MMS E#101 - Leading with Influence and Mastering Partnerships with Rob Fegan

[00:00:01] [SPEAKER_00]: Welcome to Mastering Modern Selling, Relationships, Social and AI in the buyer-centric age.

[00:00:08] [SPEAKER_00]: Join host Brandon Lee, founder of Fistbump, alongside Microsoft's number one social seller

[00:00:13] [SPEAKER_00]: Carson V Heady and Tom Burton, author of The Revenue Zone and co-founder of Lead Smart,

[00:00:19] [SPEAKER_00]: as we explore the strategies and stories behind successful executives and sales professionals.

[00:00:25] [SPEAKER_00]: Dive into business growth, personal development and the pursuit of excellence with industry

[00:00:29] [SPEAKER_00]: leaders.

[00:00:30] [SPEAKER_00]: Whether you're a seasoned executive or an aspiring leader, this podcast is your backstage

[00:00:35] [SPEAKER_00]: pass to today's business landscape.

[00:00:38] [SPEAKER_00]: This is Mastering Modern Selling brought to you by Fistbump.

[00:00:49] [SPEAKER_04]: Good point.

[00:00:50] [SPEAKER_04]: Fair enough.

[00:00:51] [SPEAKER_01]: Welcome back everyone.

[00:00:54] [SPEAKER_01]: Episode number 101.

[00:00:57] [SPEAKER_01]: We're on to a new chapter.

[00:00:58] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.

[00:00:59] [SPEAKER_01]: There's life after a hundred.

[00:01:00] [SPEAKER_01]: That's right.

[00:01:01] [SPEAKER_04]: A new century.

[00:01:02] [SPEAKER_01]: That's right.

[00:01:04] [SPEAKER_01]: So Brandon, Carson, welcome back.

[00:01:07] [SPEAKER_01]: And Rob, Rob, do I say, am I going to say your name right?

[00:01:10] [SPEAKER_01]: Is it Fegan or Fagan?

[00:01:12] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, you got it.

[00:01:13] [SPEAKER_01]: Either one.

[00:01:14] [SPEAKER_05]: Either one will work.

[00:01:15] [SPEAKER_01]: But Fegan's going to work.

[00:01:16] [SPEAKER_05]: He's been called worse.

[00:01:17] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah.

[00:01:19] [SPEAKER_01]: Much, much worse.

[00:01:21] [SPEAKER_01]: Right.

[00:01:21] [SPEAKER_01]: Well, welcome, Rob, to our first episode in our new century here of Mastering

[00:01:27] [SPEAKER_01]: Modern Selling.

[00:01:27] [SPEAKER_01]: And as always, we're sponsored, thankfully, by Fistbump and Brandon's team that does

[00:01:34] [SPEAKER_01]: a great job of just making all this come together.

[00:01:37] [SPEAKER_01]: We now have what?

[00:01:38] [SPEAKER_01]: Two producers, Brandon working on this.

[00:01:40] [SPEAKER_01]: So we really appreciate it.

[00:01:42] [SPEAKER_01]: If you are in the business of looking for some CEO assist, you know, executive

[00:01:48] [SPEAKER_01]: assistance on LinkedIn, Fistbump is the place to go.

[00:01:51] [SPEAKER_01]: So thank you and thank Fistbump, Brandon.

[00:01:54] [SPEAKER_03]: That's that level of sophistication you gain after 100 episodes.

[00:01:58] [SPEAKER_01]: I know, I know.

[00:02:00] [SPEAKER_01]: We had our whole production team on here a minute ago trying to figure all this out.

[00:02:05] [SPEAKER_04]: That's right.

[00:02:06] [SPEAKER_04]: Well, and we have we have some ads going out for the show now, too.

[00:02:11] [SPEAKER_04]: We're actually getting paid campaigns, put money in LinkedIn's pocket and get

[00:02:17] [SPEAKER_04]: more people and hopefully the next 100 episodes will grow even faster.

[00:02:24] [SPEAKER_01]: I went back and everybody on the.

[00:02:26] [SPEAKER_01]: No, go ahead.

[00:02:27] [SPEAKER_01]: I went back and watched episode one.

[00:02:30] [SPEAKER_01]: You were sitting on a balcony out in Florida trying to avoid a hurricane.

[00:02:34] [SPEAKER_04]: That's how we was that episode one.

[00:02:37] [SPEAKER_04]: I knew it was early.

[00:02:38] [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah. Wow.

[00:02:39] [SPEAKER_04]: That's crazy.

[00:02:41] [SPEAKER_04]: Well, and where we have people on from the podcast before we jump in,

[00:02:44] [SPEAKER_04]: we really appreciate you as well.

[00:02:46] [SPEAKER_04]: We know we're kind of the live show centric with the comments like Bob

[00:02:49] [SPEAKER_04]: Britton jumping on with Aloha.

[00:02:51] [SPEAKER_04]: But you're on the podcast.

[00:02:52] [SPEAKER_04]: We really appreciate you.

[00:02:54] [SPEAKER_04]: If you like what you're hearing, please give us a give us a review,

[00:02:59] [SPEAKER_04]: screenshot it, send it to people that could find value in it.

[00:03:01] [SPEAKER_04]: We'd really appreciate you doing that as well for us.

[00:03:05] [SPEAKER_01]: All right. Enough of the commercials.

[00:03:07] [SPEAKER_01]: We're going to move on with things here.

[00:03:09] [SPEAKER_01]: Rob, welcome. Great to have you.

[00:03:12] [SPEAKER_01]: And tell us a little bit of we're going to talk today about a subject

[00:03:15] [SPEAKER_01]: that I don't know that we've talked about in 100 episodes prior,

[00:03:18] [SPEAKER_01]: which is how do you use partnerships as a strategy for mastering modern selling?

[00:03:24] [SPEAKER_01]: And in particular, Rob, I know you're going to talk a little bit about your journey

[00:03:28] [SPEAKER_01]: working with Microsoft partners and how you do that.

[00:03:31] [SPEAKER_01]: But kind of let's tell everybody what you do and who you are

[00:03:35] [SPEAKER_01]: and how you got the partnership.

[00:03:38] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, sure.

[00:03:39] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me, I started off as an individual contributor many, many moons ago.

[00:03:43] [SPEAKER_02]: So I was working in the value at a reseller of our community.

[00:03:48] [SPEAKER_02]: When I first started, I was in this company that I could literally sell anything.

[00:03:54] [SPEAKER_02]: It was Cisco, Dell, Microsoft.

[00:03:56] [SPEAKER_02]: It just had this plethora of products in there.

[00:04:00] [SPEAKER_02]: And so for me, that was the very going back 15 years.

[00:04:04] [SPEAKER_02]: That was the very first introduction I had to Microsoft.

[00:04:07] [SPEAKER_02]: And I quickly realized that that is where I want to pivot to.

[00:04:11] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, I really found that I found like even in the early days of Microsoft

[00:04:15] [SPEAKER_02]: and, you know, Carson will appreciate some of the references to be pause or

[00:04:20] [SPEAKER_02]: Skype and all of those different things that were in the early days.

[00:04:25] [SPEAKER_02]: And for me, though, it really resonated.

[00:04:28] [SPEAKER_02]: And it was what I brought to the customers was I saw so much value

[00:04:32] [SPEAKER_02]: in that platform and in the way Microsoft was approaching the market

[00:04:36] [SPEAKER_02]: that I really just pivoted my entire career.

[00:04:39] [SPEAKER_02]: And so I continued in that sort of sales role for quite a few years.

[00:04:44] [SPEAKER_02]: And then back in 2015, I pivoted and started my own company with a co-founder.

[00:04:49] [SPEAKER_02]: We grew that all on the back of Microsoft.

[00:04:52] [SPEAKER_02]: So it was completely a Microsoft centric company

[00:04:56] [SPEAKER_02]: and sold that in 2020, March of 2020, to be exact,

[00:05:01] [SPEAKER_02]: which was a hindsight being what it is.

[00:05:04] [SPEAKER_02]: Amazing opportunity.

[00:05:07] [SPEAKER_02]: And since then, I really wanted to continue

[00:05:11] [SPEAKER_02]: that sort of passion for sharing Microsoft.

[00:05:14] [SPEAKER_02]: And now I coach partners on how to work with Microsoft because when you get it,

[00:05:18] [SPEAKER_02]: it is absolutely amazing what you can do and the impact you can have.

[00:05:23] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me, that is what I do now is I just I work with other founders,

[00:05:27] [SPEAKER_02]: leaders and owners and help them really understand the ecosystem,

[00:05:32] [SPEAKER_02]: how to leverage the ecosystem.

[00:05:34] [SPEAKER_02]: And then to use the phrase, the modern master modern selling

[00:05:37] [SPEAKER_02]: is how to do that with a partner like Microsoft.

[00:05:41] [SPEAKER_03]: You get a big fan base to looks like from the from the chat here.

[00:05:46] [SPEAKER_01]: Oh, yeah. Look at that.

[00:05:48] [SPEAKER_01]: Welcome to Roger and

[00:05:51] [SPEAKER_01]: Mohammed from Bayron, they rain, they rain.

[00:05:54] [SPEAKER_01]: All right. All right.

[00:05:56] [SPEAKER_01]: So thank you. We appreciate the kind words.

[00:06:00] [SPEAKER_04]: Rob, I like that the Microsoft whisperer.

[00:06:02] [SPEAKER_04]: I mean, you got to get a trademark that or something.

[00:06:05] [SPEAKER_02]: Right. For me, it really is a passion now.

[00:06:08] [SPEAKER_02]: I had the good fortune to sell my last company.

[00:06:11] [SPEAKER_02]: And now it's really just pouring back into the community,

[00:06:15] [SPEAKER_02]: sharing as much as I can and helping people be

[00:06:18] [SPEAKER_02]: successful with this motion of working with Microsoft.

[00:06:21] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me, I just love it and I'm glad to support folks.

[00:06:26] [SPEAKER_01]: So Rob, just so I can.

[00:06:28] [SPEAKER_01]: I'm hearing what you're saying.

[00:06:28] [SPEAKER_01]: You were a Microsoft partner or your company was a Microsoft partner

[00:06:32] [SPEAKER_01]: for many years, and that was the company you sold.

[00:06:35] [SPEAKER_01]: And now you've switched over to really taking what you learned

[00:06:39] [SPEAKER_01]: with all the years working with Microsoft and helping

[00:06:42] [SPEAKER_01]: other Microsoft partners be more successful in the ecosystem.

[00:06:45] [SPEAKER_01]: Is that kind of the transition?

[00:06:48] [SPEAKER_02]: You nailed it. Yeah, that is exactly what I do now.

[00:06:52] [SPEAKER_01]: So I know we're going to get into talking about,

[00:06:55] [SPEAKER_01]: you know, strategies and selling and things like that.

[00:06:57] [SPEAKER_01]: But and obviously, Microsoft has

[00:07:01] [SPEAKER_01]: expanded, I guess, its breadth of what it does

[00:07:03] [SPEAKER_01]: and how it does it over the last few years.

[00:07:05] [SPEAKER_01]: What is the what is the advice that you give?

[00:07:08] [SPEAKER_01]: What's the biggest advice that you give to a Microsoft partner?

[00:07:11] [SPEAKER_01]: And especially if somebody was really trying to start out

[00:07:14] [SPEAKER_01]: in the Microsoft ecosystem, call Carson.

[00:07:17] [SPEAKER_01]: Is that the first first thing?

[00:07:20] [SPEAKER_02]: Wouldn't hurt it, right?

[00:07:22] [SPEAKER_02]: It wouldn't hurt.

[00:07:23] [SPEAKER_02]: It's the second or third thing I tell them to do.

[00:07:25] [SPEAKER_02]: But for me, really, you know, it's I tell partners, it's really

[00:07:29] [SPEAKER_02]: is a complex ecosystem.

