David Cummings on Startups

A Key Flashpoint Benefit is Sales Training

Written by

David Cummings

in

,

Many more startups fail from a lack of sales than from lack of building a product. Flashpoint, the startup accelerator at Georgia Tech, follows best practices like Customer Driven Development, Lean Startup, and the Business Model Canvas. Flashpoint is different from Y Combinator and TechStars in that it focuses on having the teams test hypotheses until there’s a clear winner, and only then does work on a product start.

A key Flashpoint benefit is extensive sales training. The idea of getting 15 research interviews per week is much more difficult than it sounds. In fact, with a decent cold caller, that’s likely 500 calls to get 15 meaningful conversations (cold calling isn’t required but getting 15 meetings per week is the goal).

Here’s how Flashpoint is like sales training:

  • Work through whatever means possible to get 15 meetings per week (referrals, walk-ins, cold calls, networking, etc)
  • Ask a series of consultative questions to uncover pain and latent demand
  • Develop rapport and establish trust with people so that you can reach out to them again with future research questions as well as establish a potential sales relationship in the event they are a good fit for the product or service
  • Articulate their needs and desires so that they will sign a letter of intent to buy whatever product or service is eventually built (assuming it meets the requirements)

Sales training is a critical skill to develop on the founding team and Flashpoint provides it through a focus on customer discovery. Startups that go through the Flashpoint program will be significantly more successful, on average, than startups that don’t.

What else? What are your thoughts on the sales training benefit from Flashpoint?

Comments

4 responses to “A Key Flashpoint Benefit is Sales Training”

  1. Matt Stigall Avatar
    Matt Stigall

    I think it’s more than just sales. It’s a process of truly testing the assumptions an entrepreneur makes when he has an idea in his head.

    That way, when you are in development of the product and positioning it for launch, you aren’t making decisions based on assumptions in your small view of the world, but you are basing it on an understanding and insight that you attain while making the customer discovery calls.

    I have years of experience in a corporate level and although my sales experience helps me in the communications, it also holds me back in that I’m not trying to sell something (which I naturally do) but instead I’m trying to understand the customer’s view of the world and their pains and needs.

    Flashpoint does give us some great sales training in that it 1) helps you ask the hard questions in a conversation 2) shows that every small detail you say, how it’s said, and the hidden inflection you give it has a great effect on the result and 3) sometimes you aren’t selling just a product but a vision and story that means so much more.

    It’s great having mentors like you and I really appreciate the tip you gave us on Tuesday night about the pricing of the Early Access Program.

    Reply
    1. Sam Douglas Avatar
      Sam Douglas

      flashpoint’s argument is valid though – a business that dosnt sell isnt a business, its something else. If you need proof of that check out our site: http://www.schneidersales.com/the-schneider-report.html

      Reply
  2. upwordbound Avatar
    upwordbound

    Reblogged this on Upwordbound.

    Reply
  3. Sales training Avatar
    Sales training

    Very good content regarding to sales training please see our site http://www.stepupsalestraining.com/ and give some valuable comment to us.

    Reply

Leave a reply to Matt Stigall Cancel reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

More posts