Getting into Software/SaaS sales
Discussion
I have a 12 year Sales background, the last decade in industrial/component mass production and supply.
I am ticking along reasonably well and do OK, but I am constantly hearing of the greater potential in the above. Some of the commissions I hear of are very nice indeed (I presume it's nearly all margin, which lends itself well to such commissions..?!)
I know "the game" well (sales cycle upwards of 2 years in what I currently do...!) and am of reasonable intelligence; i'll be able to educate myself rapidly to a credible level. Thing is, today, I know sod all about the product.
What's a typical route in, and where? Any advice gratefully received.
I am ticking along reasonably well and do OK, but I am constantly hearing of the greater potential in the above. Some of the commissions I hear of are very nice indeed (I presume it's nearly all margin, which lends itself well to such commissions..?!)
I know "the game" well (sales cycle upwards of 2 years in what I currently do...!) and am of reasonable intelligence; i'll be able to educate myself rapidly to a credible level. Thing is, today, I know sod all about the product.
What's a typical route in, and where? Any advice gratefully received.
Hi, I have run recruiting teams for SaaS companies the last ten years, PM me your LinkedIn profile details and will honestly advise what avenues may work and why, its not an easy transition as you aren't selling a product in SaaS, its a value based sale rather than a commodity sell, many can't make the transition.
Also the headline OTE's aren't being met by the majority and are reserved for the few, not the many, not sure what numbers you think you'll get access to but can guide there also.
Also the headline OTE's aren't being met by the majority and are reserved for the few, not the many, not sure what numbers you think you'll get access to but can guide there also.
Quota attainment across the industry is at about 40% this year, perhaps a little below. This mimics what is happening in my org. Tough year though, can see that changing for the better in years to come.
Salary wise - depends doesn’t it. For someone who can come in at enterprise level it’s likely package of 200-250k OTE with 50/50 split. There are outliers either side of that, and with public companies RSU’s can bump those numbers significantly. And yes, you’re right. It takes a significant discount of my product to move the margin below 90%.
The level you come in at really depends what you’ve been doing and who for and who you sell to. Though I agree with the above that selling a physical thing vs software/service is quite a jump.
You’d do well by understanding things like MEDDPICC/Command Of Message as most tech firms prefer these structures/methodologies.
The bottom rung is to come in as a SDR who basically books appointments for people like me! Then you’ve got the various levels of account executive from ‘growth - small companies - right through to ‘named/key/strategic’ - big companies.
Salary wise - depends doesn’t it. For someone who can come in at enterprise level it’s likely package of 200-250k OTE with 50/50 split. There are outliers either side of that, and with public companies RSU’s can bump those numbers significantly. And yes, you’re right. It takes a significant discount of my product to move the margin below 90%.
The level you come in at really depends what you’ve been doing and who for and who you sell to. Though I agree with the above that selling a physical thing vs software/service is quite a jump.
You’d do well by understanding things like MEDDPICC/Command Of Message as most tech firms prefer these structures/methodologies.
The bottom rung is to come in as a SDR who basically books appointments for people like me! Then you’ve got the various levels of account executive from ‘growth - small companies - right through to ‘named/key/strategic’ - big companies.
Edited by okgo on Saturday 19th August 18:23
Not all Software/SaaS companies are created equal, and most recruit from other similar companies but being able to show you've hit or got near to quota and understand the sales methodology is a key criteria. Old school way was bring your last few P60s to the interview, but that's less common now so if you want to get in then you'll need to focus on finding the right company - in your case I would find something related to your current industry or that interests you. I work in SaaS for a company that services my post-grad specialism so I know not only how the solution works but what it's used for, which gave me a leg up. Your existing company will use various systems, so maybe start there, then find out about their growth, territory set up and if you can sales team churn.
The money can be very strong, but not everyone smashes their number every year and sometimes it's a big payday every 3-4 years instead especially in the big vendors like an SAP or Oracle. But most companies will pay out 150-300k for OTE so it can keep you well fed. However, be aware it can be very cut-throat - some companies will manage you out if you're not hitting some form of sales target within x months, or across a few consecutive periods and in the first two years of employment that equals big risk.
The old sales mantra is the 3Ts - time, territory and talent - you need two of those in your favour to start hitting quota and whether the sales team stick around very long is usually a good pointer if all is well.
It's not impossible for you find something and do well, but just consider carefully where you want to start, and like I say if it's related to your current industry or you have experience of using it then all the better.
The money can be very strong, but not everyone smashes their number every year and sometimes it's a big payday every 3-4 years instead especially in the big vendors like an SAP or Oracle. But most companies will pay out 150-300k for OTE so it can keep you well fed. However, be aware it can be very cut-throat - some companies will manage you out if you're not hitting some form of sales target within x months, or across a few consecutive periods and in the first two years of employment that equals big risk.
The old sales mantra is the 3Ts - time, territory and talent - you need two of those in your favour to start hitting quota and whether the sales team stick around very long is usually a good pointer if all is well.
It's not impossible for you find something and do well, but just consider carefully where you want to start, and like I say if it's related to your current industry or you have experience of using it then all the better.
