Manuel Hartmann

Founder & CEO@SalesPlaybook | Build & scale B2B sales without trial & error

Transforming B2B SaaS Sales in the DACH Region

With over 5 years of experience, I built SalesPlaybook from CHF0 to 30k MRR in under 18 months and scaled it to a 7-figure annual revenue with fewer than 6 FTEs. I’ve supported 300+ B2B SaaS and Professional Service Entrepreneurs to:
- Achieve EUR 0-10 Mio. ARR in under 3 years profitably
- Accelerate ARR growth by over 5x from 0-1 Mio. in less than 18 months
- Close 10-50x larger deals through Message-Market-Fit & Value Selling
- Implement & optimize HubSpot Sales Hub & Outbound Sales from scratch

Career Highlights:
- 2009: Launched sales career with 3-figure NPO donations
- 2012: Reached 6-figure sales with sportscars@Tesla
- 2014-2016: Led 7-figure CRM transformations@Accenture
- 2017-2019: Managed 5-figure AI SaaS@Onedot
- Present: Driving 5-figure deals@SalesPlaybook

What I Offer:
- Pipeline Generation: Developing and executing strategies to build robust sales pipelines.
- Sales Enablement: Equipping sales teams with the tools and training needed for success.
- HubSpot Services: Comprehensive implementation and optimization of HubSpot CRM

Personal Interests: 
- I’m an avid UFC fan, active (kick)boxer, snowboarder, and musician (piano + e-guitar). 
- I enjoy taking on challenges like writing a book in under 30 days or completing 1,000 push-ups

Education: Master’s Degree in Business Innovation from HSG with MBA Exchange in Canada

Let’s connect if: 
- You're a B2B entrepreneur looking to scale sales quickly, efficiently & without 6-figure mistakes
- You identify as a Top 1% talent on hunger & drive, urgent curiosity, intelligence & integrity

Founder & CEO

Join 220+ customers to build & scale sales with the #1 B2B SaaS Startup Sales Journey Partner in DACH.

All the expert sales help you need to fast forward your B2B SaaS Startup.

👉 Book a 1:1 Sales Assessment Call: https://thesalesplaybook.com/bookacall
👉 Get proven hands-on sales resources: https://thesalesplaybook.com/resources
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Track Record:
❖ 0-2M booked ARR in <15 months by finding message-market-fit in <9 months (boostbar)
❖ 0-7 figure ARR in <12 months by hitting message-market fit, setting up outbound sales engine & more (Kyan Health)
❖ 0-7 figure ARR in <18 months by hitting message-market-fit, building outbound sales & training first sales hires (Archlet)
❖ >10 projects to 50+ subscriptions to exit after building outbound sales from 0 (Airica)
❖ 0-2M+ ARR in <18 months by building a sales team from scratch (rready)
❖ 5x MRR by building scalable sales & hiring first sales rep (Turbit)
❖ Ramp 5 SDRs to quota in less than 3 months (Beekeeper)
❖ 4x annual revenue after closing 700k deal with Fortune 500 company by leveraging value-selling (novoMOF)
❖ 2x MRR in 6 months by niching down on Ideal Customer Profile (Houston & Ko)
❖ 370k+ deal closed through hands-on support, approaching 7-figure revenue (56k.Cloud)
❖ 2x ARR in 9 months by 10x'ing ACV by 10x, winning 100K+ deals & hitting 90% reply rates (Classtime)
❖ 2x MRR in 3 months, from 5-10k deals to EUR 150k contract, hitting 30% booking rates (wowflow)
❖ 2x MRR in 6 months from group coaching sessions & more (Houston & Ko)
❖ 250k ARR deal closed by changing their positioning & negotiation approach (Linimex)
❖ <5% to 80% opening and 30%+ reply rates on scalable outbound sales (TRESIO)
❖ 2x MRR in 6 months by niching down on Ideal Customer Profile (Houston & Ko)

AE @ Pleo || Interested in meaningful outreach 🤝 || Sales Leader of the Year 2023

Ex-hockey player turned SaaS enthusiast with a passion for developing people, constant learning, and drive to win as a team.

