that really is just looking at one segment, but I think it's going to give the core fundamentals that will enable you to build your own and also give you an idea of, hey, if I'm using Vasco, how would I house this in a platform like Vasco? So, like I mentioned before, everything is really anchored to that ARR target. So, you have to think where am I today? Uh, let's say let's use that example that we had. We're going to go 10 10 million. I want to double to 20 million. So I need to build a plan that's going to get my company from 10 million in ARR to 20 million in AR. And then all of these inputs are going to have massive effects in the performance that we expect and then the new business that we need to bring in and pipeline we need to build. So next let's take a look at annual net retention. Uh you could break this out if you wanted to between expansion and contraction, but for simplicity, let's just say, hey, net of churn and expansions and upgrades and downgrades, the net of it, our customer base, we actually anticipate to grow maybe about 10% this year. So that's going to actually take a little bit of relief off of the new business that you need um because you're anticipating that existing book to grow. Now a couple other inputs that are going to be important. These are more funnel metric focused. So huge one is going to be the SQL to close one conversion rate. Uh once you have a lead, you have a salesqualified lead at what clip are you bringing those to close one deals. Um if you're for some benchmarks because sometimes people don't even have this data. Um anywhere from 20 to 25% is a decent benchmark to use if you're mid-market enterprise. Um, if you're smaller business, uh, you know, anywhere from a 30 to 40% you might be able to expect as a conversion rate. But for this case, let's just anticipate a 25% conversion rate. We're going to close a quarter of the SQLs that come in. Okay, next, let's take a look at sales cycle. Great. We built the pipeline. The pipeline is here. How long does this actually take to close? And I'm going to pause right here because I saw Guyom smile for this because nothing. Absolutely nothing trips up a growth model more than factoring in your sales cycle. Indeed, indeed. Indeed. And very often there is that kind of magical sense that people will close leads that come in within the same months. But uh if you need to reach a certain number within within I don't know um the second quarter, but your sales cycle are actually um three months. Well, those leads, this pipeline you need to generate in January, February, March. Otherwise, you're sending your troops on the death march. And I think this is where things get a bit more complicated. Yeah. Yeah. So, I'm just going to shine the red sirens. Uh, pause here. We'll turn this into a clip after. This is the time where it's like you really need to know your sales cycle and how it's going to impact because I'll show you some examples of what it'll do in the performance. But, you know, hey, do you close in quarter? That's great if you can. Does it take one quarter, two quarters? All of that's going to impact how much pipeline you need to build earlier on. Okay. Next, uh MQL to SQL conversion. How much flow do you need to get the number of SQLs that you need? Average ACV. This is going to help you get an understanding of logos and number. Sometimes number um number of leads or opportunities can be a little bit of directive of how much resource you need. So, we'll take a look at that. Um then let's take a look at the team you need to go the resources and team you need to go capture this demand and make it happen. So we have customer success capacity. How much can a CSM carry in your world? Uh sometimes it's higher, sometimes it's lower. If you're looking for a benchmark, um if you're around a 20x uh CSM cost to carry ratio, you're doing okay. If you can push it higher, great. If you're getting below 15 or nearing 10, then you may have an inefficient CS operation. So, I would take a look at that. Next is going to be the quota expectation. Um, and I would actually say there's the quota you assign and then there's the performance you actually expect. So, in this case, I'm going to put the performance I actually expect because you're going to over assign quota and then there's going to be what actually comes in through the door. Okay, another one, probably another siren to ring here, sales ramp time. Um, a lot of people will think of sales ramp time as when did my salesperson go through training. They went through the pitch boot camp. They know the product. They're ready to hit the field. They're ready to sell. Yes, that's an important component of ramp, but even more important is when is that salesperson building pipeline and closing deals and being fully productive? That's when you have a ramped salesperson. And I put a note in here for you. This should not be shorter than your sales cycle because the math just doesn't make sense. If it takes a quarter to build pipeline and close it, then you can't have a rep fully performing earlier than that. So, take a look at those to to give you some guidance on how to set it up. Average cost per SQL. This will give you rough idea of your marketing budget. You can get hyperdetailed if you have excellent channel and lead attribution metrics set up and you have a system to do this. So you can look at this at the exact channel and lead source level. Um a lot of companies especially when they're starting out can take your overall marketing budget over uh the opportunities that you created. That's going to give you a rough idea of how big your marketing budget should be. So lot of nuance there but for simplicity I'm going to leave it