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Send a text Peter just finished recording his audiobook for Unlocking Authentic Sales! While it won't be out for another few months, he's sharing the Foreword (written by our very own Alex Allain) and Introduction here with you all so that you can get a sneak peek into the book! Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text In the first couple of weeks of joining TigerBeetle, Peter got together with Alex to discuss TigerBeetle and its positioning. In this dynamic conversation, Alex puts Peter on the spot with the TigerBeetle pitch and provides feedback while also trying his own version!  As they build the story arc together you'll notice some key elements that can be useful for any pitch: Encapsulating an undeniable trend happening today Describing the pains companies face while keeping up with that trendProviding a compelling reason why your technology can help with those painsEnding with a strong impact statement around what adopting your tech means for the businessA huge thank you to Joran Greef, Marina Pape, Lewis Daly, and the entire TigerBeetle team for allowing us to use this material and for such a warm welcome to Peter in his first couple of months joining!  Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text I sat down with Harry and Uddhav from The Inflection Group - the recruiting firm behind successful hires at Coinbase, Pinterest, Snowflake, and more. We dive deep into the biggest startup hiring questions:  When should you actually hire your first salesperson? How do you avoid the "halo company" trap?Why do first sales hires fail so often?They share stories from 300+ executive searches and explain why being brutally honest about your startup's challenges actually attracts better candidates. Plus, they reveal tactical hiring tricks that work - like putting real prospect objections in your job description. This is essential listening for any founder thinking about their first go-to-market hire. Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Mason Fuerst, founder and CEO of Motiv (motivai.us) sits down with Peter to break down how he approaches outbound sales in an authentic way.  With all the noise out there today around how to do outbound it's rare to find something that works, but Mason's mentality around creating genuine connections has worked to produce quality pipeline for his AI startup.  Peter and Mason cover: What didn't work for MasonThe lightbulb moment that changed Mason's outlook on outbound salesA deeper look into the tactical steps Mason takes to create meaningful connections on LinkedInFor Mason's free PDF guide breaking down his outbound approach, connect with either him or Peter on LinkedIn and they'll DM you a copy!  More on Motiv: Motiv is a software company building advanced AI agents for recruiting. Each agent specializes in a specific part of the hiring process, helping teams free up more time for higher output activities. The agents are trained to mimic your decision-making process so that it can think the same way you would. They also continuously learn from your feedback. Becoming faster and more intelligent with time. These agents act as new additions to the team without the added headcount and salary that comes with a new hire. Learn more by visiting motivai.us!  Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text In this episode Alex and Peter ask, "Is it OK to lie to customers? And if so, when?" They dive into:  An experience Alex's friend had with a sales lieWhat to do when a salesperson liesHow to spot lying salespeople before and after they join a team Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Peter and Alex dive into Peter's thoughts on design partnerships and their impact on startups. They discuss: The pressure from VCs to sign more design partnersWhy not all design partnerships are helpfulWhy you should charge for design partnershipsWhen free design partnerships are acceptableThe value of saying no to certain design partnersSupport the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text In this repurposed episode from Peter's YouTube channel, he sits down with Hyperbound's cofounders Sriharsha Guduguntla and Atul Raghunathan.  They discuss:  The evolution of AI in salesHow to actually evaluate AI tools (without getting caught in the hype)The challenges and rewards of navigating founder-led salesThe state of diversity within tech salesOther AI platforms Sriharsha and Atul are keeping an eye onYou can try Hyperbound for free here. Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text As a solo host, Peter tries his best to fill Alex's shoes :)  He sits down with YC W24 founders of Centralize, Rachit Kataria and William Wang, to discuss their founder-led sales journey and approach. They discuss: Their approach to relationship-based sellingThe challenges and opportunities of selling to GTM leadersCreative outbound strategies they've leveragedHow they think about hiring their first sellerVisit Centralize's website to learn more about Rachit and William's vision. They've built an AI-powered deal collaboration platform that focuses on mapping key stakeholders, understanding them, and how to leverage each to get strategic deals done.  Special shout out to Will Thoni (Sales at Langchain) for making this connection!  Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Waseem Daher (Ex-Dropbox and Founder of Pilot.com) sits down with Peter Ahn and Alex Allain of Decoding Sales to discuss learnings from his founder-led sales journey.  They discuss: • The importance of founders being involved in closing a startup's first customers • How to think through hiring your first salesperson • What the right profile is for sales hire #1 • How to know when to fire salespeople who aren't working out • Lead gen tactics for startups and the power of word of mouth Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text At the end of the year, Peter and Alex look back on what Peter's learned coaching startups and three places he's changed his mind. They cover:  Peter's new thoughts on BANT and MEDDIC as discovery and sales qualification frameworks. (Originally discussed in the BANT and MEDDIC episode from December of 2022)Why Salesforce may not be the best CRM to start with if you're an early stage founder (originally discussed in in the CRM 101 episode from 2021)The changing archetype of what makes a great first sales hire (from the The First Sales Hire episode, also from 2021!)Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Having all worked together on Dropbox for Business, Tido, Alex, and Peter share a special bond and respect for building the foundational elements of enterprise sales at Dropbox when it was still seen as a consumer brand.  Now, as founder and CEO of Koala (getkoala.com), Tido shares his learnings, obstacles and opportunities that all founders who are learning enterprise sales for the first time should tune into.  They discuss:  Early challenges Tido faced learning to sell Koala during the early daysWhen is the right time to shift from founder-led sales to sales led sales?Hiring “builders” to lead GTM in the early daysHow to think about “jobs to be done” when building out GTM JD’sHow to master and think through demand generation and demand capture when going outboundAbout Tido:  Tido is a Co-Founder @ Koala, is an end-to-end pipeline generation engine. Prior to Koala, he was Chief Product Officer at Segment from early days through its $3.2B acquisition by Twilio. Prior to that, he worked with Alex & Peter at Dropbox and was an early engineer on the Facebook Ads team. Follow Tido on LinkedIn and visit Koala here! Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Peter and Alex discuss founder-led sales mistake #2: Spending too much time on bad-fit leads.  They dive into: What makes a bad-fit lead? How do you qualify for fit and what questions can you ask to get clarity around this?When are some examples you may continue working with non-ICP customers? How do you know when to eject out of a deal midstream?Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Peter and Alex discuss one of the most common founder-led sales mistakes he's seen early stage founders make: assuming they have a brand when initiating outbound sales.  They dive into:  Why establishing a digital footprint ahead of going outbound is importantThe value of offering lead magnets and thought leadership content ahead of asking for a meetingWhy personalization may not be what it once wasHow to get your digital brand started and tips to start posting on LinkedInFor the next episode they'll dive into Founder-Led Sales Mistake #2 so stay tuned for that discussion! Support the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Peter and Alex discuss the state of sales at large companies and what it means to scale authentic sales. They explore the following questions and topics: Can startup sales be relevant at large companies?Why sales training isn't working for large sales teams What Toyota's innovation with building cars has to do with salesWhat leaders at public companies can do to reimagine what sales means for their growth and brandSupport the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!

Send a text Peter and Alex review the elements of an effective pitch: The elevator pitch and leaning into your origin story (regardless of what VCs will tell you)What makes a compelling pitch deck and how not to bore your prospect with deckwareTeasing a demo to sell the second meetingOther episodes referenced:  Episode 32: BANT and MEDDICEpisode 3: Call LeadershipSupport the show To get more sales advice from Peter, Subscribe to his YouTube Channel, check out Peter Ahn Sales School and purchase Peter's newly published book, Unlocking Authentic Sales!