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Growth Stacking Show with Dan Martell

Dan Martell is a Canadian serial entrepreneur and angel investor. Subscribe now and learn his best strategies to build and scale successful products and businesses. Now hit that button and start the show. It's FREE.
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Now displaying: November, 2018
Nov 26, 2018


Exclusive Download: 
The Rocket Demo Builder™ – Never give a boring software demo again and close up to TWICE as many deals by this time next week - http://bit.ly/2KyCS8N

--

Prospect: “Great product. It’s just not a now thing”

You: “Okay cool. Totally get it. Thanks for your time.”

Boom.

That right there is a masterclass on how to blow a SaaS deal, deprive a would-be customer of the value they could’ve received, and being forced to go back to your team with your tail between your legs.

Sounds harsh, but the truth is most SaaS founders fold at the first sign of resistance when in reality, every so-called objection is really just an invitation to go deeper and get a fuller understanding of what your customer truly needs.  

This single mindset shift (and the skill to go deeper with each objection) is one of the most critical for any founder to master.

It’s also not that hard to learn.

(this coming from a former introverted coder)  

In fact, most of the objections you’ll hear on your demo calls will fall under just three categories.

In this week’s video
, I break down each type of objection, and how to confidently overcome them so that you can close more deals and help the people you’re meant to serve.

At a high level, most of the objections you encounter will boil down to:

1. Price
2. Missing feature
3. Not a now thing

The first is the hardest to hear — but the easiest to solve.

Usually, a price objection is really just a function of having failed to quantify the cost of your prospect’s problems and connecting it to the solutions your product offers.

This “value connection” is absolutely critical for getting the “yes”, and something that’s baked right into the Rocket Demo Builder (click here if for some crazy reason you don’t yet have it).

Once you master the process, you’ll never get off the Zoom line feeling like you folded too soon.

Watch the full video to learn how to overcome the two other biggest objections, and then leave a comment below letting me know which you feel will have the biggest impact on your demo calls moving forward.

--

Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter @danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Resource: The Rocket Demo Builder™ – Never give a boring software demo again and close up to TWICE as many deals by this time next week - http://bit.ly/2KyCS8N

Nov 19, 2018

Exclusive Download: Customer Case Study Creator™ – Just Answer The Questions In The Worksheet And The Case Study Writes Itself - http://bit.ly/2zgE1xp

--

Ever read about those outrageous “rider” demands that touring musicians demand from the concert promoter?

… Iggy Pop demands a Bob Hope impersonator.
… Mariah Carey insists on gallons of vitamin water to bathe her dogs in.
… Van Halen would refuse to take the stage if a brown M&M found its way into the candy jar.

Borderline insane right?

Well in this week’s video, I’m insisting that you be (almost) as “demanding” in what you look for in your first ten SaaS customers.

At this initial stage, most founders feel like they have ZERO leverage, and should be grateful to work with anyone willing to pay them.

But as I explain, not only is this mindset un-necessary, it’s flat out damaging and can throw you down a product roadmap rabbit hole that you and your team never climb out of.

At a high level, here are the 5 critical things to look for in your first 10 customers:

1. Early adopters
2. Pay you
3. Teach you
4. Repeatable process
5. Case study

Where I get the most resistance from coaching clients is number two.

Founders are SO reluctant to ask for large financial commitments in the early days. Especially from “lighthouse” customers that could provide a valuable case study or social proof.

I totally get it. But here’s the thing:

Without a financial commitment, your customer is far less likely to implement your solution,  provide feedback, or experience the results and outcomes your service can deliver.

In short — unless they pay, you’re more likely to waste their time and your team’s time with nothing to show for it.

Instead, insist on the financial commitment, and then work with them to achieve amazing outcomes which will yield those coveted case studies that can attract your next round of customers once you’re ready to scale.

Watch the full episode here
, and then leave a comment letting me know of any additional “filters” you look for in your first group of customers.

--

Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter @danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Download: Customer Case Study Creator™ – Just Answer The Questions In The Worksheet And The Case Study Writes Itself - http://bit.ly/2zgE1xp

Nov 12, 2018

Exclusive Resource: The Rocket Demo Builder™ – Never give a boring software demo again and close up to TWICE as many deals by this time next week - http://bit.ly/2RKqR2i

--

I have a little secret.