there. throw in some salaries and then you're ready to take a look at your performance. Now, I'm going to pause here because this is the moment where you align all of this with your executive team. So, when they're asking, "What does it take to go from 10 million to 20 million?" And you tell them, "We're going to need this number of reps. We're going to need this type of marketing budget. We're going to need to be able to build this amount of pipeline." And they start to challenge and push back. What you do is you go back to your inputs and tell me which one of these inputs is wrong. Do we expect more performance here? Do we expect a better conversion rate? Do we think we can reduce the sales cycle? Do we think we can increase the conversion from MQL to SQL? Where do we feel like we can improve performance on these inputs? Because that's the only conversation we should be having and then we'll talk about the outputs. So this is super super important. Usually this takes a few meetings, probably a couple yelling matches to get alignment on and um then you can start looking at your plan. Which one is the one you get the most push back on when you present that plan on that structure of a plan? That's a great question. I would say it's not a metric, but a perspective that these metrics should be significantly improving while you're scaling. I think that's the biggest feedback when I when I would bring this to a CEO and we we do this at lean scale. We we do growth modeling for our customers and when we present it they go well our SQL to close one was 30% last quarter like should shouldn't we be able to crank it to 40%. Like we're getting better. We're training better. When you are building the airplane while you're flying it, I really really caution you to also expect your efficiency to increase at the same time. So when you get to a certain destination or certain level of scale, then you can start to increase. But I think the biggest push back I get is uh CEOs, founders expect these to be getting better while they're getting bigger. I would caution at least keep it the same. you experience the same or is there anything that kind of pokes out to you? For me, the the ramp time and the sales cycle is where very often people underestimate how fast you need to build the pipeline and how fast you need to hire your people and how good your hiring process needs to be. Because if you compound them actually you realize that the year or the ability to hit the year is almost you know in in the maps within the first three to four months. Um and I see a lot of people focusing on the lead stage of the bow tie. So closed one expansion and everything but those are the inputs that really matter. Actually I think you're absolutely right. I the timing component is huge and I'll show you um kind of what happens over here. So now I have a four quarter plan uh built out here and we took a swag at hey how do you want that performance to distribute across the year and we said hey maybe maybe it's a little bit more back weighted and we have some ramping to do we have some building to do um so we'll push it back there and then this is what your ARR build needs to look like in order to go from 10 to 20 we anticipate the net retention we're going to have a quarter of a million a year but again If I change that, then it changes how much we're expecting and then it increases the number of new business that we need. So, I'm going to put that back to 110. Take a little bit of pressure off the sales team. Then, here's how we anticipate the bookings to come in the door. And then this is the pipeline that we need. So, I want you to kind of take a look at these numbers real quick. So, if we had a shorter sales cycle, let's say we close everything in quarter, that definitely takes a lot of pressure off of the amount of pipeline you need to build because the bookings you need here, if we're going to close a quarter, then we can build the pipeline in this quarter and close it. Now, if I need to close 2.2 million in Q3 and I have a two quarter sales cycle, that $9 million of pipeline build moves to Q1 now. So, now we have to have that built in Q1. So, we were able to close 2.2 in Q3. So, I think that's a massive difference if you're setting up a pipeline target for a CMO for a marketing team. The difference between 9 million and 5.4 million, you know, 54 SQLs versus 90 SQLs. These are dramatic differences just based on moving the sales cycle component conversion too. So if we just increase this, you know, 25% to 30%. That reduces that pipeline need in Q1 from 90 to 75. But let's say you were off 5% the other way. Now from 90 it's going to go to 113 SQLs. So the importance of the accuracy of these metrics couldn't be highlighted more and how much pipeline you need to build one. All right, I'm going to fly through the rest and hop into another model real quick and then we'll wrap up kind of the live demo here. But I think what's what's really important as we look at this is that very often I see targets of MQLs or pipelines or SQLs being driven by we did X last year therefore we need to do X plus 30% this year. um with this way it's actually reverse engineering the goal of the company to get to the next stage and the target of the company becomes mathematical. So you stop arguing about what is the right target of MQLSQL or pipeline and you move directly the conversation to how do we get there knowing that it's all connected. Absolutely. And that's and that's why when you're going through this planning, it's so important that you get as accurate data as possible here and you keep the conversation there. Like Y was saying, just talk about which of these metrics are off and what you expect in