Thanks for the advice guys.

I just made an account on Angels and will be playing around on the website more later.

I just started this real estate job in January, so I don't want to leave just yet. I want to show that I can be successful at setting up appointments first.

Once I prove myself, I'll have a good reference to go along with my successful track record and then I can leverage that experience to get a better sales job.

I've been looking for jobs recently. Wanted to update on the process.

I'm in a weird spot right now, at a tier 1 tech company with non enterprise accounts. I've been gunning for a comp plan around 250k (at a tier 1 or tier 2 company), but I don't really have the 5-10 good years of field experience yet that they look for.

Usually they give 250k plans for enterprise roles, but you can negotiate a 250k plan for a mid market role if you have w2s to back it up (I do). I'd be down for a mid market or commercial role if the price is right. I just turned down an offer from a tier 1 because the comp was a little low (around 190k).

First priority is to get a new set of accounts + pay raise at my company but if they won't give it to me then I'll look somewhere else.

Quote: (03-05-2019 05:06 PM)Alpha_Ambitionz Wrote:  

I'm currently getting paid $17 an hour to make phone calls for a real estate company. The commission structure is shit: I only get paid a small amount of money if the appointment I set converts.

In the past, I've done many other "crappy" sales jobs, such as selling knives, selling anti-aging skin creams, and trying to get people to donate to charities.

I'm hoping that I can use all this experience to get one of these SDR roles you guys have been talking about.

So, I googled "SDR jobs" in my city and most of them start about about 20$ an hour (so 40k base salary) + commission.

However, some of them require at least 1 year of B2B and SaaS experience, which I don't have.

Also, graduating with a useless bachelor's degree in psychology means I don't have a background in tech or medicine.

These missing qualifications are what discourages me the most.

At the same time, there are some SDR jobs that just require you to have some sales/telephone experience, which I do have.

So hopefully in the future, I'll be able to land one of these jobs.

Ha, I'm in the same boat. I really wish someone had told me that a psych major is pretty much useless unless you want to take it to the clinical level and do grad school and all that shit. The only thing I'd do differently about that part of my life is a comp sci degree and coding skills.

I have some good sales exp. from working for a big tech company so I have some hope that I'll get something solid soon. Keep at it and let me know if something materializes

An update on my job searching.

Since talking with Graft and a few other members, and also specifically working on interviewing, I've had much more success with phone screening.

I had 4 first rounds this week.
3 of them advanced to the next round immediately. One of them is getting back to me next week because they're a 3rd party.
That's a way better success rate than before. I'm looking forward to seeing what March brings.

Quote: (03-06-2019 12:15 AM)Graft Wrote:  

I've been looking for jobs recently. Wanted to update on the process.

I'm in a weird spot right now, at a tier 1 tech company with non enterprise accounts. I've been gunning for a comp plan around 250k (at a tier 1 or tier 2 company), but I don't really have the 5-10 good years of field experience yet that they look for.

Usually they give 250k plans for enterprise roles, but you can negotiate a 250k plan for a mid market role if you have w2s to back it up (I do). I'd be down for a mid market or commercial role if the price is right. I just turned down an offer from a tier 1 because the comp was a little low (around 190k).

First priority is to get a new set of accounts + pay raise at my company but if they won't give it to me then I'll look somewhere else.

When talking with potential employers, what's the breakdown of base/OTE for enterprise roles? Is that 250k base or base + OTE?

Been trying to figure out how much my account executives are making. Their sales figures are available to me but I don't know their commission % or salary.

Off topic but I hope you all read Killface's posts. I've worked with people that have accomplished more than the man so if even half of what he said is true it's worth considering his advice.

In this scenario you bank 50K in savings off your sales job and reinvest your money into assets like real estate or websites. In my case I'm living in my oil job just like I did in food service and not spending much money. All that money will get reinvested into hard assets.

Good luck and don't get left behind! We need more hard men in a post Trump world!

Quote: (03-13-2019 07:56 AM)redbeard Wrote:  

Quote: (03-06-2019 12:15 AM)Graft Wrote:  

I've been looking for jobs recently. Wanted to update on the process.

I'm in a weird spot right now, at a tier 1 tech company with non enterprise accounts. I've been gunning for a comp plan around 250k (at a tier 1 or tier 2 company), but I don't really have the 5-10 good years of field experience yet that they look for.

Usually they give 250k plans for enterprise roles, but you can negotiate a 250k plan for a mid market role if you have w2s to back it up (I do). I'd be down for a mid market or commercial role if the price is right. I just turned down an offer from a tier 1 because the comp was a little low (around 190k).

