Jason Vana

Marketing Director

Attract the RIGHT customers to your business | Brand & content strategist | Founder at SHFT | Known as #sassyjason

Struggling to attract the right clients?

You have a brand strategy issue.

Attracting the right people requires understanding why they should buy from YOU, when there are 1000’s of other options easily accessible through Google.

In order to attract, convert, and retain the right clients, you need to:

- Know what makes your business unique
- Communicate what makes your business unique
- Create an experience that shows what makes your business unique

It’s all about highlighting your uniqueness.

That’s where my agency steps in.

Through collaborative workshops, research, strategy, and design, we will help you uncover, communicate, and build an experience around your uniqueness.

Working with us typically looks like:

- industry, competitor, and customer research
- brand and marketing workshops 
- brand and marketing strategies
- design (logos, websites, marketing materials)

It culminates in an Onlyness Action Plan — your 1 year, step-by-step brand and marketing to-do list.

All so you become the ONLY choice for your ideal customers.

And make a lot more money.

Want to learn more?

Send me a message.
Or book a call at shft.agency/discovery

Founder & CEO

We transform B2B service companies into the ONLY choice for their ideal customers. Our clients see a 20%+ increase in revenue with our brand and content strategies. 

Here's how we help:

◼️ Brand Strategy (customers, uniqueness, messaging, touchpoints, story)
◼️ Brand Design (logos, colors, fonts, collateral)
◼️ Content Strategy (demand gen, content creation)
◼️ LinkedIn (strategy, content, profile audits)

Interested in learning more? DM me or book a discovery call below.

Positioning is not a brand.
Positioning is not a design.
Positioning is not a product.
Positioning is not a message.
Positioning is not a pitch deck.
Positioning is not a case study.
Positioning is not a marketing tactic.
Positioning is not the content you create.

It's the space you own in the mind of your ideal customer.

How they think about you when you're not in the room. - Bezos
The gut feeling they have about your business. - Neumeier
The reputation you hold. - every marketer ever

And it's influenced by:

- your brand
- your product
- your message
- your case studies
- your marketing tactics
- your logo and colors
- your sale process
- your operations
- your pitch deck
- your content
- your price

Determine the space you want to OWN in the minds of your ideal customers.

Everything else should influence that perception.

Or, just let your website developer write your messaging.

I'm sure that will work, too.

(Hint: it won't)

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

Turn your sharpest edge into a market-leading position. I build b2b service brands that stand out + drive revenue. Founder/CEO at Shft.Agency. Brand Strategist. Known as #SassyJason

Operations > personality

Most branders and marketers will fight me on this.

Somewhere along the line personality became the "it" thing.

All driven by the "people buy from people" mindset.

Which is slightly true.

Yes, people buy from people.

But they buy from people who:
- they resonate with
- can solve their problem
- can paint the picture of their future
- provide value they can't find elsewhere

All of that revolves around one thing:

An uncopyable element.

Something you DO that no other business does.

Notice the emphasis on "do."

It's operations, actions, deliverables.

Not personality. 

Extract that uncopyable element from your operations.

Then build your brand personality, messaging, marketing, content, pitch decks, social proof, hiring practices — everything! — around it.

Your brand will show depth. Value. Differentiation.

And give customers a reason to choose YOU.

If you're into that sort of thing, that is.

✌🏼

#shftyoubrand

Create a brand system to attract better-fit, higher-paying clients. | I build b2b service brands that stand out + drive revenue. Founder/CEO at Shft.Agency. Brand Strategist. Known as #SassyJason

Shft is undergoing a rebrand.

And we started in a place most brand agencies ignore:

Our operations.

Most rebrands start with vibes.

Purpose, mission, vision, values, personality.

That's the path to blending in.

Because all of those can be copied.
(Yes, including your personality.)

But you know what can't be copied?

That one thing you DO that your competitors can't or won't do.

So we started there.

Dug into what Shft actually does differently.

You know what we found?