one of these. Then we can talk about the performance that we need. And also sometimes you may have an opportunity to do better than last year plus. So if you believe in some of this and depending on how much capital you raised of course you could accelerate this even more. So it's not just about hey hitting achievable targets. We work with companies where they forecasted too low and now they're losing opportunities because they don't have enough salespeople to convert the demand. They don't have enough CSN to manage it. So the problem definitely goes both ways. It's it's an exercise of being accurate, not pushing higher or lower. Um, okay. So, the same thing. You're going to get the MQLs you need, then you'll get the sales team you need. I'm just going to illustrate ramp time, too. Yes, if sellers could ramp immediately, then maybe you only need six reps in Q1. But since it's going to take two quarters, we should probably hire 11 reps in Q1. So, that way they're ramped in time for the bookings target that we have coming up in the next couple quarters. And then you can start to assess your costs and go through that. So that's a simple model. This is like a one segment, one year, onedimensional, but this will get the juices flowing. I'm going to flash up just another example just so you have an idea of what it might look like. If you have an enterprise segment and maybe a mid-market segment, then essentially all you're doing is a bunch of mini growth models and then you're adding them all up because your funnel metrics are going to look different. like your sales cycle in enterprise might be three quarters. Your sales cycle and your mid-market or SMB might be one. You might be able to ramp up this part of the team faster. Um there's a lot of factors that can change uh depending on what segment you're talking about even regionally as well. Hey, maybe you have a team in Europe or AMIA um an APAC team. Maybe funnel metrics look a little different in different geographies. And then the other thing I want to caution or just stress, I know you can only plan so far ahead in the future, but I would have an idea at least 2 years into the future because a lot of what you're going to be planning for in 2026 depends on what you want to do in 2027 because the back half of 2026, you're likely going to need to start ramping for the 2027 plan. So that way you can stack what your ARR build and growth will look like from year to year and then make sure you're not underestimating the amount of investments you need to make next year. We have a question from the chat. Um Nicholas is asking, "What pipeline coverage do you recommend?" Yeah, great question. I would point you back to what your conversion rate is. So I would go see what your 100% Yeah. If you're 100% conversion rate, that'd be great. No. Yeah. So I would look there and then I'd add a little bit of a buffer. So let's say let's say, hey, when we pull historically, we got 25% conversion rate. Yeah. A 4x coverage is going to be healthy. A 5x coverage is going to help you sleep at night. So basically your pipeline coverage depends heavily on your conversion rate your win rate. So if your conversion rate by the way is way too low like let's say a 10x that means that you 10% that means that you need to get a pipeline of 10x your revenue goal. So that's also an adjustment that uh that you can discuss at a strategic level with the CRO, the CEO, the CFO saying well before we throw you know more SDRs are generating pipeline maybe we need to fix the conversion rate so that we balance the right amount of pipeline and the right amount of targets. Absolutely. And Nicholas if if you don't have this data sometimes you just haven't had a chance to collect it. Um I'll throw out some you can put some benchmarks in. It's okay to put placeholders. Nobody has perfect data. So, it's just about getting as close as you can to the truth. If you're kind of a SMB smaller, let's say sub 50k uh ACV deals, then maybe like a 3 to 4x coverage. If you're enterprise, anywhere from a 5 to 10x coverage. All right, Anthony, thank you so much for showing the model. I think it gives you an idea of the things that you can build in order to really reverse engineer that macro goal that the company has asked you to deliver on with you know assumptions and things that need to happen in the business. So if you want to download again that templates feel free to uh pull your phones up and and and scan that QR codes. Uh we're going to be sharing of course also the presentation for the attendees so you'll be able to look at it as well. Um, so now I want to get to the other piece of the conversation. So we've been understanding how to reverse engineer again that 3x or 2x growth goal into things that are attainable at the top of the funnel. But it only matters if it's within the right parameters. And by parameters, I mean budget and unit economics. So the first thing you really need to to to build after you have that plan that kind of makes sense, it's to understand how it how much it's going to cost. And I see very very often a lot of mistakes being made at that stage because people don't take all the costs into the equation and that's where often the CFO starts to push back. So what do we mean by all sales and marketing cost? Well, it's the cost of your people, not just the cost of acquiring leads through ads. So, the cost of your people includes both the people who are producing pipeline and producing closed one and so on, but also all the teams that are helping uh around those. So, if you have a team of sales engineer, they should be factored in. If you have a team of technical sales, they should be factored in. If you have no customer success with