9.5 of 10 times I am optimistic, and love to face challenges with a big smile on my face.

I love running, rowing, reading history books, podcasts, and watching field hockey.

Jan Benedikt Mundorf

It took me 14 years to figure this out

(and you can learn it from my journey)

Age 16: Rising field hockey talent.

Age 18: Hip injury ends my dream overnight.

Age 19: Moved to Stockholm, armed with 3 words of Swedish.

Age 21: Started studying, failed my first exam. Met friends for life.

Age 24: Graduated with 4 honour degrees. Still earned only 500 Euros a month.

Age 25: Became SDR Manager, leading 7. Started posting on LinkedIn.

Age 26: Questioned if I’d ever be a good AE. Nearly fired in month 5.

Age 28: Qualified for President’s Club. Broke 100K for the first time.

Age 29: Crossed 45K followers. Became a top AE at a unicorn.

Wherever you’re standing today, your story is far from finished.

The path forward is simpler than it feels:
1. Every setback is an invitation to rise
2. Surround yourself with people who genuinely believe in you
3. Outwork everyone - especially the past version of you

𝗣𝗦. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗺𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝘀𝗵𝗮𝗽𝗲𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗷𝗼𝘂𝗿𝗻𝗲𝘆 𝘀𝗼 𝗳𝗮𝗿?

Helping sales teams win without the bro-energy || 1x President’s Club Winner || Senior AE @ Pleo

No alternative text description for this image

After cold calling 100 people a day for 6 months

Here’s how I create momentum in the first 30 secs

(This is the playbook I wish I had on day one.)

When you’re hitting over 50 dials a day, you can’t afford dead air.
Every second either moves the call forward - or kills it.

Here’s the exact framework I use now:

1. Pre-build your call list (15 - 25 leads)
→ Use your CRM or Google Sheet or FullEnrich
→ Add: Name, Company, Title, Phone, 1 personalized line
Example personalized line:
• “Hiring 3 new Finance Ops roles”
• “Just raised Series B”
Why it works: No mid-dial research = full call flow focus

2. Open with relevance, not “how are you?”
Instead of: “Hi, this is Jan from…”
Say:
“Jan here - saw you just [hired/expanded/announced X]. How’s that impacting [specific pain]?”
Why it works: You’re showing you did the homework and you’re not a random dial.

3. Make the goal crystal clear
Instead of rambling, I say:
“Not calling to sell you now - just want to see if a quick follow-up call makes sense.”
Why it works: Removes pressure, earns permission to continue.

4. Anchor to a trigger you can dig into
Example:
“You mentioned [pain] - what’s been the biggest impact of that this quarter?”
Why it works: Turns a cold call into a warm conversation instantly.

5. Set a time boundary
I use:
“Give me 30 seconds and you can tell me if we should hang up or keep going.”
Why it works: They’ll almost always say yes - and you’ve bought time to build curiosity.

6. Always end with a concrete next step
Not: “I’ll send you some info.”
But:
“Let’s lock 10 minutes - Tuesday at 10:00 or Wednesday at 2:00?”
Why it works: Momentum dies without something on the calendar.

The result:
- No “let me think about it” limbo
- Higher connect-to-meeting ratio
- Pipeline built on actual conversations, not just activity numbers

My take:
Cold calls don’t fail because people hate sales calls.
They fail because most reps don’t take control of the first 30 seconds.

PS. Want my cold calling prep cheatsheet? 
Comment CALL in the comments below.

Brand partnership • Helping sales teams win without the bro-energy || 1x President’s Club Winner || Senior AE @ Pleo

Even after 5 years in sales, I still think it's hard.

Every. Single. Deal.

Some days it feels like I'm carrying the weight of the entire quarter on my back.

Your deal stalls in procurement.
You hear “no” 45 times before lunch.
You get ghosted after the perfect demo.

And yet - I wouldn’t trade it for anything.

Here’s why:
Because sales taught me to bet on myself.

Because I’ve learned more about communication, resilience, and business in 5 years than any degree could’ve taught me.