[00:07:32] [SPEAKER_02]: But at the end of the day, what they're looking for is partners

[00:07:35] [SPEAKER_02]: that will pour into helping them achieve the mission.

[00:07:39] [SPEAKER_02]: Right. And they are they've got a very clear mission.

[00:07:42] [SPEAKER_02]: They've got a clear set of products and services they offer

[00:07:45] [SPEAKER_02]: to achieve that mission.

[00:07:47] [SPEAKER_02]: And so one understanding that and finding out where you as a business

[00:07:51] [SPEAKER_02]: align with that.

[00:07:53] [SPEAKER_02]: And then guys like Carson are like the perfect person to reach

[00:07:56] [SPEAKER_02]: if you can help impact the world and sort of the Microsoft ecosystem

[00:08:02] [SPEAKER_02]: from where Carson sits.

[00:08:04] [SPEAKER_02]: And, you know, there are plenty of different organizations inside

[00:08:07] [SPEAKER_02]: of Microsoft that do different or work with different people,

[00:08:10] [SPEAKER_02]: different clients.

[00:08:12] [SPEAKER_02]: And so it's understanding that.

[00:08:13] [SPEAKER_02]: But really, if you can find your niche,

[00:08:18] [SPEAKER_02]: your superpower, I'll call it, and then apply that to the people

[00:08:22] [SPEAKER_02]: that it makes most sense to in Microsoft.

[00:08:24] [SPEAKER_02]: That's really the first step that I talk about.

[00:08:26] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think we'll break it down much more in depth here in a few minutes.

[00:08:30] [SPEAKER_02]: But really knowing where you fit in their world, in the world of Microsoft,

[00:08:35] [SPEAKER_02]: knowing what impact you can bring and then

[00:08:38] [SPEAKER_02]: share that with as many people inside of Microsoft

[00:08:41] [SPEAKER_02]: while at the same time working with your client base.

[00:08:46] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I think my challenge would be, you know, if you're listening,

[00:08:50] [SPEAKER_03]: thinking about not only, you know,

[00:08:53] [SPEAKER_03]: I know we have some people to listen that are in tech

[00:08:56] [SPEAKER_03]: that are part of partners, you may be a partner with the competition.

[00:09:00] [SPEAKER_03]: There's enough room in the sandbox for us all.

[00:09:02] [SPEAKER_03]: And this can certainly be applied.

[00:09:04] [SPEAKER_03]: But also, if you're not thinking today about where you could go out

[00:09:07] [SPEAKER_03]: and form mutually beneficial partnerships, I think that's a really key element.

[00:09:12] [SPEAKER_03]: I was at a consultant firm years ago.

[00:09:14] [SPEAKER_03]: And one of the things that we would proactively go out

[00:09:17] [SPEAKER_03]: and look to do is, hey, you have this offering or this value add.

[00:09:21] [SPEAKER_03]: We don't have that.

[00:09:23] [SPEAKER_03]: But we do get opportunities for what you do that we don't do.

[00:09:27] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, where can we start investing over here?

[00:09:30] [SPEAKER_03]: And I've always found that model of like seeking to serve first,

[00:09:35] [SPEAKER_03]: making that investment.

[00:09:36] [SPEAKER_03]: There's never any guarantee that if I give company X, Y, Z

[00:09:40] [SPEAKER_03]: a lead that they will benefit from that I can't sell to,

[00:09:45] [SPEAKER_03]: there's no guarantee that they're going to reciprocate.

[00:09:47] [SPEAKER_03]: But I have found over time that if you continue to invest in those models

[00:09:51] [SPEAKER_03]: and in those relationships and go out and proactively seek partnership.

[00:09:55] [SPEAKER_03]: It pays dividends.

[00:09:57] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I couldn't agree more, Carson.

[00:09:59] [SPEAKER_02]: I think I'm a big believer in reciprocity

[00:10:01] [SPEAKER_02]: and don't do it for the thought of getting something back.

[00:10:05] [SPEAKER_02]: Just pour into it.

[00:10:07] [SPEAKER_02]: And at some point, reciprocity will it'll kick in

[00:10:10] [SPEAKER_02]: and it will pay dividends in ways you may have never even watched.

[00:10:14] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I mean, it honestly makes you a trusted advisor.

[00:10:17] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, I mean, if I can tell my client or my potential client,

[00:10:21] [SPEAKER_03]: hey, no, I don't do that.

[00:10:22] [SPEAKER_03]: But I have this organization that I trust,

[00:10:26] [SPEAKER_03]: this person at that organization that I trust.

[00:10:28] [SPEAKER_03]: You're in good hands there. Let me make the introduction.

[00:10:31] [SPEAKER_03]: Guess what?

[00:10:32] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, people can come back and will come back to you

[00:10:35] [SPEAKER_03]: because they know that you're going to shoot straight with them.

[00:10:37] [SPEAKER_03]: You're not going to just try to cram a solution or product down their throat

[00:10:40] [SPEAKER_03]: to get the deal.

[00:10:41] [SPEAKER_03]: You're going to take good care of them.

[00:10:42] [SPEAKER_03]: And that's the kind of thing that earns that credibility and trust,

[00:10:44] [SPEAKER_03]: especially right now when we're in a very buyer centric market.

[00:10:49] [SPEAKER_03]: Right. Absolutely.

[00:10:51] [SPEAKER_04]: And it reminds me, Rob, you and I did a webinar together and I can't.

[00:10:54] [SPEAKER_04]: I want to say a couple of months ago, it could have been six or eight

[00:10:57] [SPEAKER_04]: or nine months ago. I can't can't keep track anymore.

[00:11:00] [SPEAKER_04]: But I remember one of the things that you said in there

[00:11:04] [SPEAKER_04]: that a lot of Microsoft partners do that's one of their biggest mistakes

[00:11:07] [SPEAKER_04]: is they go to Microsoft sellers like Carson and others

[00:11:10] [SPEAKER_04]: and they say, do you have leads for me? Yeah. Right.

[00:11:14] [SPEAKER_04]: And I'll piggy that on Carson.

[00:11:16] [SPEAKER_04]: One of the things that you said in one of our episodes

[00:11:19] [SPEAKER_04]: is if you want to get a Microsoft seller's attention, go to them and say,

[00:11:23] [SPEAKER_04]: how can I help you get to President's Club?

[00:11:27] [SPEAKER_04]: Like, I think when I when I was thinking of this show,

[00:11:30] [SPEAKER_04]: I'm like, OK, Rob and Carson, like everybody,

[00:11:33] [SPEAKER_04]: if you're a Microsoft partner, if you just break it down to those two things,

[00:11:36] [SPEAKER_04]: don't go to them and say, where's my leads?

[00:11:39] [SPEAKER_04]: Go to them and say, how can I help you get to President's Club?

[00:11:43] [SPEAKER_04]: And I think the rest of it could just probably take care of itself

[00:11:46] [SPEAKER_04]: from there, don't you think?

[00:11:47] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I mean, look, we have a nasty habit of and the brava.

[00:11:50] [SPEAKER_03]: I want to get your thoughts on this.

[00:11:51] [SPEAKER_03]: We have a nasty habit of going to customers or other people

[00:11:56] [SPEAKER_03]: and talking all about ourselves and all the great things about ourselves

[00:11:59] [SPEAKER_03]: and our products and service.

[00:12:00] [SPEAKER_03]: That's the last thing you want to do.

[00:12:01] [SPEAKER_03]: What looks like a win to you? How do I deliver that win?

[00:12:05] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, absolutely.

[00:12:06] [SPEAKER_02]: And I mean, it's it's probably the most common thing

[00:12:10] [SPEAKER_02]: I hear is how do I get leads from Microsoft?

[00:12:13] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm like, oh, my goodness.

[00:12:14] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, they're not just raining from the trees.

[00:12:17] [SPEAKER_02]: Let's let's step back and look at what can you do to add value

[00:12:22] [SPEAKER_02]: to the seller's life?

[00:12:24] [SPEAKER_02]: So in your case, Carson, how can I help Carson

[00:12:28] [SPEAKER_02]: to hit President's Club, to achieve the goals that he's got,

[00:12:32] [SPEAKER_02]: to sell in the product sets that he's focused on?

[00:12:35] [SPEAKER_02]: So I tell partners there's three things that you can bring to the table

[00:12:39] [SPEAKER_02]: that will almost universally work to help that Microsoft seller.

[00:12:43] [SPEAKER_02]: First and probably the most obvious is revenue.

[00:12:46] [SPEAKER_02]: If you've got a deal, let's bring it to Microsoft because

[00:12:49] [SPEAKER_02]: that's a benefit for you.

[00:12:51] [SPEAKER_02]: It's a benefit for them and obviously a benefit for the customer.

[00:12:55] [SPEAKER_02]: But that's not the only thing that you can bring to the Microsoft seller

[00:12:58] [SPEAKER_02]: that can change the game for them.

[00:13:00] [SPEAKER_02]: The next one is relationships.

[00:13:04] [SPEAKER_02]: So if you've got relationships that Microsoft doesn't have,

[00:13:09] [SPEAKER_02]: there's tremendous value in that.

[00:13:10] [SPEAKER_02]: And, you know, Carson, I'll throw Microsoft

[00:13:13] [SPEAKER_02]: under the bus a little bit here and say that my experience is

[00:13:16] [SPEAKER_02]: Microsoft is great at getting to IT.

[00:13:21] [SPEAKER_02]: Procurement, IT like master second to none.

[00:13:24] [SPEAKER_02]: But as soon as you pivot and say, want to get into the lines of business?

[00:13:28] [SPEAKER_02]: That's not the comfort zone for Microsoft,

[00:13:31] [SPEAKER_02]: that not many Microsoft sellers that I work with

[00:13:33] [SPEAKER_02]: are really entrenched in the business.

[00:13:36] [SPEAKER_02]: And if I'm entrenched in the business as a partner

[00:13:38] [SPEAKER_02]: and I know, say the CRO or the human resources VP

[00:13:44] [SPEAKER_02]: and I can bring that person to the table,

[00:13:47] [SPEAKER_02]: to the discussion and say, look, you know,

[00:13:50] [SPEAKER_02]: one of the things we want to do is X or Y.

[00:13:54] [SPEAKER_02]: And to do that, we need the buy in from these people.

[00:13:57] [SPEAKER_02]: So bringing those relationships to the table is critical, in my opinion.

[00:14:03] [SPEAKER_02]: And then the third are that I tell partners

[00:14:05] [SPEAKER_02]: they need to focus on is relevance.

[00:14:08] [SPEAKER_02]: And this can mean different things to different people.

[00:14:11] [SPEAKER_02]: So in the systems integrator community, if we have joint customers,

[00:14:15] [SPEAKER_02]: let's plan and strategize on those.

[00:14:18] [SPEAKER_02]: Or if I'm in the ISV or independent software vendor community,

[00:14:23] [SPEAKER_02]: if I solve a unique problem that your customer may have,

[00:14:26] [SPEAKER_02]: it's not something Microsoft sells out of the box.

[00:14:29] [SPEAKER_02]: That's a very relevant discussion.

[00:14:31] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me and Carson, you know, feel free to chime in here.

[00:14:34] [SPEAKER_02]: But I tell partners revenue, relationships and relevance.

[00:14:39] [SPEAKER_02]: Those are three things you can universally bring to the table

[00:14:42] [SPEAKER_02]: and have the attention of.

[00:14:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I mean, look, you got to stay at the pulse

[00:14:46] [SPEAKER_03]: of who you want to matter to.

[00:14:48] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, you got to be attuned to their needs.

[00:14:51] [SPEAKER_03]: I mean, I want to matter to my wife.

[00:14:52] [SPEAKER_03]: I need to care what she's reading, what she's watching.

[00:14:55] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, I want a company to care about me.

