Levership

Kyle Racki and Matt Symes
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Levership Podcast

Levership is a combination of leverage and leadership - it’s focusing your time on what will generate outsized returns. In other words, high-leverage leadership. Together Kyle Racki and Matt Symes have both been in the trenches of entrepreneurship and through the Levership podcast share how they tackle challenges, ignite growth, and build profitable businesses. They don't just talk theory. They dive deep into the real-life experiences of leaders from growing companies to uncover how they maximize the return on their time. Stay tuned as we explore the pivotal moments, the challenging decisions, and the innovative strategies of leverage and leadership.

  1. JUN 10

    Outbound is NOT Dead with Brooks Van Norman

    Brooks Van Normal, founder of Pipeline Formula, discusses the importance of a strong partnership between marketing and sales in generating pipeline. He emphasizes that outbound is not dead, but rather becoming more efficient with the use of tools. Brooks shares insights on effective cold email strategies, highlighting the value of offering sales assets that provide immediate value to prospects. He also suggests reverse engineering the pain points of potential customers to create relevant and insightful sales assets. Additionally, Brooks discusses the use of LinkedIn as a channel to expand touchpoints and build trust with prospects. In this conversation, Brooks and Kyle discuss various topics related to outbound reach and founder-led growth. They talk about the importance of effectiveness in email outreach and the need to optimize call booking rates to positive reply rates. They also discuss the prevalence of ad fraud and strategies to target potential customers who are spending on ads. The conversation then shifts to the concept of the value equation and how to make prospects believe in the dream outcome. They explore the idea of founder-led marketing and the power of developing a relationship with the founder or leader of a company. They also discuss content pillars and the importance of subject matter expertise and personal stories in content creation. The conversation concludes with a discussion on automating content ideation and the types of clients that would benefit from founder-led marketing. Keywordspipeline generation, marketing and sales partnership, outbound strategies, cold email, sales assets, reverse engineering pain points, LinkedIn outreach, outbound reach, effectiveness, email outreach, call booking rate, positive reply rate, ad fraud, targeting, value equation, founder-led growth, relationship building, content pillars, subject matter expertise, personal stories, automating content ideation, founder-led marketing Takeaways Marketing and sales must work together closely to generate pipeline effectively. Outbound is not dead, but it is becoming more efficient with the use of tools. Offering sales assets that provide immediate value to prospects can lead to higher response rates. Reverse engineering pain points can help create relevant and insightful sales assets. LinkedIn can be used as a channel to expand touchpoints and build trust with prospects. Focus on effectiveness rather than just efficiency in email outreach Optimize call booking rates to positive reply rates Target potential customers who are spending on ads Make prospects believe in the dream outcome through the value equation Develop a relationship with the founder or leader of a company through founder-led marketing Create content pillars based on subject matter expertise and personal stories Automate content ideation to generate ideas for content creation Founder-led marketing is beneficial for companies with deep domain expertise Sound Bites "You can't separate marketing and sales when it comes to generating pipeline." "Outbound is becoming more efficient because the tools are enabling more people to do more outbound at scale." "Offering up a sales asset that adds value to the prospect is really good at getting positive reply rates." "This is cringe. This is cringe." "We're looking for ways to optimize around that." "15% of all ad spend is fraudulent." Chapters 00:00Introduction and Background 02:15The Importance of the Marketing and Sales Partnership 05:26Effective Strategies for Cold Email Outreach 09:18Creating Sales Assets that Provide Immediate Value 13:32Reverse Engineering Pain Points for Relevant Sales Assets 22:35Optimizing Email Outreach 23:33Targeting Potential Customers 25:25Relevance Over Personalization 26:08The Value Equation 27:53Building Trust with Prospects 28:38Founder-Led Marketing 32:30Developing a Relationship with the Founder 33:56Unlocking Founder Knowledge 36:30Crea

