Catalina Valentino 🔥

CEO of ELIXR | MSc | Global Top 100 Women in Tech | Senator @ WBAF | Ft. Business Insider, Forbes etc. 🦄

Catalina Valentino (MSc) is the Group CEO of ELIXR, a global smart city group transforming cities through technology, finance, and data. She is also a Member of the Advisory Board for the €200m Climate Tech Fund Una Terra and the Clean Energy Business Council MENA.

Elixr and its group of companies deliver smart regeneration projects for towns and cities combining new developments, retrofit, and energy infrastructure to create investable, future-ready places. Working closely with town leadership to design and deliver master regeneration schemes, using our technology to speed up planning, cut costs, and improve capital efficiency.

Through a consortium of partners including AECOM, Pinsent Masons, BNP Paribas and other leading banks, investors and Government Elixr brings forward £500m+ regeneration projects that transform how people live, work, and connect.

Her journey began at 11, when she earned her first A* GCSE, then started a BA at 16, and an MSc at 19 launching her corporate career along the way. She later founded her first company; securing a six-figure investment, scaling to <20 team members, and winning several industry awards.

Since, she has been awarded Young Entrepreneur of the Year 2022 and Global Top 100 Women in Tech 2023 and Top 50 Women in STEM. And is a global speaker for Forbes, the United Nations, LEAP, the World Economic Forum 🎤

CEO & Co-Founder

Building unicorns 🦄. 
Next-Gen Sustainable Tech Incubator/ VC.

Richard Moore

I help consultants get clients on LinkedIn, using sales and content 🚀 Follow #RichTips for content

At some point it becomes obvious: your expertise isn’t the problem.
The real challenge is turning that expertise into consistent, high-value revenue.

Whether you lead a commercial team or run your own consultancy, gaining traction with potential clients on LinkedIn often feels harder than it should.

That’s where I come in.

I train leaders, consultants, and founders in the psychology of high-trust deal-making and sales. This helps individuals and teams move from interest to commitment without pressure or scripts.

My work blends behavioural psychology, strategic communication, and modern sales design.
More importantly, it comes from doing it:
22+ years of being a sales practitioner and $millions in converted deals.

Because theory is powerful
But you can't beat having done it too

Crucially, the help I give is for those who want to sell with nuance, credibility and long-term results.

Here’s what we focus on:
Strategic positioning: shaping how your expertise is perceived by buyers and decision-makers

Authority content: creating trust through clarity, not noise

Conversation design: turning dialogue into opportunity with structure and intent

Deal-flow mastery: applying timing, buyer psychology, and decision dynamics to close complex deals

I’ve worked with organisations from Microsoft and LinkedIn, to JP Morgan and Deloitte
Beyond this I've also coached thousands of consultants, coaches and founders

All of them have had the focus on refining how they sell and how they communicate

As a 2x LinkedIn Top Voice and LinkedIn Learning Instructor with five courses on sales and communication, studied by tens of thousands of professionals worldwide, I'm asked to work with professionals on their delivery, awareness of buyer state and the words that move a buyer to step forward. 

My communities, the LinkedIn Client Accelerator and Art of Sell, bring together over 500 members focused on mastering client acquisition and high-trust sales.

In the offline world I founded Entrepreneur Business Live, a global event series connecting business leaders to support local causes and I’ve delivered keynotes and lectures at Oxford University, Warwick Business School, University of Edinburgh, Nottingham, Pearson Business School and many more.

If you want to elevate how you or your team win clients, with more trust, depth, and commercial precision, this is where we start.

DM me here on LinkedIn
Or email directly richard@therichardmoore.com
Or check out the featured links on this profile for more

Follow #RichTips for insights on high-trust deal-making and sales

Founder - LinkedIn Client Accelerator

3 years ago, I walked away from being "a LinkedIn guy"

I'd built a solid reputation as a LinkedIn trainer
But I didn't want to be known for a platform

I wanted to be known for a result

So I made a conscious choice:
↳ I was going to own one word
↳ Conversion

Look, everyone's trying to own "sales" and it's impossible

It's too big
It can be so many different things

Owning one word? Now we're talking.