[00:14:57] [SPEAKER_03]: I need to stay attuned to what are their priorities?

[00:14:59] [SPEAKER_03]: What are their sales plays?

[00:15:01] [SPEAKER_03]: What's going to get their team paid?

[00:15:03] [SPEAKER_03]: I give a shout out to a friend and mentor, Richard Vickers.

[00:15:07] [SPEAKER_03]: Perfect comment there.

[00:15:08] [SPEAKER_03]: It's the gimme, gimme, gimme instead of how can I help?

[00:15:11] [SPEAKER_03]: Rob, you describe something that's kind of been

[00:15:13] [SPEAKER_03]: the very antithesis of how I've always gone to market

[00:15:16] [SPEAKER_03]: because nobody could effectively consistently get outside of IT.

[00:15:20] [SPEAKER_03]: And so I made that my mission and it defined me as a seller here.

[00:15:24] [SPEAKER_03]: And the other thing I would say is that we've got to get our sellers

[00:15:28] [SPEAKER_03]: out of the mindset of being territorial.

[00:15:30] [SPEAKER_03]: It's not just your account list, your customer.

[00:15:34] [SPEAKER_03]: You know what I love finding is when a partner and I think sometimes

[00:15:38] [SPEAKER_03]: we have sellers that get so put off by the

[00:15:42] [SPEAKER_03]: I want to hand out approach that they'll shun all partners as a result.

[00:15:47] [SPEAKER_03]: And look, if a partner has a better relationship

[00:15:51] [SPEAKER_03]: at an organization than I have, then I'm an idiot.

[00:15:55] [SPEAKER_03]: If I don't go out and find every way I can to help that partner win,

[00:15:58] [SPEAKER_03]: you know, get me out of the way.

[00:16:00] [SPEAKER_03]: I if I can create this partner as an extension of my sales army

[00:16:04] [SPEAKER_03]: that's going out there selling for me saves me a lot of work and headache.

[00:16:08] [SPEAKER_03]: Let me go get some funding dollars or some investment

[00:16:10] [SPEAKER_03]: or let me meet with that partner and say, look, what's going to move the needle?

[00:16:14] [SPEAKER_03]: What can I do to help you win?

[00:16:17] [SPEAKER_03]: Like take your ego out of the equation and make the partner the hero.

[00:16:21] [SPEAKER_03]: Those are the types of things that we've got to be thinking about.

[00:16:23] [SPEAKER_03]: So I agree like we are we are necessarily

[00:16:27] [SPEAKER_03]: and definitely deservedly thrown under the bus there.

[00:16:31] [SPEAKER_03]: There's things that we can do on both sides to make the relationship gel better.

[00:16:35] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, absolutely.

[00:16:36] [SPEAKER_02]: And I will say on the point of relationships, you know,

[00:16:39] [SPEAKER_02]: partners come to me and say, well, I don't really know anybody

[00:16:41] [SPEAKER_02]: at the companies they're working on.

[00:16:43] [SPEAKER_02]: This is where I take a page right out of your playbook, Carson.

[00:16:46] [SPEAKER_02]: It's like, well, as a partner, we can go and we can leverage LinkedIn,

[00:16:51] [SPEAKER_02]: find the right people, start to build a relationship with those people.

[00:16:56] [SPEAKER_02]: And when we do that over time,

[00:16:59] [SPEAKER_02]: we can start to build those relationships and bring those to the table.

[00:17:02] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, this isn't a this isn't a silver bullet.

[00:17:05] [SPEAKER_02]: This is a strategy over time.

[00:17:07] [SPEAKER_02]: This is a strategy for success over years.

[00:17:10] [SPEAKER_02]: And this is how I built my last company was over time.

[00:17:13] [SPEAKER_02]: I went into it knowing, hey, I might not win on month one

[00:17:17] [SPEAKER_02]: or month two or even month 12.

[00:17:19] [SPEAKER_02]: But by month 24, nobody's going to beat me. Nobody.

[00:17:22] [SPEAKER_02]: And so if you go into it with that mindset and I appreciate

[00:17:26] [SPEAKER_02]: we still all have quotas and we still all have to do the things we have to do.

[00:17:30] [SPEAKER_02]: But at the end of the day, if you leverage social

[00:17:34] [SPEAKER_02]: and build these relationships on that second pillar,

[00:17:38] [SPEAKER_02]: you know, that again, to me is such a strong value

[00:17:41] [SPEAKER_02]: I had to bring to the table and to build the partner relationship

[00:17:45] [SPEAKER_02]: with Microsoft.

[00:17:48] [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, Rob, I was going to ask about that.

[00:17:51] [SPEAKER_04]: Maybe it's a good time to transition in, because I know you

[00:17:54] [SPEAKER_04]: you have your show that you do.

[00:17:58] [SPEAKER_04]: And I believe if I remember correctly, one of your motions with that

[00:18:02] [SPEAKER_04]: is you invite Microsoft team members to come on and be guests on your show

[00:18:07] [SPEAKER_04]: as a way to build relationships with them and give back

[00:18:11] [SPEAKER_04]: and create a personal brand around you of being

[00:18:16] [SPEAKER_04]: the Microsoft whisperer, as somebody called you earlier,

[00:18:18] [SPEAKER_04]: that the lens of which people look at you is that you're so connected

[00:18:23] [SPEAKER_04]: with Microsoft because of these modern selling motions.

[00:18:27] [SPEAKER_04]: What we call modern selling is your show, your LinkedIn activity,

[00:18:31] [SPEAKER_04]: your personal brand, your reputation.

[00:18:34] [SPEAKER_04]: Talk talk about how you do that and how you coach some of these partners

[00:18:38] [SPEAKER_04]: to do that as well.

[00:18:41] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it's a great question.

[00:18:42] [SPEAKER_02]: And it's there's so many facets to it.

[00:18:45] [SPEAKER_02]: But for me, really, I want to be I want people to know

[00:18:50] [SPEAKER_02]: what my superpower is, what the thing is I can bring to impact the world.

[00:18:55] [SPEAKER_02]: And that for me is helping partners navigate the Microsoft ecosystem.

[00:19:00] [SPEAKER_02]: And to do that, I've been very intentional about building my brand around that,

[00:19:05] [SPEAKER_02]: about learning everything and anything I can around that topic.

[00:19:09] [SPEAKER_02]: Continue to educate myself and share all of the things I learn.

[00:19:14] [SPEAKER_02]: I have no secrets.

[00:19:15] [SPEAKER_02]: There's nothing that you couldn't get that I teach online somewhere.

[00:19:20] [SPEAKER_02]: You might have to piece it together over like 30 shows or 50 posts.

[00:19:25] [SPEAKER_02]: But for me, it's all about sharing and just pouring

[00:19:29] [SPEAKER_02]: all of that back into the community.

[00:19:31] [SPEAKER_02]: And I'm of the opinion that you're not paying me for information.

[00:19:35] [SPEAKER_02]: You're paying for implementation.

[00:19:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Now, I can help you to bring this

[00:19:41] [SPEAKER_02]: goal that you have to fruition much faster.

[00:19:45] [SPEAKER_02]: You can go get the information anywhere there's, you know, with Microsoft,

[00:19:49] [SPEAKER_02]: Microsoft publishes everything I teach.

[00:19:51] [SPEAKER_02]: There's no like I'm not teaching something that isn't taught by

[00:19:54] [SPEAKER_02]: either Microsoft or, you know, folks like Carson are out there

[00:19:59] [SPEAKER_02]: sharing every day what they're doing.

[00:20:01] [SPEAKER_02]: So, you know, that is that for me is very important

[00:20:05] [SPEAKER_02]: and leveraging the social tools like LinkedIn.

[00:20:08] [SPEAKER_02]: Me personally, that's my only platform.

[00:20:10] [SPEAKER_02]: A little bit on YouTube, but LinkedIn is my go to platform for that.

[00:20:16] [SPEAKER_01]: Hey, Rob, a couple of questions kind of related to that.

[00:20:19] [SPEAKER_01]: Do you find as you start to work with new partners or Microsoft partners

[00:20:24] [SPEAKER_01]: that you have to kind of establish a mindset of how to best work

[00:20:28] [SPEAKER_01]: and a philosophy of how to best work in the Microsoft ecosystem?

[00:20:33] [SPEAKER_01]: That sometimes they may, you know, other than just say,

[00:20:35] [SPEAKER_01]: give me a lead, which I know we talked about.

[00:20:37] [SPEAKER_01]: But even when we were just sitting on here with personal brand

[00:20:40] [SPEAKER_01]: and to me, that ties into relevance like you were talking about earlier

[00:20:43] [SPEAKER_01]: or relationships.

[00:20:45] [SPEAKER_01]: Do you feel like a lot of the initial coaching that you have to do

[00:20:49] [SPEAKER_01]: is that mindset aspect of things?

[00:20:53] [SPEAKER_01]: And then I guess part two of that is, do you recommend to them

[00:20:56] [SPEAKER_01]: that they invest in building that personal brand as a tool

[00:21:00] [SPEAKER_01]: to get in that door with the right players in the Microsoft ecosystem?

[00:21:05] [SPEAKER_02]: So to your first question,

[00:21:07] [SPEAKER_02]: I absolutely spend

[00:21:10] [SPEAKER_02]: sometimes an inordinate amount of time on mindset.

[00:21:14] [SPEAKER_02]: You really have to you have to commit to this.

[00:21:18] [SPEAKER_02]: And I'm not saying that you Microsoft has to be your only partner

[00:21:21] [SPEAKER_02]: and that you can't be successful having multiple partners.

[00:21:24] [SPEAKER_02]: But if you're going to commit to growing your Microsoft business,

[00:21:29] [SPEAKER_02]: it truly is a mindset.

[00:21:30] [SPEAKER_02]: It's you have to think, how can I help them?

[00:21:34] [SPEAKER_02]: How can I pour into them?

[00:21:36] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me, yes, the mindset is critical.

[00:21:40] [SPEAKER_02]: And then on the second point around, again, getting back to personal branding

[00:21:45] [SPEAKER_02]: is that I absolutely believe that you make it much easier on yourself

[00:21:50] [SPEAKER_02]: if you pour into your personal profile to what you contribute

[00:21:56] [SPEAKER_02]: to the community, what you're putting out there in the world.

[00:21:59] [SPEAKER_02]: I believe that if you commit to that and you have the mindset of

[00:22:04] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm here to help, I'm here to serve, I'm going to pour in.

[00:22:09] [SPEAKER_02]: And again, the conversation we had earlier with Carson about reciprocity,

[00:22:13] [SPEAKER_02]: it's going to come back to me, you know, whether it's a seller

[00:22:16] [SPEAKER_02]: sees something I posted and says, oh, I've got a customer with that exact problem

[00:22:19] [SPEAKER_02]: or it's a customer that sees what you did and say, oh, I need to touch base with

[00:22:24] [SPEAKER_02]: because he's talking about that very same thing I'm dealing with.

[00:22:28] [SPEAKER_03]: So that's where I want to springboard, Rob.

[00:22:30] [SPEAKER_03]: So for the last few shows, you know, we've kind of had this consistent theme around,

[00:22:35] [SPEAKER_03]: you know, the C suite or the CEOs not being sales prevention

[00:22:39] [SPEAKER_03]: and not standing in their own way.

[00:22:41] [SPEAKER_03]: It kind of spring sprang out of a conversation.

[00:22:43] [SPEAKER_03]: I think it was episode 99 with Alice Hyman.

[00:22:46] [SPEAKER_03]: And we talked about it on episode 100.

[00:22:48] [SPEAKER_03]: But what have you learned most?

[00:22:51] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I know you're you're a prolific poster.

[00:22:53] [SPEAKER_03]: You're out there. I see every day.

[00:22:55] [SPEAKER_03]: What have you learned most from your strategy?

[00:22:57] [SPEAKER_03]: But also, how does that play into your work with partners?