Because I’ve seen what it looks like to lose with grace - and win with a team.

Because the first time I closed a deal I sourced, led, and negotiated from start to finish? I felt unstoppable.

Because every time a customer says, “This actually helped our business,” it reminds me that the work matters.

Because growth in sales is uncomfortable - but it’s always real.

Sales isn’t always fun.
It’s not always fair.

But it builds something in you that no other job does.

And if you’re in a tough quarter right now - keep going.
It’s worth it.

You’re learning more than you think.

PS. What’s one reason you keep showing up in sales?

99% of deals that I lost had one thing in common

(I bet 30% of your pipeline looks the same)

I didn’t set a clear next step.

No matter how good the call felt.
If I didn’t lock in the next move before hanging up.
It died in follow-up limbo.
Deal was dead. 

Here’s exactly how I set next steps now (and how you can too):

1. Always set the next step before the call ends
→ “Let’s grab 15 minutes while we’re both here - does Tuesday or Wednesday work better?”
Why it works: Avoids email tag and ghosting. Locks in commitment live.

2. Make the next step outcome-driven
→ Don’t say: “Follow-up call.”
→ Do say: “Pricing review with the CFO” or “Legal alignment”
Why it works: Creates clarity and urgency - everyone knows what’s coming.

3. Confirm who needs to be in the room
→ “Anyone else we should loop in for the next step?”
→ “Who signs off on this kind of decision internally?”
Why it works: Multithreading early avoids delays later.

4. Recap the call with 3 key bullets
→ What we discussed
→ Why it matters
→ What’s happening next (date, time, people)
Why it works: Removes ambiguity. Builds trust.

5. Use “time framing,” not “next week”
→ Say: “Does Wednesday at 10 or Thursday at 2 work better?”
Why it works: Frictionless scheduling beats soft follow-up every time.


The result:
- Tighter sales cycles
- Fewer ghosted deals
- More control through every stage

My take:
The close doesn’t start with the proposal.
It starts the moment you lock in the next step.

PS. What’s your go-to line to land the follow-up on the call?

After 230 closed deals
Here is how I use MEDDICC to create momentum immediately.

(This is the version I wish I had when I started)

Not theory. Not tick-boxing. Just part of the workflow.

When I started as an AE, I just brushed through the sides in the book and moved on.

Turns out that made me chase deals that weren't even real deals. 

My message: If you want to be a true seller. 
Learn MEDDICC. Period. 

Here’s how to actually use MEDDICC as an AE - not just talk about it in pipeline reviews.
1. 𝗠𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀: 𝗧𝗶𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝗻𝘂𝗺𝗯𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗹𝘆
→ Ask: “If we solve this, how would we measure success?”
 → Example: “10 hours/month saved = 120 hours/year = $X cost recovery”
How I use it: Always mention measurable impact by call 2. If they can’t quantify it, it won’t get prioritized.

2. 𝗘𝗰𝗼𝗻𝗼𝗺𝗶𝗰 𝗕𝘂𝘆𝗲𝗿: 𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗲 + 𝗳𝗿𝗮𝗺𝗲
→ Ask: “Who owns the budget for something like this?”
 → Or: “Who would feel this ROI the most?”
How I use it: I try to identify + involve them before the demo. If I can’t, I always ask to loop them in during proposal.

3. 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗖𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗮: 𝗪𝗿𝗶𝘁𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗱𝗼𝘄𝗻
→ Ask: “What’s most important when comparing vendors?”
→ Bonus: Confirm priorities back in writing.
How I use it: Build my proposal in their words. Not mine.

4. 𝗗𝗲𝗰𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗣𝗿𝗼𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀: 𝗞𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗿𝘆 𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗽
→ Ask: “What are the formal steps before we can get this signed off?”
 → “What’s happened in previous similar purchases?”
How I use it: I build a mini deal plan inside every recap email. Align dates + next steps to keep everyone honest.

