BoogieBoard

Which side are you on in a disagreement—anecdotes or data? "When the data and the anecdotes disagree, the anecdotes are usually right." Rome Thorndike, VP of Growth at Firmograph, quotes Jeff Bezos when discussing today's go-to-market world. He finds that many sales organizations claim to be data-driven but are actually data-dependent. Rome encourages leaders to ask themselves: “Do I incorporate data into my decisions, or do I wait for the data to tell me what to do?” He says too many companies are doing the latter. Here are three reasons why: 1. It’s efficient: It’s easier to review a CRM dashboard than to attend a salesperson's meeting and see firsthand how they interact with customers. Tracking call numbers is simpler than joining a lengthy Zoom call with a client. 2. It’s easy to communicate: Showing a dashboard to my CEO to highlight top performers is straightforward. However, explaining why a salesperson isn’t respected by customers is much more abstract and complex. 3. It feels safe: Assigning accountability to data seems less risky than owning the decision myself. Thanks for joining me in the BoogieBoard tiki bar! We'll post the full convo soon.

What was it like to be in Edison’s lab during the creation of the lightbulb? Brad Rosen, President of Sales Assembly, experienced a modern-day parallel in the world of B2B SaaS intent data (rumor has it, Walter Isaacson is tracking this story). As a GTM executive at G2, Brad faced the question: “How are you going to build this business?” One of his team's solutions was to pioneer intent data. It all began with a buyer-first mentality: “A lot of people don’t want to submit leads—for obvious reasons. They don’t want to deal with endless calls and emails from sales teams, and many simply aren’t ready to engage yet. So, we thought: what if we could just identify who’s visiting your page?” G2 embraced this idea, and the world of intent data has exploded. Where is it today? Brad highlights two major challenges: 1. Mapping intent to the buying journey: Intent could range from casually browsing software to urgently needing a solution. But how do you gauge exactly where a buyer is in that process? 2. Do buyers want you to know their activity? Sales & marketing teams need to gather enough context to appropriately engage buyers no matter what stage of the funnel they’re in. But do buyers actually want you to have this information? What other challenges are you facing with intent data?

More fun from the BoogieBoard Tiki Bar!

"Show them that it's not just an effort that was done by the salesperson, but it's an effort that was done by the salesperson AND their own employees." In this snippet, Max Elster breaks down the art of building a tailored business case that speaks directly to what a CFO values most. Max is the Co-Founder and CEO of Minoa, which specializes in value selling and studies the impact of macroeconomic conditions on enterprise deals. Key Observations from Max: 👩💼 CFOs are everywhere: Small purchase decisions now need approval from the C-Suite or the CFO. They no longer care about features. 🕵️ Higher scrutiny on purchases: New deals and renewals are going through bureaucratic procurement processes. A simple problem statement isn't enough anymore. 🤔 Complex buying committees: Buying committees are sometimes as large as 15 people. Communicating value to multiple stakeholders can’t be achieved through a single email anymore. We’ll be sharing our full interview soon, but for now, enjoy this snippet. PS - Check out the full webinar referenced by Max (Selling to CFOs in 2024 and beyond with former Drift and LogMeIn CFO Jim Kelliher) linked in the comments.

"You're a people manager, not a sales manager." Early in his sales leadership journey, Josue Gonzalez Azuara of Databricks fell into the classic "Uber-rep" trap—trying to manage every deal himself. A pivotal 1:1 with his Director made him realize it was time to shift his approach. Now, when you talk to Josue about sales leadership, the conversation always comes back to one thing: people. He's focused on building culture and setting his Sellers up for success. Our interview at the BoogieBoard Tiki Bar uncovers how Josue stays patient in a frantic game, caring in a transitory business, and humble in fierce competition. We’ll drop the full interview soon. Until then, here’s a sneak peek.

How should you confront fairness within your sales org? The best leaders use it to build culture and winning teams. You need to: ⚖️ Define fairness 🔎 Distinguish fairness from equality 🫥 Be transparent about territory & quota design 😳 Show how these designs impact each seller 📣 Encourage open debate and feedback Matthew B. Boerner, who led teams at Google and now LinkedIn says, 'It can't be a black box.' Sales Leaders must demystify how decisions are made. We’ll post the full convo from the BoogieBoard Tiki Bar🍹🌴 soon, but with planning season ahead, start with this framework to lead with transparency.

Hey RevOps - annual planning is better with your RevOps friends, isn't it? 👯 So why don't you join your pals for our new RevOps Peer Groups 💪 Designed to help you navigate the EOY planning season with expert support and peer collaboration. Here's what You'll Get: 🤝 Get Matched → Connect with 2-4 RevOps pros from companies similar to yours 💬 Participate in Roundtables → Join 3 guided Annual Planning roundtables with your Peer Group (one per month from Sept - Nov) 🧠 Expert Moderation → Gain insights from discussions moderated by seasoned planning veterans, including BoogieBoard CEO, Kevin Davis 🚀 Collaborate & Improve → Work with peers to enhance your planning process and gain a dedicated support network for tackling EOY challenges. Intrigued? I bet you are...if the below sounds like you, then these peer groups are probably a good fit 👇 ✅ You’re a RevOps professional at the start or in the middle of your Annual Planning cycle ✅ You’re ready to share, collaborate, and learn with your peers ✅ You’re committed to attending 3 interactive 90-minute sessions ⛓️💥 Register here to participate → https://lnkd.in/g8Xg4ERN #revops #revenueoperations #salesops #salesoperations #territoryseason #annualplanning #sops #marketingops #marketingoperations #mops #csops #cxops #gtmops #alltheops

How important is fairness in a sales org? According to our CEO, Kevin Davis, it's huge!

Register for RevOps Peer Groups to help you through EOY Planning Season!

Werner Schmidt's top advice for your first EOY planning cycle: "Start planning in August!" Werner - CEO of Lative - joined me in BoogieBoard's Tiki Bar to talk about all things capacity planning. Check out the full interview linked in the comments.