A few years ago when I started coaching growth-minded SaaS founders on how to scale their companies, I created someone named ‘Software Scaling Sam”.

Sam was obsessed with growth, had achieved product/market fit, and was ready to take full ownership and responsibility in scaling beyond 10k MRR.

If you think that Sam sounds quite a bit like you, that’s because Sam is you.

Sam (or Samantha) is the customer avatar I’ve used to create all the content you’re seeing in this video series… as well as my high-level coaching program, SaaS Academy.

It’s what’s allowed me to tightly define and target the founders that would be MOST ready to benefit from my content and coaching.

It’s also just one single aspect of what makes a powerful ideal customer profile.  

In this week’s video, I cover the 6 core aspects you need to take into consideration when building out your most profitable (and probable) customer profile for your SaaS business.

At a high level, the 6 core aspects of your ideal customer profile are:

1. Firmographics
2. Demographic traits
3. Technographic tools
4. Psychographic drivers
5. Roles
6. Name your avatar

While the customer avatar (Software Scaling Sam, Marketing Mary, etc.) tends to get the most attention in marketing circles, I’ve found that identifying and leveraging psychographic drivers is the quickest way to make sure you’re working with customers who are set up to succeed.

I’ve often redefined “SaaS” as “success as a service”.

And with all things being equal, your customer’s ability (and willingness) to succeed through your product will largely come down to their mindset, belief system, and overall psychographic profile.

Taking an hour to more clearly define these aspects will make your marketing and sales process SO much smoother while reducing strain on your customer success team.

Give the full episode a watch here
, and then let me know in the comments ONE new insight you have about your ideal customer — and how you plan to take action around it.

--

Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter @danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Resource: The Rocket Demo Builder™ – Never give a boring software demo again and close up to TWICE as many deals by this time next week - http://bit.ly/2RKqR2i

Nov 5, 2018

Exclusive Resource: Idea to Exit Mini-Course™ - Learn How To Build Product Without Spending Money & True Customer Validation - http://bit.ly/2F3w2J8

--

Want to know the quickest way to kill your company and team morale?

It’s super easy.

Invest tens of thousands of dollars and man hours in building your software, only to find out after the fact that your market couldn’t care less.

Done.

Now you can happily go back to whatever world you just left behind.

On the flipside, if you want to launch your startup the smart way by pre-selling your product BEFORE you build it…

…  I shot this new episode outlining the 4 steps I’ve used to successfully validate and pre-sell my product before ever writing a single line of code.

Even if you’re already familiar with methodologies such as the Lean Startup, I highly recommend giving this one a watch as there are some key distinctions that make your product even faster (and more profitable) to validate.

At a high level, the 4 steps for pre-selling your SaaS product are:

1. Define early adopters
2. Ask for advice
3. Validate pain and solution
4. MEVO (instead of MVP)

Whatever you do, pay special attention to MEVO.

Pretty much everyone in the startup world is familiar with the concept of “minimum viable product”.  

Unfortunately, there are few concepts more DANGEROUS to startup founders. When it comes down to it, an MVP still includes building “something” before you’ve fully validated it with early adopters.

As many only discover after the fact, this ‘building’ phase can spiral out of control and still leave you with an expensive piece of software that nobody wants.

Instead, I’d love for you to adopt the MEVO strategy which will allow you to collect capital upfront (while validating your offer) before you invest cash into building it.

Learn more about the MEVO in this week’s video, and then let me know of any tricks from the trenches that you’ve used to validate your own product.

--

Dan Martell has advised more startups than his hometown has people and teaches startup founders like you how to scale. He previously created, raised venture funding for and successfully exited two tech startups: Flowtown and Clarity.fm. You should follow him on twitter @danmartell for tweets that are actually awesome.

+ Instagram (behind the scenes): http://instagram.com/danmartell
+ Facebook (live trainings + Q&A): http://FB.com/DanMartell
+ Twitter (what I'm reading): http://twitter.com/danmartell

Exclusive Resource: Idea to Exit Mini-Course™ - Learn How To Build Product Without Spending Money & True Customer Validation - http://bit.ly/2F3w2J8

 

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