5. 𝗜𝗱𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗶𝗳𝘆 𝗣𝗮𝗶𝗻: 𝗚𝗼 3 𝗹𝗮𝘆𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗱𝗲𝗲𝗽
→ Ask: “What happens if this stays the same?”
 → And then: “What’s the impact on you personally?”
How I use it: If I can’t name a pain and a consequence, I disqualify or re-discover. No shallow pain = no deal.

6. 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗕𝘂𝗶𝗹𝗱 𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗼𝗿 𝗺𝗼𝘃𝗲 𝗼𝗻
→ Ask: “Who else agrees this needs to change?”
 → Test them: “If I sent this recap to your CFO, what would they say?”
How I use it: A real champion will coach you. If they won’t, they’re just an influencer.

7. 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗲𝘁𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: 𝗡𝗮𝗺𝗲 𝗶𝘁. 𝗗𝗼𝗻’𝘁 𝗳𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗶𝘁.
→ Ask: “What other options are you exploring?”
 → And: “What do you see as the key differences?”
How I use it: Position by comparison, not defensiveness. Your job isn’t to bash—it’s to guide.

How to bring it all together?
Create a simple MEDDICC tracker per deal
→ I used a Google Sheet, now Hubspot
→ 1 row per deal, 7 columns, updated after every call
→ Color code: Green (locked), Yellow (in progress), Red (unknown)

My bottom line:
MEDDICC isn’t a checklist.
It’s a deal-quality mirror.
 
Use it live, not just retro. 
Use it early, not just in QBRs.


𝗣𝗦. 𝗪𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗮 𝗠𝗘𝗗𝗗𝗜𝗖𝗖 𝘁𝗲𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗮𝘁𝗲? 𝗗𝗿𝗼𝗽 𝗠𝗘𝗗𝗗𝗜𝗖𝗖  𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁𝘀.

 How I Use MEDDICC to Win Real Deals

Even after 5 years in sales, I still get nervous.

Every. Single. Month.

The fear doesn’t really go away.
- Fear of missing quota.
- Fear of letting the team down.
- Fear of losing that big deal I’ve been chasing for weeks.

I used to think once you hit a certain level, the nerves disappear.
They don’t.

You just learn how to work with them, not against them.

Here’s what helps me when the pressure hits:

1. I stop pretending I’m not nervous
→ I’ve learned that fear is normal - it means I care.
→ Once I accept it, I can actually focus again.

2. I move instead of overthinking
→ I go back to the basics: calls, pipeline, follow-ups.
→ Action always quiets anxiety.

3. I track effort, not just outcomes
→ At the end of the week, I ask: “Did I show up fully?”
→ Sometimes the wins come later - but the habits matter now.

4. I talk about it
→ I’ve realized most top reps feel it too.
→ The difference is we just don’t let fear make our decisions for us.

5. I work out 
→ I realised that going for a lunch workout or a run does wonders. 
→ I try to eat good food and go to bed earlier than normally. 

My take:
The fear never disappears.
It just becomes fuel.

If you still get nervous before the month closes - that’s not a bad thing.
It means you still give a damn. 

PS. What do you think?

I once got pitched a role with $300,000 OTE

The manager said, top reps make it "easily.”

“Top reps hit this every month. You’ll crush it here.”

Sounded amazing.
I could see the fire in his eyes. 
... until I asked a few questions.

1. “How many reps hit quota last year?”
→ “Honestly… one and a half. But this year will be different.”

2. “What does your average sales cycle look like?”
→ “Hard to say - deals are a bit unpredictable.”
(Translation: no process.)

3. “How often do you change the comp plan?”
→ “We tweak it pretty frequently.”

4. “What’s pipeline coverage like per rep?”
→ “We expect everyone to build their own from scratch.”

5. “What support can I expect from you as a manager?”
→ “You’re a big hitter - you won’t need much.”

Suddenly, that $300K promise didn’t feel exciting anymore.
It felt like pressure dressed up as potential.

His eyes looked down, and his confidence sounded a little different after that.

I thanked him and walked away.

Here’s the truth:
A big OTE isn’t an opportunity if no one is hitting it.

I’d rather make $130K in a healthy, supportive culture
than chase $300K in a chaos machine.