First priority is to get a new set of accounts + pay raise at my company but if they won't give it to me then I'll look somewhere else.

When talking with potential employers, what's the breakdown of base/OTE for enterprise roles? Is that 250k base or base + OTE?

Been trying to figure out how much my account executives are making. Their sales figures are available to me but I don't know their commission % or salary.

Nah, you won't get 250k base until you get to a VP level role.

Enterprise roles should be between 100k-150k base. A lot of times it's a 50/50 split but sometimes you can negotiate 60 percent base and 40 percent commission.

Update on my progress since January 20th:

Received a conditional offer from a tech company. But haven't heard back from them.
There's supposed to be another offer coming in today but no word yet.

2 more companies haven't responded if they'll give an offer. Most likely no.

Oh well, I've hammered out 10 applications to managers and directors today. Gonna keep on grinding.
I LOVE corporate life....

Also, shout out to Graft, EndsExpect, Aviel, Redbeard, ChicagoFire, wi30 for their advice. Hope I didn't forget anyone.

Second offer came in just now. Standard salary and commission. Very doable quotas. I start in 2 weeks.

It's been a long and tough road. Tougher than I thought it would be but it was worth it. It's a very early stage startup so I'm looking at getting promoted very quickly, definitely gonna work my ass off for it.

It feels good to finally join you guys as bdr in this Saas sales career. Thanks again to all the guys here that have helped me. I love you guys! (no homo)

Quote: (03-25-2019 07:20 PM)Zeroblack Wrote:  

Second offer came in just now. Standard salary and commission. Very doable quotas. I start in 2 weeks.

It's been a long and tough road. Tougher than I thought it would be but it was worth it. It's a very early stage startup so I'm looking at getting promoted very quickly, definitely gonna work my ass off for it.

It feels good to finally join you guys as bdr in this Saas sales career. Thanks again to all the guys here that have helped me. I love you guys! (no homo)

Congrats!

The most important thing is that as soon as you walk in the door of that office - you officially have SaaS sales experience. You can put it on your resume forever, and may or may not have recruiters knocking on your door within a few days

Quote: (03-25-2019 04:28 PM)Zeroblack Wrote:  

Also, shout out to Graft, EndsExpect, Aviel, Redbeard, ChicagoFire, wi30 for their advice. Hope I didn't forget anyone.

Congratulations!

I am looking at an opportunity to sell a CRM that is paired with digital marketing solutions under a white label protocol.

Essentially I am direct with the owner of the software and I am negotiating to be the sales and support aspect of the enterprise under my own company, logo etc.. He is just licencing me the software. .

I am considering opening a contact centre in Estonia to stay competetive in relation to higher labor costs in the USA and Canada.

I have alot of B2B sales experience but this would be a new initiative for me.

Im interested in hearing from folks about potential pitfalls for white label programs in the Saas space as an entrepreneour. As opposed to a JOB.

Hoping for Graft to sound off with any advice on this.

Iconoclast007

Quote: (04-04-2019 03:31 PM)Iconoclast007 Wrote:  

I am looking at an opportunity to sell a CRM that is paired with digital marketing solutions under a white label protocol.

Essentially I am direct with the owner of the software and I am negotiating to be the sales and support aspect of the enterprise under my own company, logo etc.. He is just licencing me the software. .

I am considering opening a contact centre in Estonia to stay competetive in relation to higher labor costs in the USA and Canada.

I have alot of B2B sales experience but this would be a new initiative for me.

Im interested in hearing from folks about potential pitfalls for white label programs in the Saas space as an entrepreneour. As opposed to a JOB.

Hoping for Graft to sound off with any advice on this.

Iconoclast007

There are about a billion crm's out there, what makes this one any different?

It has features that make it different for specific niche industries. It is more of an add-on sales tool plug in but can also be used as stand alone crm. Ive been managing digital campaigns as a Marketing agency and have shown through case study the reesults of plugging into current systems. Results have been phenomenal. The technology is new and different.

Ive analyzed the viability of software in the niche market im targeting. Ive been contracted in sales role with marketing firm for sometime nowl. I am now going to start my own firm which will either be a clone of the marketing agency I currently work for or a sales enterprise under white label selling the software directly.

Im looking for insight on pitfalls associated with white label sales.

A couple days ago I learned from listening to a podcast that Salesforce does meetup groups (Trailblazers), certifications for jobs, and annual events. If anybody wants to break into tech and not just sales that might be the path to go.