    46 min

  2. JUN 3

    Visual Storytelling with Jono Hey

    Jono shares his journey of creating visual explanations and sketches to distill complex concepts. He discusses some of his favorite sketches, such as the curb cut effect and the Swiss cheese model, and how they have resonated with people. Jono also offers advice for leaders on how to connect with others and explain abstract ideas, emphasizing the power of visuals and storytelling. He reflects on the process of writing his book and the challenge of selecting and organizing topics. Overall, Jono encourages individuals to pursue their personal projects and share their work with others. Keywordsvisual explanations, sketches, distilling complex concepts, curb cut effect, Swiss cheese model, leadership, connecting with others, abstract ideas, visuals, storytelling, book writing process, personal projects Takeaways Visual explanations and sketches can make complex concepts more accessible and memorable. Sharing your work publicly can hold you accountable and motivate you to do your best. Leaders can use visuals and storytelling to connect with others and explain abstract ideas. Finding topics for sketches can come from personal experiences, reading, and suggestions from others. Writing a book requires selecting and organizing topics, redrawing sketches, and rewriting content. Taking the time to think and clarify ideas can lead to clearer explanations and visuals. Personal projects can be valuable and interesting to others, so it's worth sharing them. Consistency and perseverance are key to making progress and creating meaningful work.   Sound Bites "The curb cut effect is essentially this principle of when you design for disabilities, you make things better for everyone." "The Swiss cheese model is about accident safety and how you can have multiple layers of defenses, but you can still have holes in each one." "Don't push information up to authority, push authority down to information." Chapters 00:00Introduction and Background 03:11Creating Visual Explanations: The Curb Cut Effect 06:38Explaining Complex Concepts: The Swiss Cheese Model 09:17Using Visuals in Business: Bosses vs. Leaders 11:09Favorite Sketches for Business Leaders 13:06Motivating Teams: Autonomy, Mastery, Purpose 15:18Writing a Book: Challenges and Process 21:13Connecting with Others: Using Visuals and Storytelling 24:04Advice for Leaders: Clarify Ideas and Share Work 27:00Future Plans and Projects

    25 min

  3. MAY 31

    Buyer-Centric Selling with Evan Santa, Sales Leader @ Keep

    Evan Santa discusses his background in building sales teams for Canadian tech companies and his current role at Keep, a fintech company. He shares his experience at Vidyard and how he challenged the sales system to sell to smaller customers and improve the buying experience. Santa emphasizes the importance of creating a strong sales system and finding hungry individuals with a drive to compete with themselves. He also discusses the need for transparency in pricing and providing enough information for buyers to qualify themselves for a product. In this conversation, Evan Santa and Kyle discuss the importance of building trust and providing value in the sales process. They emphasize the need for salespeople to be seen as assets and sources of information rather than just trying to close deals. They also highlight the importance of setting clear expectations and being transparent about pricing. The conversation touches on the relationship between sales and customer success, and the need for alignment in providing a consistent and positive customer experience. They also discuss the shift towards a more partnership-oriented approach in sales, where the focus is on helping customers succeed rather than just making a sale.   Takeaways Building sales teams for Canadian tech companies requires a focus on creating a strong sales system and finding individuals with a drive to compete with themselves. Challenging the sales system to sell to smaller customers and improving the buying experience can lead to success. Transparency in pricing and providing enough information for buyers to qualify themselves for a product is essential. Sales leaders should prioritize individuals who are putting in the most effort and have a hunger to succeed. Salespeople should aim to be seen as assets and sources of information for customers, rather than just trying to close deals. Transparency and clear communication about pricing and expectations are crucial in building trust with customers. There should be alignment between sales and customer success teams to ensure a consistent and positive customer experience. The focus in sales should be on helping customers succeed and providing value, rather than just making a sale. Sound Bites "Building out sales teams for Canadian tech companies" "Selling to smaller customers and improving the buying experience" "Competing with themselves and setting realistic goals" "Make them feel informed enough. So they're like, okay, this is great. I'm not reaching out to somebody because they're trying to sell me. I'm reaching out to somebody because they are going to be my key to information." "How do we make our salespeople complete assets from the moment they're engaging with a prospective customer, that customer is going like, you're my person who's given me the information. I trust you. I enjoy speaking with you and you're giving me all the information I needed lightning fast in a lightning fast speed and manner." "I think it's really, really important to be able to provide your sales team with ballparks that they can sit, that they can provide. Cause really what's happening a lot of times when we get asked for prices, salespeople on the first call is the buyer knows that they're going to have to spend."