We don't brand based on vibes.
We brand based on operations.

The thing you DO.
The methodology you follow.
The one step in your process no one else does.

Hell, the first step working with us is an Offer workshop.

We dig into your offer, process, and deliverable to extract what makes you different.

THAT'S our uncopyable element.

Because most branders out there are personality creators.

They give you adjectives, stories, archetypes, mission statements...

But never touch operations, sales, or even your offer.

🤦🏻‍♂️

Our rebrand will be launching in a few months.

But I'll be sharing the process as we go.

So you understand why vibe branding is a sham.

And operational branding makes you stand out.

Stay tuned.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

undefined undefined

Hey there!

Stoked to hear you're looking to find your unique brand differentiator!

Here's the link to download my B2B ‘Just Be Authentic’ Playbook:

https://findyourdifferentiation.com/?utm_source=social&utm_medium=linkedin&utm_campaign=launch_dm

I've spent weeks working on this resource, and I honestly think you'll find it super valuable.

Let me know if you have any questions as you go through it, and enjoy!

-Jason

Content Driven By Brand Strategy

📌 The best content is driven by a solid brand strategy.

- know your ideal customers
- know what makes your offer unique
- know your position in the market
- know the right tone and voice

Then create content that intersects all three.

You'll never create content your ideal customers love if you don't know who they are.

Want your content to generate real revenue?

DM me today or visit https://shft.agency/content 

Offer -> Brand Strategy

📌 The right offer matters.

No amount of marketing, content, or personal branding will help you sell a sh*t offer long-term.

And it certainly won't be something people pay a premium price for.

Nailing your offer is a core step in creating a profitable brand.

Need help with that?

DM me or visit https://shft.agency/services/brand-strategy to get started.

Clarity Call: Offer

📌 Productizing your strategy or service offer makes it much easier to sell.

Think of it like hiding your strategy behind a core deliverable. 

You sell the deliverable.
And your service/strategy is HOW you create the deliverable.

Need help with that?

We can nail it down in a 1-hour Clarity Call.

DM me or book a call directly at https://shft.agency/clarity 

Go Up Market

📌  You won't be able to successfully stumble up-market.

You need a solid brand strategy to help determine:

- your new ICP
- your new position
- your new price points
- your new differentiation
- your new brand personality

Getting that nailed down will make your transition up-market far more successful.

And by successful, I mean profitable.
For you.

Want to move up-market successfully?

I've helped 125+ businesses reposition their brand for maximum profitability.

DM me for more or visit https://shft.agency/services/brand-strategy 

Brand Strategy

📌 I'm not saying all is lost when you don't start with a brand strategy.

But, starting with one makes revenue generation far easier and faster than just 'testing' what works.

The need to 'test' is often the result of not having the right foundation for your business.

Get that foundation in place and you'll be able to move faster and make far more money.

Need help with that?

I might know a #SassyStrategist who can help.

DM me or visit https://shft.agency/services/brand-strategy to get started today.

Strategy myths = invisible chains on your business.

I see them everywhere.

And they hold back founders who should be making bank.

Here are 13 strategy myths I hear constantly (especially on LinkedIn):

1. "Strategy is just for big companies."
Small businesses need strategy MORE.

2. "We can figure it out as we go."
That's called guessing, not strategizing.

3. "Strategy takes too long."
Know what takes longer? Fixing years of random decisions.

4. "Our strategy is to work harder."
That's not a strategy. That's being stupid.

5. "We need to be everywhere."
No. You need to dominate somewhere specific.

6. "Strategy and tactics are the same thing."
Strategy is WHERE you're going. Tactics are HOW you get there.

7. "Good products sell themselves."
In what universe? Even Apple has a strategy.

8. "We'll pivot if it doesn't work."
Pivoting without a strategy is just flailing in a different direction.

9. "Strategy is too expensive."
Wasting money on the wrong things is expensive.

10. "Our team is too small for strategy."
Your team is too small NOT to have one.