But if you're going to own a word, you need the discipline to use it

(A fun fact about me? My tolerance for boredom, repetition and saying no to shiny objects is very high)

So whilst I do use "sales" sometimes, where possible, I use "conversion" instead of closing or selling.

You'll see it everywhere:

↳ In my posts
↳ In all my workshops
↳ Even in how I describe what I do

It's almost irritating.

But I've built my reputation brick by brick over many years. Because when someone thinks "conversion," I want them to think of me:

↳ The guy who teaches LinkedIn? That wasn't it
↳ Another sales trainer? Too broad
↳ Conversion? Richard

And that goal continues every day.

So if you want to build a reputation that actually converts:

↳ Pick one word that represents the transformation you create
↳ Then use it relentlessly until people can't think of that word without thinking of you

That's how you claim your corner on the internet.

What word are you trying to be known for?

---
PS Okay, you've owned your word. What now? Now you need to write content around it that actually converts.
Click "visit my website" at the top of this post to learn how to do that.

#RichTips

I train founders in the psychology of high-trust deal-making and sales | Creator, Art of Sell | 3× LinkedIn Top Voice | 5 x LinkedIn Learning Instructor

Richard Moore as a panellist at The Value Exchange London

Let's address an absurd nobility on LinkedIn:

It's not the "classy" move many claim it to be

People act like waiting is integrity
Like reaching out is beneath them
Like the best professionals shouldn't have to ask

Let's be more honest:
you're terrified of being "that person"

↳ The one who follows up too soon
↳ The one sliding into DMs with a pitch
↳ The needy one who can't take a hint

So you wait

You tell yourself you're being respectful
Strategic
Or even that you're playing the long game

Except,

what you're really doing is hoping they'll come to you so you don't have to feel uncomfortable.

You've dressed up your fear as standards
Convinced yourself that silence is sophistication

And while you're sitting there being noble about it,
someone else just reached out.

- They asked
- They got the meeting
- They're eating your breakfast

There are no medals given for sitting back. 
No one hands out prizes for being too polite to make a move.

The people closing deals know this
they ask because:

↳ they know permission isn't coming
↳ and the door doesn't open itself

Have you been avoiding reaching out because some "experts" told you it's the classy thing to do?

Fortune favours the action takers

---
PS The best deals close because someone wasn't too noble to start the conversation.

But what's the next step after reaching out?
Click my first featured link here → Richard Moore to see how I convert on the first call.

#RichTips

Richard Moore hosting his Entrepreneur Business Live London charity networking event

In 22+ years, I've never met a "natural salesperson"

They don't exist

What people call "natural" is just someone who's given themselves permission to occupy the role.

The awkwardness you feel in a sales call?
↳ That's a positioning problem in your head
↳ Often mistaken for "personality"

It comes from a place of thinking you think you need to be an expert before you can sell.

But "expert" is a subjective term

The person who buys from you isn't comparing you to the world's best. They're comparing you to where they are right now.

To someone who knows less than you,
↳ you already ARE the expert

Sales is a learnable skill with specific techniques

↳ So if you learn the process
↳ Earn the right to prescribe through proper discovery
↳ Build demonstrable ability and credibility

And give yourself the permission to show up as the expert you already are, the awkwardness will slowly disappear

I promise.

How long are you willing to let someone else's definition of "expert" keep you from the deals?

---
PS The awkwardness is expensive while it lasts!

I've created 4 free videos walking you through the exact process I use to convert on the first call. 
Click the first featured link here → Richard Moore to get your access

#RichTips

In 2003, I was making 100 calls a day
In 2026, I'm teaching AoS members to close on the first call

Back when I was making 100 calls a day,

I became obsessed with understanding why people said yes or no. What was actually going on in their head when they made a decision?