My take:
Shiny OTEs sell dreams.
Good teams sell reality.

PS. What’s the biggest red flag you’ve ever heard from a hiring manager?

From bottom to President’s Club in 3 years

(5 honest differences that got me there)

When I joined my company, I didn’t come in swinging.

I started at the very bottom of the leaderboard.
Last place.

The rep people quietly hoped would “turn it around soon.”

Meanwhile, others were hitting President’s Club.

I was losing deals I should’ve won.
It stung.

But the truth?
They weren’t more gifted or more charismatic.
They just had habits I didn’t have yet.

Here are the 5 differences that took me from the bottom… to P Club:

1. I stopped winging demos. I started preparing.
→ Old me: open the deck and pray.
→ New me: map every feature to the pain.
Action: Before any demo, ask: “What 2 pains am I solving today?”
 If you can’t answer, you’re not ready.

2. I stopped hoping. I started qualifying.
→ Old me: “Sounds great - let’s book a demo.”
→ New me: “What happens if this isn’t fixed in 3-6 months?”
Action: No urgency = no deal.

3. I stopped chasing. I started adding value.
→ Old me: “Just checking in.”
→ New me: “Here’s how another company solved the exact challenge you mentioned.”
Action: Every follow-up must teach, not nag.

4. I stopped selling to one person. I started multithreading.
→ Old me: rely on one champion.
→ New me: loop in CFO/VP by the second call.
Action: Ask: “Who else is impacted by this today?”
 If they can’t name someone, it’s not a real deal.

5. I stopped working on emotion. I started working on a process.
→ Old me: dial when motivated, stall when stressed.
→ New me: same routine, even on the bad days.
Action: Track weekly:
- Outreach → conversations
- Conversations → meetings
- Meetings → opps

Patterns beat feelings. Every time.

The result?
- Small changes
- Consistent effort
- Slow momentum.
 And eventually - President’s Club.

My take:
Top reps aren’t lucky.
They’re consistent.

Small habits. Repeated daily.

PS. That’s the real unfair advantage in SaaS sales.

 How I Went from Last Place to Presidents Club in 3 Years

After sending 200+ voice messages

(Here are my 5 triggers that book meetings)

Getting replies isn’t about having the perfect pitch.
 
It’s about using the triggers that make people actually want to respond.
Most reps send cold DMs.
Top reps send voice notes with context.

Here are the 5 triggers that helped me book real meetings: 

𝟭. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗜 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁” 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿
→ “Hey Anna, saw your update about scaling finance - quick 10-second thought for you.”
Why it works: Relevance beats every script.

Action: Never send a voice message without engaging with one piece of their content first.

𝟮. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗶𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗲𝗰𝘁” 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿
→ “Congrats on the Series A - teams at your stage usually hit X challenge. Quick question…”
Why it works: Milestones = intent.

Action: Funding, hiring spikes, job changes, and new roles = instant VM opportunities.

𝟯. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝘆𝗼𝘂’𝗿𝗲 𝗻𝗼𝘁 𝗮𝗹𝗼𝗻𝗲” 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿
→ “I spoke with 3 Heads of Finance this week facing the same bottleneck you mentioned - sharing this quickly.”
Why it works: Pattern recognition builds credibility fast.
 
Action: Turn repeated pains into 8-12 second insight notes.

𝟰. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗜 𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝘁𝗶𝗺𝗲” 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿
→ “Didn’t want to drop a long text in your inbox - figured a quick voice note is faster.”
Why it works: Human > automated.

Action: Keep it under 15 seconds. Long VMs kill reply rates.

𝟱. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 “𝗼𝗻𝗲 𝗾𝘂𝗲𝘀𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗼𝗻𝗹𝘆” 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗴𝗲𝗿
→ “Curious - who owns [problem] internally today?”
Why it works: One question = reply.
Two questions = confusion.
Zero questions = silence.

Action: End every VM with one irresistible question. Not more.

The result:
- 25% reply rate
- More booked calls
- Faster, more human conversations

My take:
Voice messages aren’t a hack. 
They’re a differentiator.