different layers, account management, all those costs that you will see on the profit and loss of your P\&L, sorry, on the lines in line in your in your profit and loss, you need to to find a way to trickle them back into into your model. Um, so people, marketing acquisition costs and also all the other custom expenses that you can have like computer potentially allocation of square meters and so on and so on. And once you have that then from the investment and the growth you can balance it with the budget and calculate your unit economics and unit economics are very important especially when you talk to the board. Okay for those who really want to go deep into that topic we have built at Vasco a board meeting uh playbook and template so you can scan it and go through that. I will not go in very much detail. I will more stay on topic into why this matter in the planning exercise. Very briefly, what are the typical unit economics that you see in a SAS business? Well, the 10 ones that I almost see every time is net growth rate, lifetime value of customer, customer acquisition costs, CAC payback, LTV of a CAC, net revenue retention, which is what we saw in the model. It's your expansion minus your churn, how much can you grow with your existing customers, gross revenue retention, which is basically one minus your churn rate. So how sticky are your existing customers and then efficiency metrics like a r per employee sales cycles and conversion rates and the magic number which basically tells you by dollar of sales and marketing expenses how many dollars can I generate uh of uh new AR net new AR okay so those are ballpark like the typical unit economics that you'll find in SAS now put yourself in the shoes of the CEO and the CFO because we always see the process as being you build a plan, you show that plan, it feels it's grounded in reality and then you go into that term all of selling that plan and you don't understand why people don't go into details as much as you do and it just push it back um without giving you concrete sometimes answers on very detailed elements that you should add or remove. That's because in the process most people forget that your CEO and your CFO they have a boss and that boss is called the board and very often the board is composed of the investors who've injected money in the company with the expectation of certain results and yes the CFO and the CEO they are part of the board but the other members are your investors right so when you build that plan of course the CEO and the CF Therefore, we'll look at it and we'll have a view. But when they present it to the board, they will never go into details because what the investors will look at are not the sum of all the little initiative and changes and drivers and so they will look at the unit economics balance with the growth that you propose in order to find whether ballpark or not you are within the right parameters for you to graduate to the next phase of your growth. And if you don't pass that stress test, then the CEO and the CFO have the plan rejected to the board. So very often they push you back because they know this is a plan they can't sell to the investors. And this is where you can actually shine. You can shine by getting the right balance of growth and unit economics because in the end this is what will help you graduate to the next round of financing from a markets perspective. If you're a seed company and you need to get to series A, this is what a series A company needs to have in terms of metrics. This is what a series B company needs to have in metrics. And if your plan don't support that, it might be the best plan in the world. It's a plan that's going to reject be rejected because it's a plan that's going to condemn the company, right? But it's also your opportunity for you in revelops to become strategic because if you understand that language of the board then you can talk that language to the CEO and the CFO and you can have really a seat at the table that is way different. And for the CEOs out there and the funders speaking the unit economics language also builds trust with the board because you speak the language of the investors. They want to know if you understand the game you're playing. So let me give you a concrete example. you're a seat company and you want to get to a series A milestone. Well, first ask what are the metrics that the board and the investors are looking at so that you can graduate to series A. So in this example, we're sell you need to reach 2 million of AR within the next 18 months. So that means you need to get a growth rate above 100%. Because 2 million in five years, it's not a VC play, it's not a PE play, private equity play. So you need to get a certain velocity to get to those 2 million. But also the investor want to make sure you acquire customer in a way that is scalable. So they want to see your customer acquisition cost payback to be lowered in 18 months. They want to make sure that actually your product is sticky so that when you graduate and you move to the next phase, you're not losing so much customer that it's impossible to grow from. So they're going to ask some kind of you know gross revenue retention around 85%. and you go on and on and on. Of course, you're never perfect, but you understand the kind of metrics that you plan or the bound that you plan needs to pass so that it's not rejected by the investors and then you know it goes back to the organization and you have that terminal again and again. So once you build that and you have your plan that Anthony Ash has shown then compile those unit economics and show them and this is a format that you can use where you see all of them and how they're growing and