    48 min

  4. MAY 28

    How Do You Leverage Communities?

    The conversation explores the power of networking and finding communities as an entrepreneur. The hosts discuss the importance of having a network outside of your immediate business team where you can vent and share experiences. They highlight the value of being able to skip small talk and have meaningful conversations with like-minded individuals. The conversation also touches on the higher prevalence of mental health issues among entrepreneurs and the need for support networks. The hosts share their own experiences with formal and informal communities and the benefits they have gained from them. Keywordsnetworking, communities, entrepreneurs, support, mental health, meaningful conversations   Takeaways Finding a network and community as an entrepreneur is crucial for personal and professional growth. Having a network outside of your immediate business team allows for honest venting and sharing of experiences. Meaningful conversations with like-minded individuals can provide valuable insights and support. Support networks are important for addressing mental health issues that are prevalent among entrepreneurs. Curating your communities and investing time in them is essential for maximizing their value. Titles Curating and Investing in Your Communities The Power of Networking and Finding Your Community Sound Bites "I think there's value in getting really curious about what other people are doing." "Having an outside outlet, having a community outside of your business where you can honestly vent is very important." "Find your formal or informal community and make sure you are leveraging it." Chapters 00:00Introduction and Setting the Scene 08:32Curating and Investing in Your Communities

    19 min

  5. MAY 15

    How Top Performers Focus By Saying No

    The Christmas tree effect refers to the tendency to keep adding more and more tasks without considering the finite amount of time available. This leads to a lack of focus and the inability to prioritize important tasks. The effect can be seen in both personal and professional life, resulting in missed deadlines, longer checklists, and decreased productivity. Strategic teams should focus on subtraction before addition, identifying what is no longer important and eliminating it. To combat the Christmas tree effect, individuals can use productivity frameworks like the Getting Things Done method or the calendar audit. Takeaways The Christmas tree effect occurs when people keep adding tasks without considering the finite amount of time available. To combat the Christmas tree effect, individuals and teams should focus on subtraction before addition, identifying what is no longer important and eliminating it. Productivity frameworks like the Getting Things Done method and the calendar audit can help individuals prioritize tasks and stay focused. Strategic teams should prioritize what matters most and avoid spreading themselves too thin by taking on too many projects. The Christmas tree effect can lead to missed deadlines, longer checklists, and decreased productivity.

    19 min

  6. MAY 6

    Losing A Key Executive

    Summary   In this conversation, Kyle and Matt discuss the process of restarting and resetting after losing key executives in an organization. They emphasize the importance of the people you surround yourself with and the impact they have on the success of the company. They share their personal experiences and lessons learned when dealing with the departure of key executives. They discuss the need to get curious and ask questions when someone announces their departure, as well as the importance of maintaining a good relationship with the departing individual. They also explore the steps to take in order to fill the gap left by the departed executive, including taking on their responsibilities, understanding the functional area, and recruiting a replacement.   Takeaways The people you surround yourself with make all the difference in the success of your organization. When a key executive leaves, it is important to get curious and ask questions to understand their reasons and the impact on the organization. Taking on the responsibilities of the departed executive can provide valuable insights into the functional area and help identify areas for improvement. When recruiting a replacement, it is important to define the desired skill set and character traits and consider fractional support or alternative roles. Hiring someone with experience in scaling can bring valuable insights and help drive the growth of the organization. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Disney World 01:06 Restarting and Resetting After Losing Key Executives 07:30 Understanding the Impact of Losing Key Executives 10:03 Handling Different Types of Departures 23:19 Digging into the Functional Area and Processes 25:35 Recruiting a Replacement 31:18 Avoiding Overindexing on Finding Someone Like the Departed Executive 35:03 Hiring Someone with Experience in Scaling 40:03 Summary and Conclusion