11. "We just need more leads."
You need the RIGHT leads. That requires strategy.

12. "Strategy kills creativity."
Wrong. It focuses creativity where it matters most.

13. "We can copy what competitors do."
You're a special kind of stupid, aren't you?

These myths keep businesses stuck.

Strategy isn't a luxury reserved for Fortune 500 companies.

It's the difference between building something that lasts...
...and wasting time and money on "testing" stupid ideas.

Stop believing the myths.
Start building with intention.

That, my friend, happens with a strategy.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

13 Strategy Myths that Hinder Revenue | Shft Agency

Becoming uncopyable starts in with your operations.

Something you DO that your competitors can't or won't.

Take these uncopyable elements from some of our clients:

- IoT remote monitoring system that outputs a prioritized checklist
- Energy recruiter that presents candidate profiles instead of resumes
- IaC developer that upskills your developers on operational workflows
- MVP and website developer that designs a tech experience, not just a platform
- Vacuum pump remanufacturer that tests tolerances on every screw, nut, and component part

We built their position around those uncopyable elements.

Messaging, marketing, pitch decks, social proof, content, design, copy — it all points back to that ONE thing.

That's what your brand SHOULD do:

Make it clear why customers should choose you.

Because if you don't...

- you'll sound like every other business
- you'll confuse prospects
- you'll rely heavily on sales

And when customers don't know WHY they should choose you, they don't.

It's basic buyer psychology.

Find your uncopyable element. 
Own it in everything you do.

Or don't be surprised when prospects choose your competitors.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

----
PS - I'm sharing how in Saturday's Brand Shft email. Click the link in my bio to subscribe.

Most brands are built on a vibe:

- purpose
- mission
- vision
- values
- personality

Elements that FEEL important.
But don't really matter to the market.

Be honest:

When was the last time you purchased a SaaS product because the mission of the company resonated so deeply with you that you couldn't help but give them your money?

If you said anything other than never, you're lying.

Vibe branding is surface level.

And keeps you locked in a struggle to attract and convert your ideal customers.

That's why I focus on operational branding.

- extract your differentiation from your operations
- build your brand around that differentiation
- create a unique and ownable position

Start with your operations.
The one uncopyable thing you do.

(Hint: you do have one)

And create everything around it.

It gives your brand depth.
An ownable IP.
And makes you uncopyable.

Create a your brand on a vibe...
...and you'll blend in to all the AI-generated noise.

OR

Create your brand on the one uncopyable thing you do.

And watch as customers repeatedly choose you over the competition.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

----
PS - Find what makes you uncopyable in this Saturday's Brand Shft email. Link in comments and in my bio.

I run a branding agency. We do NOT have:

- purpose statement
- vision statement
- mission statement

And guess what? WE STILL LAND CLIENTS.

Shocking, I know.

According to most brand agencies, marketing gurus, and influencers, you can't operate without those statements.

You need to know your WHY.
You need a purpose.
Customers want to know your mission.

Bollocks. 

I didn't start Shft with a 'why.'
(other than wanting to work for myself)

And I don't feel lost, confused, or struggle to land clients.

Because your WHY doesn't really matter to clients.

You know what matters to them?

- You can solve their problem
- In a way that matters to them
- Within their budget

Show that, and your purpose, vision, mission, and values don't matter.

Here's how:

- Uncover your uncopyable IP
- Operationalize it
- Showcase proof
- Share your expertise

👆🏼 Doing that will get you further than spending months nailing your mission statement.

Because purpose, vision, mission, and values are great.

They should outline how your team acts.

But you know what makes money?

An Uncopyable IP.

- Process
- Operation
- Deliverable
- Methodology

Start there.

You'll make a sh*t ton more money.

While your competitors are still trying to finalize their mission statement.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

Treat AI like an intern.

It's great at performing mundane, repetitive tasks:

- finding patterns
- researching trends
- analyzing data sets
- clarifying your thinking
- creating low-level graphics
- organizing and qualifying leads

Hell, I use it to find competitors' social media profiles.
Pull analytics.
Find industry patterns.

