SE Fundamentals: The Need Behind the Need

This is one of those responsibilities that should be shared between sales and sales engineering... But is often not the case.

Apart from the who and the how (which should WITHOUT EXCEPTION be obtained by sales), the Why is the most important element of any deal. The why not only helps dictate the direction of the demo and POC/POV, but also gives us something tangible to fall back on later on in the deal cycle if it starts to go sideways. It reminds us why we think we can bill here, but also prospects of why they engaged with us in the first place.

The challenge with the why, is we all have a tendency to get generic with both the ask, and the description. In the security space, the need "we have to be more secure" is a great example of this. I can't tell you how many times I've asked an AE "so why did the prospect decide to join the call today?" And I hear some variant of "well, the prospect told me they need to be more secure and are always looking at security products". That's like a car dealership lot attendant coming to a sales guy and saying "there's a guy out there who wants to go faster and is always looking at new cars, I think we should talk to him!"

The reason finding the need is so important, is because time is so important. If a prospect isn't sure why they're looking for the product you're selling, they're probably not ready for a customized 1:1 demo. If this is the case they should be directed to your company website and/or YouTube page . Except for extenuating circumstances, an AE should NEVER schedule you on a call with a prospect unless they know WHY we're talking to them.

Unfortunately, this is not always the case. Oftentimes I get requests from AEs to hop on demos because "they have money, but I'm not sure why he agreed to see our product". In my book this is ok SOMETIMES... and ONLY if we have the who and the how. We can be nice, but I can't stress enough how this can NOT be the norm. If an AE preps me that they're unsure of the need, I will always agree to do the call and help them figure it out... unless I know they're making a habit of it and taking advantage of my good nature. Most often, I get a generic need that needs to be dug into one layer deeper.

So what is that next layer? For argument's sake, let's take the "we need to be more secure" proto-need. The first thing I'm going to ask is "why?" "Mr. Prospect I respect that, we all need to be more secure... So what's driving this sudden need to look at security products?" This should hopefully start to highlight something tangible that the prospect is trying to accomplish, but more often than not, the next response is "we're always looking at the latest technologies." To this I will most likely reply "well we definitely have the latest technology here, what current technologies are you leveraging? Do you think that's adequate? What other new and emerging technologies have you looked at? What element (or lack thereof) in your current security posture keeps you up at night? Did you see on Krebs the other day? This worried some of my other customers that they may have gaps in their infrastructure that could allow the same thing to happen, did you feel that way?" 

This line of questioning is aggressive, but because I don't have an actual need from the AE's disco call, it's going to tell me a few things. First, should I be on this call? Or... should they be watching a demo video on the website and the AE follow up in a week? If I deem the video is the best option, this is not a "fuck you junior AE I am above doing your worthless call", but more "let's see if the customer still wants a customized demo once they learn what the product actually does". This will also tell me whether or not I'm on the phone with the right person. The right person is most likely NOT someone who watches commercials for a living and has a free hour in his day, but someone who is invested in the outcome of the problem my product is looking to solve. Lastly, and probably most importantly, I am looking to educate the AE on the questions they should be asking before they engage myself or someone on my team for a call. During this line of questioning, the AE is most likely still on the call and listening in... And I'm always watching to make sure they're taking notes so the next time they're better prepared. 

I've always worked at startups and recently I've been doing some consulting for some companies that are at ground zero. Just hired a sales team, no formal training process, no predefined qualification requirements. In these cases, the LAST thing I want to do is insist. My AE's are ultimately the ones who are going to be building the customer base, therefore building the value of the business and making me money. If they're not adequately trained.. it is MY job to help. I can't stand asshole, entitled SEs that think every call should be handed to them on a sliver platter. The type of SE I'm looking for on my team is the real deal nose-to-the-grindstone SE that will suck it up and help the team figure it out. As SEs, sales training falls into our periphery so If you're too jaded with junior reps, go pound sand. 

Of course, if we're talking about a senior AE that should know better, I will throw them to the wolves every time. A proper sales bullpen has a pack mentality and if the SE respect factor is set up properly you can bet your ass the pack will eat the weak ones for breakfast... which is as it should be. As SEs we are an important element of the divining rod that tells which AEs will make it and which ones should try a different profession.

