The Gradient Works Blog

Here in the United States, it's almost Thanksgiving. That means less than 30 working days left in 2020. Somehow, the year that’s seemed like it might never end is actually almost over. 

Our second full-time employee started this week, making us a team of 5! As we start to grow, it’s time to talk a little more about the kind of company we want Gradient Works to be.

Churn can kill a subscription business quickly. High gross revenue retention rates (GRR) are necessary for the financial health of a business. But low net revenue retention rates (revenue growth from your existing customer base, aka NRR) can also kill a company, just a bit more slowly.

In my role as a Revenue Operations leader and especially since founding Gradient Works (all of 3 months ago!), I’ve had tons of conversations with revenue leaders and operators at all stages - from tiny startups to multi-billion dollar public companies. One topic that consistently comes up is rep assignment - making sure that you’ve got the right kind of reps assigned to the right accounts/opportunities/leads at the right stage. It’s a tricky thing that most high-velocity B2B revenue organizations struggle with.

At your company, how often does a customer account change owners?

As someone moves from lead to prospect to new customer to retained customer, their account changes ownership at least four times. They have dozens of interactions with your company.

And at every step, you have an opportunity to improve those interactions and make those ownership handoffs smoother.

We're all doing a lot more calls over Zoom this year. A LOT. A video call may not have the same impact as an in-person conversation, but it's a lot richer than a simple phone call. When used well, Zoom can be more than a simple communication channel - it can be the secret ingredient you need to get a deal over the finish line. 

Managing entire teams remotely is a challenge. Coaching, evaluating, supporting—these all become more complicated when done remotely, especially for more junior sales roles. How do you keep your SDR team engaged and motivated?