And even point out what they AREN'T doing.

All things I could train an intern to do.

Because in order to get AI to do that level of work...

YOU HAVE TO TRAIN IT LIKE AN INTERN.

Give it examples.
Explain what to do.
Explain what not to do.
Document a process.
Review its work.

AI is NOT going to run your business while you sleep.

Or take a single prompt and spit out the most industry-shattering idea that will make you millions.

Or help you to stand out and do something different.

(it's not even built that way)

AI is an intern.

Treat it that way.

Or keep expecting it to be your strategist, content creator, and business coach.

Don't be surprised when you look, sound, and have the same offer as every other competitor on the market.

Because that's what AI will give you.

The average of everything it's trained on.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

Building a moat around your brand starts with one thing:

Your uncopyable element.

The one thing you DO that:

- your ideal customers want or need
- your competitors can't or won't do

Call it your onlyness, differentiation, uniqueness, USP, or your value.

Most founders look for it in their personality, purpose, or team.

And try to own some form of being the best.

(Industry leading, highest quality, single source of truth)

All those do is position your business as the same.

- same offer
- same value
- same message
- same look and feel

And ultimately competing on price.

Because vibe branding lacks one key element to business growth:

A real reason for customers to choose you.

Extract your uncopyable element. 
Build your brand around it.
Own that place in the market.

And watch as customers continue to choose you.

I'm sharing how to extract what makes you uncopyable in tomorrow's Brand Shft email.

Subscribe today to get it → https://lnkd.in/gvmiU8YE

Or, you know, keep pushing your mission statement and personality.

Like every other damn B2B company out there.

I'm sure that will make you stand out.

(NOT)

✌🏼

#shftyoubrand

Launching an effective brand requires:

- Uncopyable IP (operation, process, methodology)
- Deep understanding of their ideal customers
- Clear and compelling messaging
- Few, but aligned, offers
- Offer staircase to make selling easier
- Relevant experience (marketing, sales, operations)

THAT'S the bare minimum.

Especially if you want to stand out, increase revenue, and become the only choice for your ideal customers.

Not purpose.
Not mission.
Not vision.
Not personality.
Not even design.

You need the ability to communicate:

- The unique benefit you bring to the market
- For whom
- How

And turn that into a system to attract and convert clients.

The rest are nice-to-haves, but not requirements.

Looking to launch a new brand?
Trying to reposition your existing brand?
Want to go up-market and attract higher-paying clients?

Skip the purpose, mission, vision, and values.

Nail your uncopyable IP.
And develop a system to own it in the market.

That will take you further than any purpose statement or new design can.

Imagine that.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

----
PS - Create a launchpad for your new or repositioned brand with our Brand Launchpad offer. 4 weeks to get the necessities of a brand strategy. Only $7,500 and only taking on 2 clients this quarter. Learn more in the comments.

Brand awareness ≠ brand recognition

Yet, that's how most founders and marketers treat it.

Failed marketing campaign? It's brand awareness.
Failed tradeshow presence? It's brand awareness.
Failed content implementation? It's brand awareness.

As long as the market sees the brand name and logo, and can recall it, that's brand awareness, right?!

WRONG.

That's brand recognition, not awareness.

Let's clear something up right now.

Brand awareness is achieved when people know:

- the brand name
- what the brand does
- how the brand could impact them

Much deeper than brand recognition alone.

And the only way to achieve true brand awareness?

Brand inclusion.

Your brand shows up when and where ideal customers are searching.

Stop using brand awareness as an excuse for marketing's failures.
Or seeing it as brand recognition.

Awareness is about seeing your brand as a solution.

NOT just recognizing your damn logo.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

75% of Shft's revenue comes through my LinkedIn account.

And no, it's not from my content alone.

Ghostwriters and gurus will tell you that great content is enough to get leads sliding into your DMs like a thirsty married woman wanting you to join her and her husband.

