Podcast Summary: B2B Agility™ with Greg Kihlström – Episode #36: Knowing When and How to Automate Your Sales Processes with Joshua Garrison, Apollo
Release Date: January 21, 2025
Introduction
In Episode #36 of B2B Agility™, host Greg Kilstrom engages in an insightful discussion with Joshua Garrison, Vice President of Content Marketing at Apollo and author of the Amazon bestseller Outbound Sales. The episode delves into the strategic balance between automating sales processes and maintaining the essential human touch, offering valuable insights for B2B marketers and sales professionals aiming to optimize their sales strategies.
Joshua Garrison's Background and Role at Apollo [02:05]
Joshua Garrison shares his professional journey, highlighting his extensive experience in sales and marketing. Starting his career in sales, Joshua embraced cutting-edge tools like Apollo, Outreach, SalesLoft, and ZoomInfo early on. Transitioning into entrepreneurship, he navigated the challenges of building and selling businesses before joining Apollo. At Apollo, Joshua leads the content marketing and product education teams, overseeing the academy, knowledge base, blogs, webinars, and social media initiatives.
Balancing Sales Process Automation with Human Touch [03:38]
Greg opens the conversation by addressing the critical issue of balancing automation in sales processes with the need for human interaction, especially as sales cycles lengthen. Joshua emphasizes the importance of understanding the manual sales process before implementing automation. He advises businesses to:
- Master Manual Processes First: "First you have to figure out how to do it manually." [03:38]
- Identify What Works: Discover which strategies are effective before scaling them through automation.
- Strategic Automation: Automate repetitive tasks to free up the sales team for more meaningful interactions.
High-Leverage Areas for Sales Automation
4.1 Lead Scoring [06:55]
Joshua identifies lead scoring as a prime area for automation. By using data-driven methods to identify leads that are more likely to convert, sales teams can focus their efforts on the most promising prospects. He explains:
- Automated Analysis: Utilizing AI to analyze LinkedIn posts and competitor activities to identify potential leads.
- Efficient Prospecting: "If theme X exists, I'm gonna add them to my list or see what their competitors are doing." [06:55]
4.2 Deal Management Automation [08:11]
Joshua highlights the necessity of automating deal management to prevent opportunities from slipping through the cracks. This includes:
- Task Automation: Adding tasks or moving deals to the next phase if they remain untouched for a set period.
- Consistent Follow-ups: Ensuring continuous engagement throughout the elongated sales cycle. [08:11]
Email Automation Strategies from "Outbound Sales" [09:29]
Greg steers the conversation toward Joshua’s book, Outbound Sales, focusing on effective email automation strategies. Joshua outlines a two-tiered approach:
-
High-Touch Sequences:
- Manual Initial Outreach: Craft personalized first emails to secure initial engagement.
- Automated Follow-ups: Use automation for subsequent emails to maintain contact. [09:29]
- Example Quote: "The first email's job is to get you in the door and explain your value prop." [09:59]
-
Low-Touch Sequences:
- Automated Personalization: Incorporate variables to personalize automated emails, ensuring relevance.
- Balanced Automation: Maintain a balance between automation and personalization to avoid appearing spammy. [09:59]
Prioritizing Pipeline for More Meetings [14:23]
Joshua discusses strategies for prioritizing leads to increase meeting bookings by up to 47%. He emphasizes focusing on the top-tier 3% of leads who are most likely to convert:
- Quality Over Quantity: "Sales is not a numbers game, it's a math game." [16:41]
- Strategic Outreach: Prioritize leads based on specific criteria and personal relevance rather than merely following assigned lists.
- Managerial Insights: Encourage sales managers to shift focus from sheer activity metrics to the quality and relevance of outreach efforts.
Effective Social Selling Techniques [21:19]
Joshua provides actionable advice on leveraging social selling without the need to be an influencer:
- Social Listening: Utilize tools to monitor keywords and conversations that signal potential sales opportunities.
- Value-Driven Engagement: "Your number one goal as a salesperson is to be relevant and add value." [21:19]
- Non-Intrusive Interaction: Engage in conversations by providing valuable insights rather than pushing for a sale.
Current Trends in Sales: The Rise of AI [23:32]
Discussing the burgeoning role of AI in B2B sales, Joshua offers a nuanced perspective:
- AI Integration: Acknowledges the increasing presence of AI sales agents and automation tools in the market.
- Human Differentiation: Advocates for building genuine relationships and fostering human connections as a unique differentiator amidst widespread automation. [23:32]
- Strategic Focus: Encourages businesses to excel in relationship-building to stand out in an AI-driven sales landscape.
Building Authentic Relationships in B2B Sales [25:46]
Joshua underscores the enduring importance of human relationships in sales:
- Authenticity Over Automation: "Sales has always been about relationships and about solving problems for people." [25:46]
- Quality Interactions: Emphasizes the value of building trust and providing solutions tailored to client needs.
- Balancing Act: Integrates automation as a supportive tool rather than a replacement for personal engagement.
Tips for Sales Managers to Enhance Team Strategy [17:32]
Greg inquires about advice for sales managers striving to make their teams more strategic. Joshua advises:
- Ask the Why: Encourage teams to question the purpose behind each outreach effort.
- Prioritize Effectively: Focus on high-quality leads and avoid over-reliance on activity-based metrics.
- Empower Representatives: Allow sales reps to identify and prioritize leads that align with their strengths and market understanding.
Staying Agile in Content Marketing and Sales [27:11]
When asked about maintaining agility in his role, Joshua shares his approach:
- Hands-On Involvement: "I dog food Apollo to find people to talk to, to interview them." [27:11]
- Continuous Learning: Engages in active market participation to stay relevant and informed.
- Practical Application: Applies insights from real-world interactions to inform content strategies and maintain credibility.
Conclusion
The episode concludes with Greg thanking Joshua for his valuable insights. Listeners are encouraged to explore Joshua's book, Outbound Sales, and connect with Apollo for further resources. The discussion reinforces the importance of balancing automation with genuine human interaction to achieve optimal sales outcomes in the competitive B2B landscape.
Notable Quotes
- Joshua Garrison: "Sales is not a numbers game, it's a math game." [16:41]
- Joshua Garrison: "Your number one goal as a salesperson is to be relevant and add value." [21:19]
- Joshua Garrison: "The more I can focus on building genuine relationships with people, the more good comes from that." [25:46]
- Joshua Garrison: "If you're still trying to figure out what works, don't jump to automation too quickly, it'll bite you." [05:12]
Key Takeaways
- Master Manual Processes: Before automating, ensure you understand and can execute sales processes manually.
- Strategic Automation: Automate repetitive and data-driven tasks while preserving the human touch for high-value interactions.
- Prioritize Quality Leads: Focus on leads that are most likely to convert to maximize efficiency and effectiveness.
- Leverage Multiple Channels: Combine emails, calls, and social interactions to enhance outreach success rates.
- Embrace Relationship Building: In an AI-driven sales environment, authentic relationships remain a crucial differentiator.
For more insights and resources, listeners are encouraged to visit b2bagility.com and explore additional episodes of the B2B Agility™ podcast.