[00:23:00] [SPEAKER_03]: Because I think one thing that frustrates me when I when I look at partners is,

[00:23:05] [SPEAKER_03]: I mean, there's a prime opportunity for them to all be prolific posters,

[00:23:08] [SPEAKER_03]: you know, sharing stories about what they've done to empower

[00:23:12] [SPEAKER_03]: transformation of the organizations that they work with.

[00:23:15] [SPEAKER_03]: Like why in the world aren't more of their, you know, their principals

[00:23:19] [SPEAKER_03]: or their CEOs like share their senior partners, sharing stories

[00:23:23] [SPEAKER_03]: about what they're doing. It blows my mind.

[00:23:25] [SPEAKER_03]: I'd love to hear what you've learned, but then also how this plays out,

[00:23:29] [SPEAKER_03]: because surely you coach these folks on how they could do better

[00:23:32] [SPEAKER_03]: from a social perspective as well.

[00:23:34] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah. Hey, real quick, Rob, before you answer,

[00:23:37] [SPEAKER_01]: Carson, I have a question for you and maybe this and Rob, this will tie into it.

[00:23:41] [SPEAKER_01]: Are you attracted, Carson, to a partner

[00:23:44] [SPEAKER_01]: that is doing that prolific sort of outreach in person?

[00:23:48] [SPEAKER_01]: Is that way more than way more?

[00:23:51] [SPEAKER_01]: And I guess, Rob, you know, going into your.

[00:23:54] [SPEAKER_04]: Well, and I was just getting on the radar.

[00:23:57] [SPEAKER_03]: We love stories. Yeah.

[00:23:58] [SPEAKER_03]: It's on your I mean, what better way to get on your radar than

[00:24:01] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm seeing somebody show up every day who works for a partner

[00:24:04] [SPEAKER_03]: who's sharing amazing stories that I can comment on.

[00:24:08] [SPEAKER_03]: And you know, the biggest thing I look for in a partner is

[00:24:10] [SPEAKER_03]: how do I go out and I figure out what are they doing to be successful

[00:24:14] [SPEAKER_03]: and how can I replicate this at scale?

[00:24:16] [SPEAKER_03]: That's what I think about all day every day. Yeah.

[00:24:19] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, there's so many accounts around now.

[00:24:22] [SPEAKER_02]: Oh, my goodness. Here, here, here.

[00:24:24] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, we're like a pinball machine today.

[00:24:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, yeah, we are.

[00:24:28] [SPEAKER_04]: And Rob, I'd say that it's kind of like what you've done

[00:24:31] [SPEAKER_04]: is that your online presence, you do webinars,

[00:24:35] [SPEAKER_04]: you do your show, you're consistent on LinkedIn, you comment, you're seen.

[00:24:40] [SPEAKER_04]: And so automatically people start they change their perception

[00:24:44] [SPEAKER_04]: of who you are and how connected you are just from your activity.

[00:24:49] [SPEAKER_04]: And Carson, to your point of like you're seeing somebody doing that.

[00:24:51] [SPEAKER_04]: Or the other thing is you got a partner that's emailing you,

[00:24:55] [SPEAKER_04]: asking you questions or for your time with the other 300 emails

[00:24:59] [SPEAKER_04]: that you have inside your inbox.

[00:25:02] [SPEAKER_04]: They just. This one of the things that frustrates me right now,

[00:25:06] [SPEAKER_04]: by the way, is how easy it is to leverage this LinkedIn tool

[00:25:11] [SPEAKER_04]: to build reputation and meet people and even with AI.

[00:25:15] [SPEAKER_04]: And I'm waiting for the quarterly data to come out.

[00:25:18] [SPEAKER_04]: But one percent of LinkedIn users create content

[00:25:23] [SPEAKER_04]: on a regular basis, which is like twice a month.

[00:25:27] [SPEAKER_04]: One percent. There's so much fertile soil if you just start

[00:25:31] [SPEAKER_04]: sharing stories, creating content for more people to see you, know you.

[00:25:35] [SPEAKER_04]: And then the Carson's of the world start to see you talking about Microsoft

[00:25:39] [SPEAKER_04]: and go, oh, look at that.

[00:25:42] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, so there's a whole bunch of things to unpack here.

[00:25:45] [SPEAKER_02]: But for starters, let me say that it works.

[00:25:49] [SPEAKER_02]: I tell partners, look, it works if you show up

[00:25:53] [SPEAKER_02]: and Brandon, you mentioned consistency.

[00:25:56] [SPEAKER_02]: That is the key right there. Consistency is the key.

[00:26:00] [SPEAKER_02]: So I tell partners, look, even for me, for my business,

[00:26:03] [SPEAKER_02]: I don't have any paid advertising.

[00:26:05] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm not out there cold calling.

[00:26:07] [SPEAKER_02]: What I'm doing is I'm leveraging social media and specifically LinkedIn

[00:26:12] [SPEAKER_02]: to share my stories, to share the information I've got

[00:26:15] [SPEAKER_02]: and attract the right people to me.

[00:26:18] [SPEAKER_02]: I have for me, that has been my sole strategy for this business.

[00:26:23] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, and it's it's paid dividends far beyond what I could have ever imagined.

[00:26:30] [SPEAKER_02]: Now, I will say in year one, it didn't.

[00:26:32] [SPEAKER_02]: It was real tough in year one and year two.

[00:26:35] [SPEAKER_02]: It was not even amazing.

[00:26:39] [SPEAKER_02]: But I stuck with it.

[00:26:40] [SPEAKER_02]: I know whether I got one like or no comments

[00:26:44] [SPEAKER_02]: or I got 40 likes and one comment, it didn't matter to me.

[00:26:47] [SPEAKER_02]: I was just, look, I'm going to do it.

[00:26:49] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm going to do it consistently every day.

[00:26:51] [SPEAKER_02]: Not going to miss a day.

[00:26:53] [SPEAKER_02]: Maybe one or two here or there, but very consistent.

[00:26:56] [SPEAKER_02]: And it paid off now to pivot and talk about exposure.

[00:27:01] [SPEAKER_02]: Carson is faced with four hundred thousand Microsoft partners.

[00:27:06] [SPEAKER_02]: So that's a huge.

[00:27:09] [SPEAKER_01]: Like did you say four hundred thousand?

[00:27:11] [SPEAKER_01]: You broke up there, Rob, and you said four hundred thousand, four

[00:27:14] [SPEAKER_02]: hundred thousand. That's such a big word.

[00:27:15] [SPEAKER_02]: I didn't have enough time to get it out.

[00:27:20] [SPEAKER_01]: How do you deal with all the four hundred thousand every day?

[00:27:22] [SPEAKER_01]: How do you handle all that?

[00:27:24] [SPEAKER_02]: This is this is where I want to go with it.

[00:27:26] [SPEAKER_03]: You're not all reaching out to me.

[00:27:29] [SPEAKER_02]: But to me, I tell partners that so few of you are out there

[00:27:35] [SPEAKER_02]: actively engaging with Microsoft, with the content, with posting,

[00:27:40] [SPEAKER_02]: with commenting that you could separate yourself out with never

[00:27:45] [SPEAKER_02]: pick up another phone. You could just start doing this and be like

[00:27:48] [SPEAKER_02]: years ahead of almost three hundred ninety nine thousand other partners.

[00:27:54] [SPEAKER_02]: So there is a huge opportunity for partners.

[00:27:58] [SPEAKER_02]: And this gets back to your mindset question, Tom, earlier.

[00:28:01] [SPEAKER_02]: People don't have the you know, they're like, oh, that's this

[00:28:04] [SPEAKER_02]: other thing that people do on the site.

[00:28:06] [SPEAKER_02]: No, this is the new way to get to your clients,

[00:28:10] [SPEAKER_02]: the new way to get to your prospects.

[00:28:12] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm not saying that picking up the phone is dead

[00:28:14] [SPEAKER_02]: by any stretch of the imagination or that you shouldn't do all

[00:28:17] [SPEAKER_02]: the prospecting activities.

[00:28:19] [SPEAKER_02]: But this, in my opinion, is the more effective way.

[00:28:23] [SPEAKER_02]: It gets you more exposure and it's a bring them to you

[00:28:28] [SPEAKER_02]: versus you trying to get to them.

[00:28:30] [SPEAKER_02]: So I'm a huge fan of this.

[00:28:32] [SPEAKER_02]: I think that any partner that hasn't integrated modern selling

[00:28:36] [SPEAKER_02]: and specifically LinkedIn into their sales motion

[00:28:40] [SPEAKER_02]: is missing an opportunity to get to customers,

[00:28:43] [SPEAKER_02]: missing a huge opportunity to get in front of Microsoft

[00:28:46] [SPEAKER_02]: and to establish yourself as the authority in that area.

[00:28:52] [SPEAKER_03]: Very powerful mic drop stuff in there.

[00:28:54] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, I think something that really jumped out at me

[00:28:56] [SPEAKER_03]: and this is something that we underscore on here, too.

[00:28:58] [SPEAKER_03]: And you said this earlier about it not being a silver bullet.

[00:29:01] [SPEAKER_03]: But let's be real, like the first year that I really

[00:29:05] [SPEAKER_03]: doubled down on social selling, it was an anomaly.

[00:29:09] [SPEAKER_03]: My manager at the time didn't get it.

[00:29:12] [SPEAKER_03]: In fact, they weren't a fan of me or my process.

[00:29:16] [SPEAKER_03]: And but it was year two.

[00:29:17] [SPEAKER_03]: It blew up and went over like gangbusters.

[00:29:20] [SPEAKER_03]: It took understanding why the process would matter

[00:29:24] [SPEAKER_03]: and sticking with it and continuing to invest.

[00:29:28] [SPEAKER_03]: I mean, that's really all you're doing.

[00:29:29] [SPEAKER_03]: That's what social selling is.

[00:29:30] [SPEAKER_03]: That's what mastering modern selling is.

[00:29:32] [SPEAKER_03]: You're making investments.

[00:29:34] [SPEAKER_03]: You're figuring out where are where's your customers?

[00:29:36] [SPEAKER_03]: Where's your audience?

[00:29:37] [SPEAKER_03]: And figuring out the right way to engage them everywhere

[00:29:39] [SPEAKER_03]: that they are. You're meeting them where they are.

[00:29:40] [SPEAKER_03]: You're passively educating.

[00:29:43] [SPEAKER_03]: You're creating relationships where they wouldn't have existed otherwise.

[00:29:46] [SPEAKER_03]: And that stuff doesn't immediately turn into a deal.

[00:29:49] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, we're a lot of us are selling things that have long sales cycles.

[00:29:53] [SPEAKER_03]: These don't happen overnight.

[00:29:55] [SPEAKER_03]: But if you go out and you fill the pipe, guess what's going to happen?

[00:29:58] [SPEAKER_03]: That pipe is going to burst after six months to a year.

[00:30:02] [SPEAKER_03]: And that's why you got to play the long game.

[00:30:05] [SPEAKER_04]: Why do you guys think this is this isn't Microsoft

[00:30:08] [SPEAKER_04]: partner related, but it's just as valuable for them as everyone else?

[00:30:13] [SPEAKER_04]: Like if we put a cold calling strategy in place

[00:30:17] [SPEAKER_04]: and we don't close a deal in the first week, we don't go,

[00:30:20] [SPEAKER_04]: oh, the phone doesn't work.

[00:30:22] [SPEAKER_04]: You don't invest and go to a trade show for the first time.

[00:30:26] [SPEAKER_04]: No, this is our first time having a booth there.

[00:30:28] [SPEAKER_04]: And you get done and go, well, that didn't work.

[00:30:30] [SPEAKER_04]: You look at it and go, we got to keep coming back like we're the new guy.

[00:30:34] [SPEAKER_04]: We got to keep coming back.

