Sales Strategy
Why your first sales hire fails
You have product-market fit. Revenue is growing. Time for that first sales hire. But 6 months later: no results, €100K+ spent, and you're back to selling yourself. I see this pattern in 80% of the founders I speak with.
The pattern
You have product-market fit. Revenue is growing. You think: "I need a salesperson."
You hire someone. After 3-6 months: no results.
Because:
- No CRM process, no pipeline, no clear stages
- No playbook, no scripts, no discovery flow
- No onboarding, "Just start calling"
- No defined ICP, "Anyone who pays is a good customer"
The sales hire doesn't fail due to lack of talent, but due to lack of system.
What you need to build first
Before making that first sales hire, you need this in place:
1. Defined ICP and buyer persona
Who are your best customers? Which titles? Which company sizes? Which pain points?
2. CRM set up with pipeline stages
What steps does a deal go through? From first contact to closed-won. What is the definition of each stage?
3. Discovery and demo scripts
What questions do you ask? What do you show in your demo? How do you handle objections?
4. Onboarding checklist
What does someone need to learn in week 1, 2, 3, 4? Which tools? Which processes?
5. First 3 months KPIs
How many calls? How many demos? What is success in month 1, 2, 3?
The solution
Build the system first, then the hire.
If you can't or don't want to do that yourself: let a Fractional Head of Sales lay the foundation. In 3-6 months you build a system where any sales hire can be successful.
Then you're not hiring a person who needs to figure it out. You're hiring someone who can execute a proven playbook.
Want to know where you stand?
With De Scan you get a complete overview of your sales funnel, tooling and processes in 2 hours. Plus a roadmap for what you need to fix before making that first hire.