(Standing at your desk all day with your phone in your hand, dialling numbers and getting hung up on constantly, will do that to you)

And sure, times are different now

- But buyers haven't changed
- The psychology hasn't changed
- Only the platforms have

In the 22+ years of watching people buy,
here's what I know:

They don't buy because of your offer, 
your price or 
even your expertise

They buy when uncertainty drops low enough for them to feel safe saying yes

That's the whole game.

Sony. Deloitte. Microsoft. LinkedIn. BP. Notion. S&P Capital IQ. Vodafone. IATA. JP Morgan. Thales. GSK. Siemens. BAE Systems. Audible...

The list of deals goes on. 
But the truth is the same:

↳ Uncertainty about you = they stall
↳ Uncertainty about the outcome = they ask for a proposal
↳ Uncertainty about themselves = the infamous "let me think about it"

And most of what's taught out there treats these 3 as the same problem,
but each one needs a completely different response

So here's some clarity for you

If they're uncertain about you:
↳ That's a positioning and authority issue
↳ No amount of explaining your offer will fix it
↳ You fix it before the call even starts

If they're uncertain about the outcome:
↳ That's a clarity issue
↳ You're overcomplicating what happens after they say yes.
↳ Simplify the path

If they're uncertain about themselves:
↳ That's the one most people miss entirely
↳ That's the buyer asking "am I the kind of person who invests in this?"
↳ And you can't logic your way through that. You have to make them feel like they belong in the room

The only psychology in sales that works is:

↳ reducing uncertainty
↳ increasing safety and
↳ helping someone think clearly enough to make a decision they already want to make.

That's what I learnt standing at that desk in 2003
And it's what I'm still teaching now

What's the uncertainty your buyers struggle with most?

--
I train founders, consultants and coaches in the psychology of high-trust deal-making and sales. 
Have a look in my featured links here for more → Richard Moore

#RichTips

"$30k is nothing, isn't it Richard?", he said
(I recently heard this in a voicenote)

Wow.
Perspectives really can change.

Is there a lesson here? You bet.
Let's look at what he did:

This client (we'll call him Lloyd) was on course to do $200k of sales by the end of the quarter. 

He needed $30k the month to get there. 

When we first started together, the thought of even $10k a month was a dream. 

Now he's averaging over $30k a month. 

So how did he move from "I could never" to "it's nothing"?

It's this simple formula:
Reps x Frequency = Naturalisation

So,
↳ Getting a volume of deals
↳ And getting them frequently
↳ Builds you a new "normal"

First, the offer:
- Clearly explained
- Simply constructed
- With a compelling transformation

These 3 elements are essential for a buyer

Second, the focus is sales:
He's a solopreneur like most of you
That means he may have a talent but sales is his main job
(Believe me, if you don't see it that way, its the shift you need)

Third, we used a "crescendo":
A crescendo is a "progressive increase of intensity"
So, the first deals were small, to get confidence
Then, the price raised every x number of deals

Throw in his three best attributes:
- Grit (I promise he wants it more than anyone!)
- Discipline (he has a schedule and sticks to it)
- Humility (when he's in his head, he tells me)

And you've got an evolution
(because it'll never be overnight, people!)
to "$30k is nothing, isn't it Richard?"

That perspective shift is EARNED
This has been his roadmap
And if you want it enough, it can be yours

Work on your "normal"
Because it can always be evolved.

Have you?

