When to hire marketing in a services firm
A services firm should hire marketing once sellers have a working motion to support. Here's how to tell when you're ready and who to hire first.
3 min read
Blog
The Stage 1 blog Page 14
How services firms find accounts getting ready to buy, get in through people they know, and open conversations worth having. Written by Kevin French.
Partner-sourced pipeline for services firms
Partner-sourced pipeline works when you give partners a reason to bring you in. Here's how services firms build it account by account instead of hoping.
3 min readPrivate equity ownership changes the timing
When a private equity firm buys a company, services spending speeds up. Here's how the hold period changes when and how you should reach out.
3 min readHow to read a 10-K like a seller
The sections of a 10-K that reveal business pressure, platform bets and budget, and how a seller turns one line into a sharp first message.
4 min readWhen they say reach out next quarter
When a buyer says reach out next quarter, it's often real timing and sometimes a soft no. Here's how to tell, what to reply and how to come back.
3 min readSales and marketing in a 50-person firm
A 50-person services firm needs one revenue plan, a narrow target list and marketing that feeds named accounts. Here's how to set up sales and marketing.
3 min readHow to thank a connector
A connector who makes an intro for you is spending their own credibility. Here's how to thank them so they're glad they did it and would do it again.
3 min readSelling to consumer brands
Consumer brands buy services around growth, retail partners and direct-to-consumer channels. Here's who buys, what pressures them and how to open.
3 min readPost-merger integration and the first 100 days
The first 100 days after a deal closes are when integration plans meet reality. Here's what goes wrong, who feels it and how services sellers show up.
3 min readWhen to stop following up
Stop following up when you run out of new things to say, not when you hit a number. Here's how to know it's time and what to do with the account after.
3 min readThe second message is a new hypothesis
When your first opener gets no reply, the second message shouldn't repeat it. It should test a different guess about what's hurting the buyer.
3 min readReferral pipeline that doesn't depend on luck
Referrals feel random, but they come from a few people you can name and work with on purpose. Here's how a services firm builds a referral pipeline.
3 min readWhen not to ask for an intro
A warm intro spends someone else's trust. Here's when asking does more harm than good, and when going direct or waiting is the better move.
3 min readSelling to a CISO
A CISO owns risk they can never fully remove and gets pitched constantly. Here's what they're measured on, which signals matter and how to open.
3 min readThe warm intro is the most underused channel in services
Why services sellers should try a warm intro before any cold message, and how to write a short note a connector will forward without editing.
3 min readAn acquisition announcement is a services signal
An acquisition creates integration work on both sides before the deal even closes. Here's how a services seller should read the announcement and act.
3 min readSelling to retailers
Retailers buy services under thin margins and seasonal pressure. Here's who signs, which signals matter most, and how to open with a retail buyer.
3 min readWhat a fractional CRO should fix first
A fractional CRO should fix who the firm sells to and why before touching process or tools. Here's the order of operations for the first months.
3 min read