(I've gotten that DM before multiple times...🤮)

Your content creates awareness.

It's meant to show people:

- you know what you're doing
- your unique point of view
- your methodology
- your personality

Now, sometimes you'll have enough awareness that a single post can create a flood of DMs and booked calls.

But that's putting the fate of your business in the hands of the algorithm.

And we all know that Linky Dink has been drunk for a year.

Revenue comes from systems.

Like this one I've used for the last 6 years ↓

- Created a LinkedIn Strategy
- Create content to help my ICP
- Engage before my post publishes
- Respond to comments on my posts
- Focus on DMs
- Schedule my time on LinkedIn

I'm sharing an in-depth breakdown, including resources to build your own system, in tomorrow's Brand Shft email.

Subscribe so you don't miss it → https://lnkd.in/gfNESZr3

That mix of content (awareness) and DMs (conversations) driven by a strategy wins.

Both for me
And for my clients

Develop your LinkedIn system.

Or don't be surprised when your ideal customers choose your competitors.

Simply because they did the work to generate leads.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

Finding your uncopyable element isn't hard.

Here's how I've done it for 145+ businesses:

- Map your process
From discovery to delivery, document everything you DO.

- Research your competitors
Look for what they can't or won't do.

- Research your customers
Understand what they want and need.

-  Extract what you do differently
Find ONE thing you do that your customers want or need and your competitors can't or won't do.

Don't look for the BIG thing.

The industry-revolutionizing idea.

It's often hiding in the small things you do.

- deliverable
- consultation
- methodology
- framework

The thing you think isn't special because you've done it 100 times for 100 different clients?

THAT'S often your uncopyable element.

Extract it.
Own it.

And watch it attract customers you never thought you'd land.

Struggling to find it?

I'm sharing my system in this Saturday's Brand Shft email.

Subscribe today → https://lnkd.in/gpDf2hFA

It's driven millions in new revenue for my clients.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

The Path to Becoming Uncopyable | Shft Agency

Brands rise and fall on one key element:

Their ability to communicate an Uncopyable IP.

Most brands don't know how to talk about what they do.

"We're the industry leading..."
"We optimize the collaboration between..."
"Awesome products for your business..."
"We build websites that sell."

Boring. Unclear. Confusing.

If prospects don't understand why they should choose YOU...

...THEY WON'T.

It's that simple.

Follow these 4 tips for communicating your Uncopyable IP:

- Speak about your customers, not your business
Don't start your message with "We." Start with "You."

- Highlight the transformation
No one cares about your product. They care about how your product changes them.

- Be clear and compelling
Clear alone doesn't incite action. Compelling alone can be confusing. Combine the two. You'll move prospects to convert.

- Talk about your Uncopyable IP
Align your message with what makes you different.

I run every client message through those filters.

Follow those tips.

You'll create a message that compels products to convert.

I'm sharing how in Saturday's Brand Shft email.

Subscribe today to get it → Link in comments cause reach.

Or keep sharing that boring, confusing, copyable message.

I'm sure that will make it easy for prospects to choose you.

NOT

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

Repeatable Client Acquisition & Fulfillment | Our mastermind community helps you convert online income into a real business | Book a call or DM to apply

I'm an operator documenting what I've learned building revenue engines over the past decade.

CEO @ MSP Sales Partners. Managing Partner @ Repeatable Revenue. Former PE-backed CEO. Former Managing Director at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce. Spent six years building sales systems for Robin Robins (TMT, sold to PE). Built revenue engines for 100+ service businesses.

I write about what I've learned: how sales systems actually scale, the difference between activity and productivity, why hard choices matter more than hard hours, building a business without burning out.

This isn't guru content. It's lessons from the work... what I got wrong, what finally clicked, patterns I see across businesses, frameworks that actually held up under pressure.

I write for three types of people: Strategists thinking about exits and scale. business owners stuck at a plateau trying to break through. Thinkers who want to build intentional lives, not just businesses.