Used with the right triggers, they turn cold outreach into real dialogue.

I organize and run my voice workflows with LGM For Sales & GTM, and I grouped my templates into a resource. 

𝗣𝗦. 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 “𝗩𝗢𝗜𝗖𝗘” 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗜’𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝗲𝗻𝗱 𝗶𝘁 𝘁𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂.

𝗣𝗣𝗦.: 𝗥𝗲𝗽𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗶𝗳 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝘄𝗮𝗻𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝗰𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝟯𝟬-𝗱𝗮𝘆 𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗮𝗹 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝘁𝗼𝗼𝗹.

My best-performing sequence hit a 38% reply rate

(No gimmicks. Just better emails.)

When I first started building sequences, I made every classic mistake:

- Long emails
- Generic intros
- Feature dumping

The “Hope this finds you well” energy

And my reply rates showed it.
Brutal.

It took months of testing, losing deals, and getting ignored to figure out what actually works.

Here’s exactly what changed - and how I consistently hit reply rates today:

1. I stopped writing for everyone. I started writing for one person.
→ “Finance leaders at growing companies” is too broad.
→ “CFO handling 200+ expense reports manually” is specific.

Action: One persona. One moment. One pain.

2. I cut my emails down to 4 - 6 lines.
Prospects don’t read long emails - they scan.

Format that works:
- Line 1: Relevant trigger
- Line 2–3: Insight
- Line 4: Why it matters now
- Line 5: One binary ask
If it doesn’t fit on a mobile screen, it goes.

3. I stopped spraying. I started targeting.
→ Old me: hope any account converts.
→ New me: laser focus on Tier 1 accounts, I warm up before outreach.
→ Salesforge 🔥 makes this easier in 2025 - unlimited email + LinkedIn senders to enroll contacts across channels and scale what’s working.

Action: Only sequence accounts you’ve warmed up in some way - comment, view, engage, or trigger.

4. I added a short insight in every touch.
Not paragraphs - one nugget.
Examples: 
→ “Teams with 200+ receipts/month often lose 10–12 hours weekly to manual approvals.”
→ “Most companies I talk to delay reporting by 5–7 days for the same reason you mentioned.”

Action: Teach something small. Relevance is the differentiator.

5. I switched to binary questions.
Not: “Let me know if you're open to a chat.”
But:
→ “Worth a 10-min look?”
→ “Should I send the workflow comparison?”
Binary > vague.
Always.

The result:
Real replies
Better triggers
Shorter emails
Cleaner sequence

My take:
1. Outbound isn’t dead. Bad outbound is.
2. Write like a human. Keep it short.
3. Speak to their world - not yours.

PS: I found an offer for you - Salesforge is giving 1 month of free access to the first 100 users for Black Friday. Just use the code BFCM100 and enjoy. 

PPS. Never thought I would turn into the "guy who has a discount code" but hey, here you have it 😅

I closed a $100,000 deal this year 

(AI played a bigger role than I expected)

I’m not someone who believes AI will “replace sales.”

But I am someone who’s learned it can give you an edge when the deal really matters.

This one was a six-figure outbound deal - and here’s the bts:
I wouldn’t have closed it this fast without AI.

Here’s exactly how it helped:

1. AI caught details I missed
 Before a late-stage call, I asked my AI assistant to summarize every interaction so far:
→ Pain points
→ Priorities
→ Stakeholders
→ Objections

It surfaced a comment the VP made 6 weeks earlier about “manual approval bottlenecks.” 

I built my entire call around that line. It landed hard.

Action: After every big call, upload your notes/transcript and ask:
“What did I miss that would matter to the CFO?”

2. AI helped me prep for EACH stakeholder
When Finance entered the deal, use your AI like a Copilot (that is a bit smarter than you;))

I recommend using Apollo's AI Assistant to research:
→ What they care about
→ What they ignore
→ What objections they’re most likely to raise

It gave me a clean angle for each persona - ROI for Finance, workflow for Ops, simplicity for end users.

This saved hours I usually waste researching.

Action: Before every multi-threaded call, ask AI:
“Summarize the priorities and objections of this persona.”