Depends on the type of sales.

-Pure sales, AKA business development is pure garbage. You are essentially hired to magically bring in money for the company, doing pretty much anything possible from cold calling and knocking on doors. Employers just want someone with a little black book full of contacts that they can leech off. It baffles me that you still find this role advertised everywhere. Cuck job for most.

-Account management. This is somewhat better because you just have to convert inbound warm leads that were generated from Marketing/ads. I think most Saas companies sales job rely on this model, and I've heard you can easily make 80k on commission and 80k basic. Problem is...Even though most people could mentally do this job, they will only take people from a SaaS background.


-Customer success
You basically look after accounts with the occasional up-sell. highest pay is normally 40k basic and 40k commission at best in SaaS. These jobs mostly go to women, even if you have better qualifications. Search LinkedIn if you don't believe me. Again, they will only take previous experience in SaaS and CS.

-Take Away
Always try and find out if you will be generating your own leads, or converting inbound ones. Because if your job is to find and convert leads, its essentially a Micky mouse job waste of time. In an internet world where real companies have inbound lead funnels and marketing, people don't buy from random salesmen anymore.

I personally would always to and make your own money, instead of being a wagecuck for life.

On the first week of the bdr job. So far biggest challenge is learning the jargon and industry. It's pretty similar to what Graft described, you're learning how to use the phone and computer. Pretty much anyone with hustle and some sales experience can do it.
They're looking to have me do demos 3 - 6 months in and close the smaller 5 figure deals myself. But I'm also gonna be on the lookout for inside ae roles at other companies that pay better or have more promotion opportunities in the coming year.

My employer sent me home earlier this week because I was the most junior member. Lately I've been looking into tech jobs and a couple days ago I was offered a mentorship. Today I had the bright idea of signing up for Meetup Sales groups. I hate to say this but if I get released by my company that would really suck but I got a head start at least.

My issue with my current general labor job is that people do get sent home, the weather fucking sucks, I do the graveyard shift and sometimes I have to compete against the morning commute, and it's dangerous. The job will be automated 10 years from now which is why I'm scrambling to refine my skills. However whenever there's downtime I read books and listen to podcasts. My coworkers probably talk shit about me and brand me as a nerd but I don't care.

I'll give my current job some time and hopefully get invited for another contract gig. Don't get me wrong journeymen make 100K+ and that doesn't include the total package. Money is so addicting after all the years working dead end jobs I always want that next multiplier pay grade. Stay thirsty my friends.

One of the mistakes I've made in my career is not networking enough. Don't be Mr. Lone Ranger like me haha. It shows by how long I've had to apply to jobs and secure interviews. I could be wrong on this but developing your network can help your closing rate in sales. I'm not perfect but I always try to approach 10 people and get their contact info at live events. About once a month I'll reconnect via group message. Here's a little of what I've been doing as of late:

Reread Sandler sales method book and find ways to apply what he teaches in real life.
Join Meetup and go to events.
Find volunteering events.
Learn new languages.
Cold connect on LinkedIn. At my current job I have so much time to dick around on my phone so I copy and paste messages to random people. Whenever I do this I shoot for a meetup. I think people only use LinkedIn when they're career changing or got laid off.

Just by doing this someone told me about a free mentorship program that might land me a high paying job in tech.

My longer term goal within 5 years is to develop my own shit and sell and collect 100% of the profits. I go to where the money is and I always want more. My current job is worth about 70K I know I can hit at least 150K within 12 months. PAY ME!!!!!

Have been reading this thread with great respect. Great to see men supporting each other.

I'm in a slightly different career transition. I'm just over 60 and after some hits to my health, decided to get back into sales. First, because I was always good at it (sold enterprise hardware/software for 20 years for the big names, eventually made VP, then drifted into product development) and second, because of health I need to work from home.

Funny thing...the body is shit but speaking voice and sales ability are better than ever. Maybe because i understand just how little time you have on this planet, I tend to get to the point more quickly and ask for the sale more quickly. Selling software never changes, the problems are always ultimately human and organizational.

Anyway my job hunting obstacles are age aversion and lack of mobility. Most sales managers want young guys because they perceive them to be more aggressive. I think my past experience as a VP will make them wary (why is this guy willing to work for less?). They also want people who will come to rah-rah meetings to meet the other reps. I need to counter both of those objections and show that my way -- working strictly from home and using my older experience -- closes sales.