If you're one of those (or all 3), follow along.

Ray J. Green

6 years ago I started posting on LinkedIn because I actually enjoyed creating content. 

I also had a decent amount experience turning around sales teams & businesses using some unorthodox practices. 

So, I wrote about it. 

And wrote about leaving the C-Suite, moving my family to Cabo, and figuring out how to generate income from a Mexican beach. 

My wife and a couple friends were the only people who liked my posts. Sometimes not even them. 

But I actually enjoyed the process. And I wrote just about every day. It was easy. It was light. It was enjoyable. 

With just 3 or 4 likes per post (I don't have many friends), I even managed to get a couple clients from content. They saw a post, looked at my half-assed "optimized" profile, and hired me to give them advice. 

Shortly after that, creating content became a task. Something I had to do every day to be seen and known. To generate some business. 

Sit down. 
Think of something to write. 
Hammer out a post. 
Make it look pretty with descending lines. 
Post. 
Every day at the same time. 

It started to consume every morning. 

Then I learned that commenting on everyone else's posts helped my posts get more reach. So I'd block time every day to "engage" with people's content. A couple hours a day... on a slow day. 

Then I decided to start "batching" content, sitting down and hammering out 6 or 7 posts in one setting and scheduling them all out in advance. 

Then I started recycling content, taking old stuff, refreshing it, and adding it to a second publishing slot for the day. 

Before long, I was cranking out 21 posts a week and racking up who knows how many hours of commenting. 

For all intents and purposes, I was a machine. 

And that's before AI got added to the mix. 

But along the way, I stopped enjoying the process. 

I managed to systematize the joy out of writing. 

Content was forced. Engagement was forced. 

I wasn't sharing a viewpoint I felt strongly about. I wasn't enjoying the process. I was just "building an audience" and generating leads. 

And to some extent, that's perfectly fine. It's LinkedIn. We're all here to do business in one way or another. Myself included. We all gotta eat. 

But today I made a decision: I'm going to start spending more time doing things I genuinely love doing. And one of those things is writing for the sake of writing. 

Not for leads. Not to check a box. Not at a specific time. Not on a schedule. Not in conjunction with 7 hours of commenting on other people's posts. 

But for the joy of it. 

And hoping it adds value in one way or another to someone else here. Even if it's back to 3 or 4 likes per post. 

This post is the first stab at that. And I'm already enjoying this process a hell of a lot more. 

If you want to follow along, comment "WRITING" to receive my.... kidding. 

You'll never see another handraiser post like that from me again. But that's a post for anther day. Maybe tomorrow. But then again, maybe not. 

See you around.

CEO @ MSP Sales Partners | Man. Partner @ Repeatable Revenue | Ex-PE Backed CEO | Former U.S. Chamber Man. Director

When people say, “just stay consistent” or “it’s about volume,” what I hear is: work hard, cross your fingers, and hope you get lucky. 

Just read a post from a popular ghostwriter on how to go viral. His hack? Just have to keep posting. 

Over the weekend watched a YouTube video from a popular business guru on how to find the right growth strategy. Solution? You just have to keep trying new things until it works. 

But if you take this advice literally, and completely, you’re essentially saying “Just keep doing shit until you get lucky.”

And if you’re wired anything like me, that’s not going to fly. Not is it going to be sustainable. 

Volume does matter. Consistency does matter. 

But just like driving to the office everyday doesn’t train you to be an F1 race car driver, volume and consistency aren’t enough. 

It’s intentional volume. Combined with focused reflection and aggressive iteration. 

A critical mass of effort done on purpose. Then regularly reflected on to discern what’s working and what isn’t. And adjusting accordingly. 

Volume without intentionality and iteration is wasted energy. Or lottery ticket-type betting. 

And a good way to burn out.

No alternative text description for this image

The thing you're most certain about in your business is probably the exact thing keeping you capped.

Just took my kids to a Museum of Illusions in Utah. Your brain swears things are true that aren't—by design.