Thoughts on the October 13th SE MeetUp in SF

pSales Engineers are a rare breed and we come in all shapes and sizes from a million different backgrounds. Because of this, it's often difficult to find a crew of SE's to bounce ideas off of and share experiences with that aren't in your immediate circle.

The SE MeetUp held at the Talkdesk office yesterday evening was a rare experience. In my 10 or so years in the profession I have never seen that many SEs in one room. Everything from senior managers, principals, directors as well as junior folks and even a few that were just curious about the role. And EVERYONE was talking up their companies and hiring like CRAZY.

The "fireside chat" as it were, had 3 accomplished SE professionals from 3 different organizations chatting about their experiences in a panel format, with a crew of about 50 or so other SE participants. They had a nice selection of beer and finger food (the natural sustenance of the SE), and some comfy couches to sit on during the talk. When I say "fireside chat', it basically means they have a loop of a nice warm fire on the projector or flatscreen from youtube because you can't literally light anything on fire in an office building. Of course this being a SE meetup, the "fire" was a 5 hour clip of Darth Vader's armor being burned from Star Wars Episode VI instead of some festive logs crackling in a fireplace... but that's to be expected for this crowd.

The content was excellent, and there were some extremely relevant recurring themes that I wanted to highlight.

The first, that Jesse from Talkdesk pointed out, is the importance of having an opinion. The context for this comment was "how to nail an interview", but it definitely extends beyond that. As SEs, we must be opinionated about our products and services. The AE is always going to sell it like it's the second coming, but sometimes I feel like SEs think they need to be perfectly objective all the time. In my experience, this is not the case. And it's DEFINITELY not the case if you have aspirations of moving up in your role.

As SEs, we kind of fall in this purgatory in between the completely objective post-sales/support side, and the massively opinionated sales side of the house. We're left wondering... "how hard should I push?", "Should I push at all?" The answer is yes, and here's why.

As professionals, we all have decisions to make on the organizations we work for. It's VERY IMPORTANT that the company you choose represents YOUR personal brand. It's never going to be perfectly aligned, but at the very least you need to join a company where you believe in message of the team you're working with and the value of the product you're selling. When both of these pieces line up, it's easy to be opinionated. Why would a customer go with a company when the people selling it don't believe in it? You wouldn't buy a car from someone who told you "yeah, it's kind of shitty but it may work for you... I just don't like it that much." Plus, what AE is going to want you on their enterprise call if you're milktoast when it comes to talking up the product?

That brings me to another challenge that was shared by most folks there... the relationship between you and your AE. Having worked with hundreds of different AEs from all different skill levels and walks of life over the past 10 years, this topic probably warrants a post all to itself, but here's a few thoughts on it in the interim:

SEs are chameleons that can adapt to nearly any situation. A colleague of mine once said "a great SE is someone who can talk sports with a sales guy at the bar one minute, then talk shop with his engineer the next." That's not to say you should ever alter your actual personality to adjust to situations necessarily, but you need the full range of content to be effective. The same goes for your relationship with your AE. When I start working with a new AE, I treat them like a prospective customer. What are they excelling at? Where do they fall short? What are their interests? What drives them to be successful? What do they do on the weekends? How did they end up in this place in their lives?

Always pregame with your AE to discuss the best next steps with the customer (also will most likely be another post). Also pay attention to how they speak to prospective customers on the phone and in person. Even if their approach doesn't jive exactly with yours (and it probably won't), remember the customer was on a call with your AE so... chances are that customer was responsive to your AE's methods. Because of this, it will behoove you to perpetuate a united message throughout, or at the very least keep a positive image of your AE when speaking to customers.

The last and most important piece on the topic of the AE/SE relationship... don't talk shit about your AE to the customer. If you have a problem with the AE, talk to their manager about it... NOT the customer. Remember, if the customer is going to buy, they need to know your AE's intentions are as good as yours. Even if the customer thinks you're the greatest SE in the world, they won't buy unless they trust your AE as well.

