Sales is a rollercoaster. You will have good months and bad months, great quarters and horrible ones. Learn how not to go too high during the highs, nor too low during the lows.
Welcome to another episode of our Break Into Tech Sales mentor interview series!
In this interview, Greg Benton shares some of his secrets on how he was able to achieve rocket-ship growth within the sales org at Yelp—from being a Junior Account Executive to an Elite Account Director, booking over $1 million in advertising revenue, and earning a spot at President’s Club for back-to-back years.
Mentor profile:
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Name: Greg Benton
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Company: Yelp
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Role: Elite Account Director
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Alma mater: University of San Francisco
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LinkedIn profile
Can you describe your own journey of breaking into tech sales?
“I never thought I would to be in sales until a close friend and former classmate of mine convinced me that I would be a great fit for a sales role at Yelp. After having great success himself, I decided to take the interview. I landed the job and have been selling Yelp advertising ever since.”
What is your role at Yelp?
“My role is to sell Yelp advertising and page upgrade packages to local businesses across multiple industries in the Los Angeles, CA and Las Vegas, NV areas.”
Can you describe a typical day in your job?
“A typical day consists of vetting accounts from Salesforce, sorting through new business reports, recent login reports, and others in order to strategically contact businesses to sell Yelp advertising. My daily goal is two quality pitches per day, with a minimum 50% close ratio.”
Which skills do you use on a daily basis?
“The ability to think on your feet is essential. When calling business owners, you have no idea what the other person might say—whether they love or hate Yelp, or whether they want to talk to you or don’t. The ability to self motivate and take the highs with the lows are crucial to this job. Overall mindset is a given in any sales role: being confident, assumptive, and commanding.”
What is the hardest part of your working day?
“The hardest part of my working day is handling objections. Often times I call businesses out of the blue, and handling the plethora of objections can be challenging. The key is knowing what to say and when to say it.”
What advice would you give to someone going through the tech sales recruitment process?
“The hardest part about sales is that it requires you to grow personally, in order to grow professionally.”
What do you know now that you wish you would have known at the beginning of your tech sales career?
“Sales is a rollercoaster. You will have good months and bad months, great quarters and horrible ones. Learn how not to go too high during the highs, nor too low during the lows.”
What’s your favorite thing about working in tech sales?
“The thing I love most about tech sales is the people. I’ve been able to work with an incredibly talented and bright group of individuals. Furthermore, I’ve made several lasting friendships in just my two years at Yelp that will last a lifetime.”
Click here to connect with Greg on LinkedIn.