Wow, did you know that the secret to Nooks’ sales success is a surprising ratio of BDRs to AEs? They’re breaking the mold and it’s paying off big time. But how are they doing it? Find out in this podcast episode and prepare to be amazed. Stay tuned for the unexpected twist that’s revolutionizing their sales strategy.
Want to transform your outbound sales game and see genuine connections with prospects? Discover the solution that will boost your productivity and help you achieve these results. Let’s dive in and revolutionize your outbound sales strategies.
AI and Human Touch: The New Sales Edge
Hannah Willson, CRO at Nooks, reveals how blending advanced AI tools with genuine human engagement is transforming outbound sales. By leveraging intent signals and AI-driven prospecting while maintaining authentic connections, sales teams can build stronger pipelines and accelerate growth.
This is Hannah Willson’s story, this week’s special guest:
Hannah Willson’s introduction to the world of leveraging AI in outbound sales strategies stemmed from her role as the CRO at Nooks. It was her hands-on experience in coaching sales teams and her deep understanding of the challenges in pipeline development that propelled her towards exploring modern shifts in sales tactics. Witnessing the evolution of intent signals and the potential of AI-driven approaches, Hannah recognized the immense impact of integrating advanced technology with human-to-human engagement in sales. This realization kindled her commitment to embracing innovative sales techniques, positioning her as a trailblazer in navigating the dynamic sales landscape.
Hannah’s journey serves as an inspiring example for sales leaders, encouraging them to adapt and thrive in the ever-evolving sales domain through strategic utilization of AI and cutting-edge sales methodologies.
Sales is changing so much right now. We have technology that we never had before. It’s the organizations that are really leveraging that technology and still leveraging the human element that are the ones that are really accelerating over others. – Hannah Willson
About Hannah Willson
Hannah Willson, the Chief Revenue Officer at Nooks, boasts an impressive 20-year sales career, with a decade at a major publicly traded company and another decade at startups in the Bay Area. Her current role sees her driving outbound sales strategies using Nooks’ comprehensive AI platform, including parallel dialers, AI bots for sales coaching, and AI prospector tools for automated list building and research. With her transition from being a long-time customer to now leading Nooks’ sales team, Hannah brings a unique blend of firsthand experience and strategic leadership to the table. Her expertise in modern pipeline development and the fusion of technology and human touch in sales makes her a sought-after voice in the outbound sales landscape.
In this episode, you will be able to:
- Master AI for outbound sales in order to revolutionize your approach and skyrocket your results.
- Cultivate a thriving calling culture that can transform your sales team’s performance and boost morale.
- Embrace the human element in modern sales, a key to forming genuine connections and closing more deals.
- Harness intent signals for pipeline development that can supercharge your lead generation efforts and drive conversions.
- Unveil social selling best practices for B2B sales that can unlock new opportunities and expand your client base.
The key moments in this episode are:
00:00:00 – Challenges in Pipeline Development
00:03:16 – Hannah’s Background and Nooks
00:05:10 – Hannah’s Athletic Experience
00:07:21 – Shifts in Modern Pipeline Development
00:12:29 – Building a Calling Culture
00:13:34 – Importance of Building a Calling Culture in Sales Teams
00:15:34 – Importance of Sales Channels and BDRs
00:17:22 – Human-to-Human Engagement in Sales
00:18:22 – The Future of Sales and AI
00:21:55 – Evolution of Intent Signals and AI-Driven Approach
00:26:05 – Importance of Preparation for Sales Calls
00:26:56 – Addressing Pipeline Development Issues
00:28:53 – Leveraging LinkedIn for Pipeline Development
00:32:33 – Social Engagement Challenges and Solutions
00:38:12 – Reimagining SDR-to-AE Ratio
00:39:02 – Importance of Hiring the Right Model
00:39:53 – Connecting with Hannah
00:41:03 – Favorite Movie and Personal Insight
00:41:44 – Podcast Closing and Call to Action
Timestamped summary of this episode:
00:00:00 – Challenges in Pipeline Development
Hannah discusses the difficulties in modern pipeline development, emphasizing the changing landscape and the need for organizations to leverage technology and the human element to accelerate their pipeline building efforts.
00:03:16 – Hannah’s Background and Nooks
Hannah shares her sales background and her recent role as CRO at Nooks, a comprehensive AI platform for outbound sales. She highlights Nooks’ capabilities and her personal experience as a customer before joining the company.
00:05:10 – Hannah’s Athletic Experience
Hannah reveals her collegiate swimming experience and draws parallels between swimming and sales, emphasizing the importance of repetition, practice, and continuous improvement in both disciplines.
00:07:21 – Shifts in Modern Pipeline Development
Hannah discusses the evolving strategies in modern pipeline development, highlighting the ineffectiveness of traditional methods and the increasing reliance on technology. She emphasizes the importance of leveraging technology while still maintaining the human element in sales efforts.