Having been in SAAS sales for about 14 years now, started as a BDR and worked my way up to enterprise. This year has been the toughest so far so it may be a tough time to join and hit the ground running.
Someone mentioned sales methodologies but to be honest things like MEDDIC are pretty much common sense when it comes to qualifying a prospect. Prospects are also smart these days and know when these Methodologies are trying to be used.
As a starter i would avoid American based companies as they love high pressure management styles and pip plans. Try and get a Nordic or UK based company to cut your teeth with.
You can make amazing money in SAAS but as in life it has its ups and downs.
Someone mentioned sales methodologies but to be honest things like MEDDIC are pretty much common sense when it comes to qualifying a prospect. Prospects are also smart these days and know when these Methodologies are trying to be used.
As a starter i would avoid American based companies as they love high pressure management styles and pip plans. Try and get a Nordic or UK based company to cut your teeth with.
You can make amazing money in SAAS but as in life it has its ups and downs.
Krhuangbin said:
I have a 12 year Sales background, the last decade in industrial/component mass production and supply.
I am ticking along reasonably well and do OK, but I am constantly hearing of the greater potential in the above. Some of the commissions I hear of are very nice indeed (I presume it's nearly all margin, which lends itself well to such commissions..?!)
I know "the game" well (sales cycle upwards of 2 years in what I currently do...!) and am of reasonable intelligence; i'll be able to educate myself rapidly to a credible level. Thing is, today, I know sod all about the product.
What's a typical route in, and where? Any advice gratefully received.
Do SaaS salesman actually exist....I find you are now typically buying off of the companies reputation or value proposition e.g. a Salesforce system everyone knows.I am ticking along reasonably well and do OK, but I am constantly hearing of the greater potential in the above. Some of the commissions I hear of are very nice indeed (I presume it's nearly all margin, which lends itself well to such commissions..?!)
I know "the game" well (sales cycle upwards of 2 years in what I currently do...!) and am of reasonable intelligence; i'll be able to educate myself rapidly to a credible level. Thing is, today, I know sod all about the product.
What's a typical route in, and where? Any advice gratefully received.
Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
fourstardan said:
Do SaaS salesman actually exist....I find you are now typically buying off of the companies reputation or value proposition e.g. a Salesforce system everyone knows.
Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
There are thousands of businesses in the UK alone selling software this way. They're not all household names, and of course they need salespeople, Salesforce I can assure you have a 3 if not 4 figure amount of salespeople in the UK because running a deal is not straight forward and requires someone who knows how it all works. The other things you mention largely fall into the remit of other departments beyond the seller, implementation costs usually scoped by other teams etc, or another company entirely given most big companies use systems integrators to do such work.Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
fourstardan said:
Do SaaS salesman actually exist....I find you are now typically buying off of the companies reputation or value proposition e.g. a Salesforce system everyone knows.
Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
Agree with OKGO, you have a lot of super big enterprise solutions like Salesforce, SAP and Oracle which cover a vast amount of a businesses needs. They are however very expensive and quite often blunt tools out of the box which require significant investment again to tailor to a niche sector or a particular business need. So for SME sized businesses they are often out of the scope of budget and not specific enough in their requirements . so in steps a smaller more nimble SAAS solution that is cheaper and easier to configure. Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
okgo said:
fourstardan said:
Do SaaS salesman actually exist....I find you are now typically buying off of the companies reputation or value proposition e.g. a Salesforce system everyone knows.
Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
There are thousands of businesses in the UK alone selling software this way. They're not all household names, and of course they need salespeople, Salesforce I can assure you have a 3 if not 4 figure amount of salespeople in the UK because running a deal is not straight forward and requires someone who knows how it all works. The other things you mention largely fall into the remit of other departments beyond the seller, implementation costs usually scoped by other teams etc, or another company entirely given most big companies use systems integrators to do such work.Also you'll need more than sales...you'll need accountability when the crap never works, wasn't what you sold us or is costing my business far more to implement than first quoted (because it always does).
Vastly different, hence why the OP needed to determine what sort of solutions he was interested in.
And every solution works, it's usually the customer neglecting to mention something fundamental that crops up during implementation.
Not sure that’s right. I have a close sample of 3 people - wife, best mate and me. We all work for large but not huge behemoths and we all have (at strategic/enterprise as we all are) long deal cycles, SDR’s, solutions engineers, value engineering, deal desk, professional services, customer success involved in most things we do.
I’d also add that in an RFP, especially my company, I’m always up against Salesforce/Adobe/others and it isn’t always the former that win. They’ll get a look in because they’re often entrenched in a large business and have senior level relationships but they don’t win everything. We have a number of ex SFDC reps and they’re all good sellers, they had to be selling s
t that doesn’t work or ever get implemented 
I’d also add that in an RFP, especially my company, I’m always up against Salesforce/Adobe/others and it isn’t always the former that win. They’ll get a look in because they’re often entrenched in a large business and have senior level relationships but they don’t win everything. We have a number of ex SFDC reps and they’re all good sellers, they had to be selling s
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