    42 min

  7. APR 30

    Sales Is a Process Not an Art w/ Scott Tower, Director of Sales @ Proposify

    Summary In this episode, Scott Tower, Director of Sales at Proposify, shares his journey in sales and provides insights into growing sales within a team. He emphasizes the importance of process-driven sales and the need for patience and perseverance. Scott also discusses the challenges of transitioning from founder-led sales and offers advice for hiring sales reps. He highlights the qualities he looks for in sales hires, including grit, openness to following process, and coachability. Additionally, Scott emphasizes the value of outbound sales and the importance of always being recruiting.   Takeaways Process-driven sales is essential for success in growing sales within a team. Transitioning from founder-led sales requires trust in the sales leader and a focus on documenting and transferring knowledge. When hiring sales reps, look for qualities such as grit, openness to following process, and coachability. Outbound sales can complement inbound efforts and provide more opportunities for success. Always be recruiting by engaging with potential candidates and building relationships.   Chapters 00:00 Introduction and Background 01:16 Scott's Journey at Proposify 25:14 Hiring Sales Reps 33:08 The Importance of Outbound Sales 35:14 Always Be Recruiting 37:10 Conclusion

    39 min

  8. APR 23

    How Do You Position Against The Competition?

    SummaryIn this conversation, Kyle and Matt discuss the importance of understanding competition in business. They highlight the different ways businesses compete, including with the status quo and competing alternatives. They emphasize the need to identify and understand competitors in order to position oneself effectively in the market. The conversation also covers methods for gathering competitive intelligence, such as monitoring customer reviews and analyzing competitors' marketing strategies. They discuss the creation of battle cards to equip sales reps with the necessary information to address competitors during sales conversations. Finally, they share a hack using Chat GPT to quickly generate battle cards.   Takeaways Competition is an important aspect of business that should not be overlooked. Understanding and identifying competitors is crucial for effective positioning in the market. Gathering competitive intelligence through methods like monitoring customer reviews and analyzing marketing strategies can provide valuable insights. Creating battle cards can equip sales reps with the necessary information to address competitors during sales conversations. Chapters 00:00 Introduction and the Importance of Understanding Competition 02:13 Competition with the Status Quo 03:52 Positioning and Competing Alternatives 05:04 The Buying Process and the Role of Sales 06:36 Different Types of Organizations and Competition 07:26 Understanding Competitors in the Small and Medium-Sized Business Market 08:26 The Importance of Monitoring and Understanding Competitors 10:21 Utilizing Customer Reviews for Competitive Research 11:41 Methods for Gathering Competitive Intelligence 13:28 Using Competitive Research for Demand Capture 15:59 Key Elements to Look for in Competitors' Marketing 22:14 Using Chat GPT for Competitive Analysis 25:00 Arming Sales Reps with Competitive Information 25:55 Summary and Next Steps

    25 min
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5
out of 5
12 Ratings

About

Levership is a combination of leverage and leadership - it’s focusing your time on what will generate outsized returns. In other words, high-leverage leadership. Together Kyle Racki and Matt Symes have both been in the trenches of entrepreneurship and through the Levership podcast share how they tackle challenges, ignite growth, and build profitable businesses. They don't just talk theory. They dive deep into the real-life experiences of leaders from growing companies to uncover how they maximize the return on their time. Stay tuned as we explore the pivotal moments, the challenging decisions, and the innovative strategies of leverage and leadership.

Information

  • Creator
    Kyle Racki and Matt Symes
  • Years Active
    2022 - 2024
  • Episodes
    76
  • Rating
    Clean
  • Copyright
    © 2022-2024
  • Show Website
    Levership

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