We recently came across an article in Business Insider that shared how SalesForce grew at an early stage. The article highlighted one of the first sales executive’s (David Rudnitsky) who was the main catalyst for their growth. Upon reading the tips and rules that he shared with Business Insider, we felt compelled to relay them here. None of them are revolutionary, but are great reminders and “must-do’s” in order to drive sales for a company. Here are the 11 rules:
1. “Think BIG, Have Attitude”: Think big (dollars and scope), not just the immediate opportunity in front of you. Behave as if your company is big, even if it’s not. Salesforce’s average customer had 12 users when Rudnitsky started out.
2. “No deal is won or lost alone”: Bring in the entire team to work on new deals, and brainstorm about how to do a better job. “I’m less impressed with someone who closes a $2 million deal alone than I am with someone who brought all of us in and still closed the same $2 million deal,” Rudnitsky said.
3. “Connect the dots”: Never cold call, always call with a plan. Constantly reach out to contacts and find connections before engaging with a prospect.
4. “Focus on ‘why not”: Instead of thinking about why a deal will close, focus on why it might not. “Anticipating the ‘why nots’ gives you a significant advantage over [competitors],” he writes.
5. “Always take the deal off the table”: Make sure every deal is closed if it’s ready to close. Don’t waste any time, leaving a chance for the deal stalling and potentially getting away.
6. “Get your face in the place”: Meet your customers in person. You won’t be able to learn anything about them by just talking on the phone. It also strengthens the customers’ confidence in you.
7. “Fun facts build instant credibility”: Try to learn everything about your customer and collect ‘fun facts’ that could be used to build your credibility.
8. “Be proactive on all paperwork”: Make sure all paperwork is in place. Otherwise, it will “come back to bite you.”
9. “Always get quid pro quo in negotiations”: Don’t be afraid to ask for more and say no when needed. For example, make sure you’re allowed to announce the deal in the press because it gives huge publicity that could lead to other opportunities.
10. “Share best practices”: Share great emails or proposals with the rest of the team and try to learn from them. And use them in other deals too.
11. “Go after game changers”: Look for deals that can take the company to the next level. “These deals are revolutionary in a company’s evolution. Winning huge customers, such as Dell and Japan Post, was game changing for our company,” Benioff writes.
We’re always reflecting back on this list and David does a great job iterating the importance of all 11 rules. If you want to read more about how David got onboard with SalesForce take a look at the link here.