[00:30:36] [SPEAKER_04]: But there's this tendency and Rob, I've heard you use the word consistency.

[00:30:42] [SPEAKER_04]: Carson, you talked about the first year didn't work about being consistent.

[00:30:46] [SPEAKER_04]: Why do you think it is with LinkedIn that it's so easy for people to go?

[00:30:50] [SPEAKER_04]: Well, we tried it and it didn't work.

[00:30:54] [SPEAKER_03]: Because people have what I like to call comfortable ways of failing

[00:30:57] [SPEAKER_03]: or comfortable ways of mediocrity.

[00:31:00] [SPEAKER_03]: And you're trying a new muscle.

[00:31:02] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, it's like if I didn't go to the gym and I went to the gym

[00:31:05] [SPEAKER_03]: and I had a bad workout, that's not that's no good.

[00:31:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Or I work out for a week and I don't lose any weight

[00:31:12] [SPEAKER_03]: and I don't look any better.

[00:31:14] [SPEAKER_03]: And then it's well, that doesn't work.

[00:31:15] [SPEAKER_03]: And then I just go back to what I was doing before.

[00:31:17] [SPEAKER_03]: We've all been there and done it at various things in our life

[00:31:20] [SPEAKER_03]: and in our career.

[00:31:21] [SPEAKER_03]: But these things are challenging.

[00:31:22] [SPEAKER_03]: It's not easy to go out and prospect every single day.

[00:31:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Personally, I'm one of those sick people.

[00:31:27] [SPEAKER_03]: I love the prospect.

[00:31:28] [SPEAKER_03]: I love to send messages out to executives.

[00:31:31] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, I get the law of averages.

[00:31:33] [SPEAKER_03]: I know for every 120 messages, I might get one response,

[00:31:37] [SPEAKER_03]: but that's what I'm willing to do to get that meeting

[00:31:39] [SPEAKER_03]: because I know what I can do with that meeting.

[00:31:42] [SPEAKER_03]: But other people don't feel that way.

[00:31:43] [SPEAKER_03]: They're willing to just keep hum drumming along,

[00:31:46] [SPEAKER_03]: talking to their same old IT and procurement relationships

[00:31:49] [SPEAKER_03]: and selling absolutely nothing and bringing home a mediocre paycheck.

[00:31:52] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm not satisfied with that.

[00:31:55] [SPEAKER_01]: Right. Well, I also think, Brandon, to your question is.

[00:31:58] [SPEAKER_01]: I think cold calling and emailing and even trade shows

[00:32:03] [SPEAKER_01]: people think of that as, hey, it's tangible effort.

[00:32:06] [SPEAKER_01]: Right. I can't.

[00:32:07] [SPEAKER_01]: And I think sometimes people think the LinkedIn and the social aspect

[00:32:10] [SPEAKER_01]: of it is more intangible and they don't feel like they've

[00:32:14] [SPEAKER_01]: worked hard enough at it.

[00:32:16] [SPEAKER_01]: And so then it's just, well, that didn't work.

[00:32:18] [SPEAKER_01]: But I can go do something that I can work hard on and get tangible effort.

[00:32:22] [SPEAKER_01]: I think there's a element to that.

[00:32:26] [SPEAKER_01]: If you agree, Robert and Carter, but I think there's an element to that.

[00:32:30] [SPEAKER_02]: I absolutely agree.

[00:32:31] [SPEAKER_02]: I think that people have to recognize it's like any motion.

[00:32:35] [SPEAKER_02]: You need to stick with it no matter what it is.

[00:32:38] [SPEAKER_02]: And social selling and selling on LinkedIn,

[00:32:41] [SPEAKER_02]: it is a process and you have to commit to the process.

[00:32:44] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm a big fan of having a strategy or a framework

[00:32:46] [SPEAKER_02]: and working that framework and really have this

[00:32:51] [SPEAKER_02]: value equation I like to to talk about, which is it's

[00:32:55] [SPEAKER_02]: value multiplied by time.

[00:32:58] [SPEAKER_02]: How much value can you bring over how much time?

[00:33:00] [SPEAKER_02]: And the person that can bring the most value over the most time wins every time.

[00:33:05] [SPEAKER_02]: So to me, it really is.

[00:33:07] [SPEAKER_04]: You know, I was I was I was talking with one of my

[00:33:12] [SPEAKER_04]: and my old investors from my agency that I launched in 2002.

[00:33:18] [SPEAKER_04]: And obviously, I wasn't on LinkedIn then.

[00:33:21] [SPEAKER_04]: And he was asking me, like, so, Brandon, what are you doing?

[00:33:24] [SPEAKER_04]: What's this LinkedIn stuff?

[00:33:25] [SPEAKER_04]: And I hadn't thought about this before, but I said, hey, do you remember

[00:33:29] [SPEAKER_04]: the go to market strategy that we used back with with by design in 2002?

[00:33:35] [SPEAKER_04]: And he's like, well, yeah, you you were on a plane a lot.

[00:33:38] [SPEAKER_04]: And I said, yeah, I got on a plane and I went to all these different events.

[00:33:42] [SPEAKER_04]: I went to these different trade shows.

[00:33:44] [SPEAKER_04]: We sponsored associations

[00:33:46] [SPEAKER_04]: and so that I could go in and be on stage and speak like we paid our way

[00:33:51] [SPEAKER_04]: into having breakout sessions.

[00:33:54] [SPEAKER_04]: And when I was there and, you know, it was kind of a joke

[00:33:57] [SPEAKER_04]: on our PNLs because I had a really large alcohol bill

[00:34:00] [SPEAKER_04]: because I was working the bars at these events.

[00:34:05] [SPEAKER_04]: And and I said, you remember all these like, oh, yeah, yeah, you

[00:34:08] [SPEAKER_04]: you went and became known in the industry.

[00:34:10] [SPEAKER_04]: And that helped everyone like our salespeople when they would call.

[00:34:14] [SPEAKER_04]: They're like, oh, yeah, I met Brandon last weekend or whatever it may be.

[00:34:17] [SPEAKER_04]: And I said, yeah.

[00:34:18] [SPEAKER_04]: And I said, that's all we're doing with LinkedIn.

[00:34:22] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, it's not that makes sense.

[00:34:24] [SPEAKER_02]: I totally love the analogy.

[00:34:25] [SPEAKER_02]: And, you know, people talk about outcomes and say, well, I post something

[00:34:29] [SPEAKER_02]: and I don't have an immediate outcome.

[00:34:31] [SPEAKER_02]: Now, to your point, I take somebody to lunch or I host a happy hour.

[00:34:36] [SPEAKER_02]: I may not have an immediate outcome, but.

[00:34:39] [SPEAKER_02]: I started building that relationship.

[00:34:41] [SPEAKER_02]: And again, relationships are so powerful and they they pay so many dividends

[00:34:46] [SPEAKER_02]: if you're willing to pour into that relationship over a period of time.

[00:34:50] [SPEAKER_02]: And what I find is that LinkedIn is just a platform for me

[00:34:53] [SPEAKER_02]: to expand my reach and find more relationships where I can help that person or people.

[00:35:01] [SPEAKER_02]: So, you know, people that say to me, oh, well, it's not one to one.

[00:35:04] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm like, well, that's true.

[00:35:05] [SPEAKER_02]: But lots of things in sales aren't one to one.

[00:35:08] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, it's we pour in over time and we win.

[00:35:12] [SPEAKER_04]: Hey, Rob, I have a question for you.

[00:35:13] [SPEAKER_04]: I would imagine and correct me if I'm wrong, a lot of your clients

[00:35:18] [SPEAKER_04]: that you're helping with their Microsoft partnership go to market strategy,

[00:35:23] [SPEAKER_04]: they probably found you on LinkedIn.

[00:35:26] [SPEAKER_04]: Like they probably discovered you and ran into you on LinkedIn.

[00:35:30] [SPEAKER_04]: Does it ever translate for them like, hey, I could be found

[00:35:33] [SPEAKER_04]: and discovered in their relationships with the Karsans of the world

[00:35:36] [SPEAKER_04]: if I was doing what Rob does on LinkedIn?

[00:35:41] [SPEAKER_02]: So if it doesn't, I let them know it.

[00:35:44] [SPEAKER_02]: I remind them because and for me, one of the things I say is, you know,

[00:35:48] [SPEAKER_02]: they tell me, well, I don't know who to connect with

[00:35:50] [SPEAKER_02]: or who to talk with at Microsoft.

[00:35:52] [SPEAKER_02]: And so I do a little exercise and say, well, how many people

[00:35:55] [SPEAKER_02]: are you connected with in Microsoft?

[00:35:57] [SPEAKER_02]: And they look at me like, how can I be connected with anybody?

[00:36:00] [SPEAKER_02]: I haven't reached out to him like, well, there we go.

[00:36:02] [SPEAKER_02]: We got our problem.

[00:36:03] [SPEAKER_02]: Number one, ding, ding, ding, ding, ding.

[00:36:06] [SPEAKER_02]: And so I'm like, look, I actively I make it a goal for myself

[00:36:10] [SPEAKER_02]: to try and connect with 25 new people a week inside Microsoft.

[00:36:14] [SPEAKER_02]: And, you know, to do that, I need to bring value to them.

[00:36:17] [SPEAKER_02]: So, you know, for me, that is

[00:36:20] [SPEAKER_02]: a goal is to build those relationships.

[00:36:23] [SPEAKER_02]: And I tell partners, it's no different for you.

[00:36:26] [SPEAKER_02]: You need to be doing this, too.

[00:36:28] [SPEAKER_02]: And what you know, when I reach out to somebody

[00:36:30] [SPEAKER_02]: and they go check out my profile, they can see all the places

[00:36:33] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm leaning in to help Microsoft achieve their mission.

[00:36:37] [SPEAKER_02]: And so it becomes an easy connection.

[00:36:40] [SPEAKER_02]: And then the other benefit is the more people I'm connected to,

[00:36:43] [SPEAKER_02]: people inside of Microsoft say, well, he knows Carson

[00:36:45] [SPEAKER_02]: and he knows Michelle and he knows Kevin Piskar.

[00:36:48] [SPEAKER_02]: All of a sudden, maybe I should connect with them.

[00:36:50] [SPEAKER_02]: And so it grows.

[00:36:52] [SPEAKER_02]: And I just to me, it's baffling why partners aren't more

[00:36:57] [SPEAKER_02]: invested in building those relationships because LinkedIn is the tool to do it.

[00:37:01] [SPEAKER_02]: It's an easy button to do that.

[00:37:04] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, it's the unknown and it's the it's getting away from the

[00:37:08] [SPEAKER_03]: the old way.

[00:37:11] [SPEAKER_03]: Bob has a great comment out there that we want to spotlight here.

[00:37:15] [SPEAKER_03]: It's about how many sales leaders he's worked with.

[00:37:17] [SPEAKER_03]: You look at sales as a math problem.

[00:37:19] [SPEAKER_03]: You got to get X number of meetings, which means X number of outreaches,

[00:37:22] [SPEAKER_03]: X number of contacts.

[00:37:24] [SPEAKER_03]: This is because of weak sales culture or non-existent sales culture.

[00:37:27] [SPEAKER_03]: And a lot of times, sales leaders, they haven't been coached

[00:37:30] [SPEAKER_03]: or trained properly.

[00:37:31] [SPEAKER_03]: They're hearing from their talking heads.

[00:37:34] [SPEAKER_03]: Hey, you got to go out and you got to book more meetings or make more calls.

[00:37:37] [SPEAKER_03]: I used to work in a call center where my manager was like,

[00:37:39] [SPEAKER_03]: you got to have X number of dials every day.

[00:37:42] [SPEAKER_03]: But our top sellers, we actually made the fewest dials.

[00:37:46] [SPEAKER_03]: We had quality conversations, and that's what will ultimately lead to the deal.

