Podcast Summary

Outside Sales Talk – "Becoming a Top Sales Producer" with Andrew Barbuto

Host: Steve Benson
Guest: Andrew Barbuto
Date: May 28, 2025

Overview

In this episode, Steve Benson interviews Andrew Barbuto, a high-performing ad tech sales professional and author of "Top Sales Producer: How to Crush Your B2B Sales Quota" (releasing November 2024). Andrew shares his journey to sales excellence and dives into practical, hard-earned strategies for becoming a top producer in outside sales. The discussion is packed with actionable insights on prospecting, time management, managing complex sales cycles, and the importance of both internal and external relationship-building.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Andrew’s Sales Journey and Early Lessons

• Foundations in Sales:
  • Started at Enterprise Rent a Car; learned customer-oriented selling through hands-on experience.
  • Initial experience in digital media sales at Zaxis.
  • Recognized importance of being a domain expert after "learning the ropes" as an associate.
• Biggest Early Lesson:
  • “You can’t sell something if you don’t truly understand what you’re selling.” (A, 08:59)

2. Selling Services vs. Selling Software

• Difference Between Sales Types:
  • Selling services: focused on trust and reliability ("white glove" support), often more tactical and short-term.
  • Selling software: involves more change management, longer sales cycles, and higher-level business conversations.
• Key Insight:
  • “It's less about making life easy, and more about making the business profitable.” (A, 06:38)

3. The Importance of Expertise

• Continuous Learning:
  • Andrew emphasizes the need to “get the dirt on your fingernails,” doing every role in the process to understand client needs deeply.
• First Step for Sales Success:
  • "Your first step is to become an expert before anything else." (A, 08:59)

4. Prospecting Strategies

• Targeting:
  • "More than 50% of the battle is finding the right people." (A, 09:58)
  • Focus on qualifications: Do they have the means and an immediate need?
  • Prospect research is “the foundation of the house.” If not strong, everything else fails.
• Multichannel Approach:
  • Use LinkedIn, email, and phone. Sequence outreach to increase visibility (“Start with LinkedIn, follow up with an email, then a call”).
  • Leverage LinkedIn Sales Navigator for researching connection overlaps and potential warm intros.
• Persistence:
  • “Takes about 7 touch points to actually get a response from a cold prospect.” (A, 09:58)
  • Don’t get discouraged after one or two emails; vary timing and channels.

5. Running Effective Sales Meetings

• Preparation & Research:
  • “If I go into a meeting and just jump in with questions, they're going to be like, ‘didn't you reach out with some ideas to help?’” (A, 18:56)
  • Start with tailored insights to establish credibility.
• Conversation Balance:
  • Let the prospect do 70% of the talking in initial meetings.
• Securing Next Steps:
  • “If everything we talk about today seems like it would be helpful, typically we'll set up a follow up demo... does that sound good?” (A, 20:46)
  • Get confirmation before ending the meeting to ensure momentum.

6. Sales Cycle Management & Time Management

• Avoiding Stalled Deals:
  • Often caused by not “talking to the right people with an immediate need.” (A, 21:26)
  • Provide value between meetings, even if no sale is imminent.
• Time Allocation:
  • “How you spend your time will have a massive impact on your ability to achieve quota.” (A, 23:56)
  • Prioritize time on research, prospecting, and client/prospect conversations.
  • Minimize internal distractions and meetings.

7. Selling to Executives

• Getting C-Suite Buy-in:
  • Salespeople should not be intimidated by CEOs—“If you can present yourself as a potential way to improve their business, they'll listen.” (A, 27:40)
  • Use research to personalize the pitch, tie into strategic priorities (AI, operational efficiency, etc.), and reference competitors for urgency.
  • Perfect timing: Schedule 8am emails or LinkedIn messages to catch busy execs.

8. Selling to Large Companies vs. Small Companies

• Large Companies:
  • More “buying committees,” multiple decision-makers, longer sales cycles, additional steps (procurement, finance, etc.).
• Small Companies:
  • Decisions often made by one person, more direct access to C-level, shorter cycles.

9. Common Sales Mistakes

• Top Mistake:
  • Not doing sufficient research, using generic slides, not focusing on the prospect’s actual needs.
  • “By the end of the meeting, we didn’t even talk about what we asked to talk about.” (A, 31:56)

10. Mentorship and Continuous Growth

• Advice to New Sellers:
  • “Find a mentor… Look at the leaderboards… set up time with them.” (A, 33:03)
• Value of Internal Selling:
  • “You're going to be selling internally just as much as you're going to be selling externally.” (A, 00:00 / 33:57)
  • Know your internal contacts and processes for legal, finance, and marketing support.

11. Daily Habits & Success Mindset

• Daily Discipline:
  • “Success is the accumulation of daily positive habits.” (A, 35:53)
  • Start each day by reading industry news and thinking how to add specific value to prospects and customers.
• Be Proactive, Not Reactive:
  • “No one's going to tell you what to do when you first get into the day... figure it out.” (A, 47:17)

12. The Art and Science of Sales

• Continuous Improvement:
  • Sales is both art (human psychology, listening, customization) and science (metrics, process, persistence).
• Listening is Central:
  • “The big thing… that sits at the center is being a good listener, actively listening.” (A, 40:27)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• Andrew Barbuto:

  • “You can’t sell something if you don’t truly understand what you’re selling.” (08:59)
  • “I have not sent an email unless I've sent seven of them.” (16:52)
  • “Target the right people. You have productive meetings that lead to opportunities that lead to sales. Target the wrong people... you're not going to see any revenue.” (26:50)
  • “If you can present yourself as a potential way to improve their business, they'll have a duty to explore.” (27:53)
  • “You're going to be selling internally just as much as you're going to be selling externally.” (00:00 / 33:57)
  • “Success is the accumulation of daily positive habits.” (35:53)

• Steve Benson:

  • “First step to being a great salesperson is to become an expert in your field, their field, and the stuff that you're selling.” (37:37)
  • “No one likes to get lapped by their competitors, right?” (39:35)
  • “One of the reasons that sales is so hard is it's 20 different skills, and if you screw up any of them, you can blow the deal.” (46:34)

Timestamps for Core Segments

• Sales journey & path to B2B sales: 01:52–04:21
• Services vs. software, domain expertise: 05:20–08:56
• Prospecting strategies & tools: 09:42–16:52
• Email/channel sequencing tactics: 13:31–16:52
• Effective first meetings & securing next steps: 18:00–21:00
• Maintaining deal momentum & time management: 21:08–27:18
• Reaching executives & C-level: 27:18–30:33
• Differences between selling to big/small companies: 30:33–31:50
• Common mistakes in sales meetings: 31:50–32:50
• Advice & lessons for new sellers: 33:03–33:43
• Most valuable sales lesson: 33:57–35:23
• Daily habits & success: 35:53–37:35
• Summary, book promotion, and closing thoughts: 37:35–45:00
• Continuous growth & proactive mindset: 45:38–47:56

Final Thoughts

This episode is essential listening for anyone in B2B or field sales. Andrew Barbuto delivers candid, nuanced advice distilled from years of top performance. His emphasis on preparation, research, relationship-building (both external and internal), persistence, and continual learning provides a comprehensive blueprint for any seller aspiring to reach the top of the leaderboard.

Connect with Andrew Barbuto:

• Book: andrewbarbuto.com
• YouTube: youtube.com/andrewbarbuto
• LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/andrewbarbuto