Sophie Kunsa

Sales teams typically forecast deals weekly through pipeline review, 1:1s, etc. What about CS teams? Are they treating renewals the same way? If not, they should be. Here’s our approach: 🔴 Red account meetings – Every other week, we flag slipping accounts (green → yellow → red) and assign action items to turn them around. 📅 Renewal forecast meetings – Look 4+ months ahead and map out the steps to lock in retention. Treat renewals with the same urgency you do new business.

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The #1 difference between AEs converting 40% and AEs converting 70%+ of first calls is the number of problems discussed. And the top reps discuss fewer. Average reps cover a lot of ground in their discovery calls. They go wide, trying to find anything and everything to tie their product to. The logic makes sense: “The more problems I find, the better chance I have of solving some of them.” The best reps aren’t trying to uncover a lot of problems. They understand that: - No company has the capacity to take on a bunch of priorities at once - Discussing a bunch of problems leaves your prospect overwhelmed and not wanting to book more time - Deals are won by solving the biggest priority, not by solving a bunch of annoyances So they focus on finding and attaching to a problem worth solving. Today, I’m launching my “Discovery Clarity Framework” - a worksheet you can use to: - Know exactly what you need to uncover on a discovery call - Example questions to ask to uncover valuable insight If improving discovery is on your personal development plan for this quarter, you’ll want to grab this new resource (free today): https://lnkd.in/gd8B9Hhp

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SDRs, AEs, and Salespersons it's a fact that everyone loves stories. Whether watching a movie, reading a novel, or hearing a friend talk about a situation at work, we all find stories interesting and highly persuasive. So as a salesperson, it becomes important to master the art of storytelling 𝘏𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘳𝘦 6 𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘦𝘭𝘦𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘮𝘱𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘺𝘵𝘦𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨: 1. 𝐑𝐞𝐦𝐨𝐯𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐧𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐬𝐬𝐚𝐫𝐲 𝐨𝐫 𝐃𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐢𝐥𝐬 Avoid cluttering your story with details that distract from the core message. Keep it lean. Every element should serve a purpose. Eliminate anything that might shift attention away from your main point. 2. 𝐔𝐬𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐒𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐭𝐨 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐁𝐮𝐲𝐞𝐫𝐬 Similarity builds trust. When characters in your story resemble your audience, the connection becomes stronger. Testimonials are especially impactful when the storyteller and listener share similar challenges or goals. 3. 𝐒𝐭𝐚𝐫𝐭 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐞𝐥𝐥𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐈𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐝𝐮𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 First impressions matter. A strong, intriguing start hooks your listeners and sets the tone for how the rest of the story will be perceived. Create an introduction that sparks curiosity or resonates deeply. 4. 𝐋𝐞𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐚𝐜𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐬 𝐒𝐩𝐞𝐚𝐤 Dialogue makes stories come alive. Compare these two: “Amit looked me in the eye and said, ‘I can’t afford to take that risk.’” “Amit said he didn’t want to take the risk.” The former creates a vivid, engaging moment; the latter feels flat. 5. 𝐄𝐧𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐚 𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐫 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐜𝐥𝐮𝐬𝐢𝐨𝐧 Memorable stories conclude with clarity and impact. The ending must address all questions raised, leaving no loose ends. An unresolved story distracts and diminishes its influence. 6. 𝐂𝐨𝐧𝐯𝐞𝐲 𝐚 𝐒𝐢𝐧𝐠𝐮𝐥𝐚𝐫 𝐏𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 Every story should have a clear takeaway. Ask yourself: What belief or behavior do I want to inspire? Ensure the narrative conveys one specific, powerful message. If you don’t, listeners may interpret it in unintended ways. As the saying goes, “Numbers don’t move hearts, but stories and vivid language do.” #sales #storytelling #b2b #saas #sdr #ae

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Cold Calling Strategically into your Enterprise Accounts based on n=1bn calls C-Suite Execs will Pick Up. Sometimes More Than VPs Think top executives never answer cold calls? Myth busted. Orum’s billion-call study found C-level executives answer about as often as anyone else: 4.0% Connect Rate on average (4.5% for Finance Execs). VPs are hardest to reach with the Lowest overall Connect Rate. And who picks up the most? Front-line folks (ICs) at ~5.3% overall – with standout groups like Sales at 7.6%. Takeaway: Call up and down your accounts. Individual Contributors for research... and Don’t shy from calling high (CXOs do answer!), but multi-thread your approach. Start conversations at the ground level to gather pain points, then use those insights to engage the VP and C-suite. Data: Orum 🥇 “State of Cold Calling” report (Link in Comments) #SDR #ColdCall

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Troy Munson's take on cold calling? It’s not dead—it’s just different. 📞 Pre-pandemic: Sellers could call office lines and get a solid connect rate. 📲 Today: Mobile-first means fewer answered calls, more voicemails, and a need for smarter outreach. So, how do top sellers adapt? In this episode of Closing Time, Troy breaks down the biggest shifts in cold calling since 2020—and what still works today. If you’re making excuses for why outbound doesn’t work, this episode is a must-listen. Thanks for joining the show, Troy. (The full episode can be viewed here: https://bit.ly/4i8dFBb)