[00:37:51] [SPEAKER_03]: And so, you know, we got to get away from looking at things like a math problem

[00:37:54] [SPEAKER_03]: or it's got to be, you know, there's a specific road map to success.

[00:37:59] [SPEAKER_03]: But I think that's what modern selling is all about.

[00:38:01] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, it's what are the what are the tools that are going to get me

[00:38:04] [SPEAKER_03]: closer to my desired audience, to my desired customer?

[00:38:08] [SPEAKER_03]: And they're out there all over the place.

[00:38:09] [SPEAKER_03]: In fact, there's many everything that you do has a probability

[00:38:14] [SPEAKER_03]: or a propensity.

[00:38:16] [SPEAKER_03]: And we talk about that all the time on this show, you know,

[00:38:18] [SPEAKER_03]: the probability of this lead or the probability,

[00:38:20] [SPEAKER_03]: you know, the propensity for this lead to buy.

[00:38:22] [SPEAKER_03]: We get signals now, you know, we have AI and automated tools

[00:38:25] [SPEAKER_03]: that might surface, hey, they did this.

[00:38:27] [SPEAKER_03]: So the probability of them doing this is X.

[00:38:29] [SPEAKER_03]: And, you know, I think there's some value to that.

[00:38:33] [SPEAKER_03]: The biggest deals, best deals I've ever done have been as a result

[00:38:36] [SPEAKER_03]: of connecting with executives, a lot of executives

[00:38:39] [SPEAKER_03]: at those organizations on LinkedIn,

[00:38:41] [SPEAKER_03]: but also going to our dormant CRM and marketing leads

[00:38:45] [SPEAKER_03]: that nobody would touch.

[00:38:47] [SPEAKER_03]: And I'm talking about like going out into our tools of, hey,

[00:38:49] [SPEAKER_03]: this person downloaded a white paper, this person bought a year ago.

[00:38:54] [SPEAKER_03]: And what I did with them is different than most sellers would do

[00:38:58] [SPEAKER_03]: because a lot of sellers might call or email that person one to one.

[00:39:01] [SPEAKER_03]: They don't respond.

[00:39:02] [SPEAKER_03]: You send 10, 15, 20 emails, these people and nobody replies.

[00:39:06] [SPEAKER_03]: You're going to move on. And I get that.

[00:39:08] [SPEAKER_03]: So what I started doing is gathering all these leads,

[00:39:11] [SPEAKER_03]: doing newsletters, building community, engaging them with webinars.

[00:39:15] [SPEAKER_03]: And that's what ended up working so well.

[00:39:18] [SPEAKER_03]: In fact, one of the biggest deals I ever did, there was a I reached out

[00:39:22] [SPEAKER_03]: to somebody that had purchased a year ago and my manager at the time said,

[00:39:25] [SPEAKER_03]: don't bother going after him.

[00:39:27] [SPEAKER_03]: They wanted this business model that's funky,

[00:39:29] [SPEAKER_03]: this purchasing model that we can't deliver.

[00:39:32] [SPEAKER_03]: And I went out and took the meeting anyway.

[00:39:34] [SPEAKER_03]: And they were telling me, hey, we currently buy through this model.

[00:39:39] [SPEAKER_03]: And if you can give me this percent, I'll do business with you.

[00:39:43] [SPEAKER_03]: And I made a case to my leadership of exactly what I was trying to do.

[00:39:47] [SPEAKER_03]: I managed to find a loophole and it ended up being the biggest deal

[00:39:51] [SPEAKER_03]: on the channel that year.

[00:39:52] [SPEAKER_03]: So my point is like there's opportunity out there.

[00:39:56] [SPEAKER_03]: You got to figure out where's your audience,

[00:39:58] [SPEAKER_03]: what's the probability and viability?

[00:40:00] [SPEAKER_03]: And you've got to invest in all of the channels where your customers are.

[00:40:04] [SPEAKER_03]: In a meaningful way that is smart and it's not easy to do.

[00:40:08] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, the hardest part is finding balance.

[00:40:10] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, where am I going to invest?

[00:40:12] [SPEAKER_03]: Where am I going to spend my time?

[00:40:14] [SPEAKER_03]: But over several years of doing it, you get to a rhythm that will work for you.

[00:40:20] [SPEAKER_02]: Absolutely. And one of the things that for me is

[00:40:23] [SPEAKER_02]: it's important to know who your audience is.

[00:40:26] [SPEAKER_02]: And people talk to me about what do I post?

[00:40:28] [SPEAKER_02]: What do I share? I'm like, if you know who your audience is,

[00:40:32] [SPEAKER_02]: just post like you were talking to them.

[00:40:34] [SPEAKER_02]: Post like you were just sitting down across the table,

[00:40:36] [SPEAKER_02]: having a conversation like we are now.

[00:40:39] [SPEAKER_02]: And you'll speak to your audience if you do that.

[00:40:43] [SPEAKER_02]: And, you know, to your point, Carson, about

[00:40:45] [SPEAKER_02]: the platform of bringing or approaching it differently,

[00:40:48] [SPEAKER_02]: like webinars and newsletters.

[00:40:51] [SPEAKER_02]: LinkedIn is a fabulous tool to get that information out there,

[00:40:54] [SPEAKER_02]: to get the word out about that.

[00:40:56] [SPEAKER_02]: And I tell partners all day long, it's like, look,

[00:40:59] [SPEAKER_02]: if you're going to host a webinar or have a webinar,

[00:41:02] [SPEAKER_02]: that's valuable and important to Microsoft, because I guarantee you

[00:41:05] [SPEAKER_02]: that someone in their patch wants to hear about the problem you're talking about.

[00:41:10] [SPEAKER_02]: So share with them, you know, gets back to our conversation

[00:41:12] [SPEAKER_02]: 20 or 15 or 20 minutes ago.

[00:41:15] [SPEAKER_02]: And get in front of these people, share this content.

[00:41:18] [SPEAKER_02]: And if you've got webinars or newsletters you can share,

[00:41:21] [SPEAKER_02]: that's just more value you're bringing to the table.

[00:41:24] [SPEAKER_03]: One more thing on this thread, because you got me all fired up,

[00:41:26] [SPEAKER_03]: you know, talking to sellers who work with partners,

[00:41:29] [SPEAKER_03]: don't give your partners the, you know,

[00:41:34] [SPEAKER_03]: garbage leads that don't talk to you or don't ever respond.

[00:41:37] [SPEAKER_03]: Give them the Glenn Gary leads.

[00:41:39] [SPEAKER_03]: Give them your high potential leads.

[00:41:41] [SPEAKER_03]: Because if you get a partner out there, again, being an extension of you

[00:41:46] [SPEAKER_03]: and being your part of your sales army that's out there selling,

[00:41:51] [SPEAKER_03]: it's less work for you.

[00:41:52] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, it's how you can work smart, not hard.

[00:41:54] [SPEAKER_03]: It's how you can orchestrate a situation.

[00:41:56] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, I may be the quarterback of the team,

[00:41:58] [SPEAKER_03]: but I got to have those receivers that I can trust and get the ball to

[00:42:02] [SPEAKER_03]: and then keep thinking of plays.

[00:42:05] [SPEAKER_03]: That's the key element, you know, put your partners in the game.

[00:42:08] [SPEAKER_03]: We're to find the ones that you trust.

[00:42:11] [SPEAKER_03]: For me, partners are people.

[00:42:13] [SPEAKER_03]: It's I've had great relationships over my 10 and a half years here

[00:42:17] [SPEAKER_03]: with with very specific people.

[00:42:19] [SPEAKER_03]: And it's because I knew I could trust them.

[00:42:21] [SPEAKER_03]: And, you know, we did things together.

[00:42:22] [SPEAKER_03]: We ran plays. They worked.

[00:42:24] [SPEAKER_03]: And then I trusted them.

[00:42:26] [SPEAKER_03]: They got stuff done.

[00:42:27] [SPEAKER_03]: And then I was I knew like, hey, if I give the ball to this person,

[00:42:30] [SPEAKER_03]: they're going to score.

[00:42:32] [SPEAKER_03]: So I'm stupid if I'm not doing that.

[00:42:34] [SPEAKER_03]: And that's that's the mentality we got to take is develop strong relationships

[00:42:38] [SPEAKER_03]: where there's trust and transparency, just like you're developing

[00:42:41] [SPEAKER_03]: a relationship with a customer, your partners.

[00:42:44] [SPEAKER_03]: You want to invest in those relationships, too,

[00:42:46] [SPEAKER_03]: and figure out if I give the ball to this person, they're going to score.

[00:42:49] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, that's such a great point, Carson.

[00:42:51] [SPEAKER_02]: And I think partners sometimes forget that it's you're not building

[00:42:53] [SPEAKER_02]: a relationship with Microsoft.

[00:42:55] [SPEAKER_02]: You're building a relationship with Carson.

[00:42:58] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, you're building a relationship with the shawl or whomever you're working with.

[00:43:02] [SPEAKER_02]: And that's what you have to remember.

[00:43:04] [SPEAKER_02]: And don't worry about what you're going to do for the entire of the group.

[00:43:08] [SPEAKER_02]: Just worry about what you're going to do to help Carson move the ball forward.

[00:43:11] [SPEAKER_02]: And that's enough.

[00:43:12] [SPEAKER_02]: Then just move forward with that mindset.

[00:43:17] [SPEAKER_01]: So, Rob, one of the areas we talk a lot about

[00:43:21] [SPEAKER_01]: in mastering modern selling is the use of what we're doing here.

[00:43:24] [SPEAKER_01]: Live shows, podcasts, that kind of stuff.

[00:43:28] [SPEAKER_01]: With that, it seems to me that that would be a very logical strategy

[00:43:33] [SPEAKER_01]: for a partner to implement, right?

[00:43:37] [SPEAKER_01]: Is a live show or a podcast or some combination thereof

[00:43:40] [SPEAKER_01]: and would be a great way to get in the door,

[00:43:44] [SPEAKER_01]: not just with potential prospects, but with, again,

[00:43:47] [SPEAKER_01]: Microsoft sellers by getting them indoctrinated into the podcast,

[00:43:52] [SPEAKER_01]: getting them.

[00:43:53] [SPEAKER_01]: It just again, it's a very valuable, repeatable way.

[00:43:56] [SPEAKER_01]: Is that something that you tend to recommend or is that

[00:44:00] [SPEAKER_01]: too much for a lot of those partners, you know, time wise

[00:44:03] [SPEAKER_01]: and investment wise or is there pushback?

[00:44:07] [SPEAKER_02]: There's always a little bit of pushback, but I tell partners

[00:44:10] [SPEAKER_02]: it's one of the quickest and easiest ways to get in front

[00:44:13] [SPEAKER_02]: of the people you want to be in front of and for them to learn

[00:44:17] [SPEAKER_02]: about who you are, how you impact the world.

[00:44:20] [SPEAKER_02]: And then to borrow from Carson.

[00:44:21] [SPEAKER_02]: So I would intervene some customers talking about some wins you had

[00:44:25] [SPEAKER_02]: and sharing that that works both for your future customers.

[00:44:30] [SPEAKER_02]: It works for Microsoft where you're sharing, hey, look, Carson,

[00:44:34] [SPEAKER_02]: what I did, you know, look at the win we had.

[00:44:36] [SPEAKER_02]: Look at the problem we saw.

[00:44:37] [SPEAKER_02]: Look at the business outcomes we achieved and sharing that

[00:44:40] [SPEAKER_02]: in a format like this, like a show or a video

[00:44:45] [SPEAKER_02]: is so powerful.

[00:44:46] [SPEAKER_02]: And I tell partners not to even overthink it.

[00:44:48] [SPEAKER_02]: When I started, it was on my phone and I would just talk to the phone.

[00:44:53] [SPEAKER_02]: And you've got two producers.

[00:44:56] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, my only producer sits right behind me here.