--
PS The best deals close because someone like Lloyd wasn't too proud to start the conversation.
But where do you learn how to get that right?
Click "Visit my Website" at the top of this post and see

#RichTips

Buyers are the most open at one part of every sales call

Miss it,
and you're fighting resistance for the rest of the conversation

Look, you can nail your intro

You can handle objections perfectly

But if you ask your diagnostic questions at the wrong time, you've lost them:
↳ Too early = no context. They don't trust you yet
↳ Too late = they've already formed resistance

The middle is where decisions actually happen

That's when you interrupt them
(with intention):

"Wait. This sounds like quite a big deal. Tell me why"

And here's the fun bit.
When you say this:
- They stop selling you on the problem
- They start selling themselves on the solution

Right? Because the moment you ask someone to articulate why something matters
↳ They're no longer answering you
↳ They're convincing themselves

When a buyer explains it out loud, they're starting to build the case. 

The urgency becomes real to them in a way it wasn't before.

Your job now is to stop talking!
And let them finish processing their own logic.

Always remember, the most persuasive voice on the planet is your prospect's own:
- When they say it, they believe it
- When you say it, that's where resistance can start

So you're not closing at the end,
You're priming them emotionally in the middle so the close feela inevitable

Where are you losing them?

Too early, too late, or right in that middle window?

--
PS I talk in detail about on the psychology of priming buyers emotionally so the close
becomes inevitable inside Art of Sell 
Click "Visit my Website" at the top of this post.

#RichTips

Richard Moore coaching conversion technique at Digital Design Days Milan, 2019

"Build it and they will come" is not good advice
(and the reason really is obvious):

It is the king of bad advice because it's both
- Passive
- Entitled 

So you worked hard
So you made a great offer
So you think people will like it

That doesn't mean they'll buy

Does it make you cry baby sad tears because "it's not fair"?

Welcome to business, friend
Where you EARN your results.

Entitlement is poison

So, instead of waiting we need to do 4 things:

1. Before it's built, go tell people
↳ Warm the audience - work with them to ideate

2. When you're building go tell people
↳ Share the climb. They'll find it fascinating to watch

3. When it's built, go tell people
↳ Showtime! Go harvest those that supported you

4. When people have bought it, go tell people
↳ You're not done yet! Leverage the buyers to get more

See the common theme?

Proactivity. 

So instead of "build it and they will come"
its
"Build it, tell people, nurture them, present an offer, add more touch points, present another offer and even when they come, make sure you actually take the order"

Which of the four could you do more of?

--
📌Pro tip: When do you actually start selling? 
At stage #1
You can't beat "pre sales" with an incentive to join you early
Because getting paid while you're building is way better than after.
➡️DM me and ask how I did it.

#RichTips

"If prospects don't post or comment on LinkedIn, how do I approach them?"

This question has been a theme inside my Art of Sell community.

Look, most prospects belong to the silent community
They see your posts but they don't engage publicly

Which means you need to go to the DMs

But respectfully.

Your ONLY goal with DMs is to get a response. That's it.

You haven't earned the right to ask "what's your biggest challenge?" yet. (Yes, it's 2026 and people still send me that cringe question)

So what actually works?
↳ Show them you understand their world
↳ Don't ask about it

Back in the day, we built a business in the city by sending DMs to people on LinkedIn who weren't "active".

But oh, they were watching!

My approach was to demonstrate that I know my thing.
That caught their eye.

How?
Most LinkedIn advice tells you to lead with curiosity
In fact, you need to lead with insight
("out of curiosity, what's your Q1 goal" sound familiar?)

We need to say something specific to prove we've done our homework rather than getting a "here we go again" reaction

The best DMs feel like the start of a chat.

I've done this enough times to recognise that exact moment when you're staring at a prospect's profile thinking "what do I even say?"

That's when most people either overthink it or default to the same tired template everyone else uses.

So, what do you do instead?

↳ Show you understand their world first
↳ And say something human

Have you been leading with insight or curiosity so far?

---
PS and when they're interested, how do you get them to close on the first call?
I've made 4 x free videos for you explaining exactly how, right here: https://lnkd.in/e_7JBt3b

#RichTips

Hello from Bratislava!

I'm boarding my flight after a fantastic 2 day Infestival conference and the idea of an "attention recession" has been on my mind lately. 

