A head of sales leads the function responsible for generating revenue and growing it. In a startup, this role turns potential customers into paying customers rather than treating sales as a simple pitch-and-close routine. section 25.0 section 25.1
The role typically includes:
- Filling the sales funnel by identifying and qualifying leads through activities such as cold calling, industry events, referrals, and content marketing. section 25.1
- Learning customer needs through discovery calls, demos, and ongoing conversations, then building trusted customer relationships. section 25.1
- Communicating marketing’s value proposition in language tailored to each prospect’s needs and pain points. section 25.1
- Managing objections, proposals, negotiations, and the movement of prospects through a rigorous sales process. section 25.1
- Keeping the customer relationship management system current and pursuing upsells or higher product tiers after closing. section 25.1
A startup hiring decision
A founder may have a strong product and proven product-market fit yet still fail to grow without capable salespeople. The practical lesson is to confirm that the product is sellable, then hire someone who can build and manage the B2B sales engine. section 25.0
