Shawn Finder is the story of how hard work, determination and focus can lead to success.
With his company Autoklose Shawn has found a problem that faces all Sales Development professionals and a solution to keep them going.
He also has created tools and resources to help Sales Development professionals get ahead.
Listen to Shawn’s story of how he came up with this company and the success and learning he had on the way!
Big thanks to @Darryl Praill of @VanillaSoft for support of the podcast! Check out their new Sales Engagement solutions here… https://www.vanillasoft.com/solutions/business-function/sales-engagement-platform/
#sdr #bdr #salesdevelopment #sales #marketing
Notable Quotes:
“Everyday people come up with ideas. Everyone in the world will always come up
with ideas and it takes a lot to take that next step. However, don’t just take the
next step because it sounds like a great idea. Do your due diligence, look in
the market, plan ahead, and make sure you have enough money to support your
lifestyle for four to six months.” – Shawn Finder
“Because as a founder and an entrepreneur, I need to know a little bit about everything
in my business and I also like to be in support because that is where my clients
tell us what we need.”
– Shawn Finder
Brief Summary
Say things are working well for you in your career—you’ve got an MBA, you’re using that MBA, and you’re thriving at work in a good company. But what if one day, you’re suddenly hit with the realization that you just don’t belong there and that you want to do something different? How do you go about it?
Today’s Guest: Shawn Finder
After coming to the decision of choosing the education route rather than becoming a professional tennis player, Shawn Finder got an MBA in Finance and became the VP of Sales at a good company. But since the call for entrepreneurship was strong, he saved up, founded a company, and set himself for success with ExchangeLeads and now Autoklose.
The episode touches on the following key topics and ideas:
- David introduces the episode’s guest, Shawn Finder (00:58)
- Autoklose and how Shawn Finder got into sales development (01:42)
- Seeing a potential need in the marketplace and taking advantage of it (02:56)
- Crowdsourcing: leveraging the power of the crowd (03:45)
- The power of give and take (05:28)
- A business model where the people think the service is free…but is actually not (06:10)
- How Microsoft and LinkedIn have very clean databases (07:48)
- Autoklose: you don’t have to cold call anymore (08:45)
- Dealing with industries, tools, and services that are very niche (09:55)
- Bringing you clean, high-quality, verified data (11:25)
- Standing out from the competition in the outsource SDR market (12:15)
- Autoklose’s data options for the clients (15:03)
- Leaving the 6-figure job for entrepreneurship (16:04)
- Advice for anyone who’s going through the transition period of corporate to entrepreneurship (19:00)
- Stay focused and stick with your vision (20:38)
- The pros of entrepreneurship (21:24)
- Wearing all the hats to be in the know (22:58)
- Prioritizing what the customers want vs. what you think is best (25:02)
- Kicking the business off the ground with no investors (26:50)
- Where to get in touch with Shawn and Autoklose (29:15)
List of Resources Mentioned in the Episode
Enjoyed this podcast? Want to listen to more episodes to enrich and accelerate your sales career? Hop on over to Tenbound.com!
Next Episode: https://tenbound.com/podcast/freedom-fighters-series-episode-one-matt-halle/