Same thing happens in business. 

I've spent a lot of time this past year with founders of $200M businesses. And founders of $2M businesses. 

Biggest difference between them? 

A few simple beliefs. 

I break down what this looks like in a 10 min podcast. 

Tune in to listen here: https://lnkd.in/eCpt5-i7

My inner critic is a loud SOB.

Good workout? 
You could've gone harder. 

Eating okay? 
Could be cleaner. 

Time with your kids? 
Could be more present. 

Productive at work? 
Could've done more.

It never stops.

I used to fight it. Try to quiet it. Tell myself that I should be easier on myself, like everyone says you should.

And you know what happened?

It made things worse.

Because then I had the critic AND a voice criticizing the critic. 

Layering noise on top of noise.

So I stopped fighting.

I realized my inner critic is a feature. Not a bug.

That voice... the one constantly pushing me... is what I credit for jumping literal generations for my family.

Growing up with divorce. Absent father. Broken homes. In a foster home at one point. Not a lot of money. Or formal education. And layers of other challenges. 

Today? Happily married. Two healthy boys who know nothing of that instability. MBA from a top school. Living in Cabo. Traveling the world.

That tough critic that pushed me said "This is not for you. You can do better. You will do better."

And I did.

Here's the nuance though.

I've learned to allow the critic to push my actions. My habits. My standards.

Without allowing it to define my worth.

I can accept that my actions will never be "enough" while also knowing that I am enough as a person.

And that's a big effing difference.

One keeps you sharp. 

The other keeps you whole.

Dropped a podcast expanding on this a bit if you're interested: https://lnkd.in/eAm7GyPn

Newsletter

Join my email list to get growth strategies for your business here: https://resources.rayjgreen.com/reprev-email

OCAS 2.0

It took me 40 months to break $40k/month as an independent consultant. If I started again, I'd do it in a fraction of the time. I created this course - and share it for FREE - to help others do exactly that: https://www.rayjgreen.com/digital-course

RJG Newsletter

Ready to scale sales in your IT company? Get lifetime access to Ray’s private MSP Sales Toolbox—for free. Sales playbooks, recruiting & interview templates, and tools to diagnose sales problems. Gain access to everything here: 
https://msp.sale/li-toolbox

Chief Executive Officer

Managing Partner

Writer & Podcaster 

Expert In Residence: Sales & Sales Management

Most salespeople treat discovery like a podcast interview.

"Tell me about your business. How many users? What's your current setup? Walk me through your IT history."

Like you're only there to gather information and collect facts.

And I promise you it's costing you deals. 

Something that's helped the hundreds of consultative sellers I've coached: 

Discovery isn't information gathering.
It's the first step of a strategic close. 

Run a bad discovery and the rest of the process is going to pay the price. 

Example for IT companies:

Bad discovery: "How many servers do you have?"

Good discovery: "How is IT accelerating your growth or holding it back right now?"

One gets you data. The other gets you business impact—the ammunition you need when you're actually trying to close the deal 3 weeks later.

The same thing happens in assessments.

Example for IT companies: 

You find cracked passwords. You find too many O365 admins. You document the vulnerabilities.

Then you present them like a checklist: "You have X problems."

But the MSPs who close? They explain why that matters: "You have cracked passwords on essential systems. Let me tell you what happened to a company last month when a disgruntled employee knew they were leaving…"

Every step in your process—from first call to final proposal—has one job: move the deal forward.

Not educate. Not inform. Not "let them think about it."

Move. The deal. Forward.

I shared a podcast on this, and why despite the stigma attached to it, it really is Always Be Closing. 

I explain why and how here: https://lnkd.in/e7SVFiVx

Years ago I gave my wife terrible business advice.

Not because it didn't work.

But because it did.

She had a custom baby bedding business doing $25K/month on Etsy. Six-month waiting list. Countless 5-star reviews. People literally begging her to make "just one more."

She asked for my input.

I looked at all the indicators and told her what any business advisor would say: "It's time to scale."