I would highly recommend going to one of these meetups if you get a chance, it's a great way to gain perspective and meet like-minded folks. Check it here:

http://www.meetup.com/Sales-Engineering/

Why I Quit Playing Video Games So Much

I love video games. I love the idea of playing in a world where there aren't any real consequences. All of these games out there that say "you die once, you start over" or "we try to make it as realistic as possible"... screw that. Why would I want to play a game where you can only carry two guns instead of 12? Why would I want my character to be able to actually die when I jump off a building for no reason? Doesn't make any sense to me... I want to be able to stand on the roof of a car going 200 mph through the middle of a city and shoot a RPG at a jet fighter from my bionic arm. THAT'S what I want.

My favorite types of games are the ones where you get to upgrade your player and your player's stuff over time. GTA series? Love it. Just Cause 3? Amazing. No Man's Sky? Beauty. I love the ones where you feel a connection with your character, the ability to make your character cooler and more powerful over time... being able to build up an arsenal of currency, weapons, and vehicles to the point where I'm nearly invincible... that's what I like. That being said, I am very particular about the games and type of gaming I play. I have no interest in playing online against other players, nor do I want to play as more than one character so I'm not susceptible to WoW or any of those other MMORPG's.

Even when you omit the online play, there's a few inherent problems with playing video games... in my case the main one being how much time it takes to amass the attributes for your character. Any gamer will tell you that the level of investment for modern games is monumentally more time compared to what it was 20 years ago. Ever play GTA5? It ain't Mario Kart. It takes time to learn the controls, it takes time to learn the game dynamics, and it takes time to collect, build, store, and master other elements in the game. Over hours, days and weeks you build up an amazing world for your character in your TV... and as a result you spend all your time in front of it because it's more fun than real life.

The second big problem is a side effect of the first. While you're building up your amazing world in your TV, your life outside the TV isn't actually getting any better. You're not learning anything new from the game that would be applicable to your real life. None of the amazing button-pushing skills you've mastered will make you more well rounded, and you're DEFINITELY not doing your wallet any favors in the long run. Yes, maybe you're not going out to the bars and spending cash as much... but at least at the bar you have a chance of something positive happening that benefits your REAL life, or AT LEAST make a good story.

It's also not limited to consoles and computers anymore either. Clash of Clans, Game of War, Boom Beach, Candy Crush... these are all even worse in my opinion. These are called "casual games"... but they're not "casual"... and they're fucking expensive if you actually get into it. A couple months ago I met a 50-something mid-level business guy in an airport who had his iPad out and he was playing Game of War Fire Age. I asked him about it and he proceeded to brag to me that he was one of the top 100 players in the world... as if I would be impressed by this somehow. Turns out, to get to that level he had spent close to $5,000 in micro-payments. 5 large on a fucking iPhone game!!! This was the worst I've ever heard of to this day, but I hear stories like this all the time. People get caught up and end up wasting hundreds of dollars on something that has NO TANGIBLE VALUE.

It's basic escapism. It's the same reason people end up partying too much... you don't like your reality, and it's easier just to ignore it than it is to fix it. But I can tell you, the longer you let this shit go on, the tougher time you'll have getting out of it. The longer you live in your virtual reality, the further behind you get in your actual reality. I'm a firm believer that there will come a time when business is conducted in VR, and you will end up leveraging technology for most business dealings, but the skills you learn from playing a video game will still never apply.

Looking for alternatives? Learn something. Read a book, write a blog, go outside, goto a museum, go sit at a bar and talk to people who sit down there, walk the streets of your city, people-watch, exercise... there are million things to do in this life (I'm beginning to sound like my father, but he was right). The reason I quit playing so much is because I started to realize how much money I was losing. All the time I was wasting sitting in front of the TV could've been used to increase my skill level and further hone my craft... but instead i was blowing up zombies and crashing cars. Sometimes the value from video game alternatives is indirect, but at least once a day now I am able to see tangible benefits in my career from putting down the controller.

I get it, the real world sucks sometimes and you're an introvert so video games are entertaining... but you know what is also entertaining? MAKING MONEY. And I know there are games where you can buy/sell stuff in the virtual world.. but what happens when you're 40 and morbidly obese with zero social skills? Talking about impressing the ladies (or gentlemen)!

If you feel the need to play and it's something you really enjoy, by all means go for it. I still play every once in awhile on the weekends... but don't let it take over. Your real life will thank you.

 (courtesy of dorkly.com)

This post is dedicated to one of my dearest friends and business partners who recently called me out on my bullshit. Always surround yourself with people who care more about your success than your feelings.