performing months over month you'll see that there's going to be quite a lot of volatility around those because as you invest they degrade as you divest or you see you know the investments starting to produce some ROI they improve what you're looking at is not the perfect thing you're looking to a trend that grows you through the right unit economics. Bonus point, if you want to become strategic, try to get those unit economics split at the channel level because channels speaks resource allocation. You're going to realize that there's going to be a lot of pressure to grow the unit economics, but also to grow the top line and both are conflicting because you want to spend more to grow more and they're asking you to spend less to grow in a certain way. So what you can do is kind of know balance and benchmark your different channels and say well we're going to reallocate some resources from out ofbound to partnership and inbound because they produce better unit economics. So we're going to spend less to get the same result in the end. And of course you need to think about how many leads you can acquire. So you need to make sure that you diversify your channel at certain period of time. That's a way for you to be very strategic with the CFO and the CEO by proposing resource allocation based on data. An amazing way for you also to defend the plan when you talk to people within your organization, the CFO or even as a founder to the board is to anchor that plan or to stress test that plan within benchmarks. And what is great here is that there are a lot of benchmarks that VCs and P publish everywhere. Here we have a periodic table that is being published and refreshed every year by inside partner and you can see clear brackets to which for inside partner great looks like. So here they say well you're within 10 to 100 million of typically your win rate should be 30%. And if you were to click there, they have different levels based on your typical deal size. But if your plan has a 60% win rate, then that means probably that, you know, you're you're being too optimistic or that you're not bringing enough velocity. On the other side, if it's 10%, you can argue, well, you know, maybe we have a problem here. Maybe this is a driver that we need to focus more on in order to get more efficiency. Um, same thing with setting up quota. If you give a quota of 2 million to a rep, you're paying a 100k, it means that maybe you're living in a delusion, right? But if someone tells you, I want to be paid 200k to bring, I don't know, 400k of AR per year. That's a 2K 2x sorry, quota to OT ratio, which means that they're only bringing twice what the cost organization and that's way below the benchmark. then you can come back and say well we can't do that because that's not sustainable because the market typically insists of on having uh a quot to ratio of of four to 5x. So they are amazing those benchmarks at depersonalizing the conversation on you and the person but more putting it to what the market says scrape look like. I encourage you as well to look at those benchmarks from a conversion metrics perspective. Um, and we have some benchmarks that we can share with you. Um, so based on your deal size, what is a good rate for lead to MQL, MQL to SQL, SQL to SAL, what what is a great win rate? And when you put your assumptions in that model and you're being challenged or you want to challenge the assumption, then you can refer to those in order to bring a little bit more weight into the argument. For those who want uh you can scan that QR code. We've actually compiled all those benchmarks and assembled them into a spreadsheet that we believe gives a very nice sense of reality. So you can access those and use them in your planning season. Um they're going to be great way for you to you know have a have kind of a point to put your first assumptions to your model but also uh defend it or challenge it uh to the rest of the organization. Um now I want to touch on something very important. We've thought talked about unit economics but you have to invest in SAS before you get the results. You hire your reps now but they produce results afterwards. You spend in marketing now and the hope that the revenue is going to come afterwards. So it's normal that as you invest more you see your unit economics degrade naturally. So what you really want to see is not a perfect line of unit economics that is green all the way through your plan. You want to grow progressively into those unit economics that the board want to see. So you want to build a plan that is going to show a path to getting to the milestones. Not something that is always perfect and always on every quarter because that doesn't exist and nobody's expecting that. So we've understood the importance of unit economics. why they matter and how the investors and the board are going to be looking at your plan from a macro perspective. Now, of course, what you will want afterwards is to build that cadence and that comes with scenario modeling and then also reporting to plan. So the scenario modeling is really making sure that you have the main plan but instead of every time spinning out a new spreadsheet in order to change the plan. Um and this is where I really encourage you actually to to try to to put the systems and the infrastructure in place is to build scenarios in order to understand various variation and sensitivity analysis of the inputs that you have. And as if you build that cadence, then as you reforcast, it's going to be a little less of a hell and it's going to be a little more easy and fast to adjust based on reality. Um, and also what you absolutely need to do is to have a cadence where you report to plan almost