00:12:29 – Building a Calling Culture
Hannah addresses the challenges of building a calling culture within sales organizations, emphasizing the time-consuming nature of cold calling and the reluctance of reps. She highlights the benefits of technology in simplifying the cold calling process and the importance of setting a productive and efficient calling culture.
00:13:34 – Importance of Building a Calling Culture in Sales Teams
Hannah reflects on the fun and camaraderie of sales teams in the past and emphasizes the need to continue fostering a positive and engaging work environment, especially with remote teams.
00:15:34 – Importance of Sales Channels and BDRs
Hannah discusses the importance of utilizing multiple sales channels and the role of BDRs in self-sourcing deals. She emphasizes the need for a combination of different channels based on the organization and buyer preferences.
00:17:22 – Human-to-Human Engagement in Sales
The discussion delves into the significance of real human-to-human engagement in sales, particularly at events, through cold calls, and on social media. The emphasis is on genuine connections and meaningful interactions.
00:18:22 – The Future of Sales and AI
Hannah highlights the importance of human-assisted AI in the sales process, where technology assists in gathering data and providing suggestions, but the human touch remains essential for meaningful engagement.
00:21:55 – Evolution of Intent Signals and AI-Driven Approach
The conversation delves into the shift from old-school intent models to modern AI-driven approaches, emphasizing the depth and richness of intent signals and their impact on generating high-quality pipeline for sales teams.
00:26:05 – Importance of Preparation for Sales Calls
Preparation is key before a discovery call or cold call to prevent hang-ups. Having all information in one place helps customize emails and improve engagement.
00:26:56 – Addressing Pipeline Development Issues
New CROs should prioritize pipeline assessment. Looking at inbound and outbound segments helps identify and fix pipeline issues.
00:28:53 – Leveraging LinkedIn for Pipeline Development
Consistent LinkedIn engagement and authentic, personalized posts from SDRs and customers can drive inbound leads and improve sales engagement.
00:32:33 – Social Engagement Challenges and Solutions
Many reps struggle with posting and commenting on social media. AI tools like Flypost help streamline content creation and humanize engagement with prospects.
00:38:12 – Reimagining SDR-to-AE Ratio
Nooks has a unique SDR-to-AE ratio based on pipeline generation and conversion rates, challenging traditional ratio-based structures. Tailoring team size to pipeline economics has been successful for Nooks.
00:39:02 – Importance of Hiring the Right Model
Hannah discusses the importance of hiring the right model for their organization and how they constantly monitor and replicate successful models. They focus on investing in SDR organization to make them more productive using technology.
00:39:53 – Connecting with Hannah
Mario asks Hannah the best way to connect with her. She suggests reaching out to her on LinkedIn and emphasizes the importance of a personalized connection request referencing the podcast.
00:41:03 – Favorite Movie and Personal Insight
Hannah shares her all-time favorite movie, Elf, and how it always makes her laugh. Mario highlights the importance of mentioning Elf when reaching out to Hannah, providing a personal touch in sales interactions.
00:41:44 – Podcast Closing and Call to Action
Mario thanks the audience for listening and encourages them to leave a 5-star rating and review for the podcast. He also promotes the use of FlyMSG to increase productivity.
Reimagining Team Structure for Results
Nooks challenges traditional sales models with a unique SDR-to-AE ratio, tailoring team size based on pipeline generation and conversion rates. This innovative approach, combined with a focus on hiring the right talent and investing in productivity tools, has fueled their sales success.
Building a Winning Sales Culture
The episode emphasizes the importance of cultivating a vibrant calling culture and using multiple sales channels. Consistent preparation, personalized outreach, and embracing technology like AI-driven coaching and content tools empower teams to create genuine connections and drive better results.
The resources mentioned in this episode are:
- Connect with Hannah Willson on LinkedIn and mention specific insights from the Modern Selling podcast to start a meaningful conversation.
- Download FlyMSG at flymsg.io to save 20 hours or more in a month and increase productivity with a free text expander and personal writing assistant.
- Give the Modern Selling Podcast a five-star rating and review on iTunes to show support and help others discover the valuable content.
- Visit Nooks for more information on their comprehensive AI platform for outbound-related activities, such as parallel dialer, AI bots for coaching, and AI prospector tool for automated list building and research.
- Watch the movie Elf for a good laugh and a fun time.
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You might also like:
- FlyEngage – Social media AI engagement tool.
- FlyPosts – Thought leadership AI post generator tool.
- FlyMSG – Auto text expander (Try it out here for free).
- FlyMSG Sales Pro for Individuals: On-demand sales training for individual sellers.
- FlyMSG Sales Pro for Teams: On-demand sales training for sales teams for prospecting.
Install FlyMSG for free:
- As a Chrome Extension.
- As an Edge Extension.