[00:44:59] [SPEAKER_02]: So it's like don't overthink it.

[00:45:01] [SPEAKER_02]: Don't overwork it.

[00:45:02] [SPEAKER_02]: Just get out there, talk to the camera, talk to the person

[00:45:05] [SPEAKER_02]: on the other end of the video and share the story.

[00:45:09] [SPEAKER_02]: People love to hear stories.

[00:45:11] [SPEAKER_02]: And this is the way LinkedIn is the way to get that out into the world

[00:45:14] [SPEAKER_02]: and share it with the world, in my opinion.

[00:45:18] [SPEAKER_04]: Hey, guys, can I address to you?

[00:45:20] [SPEAKER_04]: I've got another message and I don't know what Restream's doing,

[00:45:23] [SPEAKER_04]: but there's a lot of people that are making comments

[00:45:26] [SPEAKER_04]: and asking questions that we're just not seeing on screen today.

[00:45:30] [SPEAKER_04]: So we apologize for everybody.

[00:45:33] [SPEAKER_04]: It's a Restream issue.

[00:45:35] [SPEAKER_04]: But I know like Terry, I don't know if I'm going to pronounce it

[00:45:40] [SPEAKER_04]: the right way, Pat, Carson, this is on your stream.

[00:45:43] [SPEAKER_04]: She was asking, what are some of the key strategies and techniques

[00:45:47] [SPEAKER_04]: that can help professionals build relationships in this digital landscape?

[00:45:52] [SPEAKER_04]: And I know we've been answering all those,

[00:45:54] [SPEAKER_04]: but I just want to address that and say, Terry, thank you.

[00:45:57] [SPEAKER_04]: We're not ignoring you.

[00:45:59] [SPEAKER_04]: We just are not seeing all of these.

[00:46:01] [SPEAKER_04]: And there's a couple other off of my stream too that are not coming in.

[00:46:06] [SPEAKER_01]: We're also getting LinkedIn users and not names

[00:46:08] [SPEAKER_01]: and a few of these as well.

[00:46:11] [SPEAKER_01]: Carson, can you call the LinkedIn people and tell them to take care of this?

[00:46:18] [SPEAKER_01]: I guess it's probably a Restream problem, isn't it?

[00:46:20] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, it's not.

[00:46:22] [SPEAKER_01]: All right. So Brandon, you can take care of that.

[00:46:27] [SPEAKER_04]: Perfect. Throw it on my plate.

[00:46:29] [SPEAKER_04]: What's more stuff on my plate?

[00:46:31] [SPEAKER_01]: Well, you're going to Egypt tomorrow, so we can't throw too much on the food.

[00:46:36] [SPEAKER_04]: I am. I'm excited.

[00:46:37] [SPEAKER_04]: I haven't started packing yet.

[00:46:39] [SPEAKER_03]: How long are you going to be there?

[00:46:42] [SPEAKER_04]: Actually, I'll be gone for 10 days.

[00:46:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Are you going to do the next show from Egypt live?

[00:46:47] [SPEAKER_04]: I am. I'm going to do next Wednesday from Cairo.

[00:46:52] [SPEAKER_04]: And hopefully I'll have some of the team with me still.

[00:46:56] [SPEAKER_04]: So for those that know, we have an office in Cairo, Egypt,

[00:47:00] [SPEAKER_04]: our personal brand assistants and some of our other team

[00:47:03] [SPEAKER_04]: Noor, who runs our Egyptian team out there and coordinates our show and does all this.

[00:47:10] [SPEAKER_04]: So yeah, I get to finally go out and spend time with our team.

[00:47:14] [SPEAKER_04]: We have eight people on the team now.

[00:47:15] [SPEAKER_04]: We've got a few job openings there and they're they're awesome.

[00:47:21] [SPEAKER_04]: I'm excited to go.

[00:47:23] [SPEAKER_03]: It's a couple of James Bond movies that have been filmed in Cairo.

[00:47:26] [SPEAKER_03]: Right. I had to get back to the movies.

[00:47:28] [SPEAKER_02]: I was just waiting for it.

[00:47:30] [SPEAKER_04]: I know you almost you almost threw the moneyball word out there.

[00:47:34] [SPEAKER_04]: You talked about the data, you talked about probability and you just

[00:47:38] [SPEAKER_04]: were shy of using moneyball.

[00:47:41] [SPEAKER_04]: But Carson, before we wrap up and not to totally change,

[00:47:45] [SPEAKER_04]: but looks like you got something new on the wall there behind you that

[00:47:49] [SPEAKER_04]: Doc Brown might be. Yeah.

[00:47:51] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah. So my wife got me this the clock tower.

[00:47:54] [SPEAKER_03]: So if you look real close, you can see Doc Brown

[00:47:56] [SPEAKER_03]: hanging from the clock tower from Back to the Future.

[00:47:59] [SPEAKER_03]: And it is intentionally set and stopped at 10, 0, 4 p.m.,

[00:48:03] [SPEAKER_03]: which is when the lightning struck.

[00:48:06] [SPEAKER_03]: So I know I need something for this gap right here.

[00:48:09] [SPEAKER_03]: Maybe I should get a picture like the three of us and put it up there.

[00:48:11] [SPEAKER_03]: You know, that would be good.

[00:48:12] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, and I do think the wire across the room will be really good as well.

[00:48:17] [SPEAKER_03]: Just yeah, we were talking about that in the green room in preparation.

[00:48:20] [SPEAKER_03]: I have a wire going over to my my bonsai tree over here in the corner.

[00:48:26] [SPEAKER_01]: All right, Rob, I'm sorry.

[00:48:28] [SPEAKER_01]: You have to put up with all this.

[00:48:30] [SPEAKER_05]: I'm not paying you when you're getting me up into it.

[00:48:32] [SPEAKER_03]: Exactly.

[00:48:35] [SPEAKER_01]: So as we kind of wind down here, Rob, what would again,

[00:48:39] [SPEAKER_01]: kind of just to recap and maybe, you know, if you were

[00:48:43] [SPEAKER_01]: if we were a new client or someone was a new client from you

[00:48:46] [SPEAKER_01]: and they were really looking to break into the Microsoft partner system,

[00:48:50] [SPEAKER_01]: what would be the blueprint or the road map that you would take them down

[00:48:53] [SPEAKER_01]: just to get at a high level?

[00:48:55] [SPEAKER_01]: And I think, you know, every

[00:48:56] [SPEAKER_01]: that'll probably touch on a lot of the things that we hit on today.

[00:49:01] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, for sure.

[00:49:02] [SPEAKER_02]: So just in terms of I'm a big fan personally of having a framework

[00:49:06] [SPEAKER_02]: or a strategy that you can implement and you can work against.

[00:49:10] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me, there's really four components or phases

[00:49:14] [SPEAKER_02]: to building your Microsoft partnership.

[00:49:16] [SPEAKER_02]: You have to have a strong message.

[00:49:18] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, know what you want to be known for, know how to articulate that

[00:49:22] [SPEAKER_02]: and be able to get that message into in front of as many people as you can.

[00:49:27] [SPEAKER_02]: And that's really where the selling with Microsoft,

[00:49:30] [SPEAKER_02]: that second phase is you have to show up with a strong message.

[00:49:34] [SPEAKER_02]: But once you do have that strong message, you have to get that message

[00:49:37] [SPEAKER_02]: in front of as many people as you can.

[00:49:40] [SPEAKER_02]: You know, whether you're a territory based or you're vertical based

[00:49:43] [SPEAKER_02]: or you're just a horizontal, you approach the market horizontally,

[00:49:46] [SPEAKER_02]: find your people inside of Microsoft.

[00:49:48] [SPEAKER_02]: And LinkedIn is probably the best way to do that.

[00:49:52] [SPEAKER_02]: I don't think I've run into anybody at Microsoft that isn't on LinkedIn.

[00:49:56] [SPEAKER_02]: So that that's the second of the two components.

[00:50:00] [SPEAKER_02]: Next is operationalize the tools that Microsoft gives you.

[00:50:04] [SPEAKER_02]: So partner center, marketplace.

[00:50:06] [SPEAKER_02]: These are all tools that are here to help you grow as a partner.

[00:50:10] [SPEAKER_02]: And then finally understand how to leverage the programs

[00:50:13] [SPEAKER_02]: Microsoft puts in place.

[00:50:15] [SPEAKER_02]: So there's the concept of co-selling.

[00:50:17] [SPEAKER_02]: There's all kinds of incentive buckets you can work from

[00:50:21] [SPEAKER_02]: with Microsoft to drive deals forward.

[00:50:24] [SPEAKER_02]: So if you bring those four components together

[00:50:26] [SPEAKER_02]: and really have a plan and a strategy for each one of those four

[00:50:30] [SPEAKER_02]: and you execute it consistently over time,

[00:50:34] [SPEAKER_02]: you will become what I refer to as a go to partner

[00:50:37] [SPEAKER_02]: for the Microsoft people you can impact.

[00:50:41] [SPEAKER_02]: That's really what I tell partners is that it doesn't have to be

[00:50:44] [SPEAKER_02]: overcomplicated, you know, just think about these four buckets

[00:50:46] [SPEAKER_02]: or these four phases work through them.

[00:50:50] [SPEAKER_02]: And then do it consistently over time

[00:50:55] [SPEAKER_01]: and imply modern selling throughout all of that.

[00:50:58] [SPEAKER_02]: Absolutely. Yeah, I think for me, it's all built on LinkedIn

[00:51:02] [SPEAKER_02]: in terms of phase two, which is reaching out.

[00:51:06] [SPEAKER_02]: That is 100 percent LinkedIn.

[00:51:08] [SPEAKER_02]: But in each one of the four phases, you know, leveraging social

[00:51:12] [SPEAKER_02]: is a big component of that.

[00:51:14] [SPEAKER_03]: Yeah, I mean, I think it's true, like be intentional

[00:51:17] [SPEAKER_03]: about what your differentiating factor is both as a seller

[00:51:20] [SPEAKER_03]: and also as a partner. Right.

[00:51:22] [SPEAKER_03]: Like what's what's the unique problem that you're you're solving

[00:51:25] [SPEAKER_03]: or what's the gap that you're going to solve for a seller?

[00:51:28] [SPEAKER_03]: Like being intentional about thinking about those types of things

[00:51:31] [SPEAKER_03]: goes a long way, because again, you're trying

[00:51:34] [SPEAKER_03]: just like any other seller.

[00:51:35] [SPEAKER_03]: You're trying to stand out from all the noise, you know,

[00:51:38] [SPEAKER_03]: you're trying to cut through and really resonate with somebody.

[00:51:40] [SPEAKER_03]: Like what are you going to do that's going to be different?

[00:51:43] [SPEAKER_03]: What are you going to say that's going to stand out

[00:51:45] [SPEAKER_03]: from all the noise that a seller is going to hear if you're a partner?

[00:51:49] [SPEAKER_02]: Right. Absolutely.

[00:51:50] [SPEAKER_02]: It really is that it's a crowded ecosystem,

[00:51:54] [SPEAKER_02]: but it is also an opportunity for you to stand out and differentiate yourself.

[00:51:58] [SPEAKER_02]: So I'm a big fan of that, Carson.

[00:52:00] [SPEAKER_02]: I think that's the way to approach it.

[00:52:02] [SPEAKER_03]: If I were to go to a partner tomorrow,

[00:52:04] [SPEAKER_03]: that would be exactly what I would do when I reached out to any sellers.

[00:52:07] [SPEAKER_03]: I'd say, look, give me your book of business.

[00:52:09] [SPEAKER_03]: I'm going to go out and I'm going to prospect the heck out of it,

[00:52:12] [SPEAKER_03]: and I'm going to come back and bring you some leads.

[00:52:13] [SPEAKER_03]: How's that sound?

[00:52:15] [SPEAKER_03]: And, you know, here's the other thing, though, too.