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If your CSMs think like Account Managers, you’ll retain revenue. If they think like CEOs, you’ll multiply it. Let me explain Most CSMs are trained to serve customers. Few are empowered to lead outcomes. Account Managers ask, “How can I help?” CEO minded CSMs ask, “What is blocking your growth this quarter?” The difference? One reacts to problems. The other shapes strategy. When your team starts thinking like CEOs  • They stop chasing renewals and start owning business impact.  • They connect customer goals to product investments.  • They turn every QBR into a boardroom conversation. That’s when Customer Success shifts from being a cost center to a growth multiplier. I once worked with a CSM who turned a renewal conversation into a co-innovation deal not by upselling but by reframing the value her customer was missing. That single move added $1.2M in expansion ARR. That’s what happens when your CSMs stop managing accounts and start running portfolios. The future belongs to commercially confident, product fluent, growth focused CSMs; the ones who lead with business acumen, not activity reports. If you are building your next gen CS org Are your CSMs being trained to think like operators or like CEOs?

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Predictive Enablement is transforming how we equip our revenue leaders. No longer just about delivering content or training on demand, predictive enablement leverages data and AI to: * Anticipate Skill Gaps: Imagine knowing which reps are about to struggle with a particular objection, product feature etc before it impacts a deal. Proactive, targeted coaching and training. RingCentral's enablement & Ops teams Kelly Molkenbuhr are launching The Revenue Standard which will be the framework to do just this. * Proactively Deliver the Right Resources: Instead of reps searching for answers serve it up. This is where Ringo I've talked about before is coming in for RingCentral. * Optimize Coaching & Training: By analyzing vast amounts of sales data – from call recordings to CRM activity – AI can pinpoint patterns in successful interactions. We are leveraging RingCentral's RingSense and Aviso AI to power this. * Accelerate Onboarding & Time-to-Quota: New hires can be brought up to speed faster with personalized learning paths and simulated scenarios Heather K. has a lot on deck to do just this! * Improve Forecast Accuracy: Account planning, opp planning and deal planning with AI Ratnadeep Chatterjee, MBA Michael Throssel and I have a few things up our sleeves to roll out in Q3! Predictive enablement isn't just a buzzword; it's a strategic imperative powered by AI and robust data analytics. It moves us from reactive problem-solving to proactive performance optimization, ensuring our go-to-market teams are always one step ahead. CC: Akshay Srivastava Joe Jacob Joe Fahrner Ayub Mohammed Amir Hameed Brandon Thomas Are you already exploring predictive enablement within your organization? What impact have you seen, or what challenges are you anticipating? #PredictiveEnablement #SalesEnablement #RevenueEnablement #AITech #Coaching #GTMStrategy

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Sales mid-managers are at the biggest risk in 2026. ICs will still sell. VPs and Directors will own the numbers - and get blamed when they’re missed. So if you’re in the middle, and you’re not adding real value - why do they need you? The role has changed fast. You have to really know your people: who’s blocked, distracted, or quietly burning out. You have to understand your tools: how they connect, how they fail, how AI can actually fix problems. If you can’t navigate the systems your team uses every day, you can’t lead them. You have to understand how sales works as a system: pipeline, conversions, inbound and outbound flow. And you have to communicate clearly. No buzzwords, no corporate tone. Just clarity. The middle layer in sales is under pressure. If you’re not enabling, simplifying, or lifting the team - you’re optional.

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"Go-to-market" is a flywheel, not a linear process. Every prospect is worthy of a seller conversation regardless of where they sit in a problem cycle. The major issue with modern sales development is 1. Desperately seeking "in-market" opportunities, which is 3% of your market every quarter 2. Missing the market turns and opportunities to displace 3. Nobody is getting coached on running elite follow-up and referral plays Prospect across the lifecycle, and in 12 quarters, you could be market dominant in a market you care about (arguably not your TAM, though...) PipelineHeroes speak to their entire market once a quarter

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I did an informal poll on CSM vs Sales commission splits. I was pleasantly shocked to see that over 95% of companies do not have Sales take a commission on renewals unless it’s a particularly challenging one; the AE is there to help with it as a “bounty renewal”. in this case, the AE gets a % but is not taken from the CSM. Other interesting data points: "Commission on upsells and renewal made up 30% of the total compensation package. However, the exact commission % was determined by dividing the 30% by $$$ into the total ARR managed by the CSM." What metrics should this be based on? Typically, companies that are earlier in their CS maturity will base this off a few leading indicators (adoption milestones, EBRs, etc.), and then move to comping on lagging indicators (retention, expansion, NRR, etc.) once their leading indicator activities have been proven. The following are examples of metrics you can use, not an exhaustive list: Leading: QBRs and/or EBRs (attained vs scheduled) Product adoption milestones (product dependent) Lagging: Net Revenue Retention (NRR) - this is likely the most common Retention Expansion Advocacy (hard to make this scale across large teams and mixed portfolios - this is better as a SPIFF or annual metric to Bonus on) From there, you can determine the weight of each metric on the bonus. I'll give an example of using a bonus that is achieved by a renewal retention goal and an NRR goal. Criteria for 100% Bonus Attainment: 90% Renewal Retention (50% weight) 125% Net Revenue Retention (50% weight) "This keeps it pretty simple with two priorities. Retain and Expand Revenue. The Retention goal being assessed separately ensures CSMs don't have significant churn masked by massive upsells. In this example, if a CSM had 85% Retention and 115% NRR, they'd end up at 93.22% to goal for their overall commission/variable comp."

