As a solo ‘trep I’ve got my first tech product built to minimum viable product stage. I think it’s a good product, but now I’ve got to start selling it, I’ve hit a brick wall. I keep telling myself to ‘man up’ but I just can’t cross that hurdle.
11 answers from the community
Even professional salespeople hate cold calling....you need to just pick up the phone and dial and smile! Then do it again and again!
It will get easier, you'll learn how to sell your product and will learn so mcu about what's important to your prospective customers. Remember to talk about benefits not features.
Good luck! :)
I like that, 'trep.
I'm going to start using that.
Yeah, you do that. Don't forget to "raise the roof", totally tubular dude!
I assume you did some product validation stuff with your market prior to building how about your reach out to those people first and mention that you're in business and sell to them. It seems like it would be the best warm way to go about this.
I was there and terrified but once I started doing it the passion came through and the "selling" was more like "I'm here to help you with your business." Think about it in terms of a partnership as opposed to a sale and it will happen much easier. Also, you might consider sending an email first and then saying that you'll be in touch with a call. Then call, and reference the email.
Good luck!
All sales should be passion driven and "let me help your business" If not. Doing it wrong.
It's possible that colloquial references like "man up" annoy your potential customers—especially those who are women and are irritated with your subliminal sexism. Sales isn't just "dial and smile," it's also being professional and polished, which means using grown-up language like "roll up my sleeves and dig in" or "commit to the goal."
You are living proof why SV doesn't want to work with women. They just don't want to be bothered with all this feminism BS and PC. Next you demand "inclusiveness and diversity". Save that for the East Coast.
It's not easy, but you can do it!
I look into the abyss
my heart bursts with fear
It welcomes me
It embraces me
It fills me with all that it isn't
I survive
clearing a path through fear and uncertainty
until I reach a dark clearing ahead
The abyss welcomes me again
Well, this is the time of reckoning, when all this talk about developers being superior and being the real CEOs and "who needs the business guys anyway" and "subtract half a million for each MBA" suddenly comes home to bite you.
Before you screw up your product in the marketplace (assuming you have both), maybe it's time to partner up with one of these much-hated business people now, no? If you can find one.
Always remember this: Did Flappy Bird have any sales people ?