So this latest Art of Sell newsletter introduces my "Decision Compression Model" as a rethink on how to navigate the truth that buyers have an overload of information to navigate.

Thank you to the 18,000+ subscribers of this weekly newsletter. I truly appreciate your feedback on these articles. 

And to everyone that attended Infestival this week, dakujem! More on the event very soon in my write up.

Richard

--
#RichTips

For most of the past decade, social selling advice has revolved around a simple thesis: be visible, add value, build familiarity and inevitable trust 

Open article: #9: The Attention Recession in Social Selling by Richard Moore • 8 min read

#9: The Attention Recession in Social Selling

You can’t scale your leadership without scaling trust.

At small scale, people know you. They see you. They understand how you think.

But at a larger scale, that can all disappear.

At that level, people start to interpret you from a distance:
- Through your decisions
- Through your communication
- Through your consistency

And if trust isn’t there, all your results can start to slow down

This Friday I’ll be live with Simone Schiassi, a former Google Global Director, to talk about how trust is actually built and maintained as you grow into more senior leadership roles.

We’ll be sharing practical experiences from inside complex organisations and answering your questions live.

Friday 27 February
UK: 2pm to 3pm
ET: 9am to 10am

If you lead a team, or plan to, join us live.
And let us know below: what questions do you have for the live stream?

--

#RichTips

Marco Zima Simonella, Jeff Abracen and 1 other connection attending

Wow - almost 18.5k of you are subscribed to this newsletter now.
Thank you.

This week, one news story stood out on LinkedIn News 

Standing far above other stories in volume of readers was the recent data showing 5.2% unemployment in the UK. 

And, while this has an effect on employers and employees alike. Beyond all the job market commentary, I believe this represents a shift in the market that affects buyer behaviour too. 

Thank you as always for reading these each week. I really enjoy producing them.

Looking at the analytics, it's wonderful to see that thousands of you tune in within the first 24 hours to read. 

And to those that share their opinions in the comments and in my DMs, thank you. I always welcome the dialogue.

Have a fantastic end to your week,
Richard

--
PS a free gift for any founders / those of you in sales at the bottom of this week's newsletter :)

#RichTips #newsletter #jobs

Weak economies do not punish everyone equally. But they do expose previously hidden differences. UK unemployment has risen to 5.2%, the highest level 

Open article: #10: The End of Average Salespeople by Richard Moore • 7 min read

Often, B2B deals don’t stall because the buyer lost interest.

There's much more going on here. 

They stall because there's a misalignment with the organisation.

You have a great call. They see the value. They agree. Then the deal disappears into “I need to run this internally.”

What’s happening is simple. You spoke to a person, but the decision lives inside a system.

In this week’s newsletter, I break down what I call Stakeholder Physics. 

I also examine the four main roles present in most decisions, and how to manage alignment so deals actually move.

Thank you to the 18.5k subscribers reading these each week. It is all my pleasure to produce them. 

As always, do consider sharing, saving and adding your opinion or reaction in the comments. 

--
Coming soon is an article on agentic AI in selling, with some very special guests contributing! Make sure you're subscribed.

#RichTips

Why individual buy-in creates momentum but group alignment determines whether a deal actually closes. There is a moment in sales that can create false

Open article: #11: Stakeholder Physics: Why Deals Stall Even When Individuals Agree by Richard Moore • 8 min read

#11: Stakeholder Physics: Why Deals Stall Even When Individuals Agree

taplio

The Battle

Catalina Valentino 🔥

Richard Moore

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The Battle

Catalina Valentino 🔥

Richard Moore

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance Score.css-goub6s{font-size:var(--chakra-fontSizes-md);font-weight:500;color:var(--chakra-colors-gray-600);display:block;margin-top:var(--chakra-space-1);}Richard Moore's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreRichard Moore's LinkedIn Performance