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Your reps now spend only 28% of their week selling. That’s not me, that’s Salesforce talking. Your sales teams are being asked to do more with less, but nearly three-quarters of their time is lost to manual work - stitching decks, chasing meeting notes, and digging through 10-Ks for one line of CFO risk. In India, AEs face a thousand daily fires. Yet the current sales stack doesn’t solve the basics. You’re paying premium revenue talent to do admin work. That’s not sustainable for any P&L. The real Enterprise AI problem isn’t job loss. It’s the dumb work draining quota. Here’s what we built in an internal demo competition - Whale Assist, powered by Gemini: 1. Instant Workspace → A “Whale Prospect” hits Salesforce → auto-creates Google Doc Account Canvas, comm log, and Chat space. 2. Research Bot → Annual reports & earnings calls auto-loaded into NotebookLM. Reps ask Gemini: “Summarize CFO risks in Q2.” 3. Meeting Intelligence → GMeet script injects, transcripts summarized, blockers tagged, Canvas updated. 4. Email Agent → Trains on your best reps’ winning emails to auto-draft personalized, high-performing outreach. 5. Nudge Engine → If a deal stalls, Gemini analyzes sentiment and pings Chat: “No CFO touch in 21 days. Draft outreach ready.” You can find the workflow here: https://lnkd.in/g5kxrE5T Reps go from data miners to strategists in minutes. Instead of losing 8+ hours/week, they’re (should be) closing faster, multithreading deeper, and keeping deals from slipping 90 → 120 days. PS: Even a shared drive can become a deal central when paired with your managers or CEs. Fun with Google Workspace!

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🔥 The old way of selling is dead. In this episode of the Elite Selling Podcast, Christian Smith, CRO at Splunk, explains what it takes to win in today’s market—and it starts with a modern engagement model built around outcomes, not products. “C-levels aren’t buying a tool. They’re buying a business result.” Too many reps still lead with features. The best? They lead with value, discovery, and trust. 💥 What you’ll walk away with: -How to implement a modern engagement model that builds executive trust -The shift from transactional sales to strategic partnership -Why sales and customer success must move in lockstep -The traits of top sellers: curiosity, discipline, and discovery -How to think like the CEO of your territory and drive real results PS - there may be some talks about cold plunges at the end 🥶 🎧 This episode is for sellers who want to lead, not just close. #ModernSelling #CLevelEngagement #EnterpriseSales #EliteSelling #CustomerSuccess #ValueSelling #ClickUp #SalesLeadership

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Potential Hot Take 🌶 Most CS teams don't want commission, no matter how much ARR they bring in. 💰 At least not true commission. Let me explain. Over the years, I've occasionally heard people talk about how CSMs and CS orgs should be compensated in commission like sales teams because of the amount of revenue CSM teams bring in. On the surface, this sounds like it makes sense. When you dig a little deeper though, you tend to find that: -CS teams don't want to lower their base salary for higher potential ceiling (whereas in many orgs, sales teams have a lower base salary to accomoddate the commission pay structure) 😬 -Many CSMs have a lower appetite for the risk/variability in pay that comes with a true commission-based comp model 🎢 -CS leaders have often found (rightly) that a commission model based just on added-ARR would not incentivize all the right behaviors as many CS plays are long term and hard to reward on JUST an added-ARR model (such as referrals and second order revenue) 🏈 Digging into this sentiment from CS leaders, I've found that it's not ACTUALLY a commission structure they want. Here are 3 things they want in reality: 1. Recognition They want the revenue they own, renew, and expand to be recognized just as much as net new ARR from Sales. 2. Incentive They want to feel like their compensation incentivizes the things that matter most to them. 3. Purpose Similar to point 1, they want their teams efforts to be clearly tied to the company's purpose. ________________________________ Leaders, advocate for the above for your team. Don't complain about Sales getting commission for "your work", but rather advocate for a holistic approach that truly takes care of what your teams actually want. This is a lot more work to articulate than just saying "CSMs should get commission for upsells." But other organizational leaders will take you more seriously and you'll achieve stronger results for your teams if you follow the above pathways. #CustomerSuccess #SaaS #CSM #GTM

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