The success of any entrepreneurial venture lies in its ability to reach out and impact. These ventures often get a single shot to make or break and ensure a long run for the company. For that, they rely mostly on their sales teams. The latter’s effective strategy clears a path to achieve goals and aligns the company’s output to its original vision. However, the sector is highly volatile as products, services, consumers’ needs, and sales channels are always changing.
But in this sector, people who have their eyes and ears fixed on the market, who know the concerned industries as the back of their hand, and who could easily gather insights containing far-reaching influences can be game-changers.
Paul Griffin, one of the co-founders of The Sales Factory, is one such individual. His ability to drill down for better insights and excellent market skills provide him with the impetus to stay ahead of the curve.
What Led to the Inception?
Paul and his compatriots started out as a consulting company for tech clients, wherein they helped companies to set up their internal sales organizations. Moreover, they used to build the process for their clients. It triggered things to fall into places. As the first step, they started facing questions from their clients regarding how to find new customers.
To answer that, Paul Griffin and his mates began helping clients with outbound sales development. “From there, it became apparent that the skills and know-how needed to make new outbound sales well required a specialization,” believes Paul, which then inspired the company to shift their initial focus to outbound sales.
Today, the company has grown bigger than ever before. Its operations now include helping “technology companies across North America grow with their ideal customers through outbound sales development services.”
How About the Journey?
Paul did an MBA before joining F500 companies like Procter & Gamble, Johnson & Johnson, Nestle Skin Health, and Kraft Heinz in B2C and B2B sales and marketing. His experience in these companies helped him found his first company, Outovation. His intent was to help startups grow. This endeavor gave him a chance to meet his future business partner, Eric Doucet.
Like Paul, Eric started as a solopreneur and they quickly bonded over the difficulties of running a business. Their similar views on various projects helped them collaborate and their success in those initial projects sowed the seeds of inception for The Sales Factory.
However, like any other venture, their path was riddled with roadblocks. Paul recalls that the biggest among them was self-doubt, one which led to indecisiveness about ability.
To overcome this, Paul advises that an entrepreneur should always have the right people on his side. Paul and his team always spent extra time and money on hiring such people to ensure their actions stay in sync with their vision. This was a learning lesson for him. He believes, “nothing meaningful can be done alone …it’s just more fun to do it in a team!”
How’s the Work Culture?
Paul Griffin believes in transparency and it is now a part of the company’s DNA. It helps “employees understand where they stand.” Apart from transparency, there are aspects that have also played a crucial role in developing the company culture. Ownership is one, which gives employees some control over their careers and the work they do. Hard work is also essential as it helps employees learn and develop.
But there is also a framework that has helped Paul Griffin and his colleague build an outstanding work method. It has led to optimal client satisfaction and in Paul’s words, “strict adherence to our process has proven to be successful time and again, paired with our internal training and development program for employees has ensured their ongoing success with clients’ businesses.”
The COVID-19 Crisis
Businesses across the world witnessed an unprecedented setback in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many of the well-established ventures were left standing on the brink of a collapse. Some found no way to revive the old glory and declared a closure. But those who wanted to carry on and see it through decided to adopt drastic measures.
The beginning of the pandemic was bad for The Sales Factory. They lost half of their business. However, in hindsight, Paul Griffin thinks of it as “a bit of a blessing in disguise.” It actually led them to think about what they are offering and how well-suited their strategies are for such promises. Soon after, the company came out on top.
However, the scenario was different than the pre-COVID period, when many tech companies found new businesses through conferences and events. But with those no longer available, they had to find a new way to grow. That is where the impact of The Sales Factory was visible. Paul opines, “We build our clients’ outbound sales strategy, resource a full-time outbound sales rep to handle the execution of that strategy, and finally we provide oversight to ensure we are constantly optimizing for better results,” which helped in cementing steps for both the company and its clients.
As the outcome of the entire process, Paul’s clients got qualified leads and their sales teams got time to focus on closing deals. This strategic move has worked well for them while they were penetrating diverse industries.
Moving forward, Paul wants to see the company as the “leading outbound sales development company in the world.” The company is on track to conquer North America, “after that we have geographic expansion in our sights.” The expansion is happening at a rapid pace, with each new tech startup hitting the market.
Paul’s Views on Leadership
According to Paul, “I think the most important trait that has helped with my success is the ability to understand another person’s perspective.” At the same time, to inspire, a leader must set some examples first. “If you are working hard and driving the business, it will inspire others to do the same.” In addition, he needs to find a way to motivate his people and keep employees happy.
Entrepreneurs can benefit from the methods Paul Griffin has included in his company. At The Sales Factory, people in the leadership position are doing the same by providing training and coaching, and implementing development plans for their employees. They have also set “an open dialogue on career progression so that employees can succeed at their role today and know how to get to the next level at the same time.” As Paul believes, such steps will help the company create roles that will help employees fulfill their dreams.