[00:52:16] [SPEAKER_03]: I've already built a brand that any seller would trust me to do that,

[00:52:21] [SPEAKER_03]: I would imagine.

[00:52:22] [SPEAKER_03]: And so that's all the more reason why you should build your brand,

[00:52:26] [SPEAKER_03]: build that momentum, build relationships and then go out

[00:52:30] [SPEAKER_03]: not looking for a handout, but go out looking to send somebody to club.

[00:52:35] [SPEAKER_05]: Yeah, perfect.

[00:52:38] [SPEAKER_04]: It you know, it is we've talked through all this.

[00:52:41] [SPEAKER_04]: And Rob, I know you've got your three touch framework

[00:52:43] [SPEAKER_04]: that you walk people through and help them.

[00:52:44] [SPEAKER_04]: It really kind of all boils down to who do you know and who knows you?

[00:52:50] [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah. Right.

[00:52:51] [SPEAKER_04]: Just like everything else.

[00:52:53] [SPEAKER_04]: And how do you get to be known?

[00:52:54] [SPEAKER_04]: Will you add value to people?

[00:52:55] [SPEAKER_04]: You bring something to the table and you show up consistently

[00:52:59] [SPEAKER_04]: and capture attention because you're serving people and adding value.

[00:53:05] [SPEAKER_04]: Really, what it all comes down to.

[00:53:08] [SPEAKER_04]: And in my conversation with my old investor, my former investor,

[00:53:13] [SPEAKER_04]: I said, you know, we can do it now

[00:53:16] [SPEAKER_04]: every day, 24 hours a day, and you don't have to be on a plane

[00:53:20] [SPEAKER_04]: and spend all that money.

[00:53:23] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, I mean, it's the landscape has changed.

[00:53:26] [SPEAKER_02]: And if you're not doing this today, you are missing

[00:53:29] [SPEAKER_02]: a massive opportunity, in my opinion, whether it's a personal brand

[00:53:32] [SPEAKER_02]: or it's being known for something in that specific niche.

[00:53:37] [SPEAKER_02]: The way to do it now is this modern selling approach.

[00:53:42] [SPEAKER_01]: Awesome.

[00:53:43] [SPEAKER_01]: Well, Carson, Brandon, any final questions before we wrap up?

[00:53:47] [SPEAKER_01]: I know, Brandon, you got to start packing in and you got to get your camel

[00:53:51] [SPEAKER_01]: reservations, it looks like from what we're talking about here.

[00:53:54] [SPEAKER_03]: Has anybody got any dad jokes?

[00:53:56] [SPEAKER_03]: No, I think just kind of in closing, you know, Rob, like

[00:54:00] [SPEAKER_03]: if you were, you know, thinking about even like our non-Microsoft,

[00:54:05] [SPEAKER_03]: non-partner ecosystem, you know, what would you say

[00:54:08] [SPEAKER_03]: is kind of the biggest takeaway that you've had from working

[00:54:12] [SPEAKER_03]: the modern selling process yourself with LinkedIn, with the show?

[00:54:18] [SPEAKER_03]: What are some things that people could do right now

[00:54:20] [SPEAKER_03]: that would make the biggest difference that maybe they're not thinking about

[00:54:23] [SPEAKER_02]: or not doing? Yeah, I think it, you know, people shy away from it,

[00:54:27] [SPEAKER_02]: but building your own personal brand,

[00:54:30] [SPEAKER_02]: building that investing and pouring to yourself

[00:54:33] [SPEAKER_02]: in your own brand is probably the number one takeaway.

[00:54:37] [SPEAKER_02]: I tell people, whether I'm talking to an owner, leader, founder,

[00:54:40] [SPEAKER_02]: or I'm talking to a seller.

[00:54:42] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, you need to build your own brand.

[00:54:45] [SPEAKER_02]: Nobody's going to build it for you, you know, except Carson,

[00:54:48] [SPEAKER_02]: except Brandon, you can build for them.

[00:54:51] [SPEAKER_02]: They need to invest in that

[00:54:54] [SPEAKER_02]: and be known for something that sets you apart from the rest of the world,

[00:54:59] [SPEAKER_02]: because we all bring something unique, we all have some unique skills

[00:55:01] [SPEAKER_02]: and we just aren't sharing them with enough people.

[00:55:04] [SPEAKER_02]: So for me, build your personal brand.

[00:55:07] [SPEAKER_02]: That would be number one takeaway.

[00:55:09] [SPEAKER_02]: Go do that and all other things will fall into place.

[00:55:14] [SPEAKER_04]: Can I add to that real quick, because I think

[00:55:18] [SPEAKER_04]: their unique brand, it's not that hard, right?

[00:55:22] [SPEAKER_04]: Your unique brand is your unique experiences,

[00:55:25] [SPEAKER_04]: your unique thoughts and your unique observations.

[00:55:28] [SPEAKER_04]: It's not like you have to go out and create something all new and different.

[00:55:32] [SPEAKER_04]: It's just showing up, sharing like, hey, we did this one time

[00:55:36] [SPEAKER_04]: and this is the way it worked.

[00:55:38] [SPEAKER_04]: Or I was having a conversation with somebody who had this problem

[00:55:41] [SPEAKER_04]: and this is what we talked about like that's unique.

[00:55:43] [SPEAKER_04]: It doesn't have to be this like, oh, full new massive

[00:55:48] [SPEAKER_04]: framework or anything.

[00:55:50] [SPEAKER_04]: It's just and I would say it's even more just showing up consistently,

[00:55:54] [SPEAKER_04]: especially because most people don't.

[00:55:57] [SPEAKER_02]: Yeah, oh, 100 percent.

[00:55:58] [SPEAKER_02]: The consistency is key.

[00:56:00] [SPEAKER_02]: And just being authentic, being who you are.

[00:56:02] [SPEAKER_02]: I mean, I'm not trying to be anybody that I'm not.

[00:56:05] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm just this is what I know.

[00:56:06] [SPEAKER_02]: This is how I know it.

[00:56:07] [SPEAKER_02]: This is what I've taken away from these experiences.

[00:56:11] [SPEAKER_02]: Let me share that with you.

[00:56:12] [SPEAKER_02]: And that's that's it.

[00:56:13] [SPEAKER_02]: That's as complicated as it has to be.

[00:56:16] [SPEAKER_01]: Whereas I would think that would be easy for a partner,

[00:56:19] [SPEAKER_01]: because why are you a partner?

[00:56:21] [SPEAKER_01]: Right. You're bringing something special to the table.

[00:56:24] [SPEAKER_01]: So just talk about what your brain special to the table.

[00:56:28] [SPEAKER_01]: And as Brandon says, it doesn't have to be any more difficult than that.

[00:56:31] [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, I agree.

[00:56:34] [SPEAKER_04]: And Bob, Bob, did you guys see in the comments there

[00:56:37] [SPEAKER_04]: that Bob said to check my messages?

[00:56:40] [SPEAKER_04]: Let me see if I can pull this off real quick.

[00:56:46] [SPEAKER_04]: Let's see.

[00:56:48] [SPEAKER_04]: I don't want to I don't want to open the wrong stuff here,

[00:56:50] [SPEAKER_04]: but let's give this a shot.

[00:56:52] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, be careful.

[00:56:54] [SPEAKER_01]: You see that?

[00:56:56] [SPEAKER_01]: No, we don't see anything.

[00:56:59] [SPEAKER_04]: Oh, OK.

[00:56:59] [SPEAKER_04]: I thought I shared it.

[00:57:03] [SPEAKER_01]: It was.

[00:57:03] [SPEAKER_01]: There it is.

[00:57:04] [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, you have to you have to let it out.

[00:57:06] [SPEAKER_01]: Click the button there. Hold on. Yeah.

[00:57:09] [SPEAKER_01]: Wow. There you are.

[00:57:12] [SPEAKER_04]: There's Bob on a camel in front of the pyramids.

[00:57:16] [SPEAKER_01]: Amazing. Awesome. Nice, Bob.

[00:57:19] [SPEAKER_01]: Are you going to have one of those?

[00:57:21] [SPEAKER_01]: All right.

[00:57:22] [SPEAKER_01]: You should be doing that now.

[00:57:24] [SPEAKER_01]: You should be on the camel with a fist bump.

[00:57:26] [SPEAKER_01]: That's what you need to be doing.

[00:57:27] [SPEAKER_01]: Or fist bump.

[00:57:28] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah, I can have my.

[00:57:30] [SPEAKER_04]: Yeah, I'm out of my.

[00:57:32] [SPEAKER_04]: Oh, yeah, I don't want to do that.

[00:57:34] [SPEAKER_04]: Let's see. I could have my

[00:57:36] [SPEAKER_04]: I can have my my fist bump shirt on and

[00:57:40] [SPEAKER_04]: and now we have our

[00:57:44] [SPEAKER_04]: our fist bump stress balls.

[00:57:46] [SPEAKER_03]: I want some swag, man.

[00:57:47] [SPEAKER_03]: What do I got to do?

[00:57:49] [SPEAKER_04]: I get you swag.

[00:57:51] [SPEAKER_03]: I got it.

[00:57:53] [SPEAKER_04]: I've got polo shirts coming.

[00:57:56] [SPEAKER_04]: And it'll be out for you for Carson, you and Tom.

[00:57:58] [SPEAKER_03]: I like coffee mug back here for fist bump.

[00:58:00] [SPEAKER_03]: But yeah, I need some more swag.

[00:58:02] [SPEAKER_01]: Yeah. All right, Rob.

[00:58:03] [SPEAKER_01]: Thank you. Really.

[00:58:04] [SPEAKER_01]: Some really I mean, some great comments here.

[00:58:06] [SPEAKER_01]: People really appreciated some of this insight.

[00:58:09] [SPEAKER_01]: Where can people learn more about you?

[00:58:11] [SPEAKER_01]: LinkedIn, I bet.

[00:58:13] [SPEAKER_02]: Oh, LinkedIn is the place to go.

[00:58:14] [SPEAKER_02]: I'm not that hard to find.

[00:58:15] [SPEAKER_02]: There's not that many of us.

[00:58:17] [SPEAKER_02]: Rob Figgins out there.

[00:58:18] [SPEAKER_02]: So you can find me there.

[00:58:20] [SPEAKER_02]: And I'm happy to engage

[00:58:23] [SPEAKER_02]: and chat with you over LinkedIn.

[00:58:26] [SPEAKER_02]: Awesome.

[00:58:28] [SPEAKER_02]: And thank you guys for having me as part of the Century Club.

[00:58:31] [SPEAKER_02]: Now, that's awesome.

[00:58:31] [SPEAKER_01]: You're the first guest.

[00:58:33] [SPEAKER_01]: You're the first guest of the new century.

[00:58:35] [SPEAKER_01]: Well, I mean,

[00:58:37] [SPEAKER_01]: all right. Well, thanks again, Brandon, Carson.

[00:58:42] [SPEAKER_01]: Take us home.

[00:58:44] [SPEAKER_03]: Thank you, everyone, for joining us today.

[00:58:46] [SPEAKER_03]: Rob, always good to see you.

[00:58:48] [SPEAKER_03]: And until next time, happy modern selling.

[00:58:52] [SPEAKER_03]: See you next time.

[00:58:58] [SPEAKER_00]: Thank you for joining us today on Mastering Modern Selling.

[00:59:02] [SPEAKER_00]: If you enjoyed this episode, don't forget to subscribe for more insights.

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[00:59:10] [SPEAKER_00]: Stay tuned for our next episode, where we will continue to uncover

[00:59:13] [SPEAKER_00]: modern strategies shaping today's business landscape.

[00:59:16] [SPEAKER_00]: Learn more about Fistbump and our concierge service at GetFistbumps.com

[00:59:20] [SPEAKER_00]: Mastering Modern Revenue Creation with Fistbump

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