Getting Started with Sales Engagement
Six cadences to get your auto-outreach going
Outreach, SalesLoft, MixMax, SalesForce, and a bunch of other sales engagement companies have sold a lot of software the last few years. Good for them. If you run a sales or marketing team, there’s a good chance you bought some. Good for you.
…but are you using that shiny new prospecting tool correctly?
If you’ve invested in one of these platforms, you’ve discovered the hard part isn’t setting the thing up. The hard part is creating the emails and talk tracks that make it go. As it turns out, writing is hard. (Yes, even in the age of AI.)
When I help companies in our portfolio get going with sales engagement, I start with 3–5 cadences.
Here’s the menu we pick from.
A cold-outreach cadence for your ideal customer. This is why you bought sales engagement software, right? You need some new logo meetings! Just do me a favor and don’t write another awful prospecting email, much less a string of them. There are already so many swimming around in my inbox. Treat this one like a piggy-bank: You have to make some deposits before you can make a withdrawal. Deposits take the form of telling me what your product actually does (no jargon, please), how it solves a problem I have right now, and sharing compelling content about how others in my job are dealing with similar problems. Pair this with a well-thought out talk-track. It takes more than just email to hook a new prospect.
Another ICP cold-outreach cadence, but for that other persona. You didn’t think you could send the same prospecting stuff to all your different personas, did you? If more than one person with more than one job gets involved in the buying process, your prospecting needs to speak multiple languages. This is one situation where one size definitely does not fit all.
An inbound cadence: Yes, even hand-raisers need a follow-up plan. A couple calls, a couple touches. Too many teams send one email, make one call, and then give up. Don’t be like them. (And if you can, work with your marketing team to dump the ones that don’t get back to you into a nurture sequence. Those chaotic souls that fill out a demo form and then immediately throw their laptop into the nearest body of water… they need love too.)
A closed-lost circle-back cadence. The bad thing about SaaS companies is that they’re always losing deals. The good thing about SaaS companies is that they’re always losing deals — which means you have a never-ending string of leads you can follow up on with a simple pitch: “What about now — anything change for you?” Here, orchestrating a give-to-get is especially important. You need to share an insight, some relevant news, or something that signals that things are different. (BTW — if you happen to be behind on pipeline in Q1, there’s no excuse not to have one of these teed up.)
A post-event cadence. I’m shocked by how much companies spend on trade shows.. and how slow they are to follow up with the people they meet there. You need a plan of attack built before the show happens. The best post-event follow-up happens FAST and brings people back to the experience they just had. It’s a great idea to share themes you noticed, stories you heard, or stuff that resonated with other customers inside the booth. Here’s a framework: Touch 1 — Hey great seeing you, I’ll plan to follow up later this week. Touch 2 + 3 — Here’s what we noticed and what others found most helpful. Touch 4 — Any of this landing? …If so here’s what we could do next. Get creative from there.
An intent-based cadence. If you’re using intent data that shows when a prospect is in-market, you need a way to get in front of them once you get the signal that they’re good and warm. Good intent-based cadences take their cues from high-end hotel employees: They anticipate needs. What questions are people typically asking when they’re doing their homework? How can you serve up answers to those questions… without being too pushy? I like it when this cadence takes the form of a “best of our content” compendium. “Here’s some of our best material on what we do and what your options are.” Spread that out over a couple of touches. Then ask for a meeting — but not until you’ve earned it.