The Key To Unlocking High Performance | Mark Colgan, Co- Founder & CRO at Speak on Podcasts
On the first episode of this Tech Salescraft series, James was delighted to be joined by Mark Colgan, Co-Founder and CRO at Speak on Podcasts. Mark offers guidance on what B2B SaaS companies should be doing to get from Seed to Series A funding. Exploring business growth, unlocking high performance, and driving positive customer success, this episode is brimming with insights into what it takes to craft an exceptional firm. Mark brings an infectious passion for business and sales to this episode, and share with us and James his keys to success.
“Having a strong foundation for your sales process is key to unlocking high performance.”
The criticality of the sales process cannot be neglected by any founder or business. Executing it well can give you an unparalleled edge in a highly competitive market. Mark Colgan begins his conversation with James by stressing this crucial point. Failing to properly test your product in the market and gauging its fit can be an immediate downfall and hinderance in the long run. It subsequently means your messaging won’t be refined and suitable for your niche; a comprehensive process won’t be in place that could otherwise collate the strengths of your firm; and could lead you to hiring a sales person that is the wrong fit for the business. Executing the basics properly, as Mark highlights, is a mentality that can’t be overlooked.
“You need to have a great product. The founder has built something but is it good? Can people use it?”
The excitement of creating a new product can often detract from the importance of testing, of acquiring loyal customers, and monopolising your niche. As emphasised before, strong product testing is crucial for this as for firms in the very early stages of establishment, a products ability to sell itself is crucial. People need to experience the value of the product early on which will build an immensely strong basis for subsequent customer success. Mark brings to our attention the fact that it is cheaper to retain customers than it is to acquire customers. Hence, implementing a strong sales process early on will allow you to build a firm that has positive external backing that will likely stay around. Mark’s wealth of experience on this matter is evident and creates a conversation with James that’s not to be missed!
“The personality or background of the founder shouldn’t decide who the next hire is.”
Having a diversity of skills in the business will undoubtedly heighten the firms ability to better serve the market and prevent your talent pool from becoming too siloed. Mark discusses his background in sales, but despite this, he delegates sales responsibilities to his Co-Founder and other talent at Speak on Podcasts. Mark leans on his other skills that allow the business to become as manifold as possible and prevents one single person becoming overloaded by the demands. The central message of this: don’t try to do everything and bring in talent that can help expand and grow your business.
Mark’s insights into business excellence and high performance are invaluable. By capitalizing on the potential of the sales process and injecting a strong product into the latter, your business will have developed a truly strong foundation. It was an absolute pleasure to have Mark on the show and the full episode is brimming with extra, exclusive tips that will be useful to founders and experienced business people alike. Watch the full episode now on our YouTube channel; or listen now across all major podcast streaming platforms.