I don't have any old friends or contacts still in the game so am starting the job hunt from scratch.

One advantage that i have is that i have a few old friends that run lead generation companies servicing big tech companies. They've offered to feed me 3 months worth of quality leads in any sector I want. I don't want a commission-only job though; i want to work for a company that will pay a base in recognition that I'm walking in the door with leads.

Any advice welcome. Also happy to give advice if I can.

Quote: (04-15-2019 10:43 PM)MrLemon Wrote:  

Have been reading this thread with great respect. Great to see men supporting each other.

I'm in a slightly different career transition. I'm just over 60 and after some hits to my health, decided to get back into sales. First, because I was always good at it (sold enterprise hardware/software for 20 years for the big names, eventually made VP, then drifted into product development) and second, because of health I need to work from home.

My dude much respect...making VP for enterprise tech sales is no joke. You're probably one of the most successful guys on the forum and now all of a sudden I feel like a joke.

I gotta ask...why are you asking for advice? I assume you sold in the big leagues at multiple F500s and went from director to VP. Don't you have tremendous contacts in the industry?

I'd love to talk to you one day about taking my career to the next level. I want to make VP within 20 years.

Quote: (04-16-2019 05:00 PM)Graft Wrote:  

Quote: (04-15-2019 10:43 PM)MrLemon Wrote:  

Have been reading this thread with great respect. Great to see men supporting each other.

I'm in a slightly different career transition. I'm just over 60 and after some hits to my health, decided to get back into sales. First, because I was always good at it (sold enterprise hardware/software for 20 years for the big names, eventually made VP, then drifted into product development) and second, because of health I need to work from home.

My dude much respect...making VP for enterprise tech sales is no joke. You're probably one of the most successful guys on the forum and now all of a sudden I feel like a joke.

I gotta ask...why are you asking for advice? I assume you sold in the big leagues at multiple F500s and went from director to VP. Don't you have tremendous contacts in the industry?

I'd love to talk to you one day about taking my career to the next level. I want to make VP within 20 years.

Hello Graft, thanks for the post. Yeah I was at a VP level but that was a while ago and at a mid sized firm -- not an Oracle (yeah if it was
Oracle I'd be retired in Hawaii!)

Now, I've got the opposite problem. I'm pretty physically handicapped now so I'd rather just work selling. Don't have the energy to do management (you gotta be able to travel).

You'd be surprised. Having a high level position 10 years ago is a detriment. Nobody wants to hire an old dude who might A) show them up in some way B) try to rest on his laurels and just be pitiful, or C) be slow and stupid.

My old contacts have all retired and the technology has moved on. I'm not up to speed on the latest technology or sales-jargon, and probably sound antiquated in a phone interview.

You sound like you're in your prime. Just keep doing what you're doing! Enjoy the ride.

Good rule of sales: plan to bank enough cash by 50 to buy a few good income properties, then retire and manage them.

Happy to give tips any time. Being a VP means "having a big rolodex of top producers you can recruit". You can either increase sales 50-200% y-o-y or you can't. The rest is bullshit.

Quote: (03-05-2019 11:02 PM)Alpha_Ambitionz Wrote:  

Thanks for the advice guys.

I just made an account on Angels and will be playing around on the website more later.

I just started this real estate job in January, so I don't want to leave just yet. I want to show that I can be successful at setting up appointments first.

Once I prove myself, I'll have a good reference to go along with my successful track record and then I can leverage that experience to get a better sales job.

So I've made over 10,000 phone calls since I started. Setup 43 appointments so far.

None of them have closed yet.

It sucks when your commission is based on someone else's ability to close.

I'm also only 3 months into the job, but I'm already starting to feel really burnt out.

Like I literally say the same thing over and over again: "Hi this is AA from the Real Estate Group. You just signed up on our website... how can we help you with your real estate needs?"

Starting to wonder if sales is really for me...

Quote: (04-21-2019 04:26 AM)Alpha_Ambitionz Wrote:  

So I've made over 10,000 phone calls since I started. Setup 43 appointments so far.

None of them have closed yet.

It sucks when your commission is based on someone else's ability to close.

I'm also only 3 months into the job, but I'm already starting to feel really burnt out.

Like I literally say the same thing over and over again: "Hi this is AA from the Real Estate Group. You just signed up on our website... how can we help you with your real estate needs?"

Starting to wonder if sales is really for me...

3 months, 10k calls, and you've only tested one script? C'mon man, inbound leads should be a cake walk