3. AI handled the heavy lifting on ROI
I fed it:
→ Team size 
→ Benchmark data
→ Hours wasted today
→ Cost of manual processes

It turned those into a CFO-ready ROI story in under two minutes.
I only had to refine it - not rebuild it.
That ROI deck became the backbone of the business case.

Action: Ask AI:
“Turn this into a 2-slide ROI summary for leadership.”

4. AI helped me write the strongest recap I’ve ever sent

After the final call, I uploaded the transcript and asked:
“Write a concise, confident recap with risks, commitments, and next steps.”

Apollo’s AI Assistant helps turn a messy 45-minute meeting into a crystal-clear alignment email.

The CFO replied within an hour:

“Approved. Let’s move forward.”

Action: AI recaps remove emotion and add clarity - use them after every high-stakes meeting.

The result?
- Shorter cycle
- Cleaner alignment
- My largest deal ever

My take:
AI didn’t close the deal.
But it made me sharper, faster, and cleaner than I could’ve been on my own.

It wasn’t about shortcuts. 
It was about clarity.

In big deals, clarity closes.

𝗣𝗦. 𝗧𝗿𝘆 𝗶𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘀𝗲𝗹𝗳 𝗵𝗲𝗿𝗲: https://bit.ly/46uv8iv

𝗣𝗣𝗦. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗴𝗼-𝘁𝗼 𝗔𝗜 𝘂𝘀𝗲 𝗰𝗮𝘀𝗲 𝗿𝗶𝗴𝗵𝘁 𝗻𝗼𝘄?

 How AI Helped Me Close a 100k Deal 

When I was an SDR, 70% of my outbound deals closed

(Here’s exactly what my AE and I did differently)

My AE told me this early on:
“You don’t win deals by knowing your tool.
 You win deals by understanding their pain better than they do.”

At first, I didn’t get it.
I thought being sharp meant knowing features, pricing, use cases.
Spoiler: It doesn’t.

So we made a plan. The result?
A 70% win rate on outbound-sourced opportunities.
No magic.
Just process.

Here’s exactly what we did:

1. We aligned weekly - no exceptions
→ 30 minutes every Monday
→ What’s working
→ What’s stalling
→ Which objections are killing deals
→ Which messages are landing

If your AE/SDR sync isn’t on the calendar, it doesn’t exist.

2. We didn’t spray accounts - we agreed on them
→ My AE sent me 10 dream accounts per week
→ With context:
1. Why this account
2. Who matters
3. What trigger we’re playing

Never prospect without knowing why this account, why now.

3. We ran the same talk track
No mixed messaging. No freestyle.
→ Same positioning
→ Same pain language
→ Same success stories

Record the AE’s best discovery calls and steal their exact phrasing.

4. We reviewed EVERY booked meeting together
Not just “nice job.”
We broke down:
→ Why they said yes
→ What objection almost killed it
→ What made them lean in

Create a shared doc:
1. Account
2. Outcome
3. Lesson
This alone doubled my consistency.

5. We multithreaded from day one
→ I warmed up end users
→ My AE went straight for power
→ Same account, different angles

Split by persona:
SDR = pain builders
AE = deal blockers

6. We followed up as a team
If they no-showed:
→ I re-engaged
→ AE sent value
→ Two angles, same story

Never let one person chase alone.

The result?
- Fewer “happy ears”
- Faster qualification
- Less deal rot
= 70% win rate on outbound

My take:
Great outbound isn’t about talent.
It’s about alignment.

The best SDRs don’t just book meetings. 
They help build deals.

And the best AEs don’t just close.
They help build pipeline.

𝗣𝗦. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗶𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗢𝗡𝗘 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗔𝗘 𝘁𝗼𝗹𝗱 𝘆𝗼𝘂?

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The Battle

Manuel Hartmann

Jan Benedikt Mundorf

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The Battle

Manuel Hartmann

Jan Benedikt Mundorf

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Engagements

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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);}Jan Benedikt Mundorf's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScoreJan Benedikt Mundorf's LinkedIn Performance