live. There is nothing worse than having that plan on a spreadsheet that sits on the side and then you reopen it at the end of the quarter, see whether you hit or not and then go through again a reforcasting hell that takes you six to eight weeks uh becomes live after the beginning of the next quarter and is already obsolete as you close uh the the next quarter. So building that cadence, it's what going to align the entire company around the plan that you've built, but also align everyone's understanding of what's working and what's not working so that reforcasting becomes a breeze. Um, and this is where we encourage you to really like move away from spreadsheet misery and potentially like equip yourself with the right tools and softwares in order to automate this. Um, live progress to target. So you want to have some kind of live dashboards that from the plan that you've sold to the board and that you've agreed upon with the executive you're measuring progress to target almost every day if possible live and that becomes the single source of truth that your company operates on. And when this happen everybody starts to get a common understanding of what's working, what's not working do we have a problem of MQLs from marketing? Do we have a problem of close rate? where are the bottlenecks? So when comes time to actually adjust, move away uh allocation from a certain channel to another, everybody already has a common understanding of the bottlenecks and the leakages and you don't have to go through the end of the quarter and the beginning of the next one to try to align again everyone on what truth is because they've seen it for the previous quarter. Building that operating guidance of live progress to target is absolutely essential and you'll see if you implement that with your organization the alignment that it gives is just phenomenal. Bonus point if you can split that between your core business and your new bets. That's what Anthony has kind of shown in the model is that we've seen one layer but it's more complex version where you have the core business and your forecast and then you have the various bets. You decide to enter another market. You decide to go up markets and try to get enterprise deals and so on and so on. Well, as you have those new bets that you're building up, uh, well, they're not going to work instantly. If you go up market and you try to go enterprise and you wear you know SMB, it's going to take time before you get a credibility brand and you know up market typically means lower um lower um uh conversion rates, win rates and longer sales cycle. If you aggregate everything together, well at the macro level the board is going to say well we have a problem and conversion rates are going down and sales cycle are going up. What's happening? Stop. Stop. Change everything and so on. But if you split and you say no no no on the core business everything's running well we're on the grid but on the new bets we have some of them that are paying off some of them that are we're we're refining and some of them that are not working then decision making process becomes much more rational and the board and the executive feel that they're in control because they understand where to scale where to accelerate and where to divest rather than put everything in jeopardy and put the entire revenue engine to a halt because they don't know what's happening right so split sitting in the right motions is essential. A little trick that we have um is if you really want to get um the alignment that there is a kind of a forcing function that you can do which is sending a sales tracker every day. It's a simple email that shows progress to target to everyone leadership included in the company. And when that happens, they see an email that is measuring what the company is looking at in terms of performance. And that has a tendency to be kind of a gravitational pool where everyone has the same understanding of what's happening within the company. Are we having enough leads? Where do they come from? The MQLs and so on and so on. And it's very hard to impose a single source of truth in most organization. This is a way for you to get there because that email is read by the CEO, the CFO, and the CRO. So everybody is going to be willing to work on your data set and not the one that they've compiled on the side because they're going to know that this email is how their performance is going to be measured on a daily basis. So a little tip to implement this. Um and finally Anthony like I'm always hearing silver bullets the thing that we did that changed the trajectory of the company the thing that we did and then we went from zero to X. The reality is that once you build the real revenue engine and the metric model, it's all the little improvement that compound every day that have a manifing impact on your growth. And it's easier to talk about the great things, you know, that you've done and that we're kind of, you know, mini silver bullet, but the real real lift is when you get 1% better every day. And 1% better every day is a 37x growth at the end of the year. and 1% worth is 97% lost. So, it's really about building that engine and trying to fix improve a little bit of a better messaging, a little bit of a better coverage, a little bit of a better demo. And you realize that those improvements they compound and from something that sounds impossible, 3x of growth, it start to become inevitable. Um so yeah because in companies basically revops like Anthony our our goal is to help you make your growth predictable fast and efficient and I think that's the jobs to be done of of revops uh in the world. So with this uh we're going to be opening up to Q\&A. you have the