A week of warm outreach, start to finish
A day-by-day walk through one week of warm outreach for a services seller, from picking accounts on Monday to following up on intros by Friday.
3 min read
Blog
The Stage 1 blog Page 2
How services firms find accounts getting ready to buy, get in through people they know, and open conversations worth having. Written by Kevin French.
Executive departures that open doors
An executive leaving can open an account as wide as a new hire arriving. Which departures matter, what to watch next and how to open.
3 min readPipeline hygiene once a week
Pipeline hygiene works best as a short weekly habit, not a quarterly cleanup. A 30-minute routine for services sellers that keeps it honest.
3 min readExit readiness and pipeline quality
Buyers of services firms look hard at pipeline quality, not just revenue. What they check, what makes a pipeline credible and what to fix.
3 min readInversion Selling for account managers
Account managers can use Inversion Selling to find expansion work inside existing clients. How research and hypotheses work with a logo.
3 min readThe account that went quiet
When a busy account stops producing signals, the silence means something. Here's how to read a quiet account, when to wait and when to write anyway.
3 min readThe CRO's first 30 days
A new CRO at a services firm should spend the first 30 days listening to deals, not rewriting the plan. What to look at and what to leave.
3 min readSelling to chemicals and materials companies
Chemicals and materials companies buy services when cycles turn and portfolios get reshaped. Who buys, which signals matter and how to open.
3 min readSelling to a chief customer officer
A chief customer officer buys services when retention slips and the data is scattered. What they own, what they ignore and how to open.
3 min readHow to use a case study after the reply
A case study works once the buyer has named their problem. How to pick the right one after a reply, cut it to fit and send it so it moves.
3 min readAI SDRs and the services sale
AI SDRs promise endless outbound at low cost. Here's why that model breaks for services deals and where AI belongs in a senior, committee sale.
4 min readTurning a no into a later
A no from a senior buyer is usually a no for now. Here's how to read it, the short reply that keeps the door open and what not to do when you hear it.
3 min readDiscounting early to fill pipeline is a trap
Discounts that buy first meetings fill the pipeline with the wrong buyers and cap every deal. Why it backfires in services and what to offer.
3 min readWriting a sales playbook people read
A sales playbook nobody opens is a document, not a playbook. Here's how to write one short enough to use, built around decisions sellers make every week.
3 min readTracking intros as pipeline
Warm intros are pipeline, so track them like pipeline. A simple way to log asks, follow the handoff and see which paths turn into meetings.
3 min readHow to rank signals for your offer
A general signal ranking is a starting point. Here's how to reorder buying signals around what your services firm sells and who buys it.
3 min readSelling to food and beverage companies
Food and beverage companies buy services when margins, plants or retailer demands force change. Here's who buys, what pressures they face and how to open.
3 min readSelling to a chief product officer
A chief product officer buys services when the roadmap slips and the team can't close the gap. What they own, what they ignore and how to open.
3 min read