From Zero to Success: Building a Startup Sales Machine
with Ran Ohayon, CRO & Co-Founder of WIB.com
In the ever-volatile world of startups, navigating the path from inception to success requires a blend of vision, strategy, and adaptability. Ran Ohayon, CRO & Co-Founder of WIB.com, shared his thoughts on this journey during a recent episode of Tech Salescraft with James Hounslow. With deep insights drawn from his own experience scaling a startup, Ran unpacked the intricacies of sales, unicorns, and effective leadership for early-stage companies.
Turbulence in the World of Unicorns
The post-pandemic boom created an environment ripe with opportunity. Many companies, buoyed by abundant funding, ascended to “unicorn” status—those magical startups valued at over a billion dollars. However, as the market matured and external conditions changed, several of these unicorns struggled to turn valuations into sustained growth. Ran observed, “There were two unicorns that did a lot of noise but struggled to close big deals.” These struggles highlight that even with significant hype and funding, the ultimate success of a startup is determined by its ability to execute and close revenue-generating deals.
The Early-Stage Sales Playbook
Building an early-stage startup often starts with more challenges than revenue. When Ran joined WIB.com in 2021, the company had no paying customers. Faced with the daunting task of generating revenue from scratch, Ran knew that the key lay in identifying the right technological gap and understanding the market’s needs.
One of his critical strategies was focusing on creating strong relationships, particularly with C-level executives like CISOs and CIOs. “You need to build a machine,” Ran emphasised. It’s not just about making one sale—it’s about creating a replicable, scalable system that ensures consistent, long-term growth. His process involved getting customers to see the critical need for API security, educating them on its value, and walking them through a journey that started with small wins and built up to major milestones.
A Strategic Approach to Hiring and Leadership
For any startup, especially those in the early stages, sales leadership can make or break the company. One of Ran’s key takeaways was the importance of a hands-on approach for founders, particularly when budgets are tight. Instead of hiring an expansive sales team immediately, Ran took the sales function into his own hands, stating, “I did onboarding, sales, SDR, partner management… until we started seeing real results.”
Ran’s advice to founders? Wait until you’ve proven that your sales engine works before scaling up your team. In his view, it’s more important to invest in building a sustainable product and finding product-market fit before pouring resources into sales hires. He also advised against rushing into hiring expensive, big-name VPs of sales who may not be suited for early-stage startups.
“You Learn More From Losses”
A key insight from Ran’s journey is his belief that startups often learn more from losses than from victories. Success can mask inefficiencies, but failure forces a company to re-evaluate its approach. Reflecting on WIB’s early days, Ran candidly shared how they ventured into crowded market segments and made decisions that nearly derailed the business. But these experiences helped refine their focus and ultimately led to their breakthrough success in the API security space.
The message is clear: startups must be agile, willing to pivot when necessary, and able to learn quickly from missteps.
“There were two unicorns that did a lot of noise but struggled to close big deals.”
As founders steer their companies through the startup ecosystem, it’s essential to recognise that success comes from a well-rounded understanding of the market, building solid relationships, and being hands-on in critical areas like sales and leadership.