QR code to download the guide, but uh hopefully you found um a few useful frameworks and tips that you can use during planning sessions so that it's a little bit of less of a hell than it used to be in the past. Yeah. And while um while some of the questions are coming in um couldn't agree more with the 1% better every day, there are no growth hacks. There's no I haven't seen it at least and I've seen some really successful companies go through all those phases. it it's showing up every day, pouring a hot cup of coffee, getting to work, and making things better and being intentional. Um, and the one thing I'd also add too is don't underestimate the power of having all of this buttoned up when you go through a fundraising or exit process. The sheer fact that you have this level of visibility and intentionality in how you're growing could mean a tremendous amount on your valuation and the type of investors you can attract and the type of exit you could have. So just the visibility alone has tremendous value. It builds trust and we've been sitting in many board meetings and being adviser to so many companies and very often the board doesn't expect you to be perfect. But if you don't have the answers, this is where trust start to erode and this is where it becomes more complex. If you come equipped with the right data and the right answer, you build that trust with the board and you can continue operating in a much more smooth way. We have a question from John. Um, not directly related to planning, but have you seen any good ways to make CRM data entry easier or more automatic so sales actually does it? I could probably take that one. Um, since Leanscale, we're involved in really managing the entire revenue tech stack. Um, one is just making your CRM cleaner, more intentional, giving guidance. Sometimes you have 20,000 mandatory fields and it makes it difficult. So try to trim down to get the most efficient ones. And then um there are a few tools out there. Epa is one I can I can speak to where they will connect your emails, your calendar. So all of that um interaction gets automatically logged in your CRM and as well as uh taking your video recordings and then automatically filling in things like medic or bant whatever your qualification is. So that way you know your opportunities or deals are meeting the qualification criteria without your sales team needing to lift a finger and type it all in. So few other tools and everything but it couple basics and that removes a lot of judgment calls and becomes much more systematic. So yeah, great advice. Uh there's a question from Monica. How do you build a culture where reps and marketers own their numbers instead of seeing plans target as just a revops thing? Do you notice a big change in accountability with the live reporting view? Um, I do see a lot of accountability that rises up the minute you have that live view and that live view is distributed every single day to the leaders of the organization because then there is that forcing function where the numbers are updated every single day and your performance is being measured on those numbers uh and viewed by the entire organization. So surfacing the numbers by itself creates a lot of accountability and it also removes the ability from people within the organization to assemble the data that's going to make them look good. We've all seen that a lot of time you have sales, marketing and customer success coming with different data that tells a completely different story. And this is where when you run into QBR or WBR, you spend more time arguing about the data rather than what to do about it. That sales tracker, that daily digest of progress to target is really a forcing function that works miracle in order to align everyone on this. And then you as revops, you don't become the enemy. The email is the enemy. You're there to help them make the numbers better. And that kind of changes um the narrative. Yeah. I can't say how many times I've been in a meeting where you show a pipeline number or something, someone goes, "That number's not right. That one's wrong." Um because you're only looking at the data maybe once a month or something. But absolutely getting in that daily rhythm, daily habit, then you're cleaning the data every day as you go. Um, it's huge. And yes, Monica, you you're asking the question that feature is available in Vasco. And just to give you a a little fun fact, um, daily emails, like you know how many emails people receive every day, the feature of daily emails progress to target. The open rate in our companies that are using Vasco is 85%. So the open rate of an email received every day is 85%. That kind of gives you an idea about how you know a forcing function this becomes in the organization. All right, I think we are at time. Anthony, thank you so much. Um I think it was a session packed with a lot of content. Um and I hope it was useful for everyone. Um, do you have any concluding remarks, Anthony? I just appreciate the time and can't emphasize enough doing the growth model, basing it in your unit economics, and making sure you have a good understanding of how you're going to achieve a company's goals. I can't tell you what that can also do to your culture, your team, and everybody's there to win, and this is such an important component of that. So, and I really appreciate everything you all are doing at Vasco to give a home and a platform for the arguably one of the most important aspects of the business to live in. Um, and really really excited about all the features and everything you're pumping out too. So, thanks for having me and um, thanks for everything that you do.
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