Effective Leadership, Evolving Go-To-Market Strategies, and Self-Sourcing with Chris Elliott, CRO of BizLibrary

This week on the Revenue Insights Podcast we are joined by Chris Elliott, Chief Revenue Officer at BizLibrary.

In this episode, Lee and Chris explore the evolving sales landscape and how this is affecting BizLibrary’s go-to-market strategy, how self-sourcing sets top-performing salespeople apart, and how to make a balanced work environment that lets people thrive while still delivering results.

In his fifteen years in the tech landscape, Chris has piloted the rise of multiple SaaS brands. He is currently Chief Revenue Officer at BizLibrary, working at the helm of the strategic vision and execution for the company’s global revenue streams. Prior to this, he has held Head of Sales positions at Oversight and Achievelt, as well as VP of Major Accounts at NAVEX and Regional Sales Manager at Paycom.

• Chris Elliott on LinkedIn
• BizLibrary on LinkedIn
• Ebsta Revenue Insights Newsletter  
• Chris’ Book Recommendations: Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play by Mahan Khalsa and Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey

Time Stamps:

• 01:39 – About Chris Elliott
• 02:55 – BizLibrary’s go-to-market process
• 05:12 – Meeting the buyer where they are
• 09:42 – Making sure only qualified prospects speak to Account Executives
• 11:07 – Who is responsible for partnering with the buyer?
• 15:26 – Expectations of brand experiences
• 18:22 – What makes a top salesperson?
• 20:41 – Effective self-sourcing
• 23:08 – A unique leadership approach
• 26:59 – Learning from mistakes
• 34:31 – Chris’s book recommendation: Let’s Get Real or Let’s Not Play by Mahan Khalsa and Greenlights by Matthew McConaughey
• 37:04 – Where to find Chris

Highlights:

Meeting Buyers Where They Are

One thing BizLibrary is continually pushing towards in their go-to-market strategy is to meet the buyer where they are, in terms of their expectations and their experience with potential partners. One main theme across the board is that buyers are waiting longer to connect with a seller, so there are very few actively in-market. They are the most informed they have ever been, so it is important for sellers to treat them like humans and be an active partner.

Attributes of Top Performers

BizLibrary’s top salespeople supplement what the organization produces through marketing-sourced leads. Roughly 30% of their annual book revenue is self-sourced. They are proactively seeking out new opportunities and treating their prospects respectively. 

How to be an Effective Leader

Chris believes his approach to leadership is unique simply because he is ‘fun’. Similar to Disney’s ethos of not taking themselves too seriously, but taking their work seriously, Chris tries to create working environments where everyone can thrive in their own way. This is done through balancing healthy amounts of psychological safety with pressure to perform, creating a collaborative, innovative environment without punitive response. There’s no ‘silver bullet’ for achieving this balance, but one strategy that will work for most organizations is allowing people to fail and learn from their mistakes.

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