She had some resistance. "Yeah, but I love sewing."

But she pushed on.

She hired people. Built systems. Went from spending her days doing what she loved—talking to customers, designing patterns, creating with her hands—to managing quality control and dealing with employee issues.

The advice worked. The business scaled.

And she fucking hated it.

Her initial resistance? That gut instinct she had?

Spot on.

She didn't want to build a business. She wanted to do the thing she loved and get paid well for it. Those are two completely different games.

My advice was biased by what I believed a business should be. Not what her business could be for her.

I see this happen quite a bit. And I'm more aware of it having gone through my wife's experience with her. 

I recorded a podcast breaking down: 

→ Why you should pick advisors carefully (even if you love them)
→ Why product-market pull doesn't mean you should scale
→ How to filter advice so you build the right thing (for you, not for them)

Listen in here: https://lnkd.in/eCtMPwpn

One of the biggest challenges with digital marketing is remembering that the people in your feed aren’t the people buying your stuff. 

(Unless you sell products and services to online creators.) 

I’m guilty of forgetting this myself. 

I scroll here and see a bunch of people using AI in really cool, new ways. 

That gets baked into my head when creating a podcast or YouTube video on AI. 

Then I go to an event and talk to my actual customers and prospects and realize, they’re not using AI in their sales process in some of the simplest ways. 

But it’s not just with AI. It’s with all our messaging. 

We have what’s called “the curse of knowledge.” 

When we forget what it’s like to not know what we know so well. It’s a trap a lot of experts fall into. 

So, reminder (to myself as much as anyone) to spend a little more time creating for the people we want to listen. 

Not other creators.

There's a name for what happens in a business when leaders have no spine. 

You know what I'm talking about. When the people responsible for making the tough calls... just don't. 

They ignore underperformance. 
Avoid difficult conversations. 
Procrastinate making hard decisions. 
Or just never make them at all. 

From a business standpoint, it's called 'management debt.' 

'Management debt' compounds just like financial debt. 

It destroys cultures. And it can stunt growth just as much as irresponsible financial debt can. 

I recorded a quick podcast breaking down: 

→ What management debt is (vs. real leadership)

→ The compounding impact it has on companies 

→ How to keep it from accumulating in yours 

Tune in here: https://lnkd.in/eT3aBrt2

I wish there were more 'right' and 'wrong' calls in business. But what I've learned from 20 years of leading teams, divisions, and businesses? 

It's a lot more "good bet vs bad bet' and a lot less 'right decision vs wrong decision.' 

Regardless of whether you're running $500K business or a $500M business, when you're making high level decisions about where the business should go, you're operating with uncertainty. 

You may be 55% sure on some days. 90% sure on a good day. But that's the job description. 

The problem is, I see this crush a lot of founders. 

They go this direction. Then that direction, Start this project. Change to that project. Pick this priority. Then that priority. 

It's exhausting just to watch. 

Even more exhausting to do. I know from experience. 

I recorded a 10 min podcast for any founder or business leader that's felt overwhelmed by uncertainty. And anyone that's let that uncertainty lead to perpetual pivots and indecision. 

You can tun in here: https://lnkd.in/eVNUZDuY

Our 4th graders were begging for cell phones. 

Parents made a pact: rewind the clock & meet 'em halfway. 

No smartphones... 

But they were genuinely thrilled to get these retro beauties instead. 📞✨

We all have beliefs that aren’t true. Every single one of us. 

The question is: How much are those beliefs holding us (or our business) back? 

Last week we took our beach kids on a ski trip to Utah for a few days. 

(“Dad, is that real SNOW?!?!) 

We had an unexpected delay in Salt Lake City and stopped by the Museum of Illusions—which is basically an hour and a half of mind bending experiences. 

It’s display after display of, “How in the hell is that happening?” 

And what it comes down to is your brain creates shortcuts with limited data. It stitches information together in a way that makes sense… but isn’t true. 

Like this picture. 

The tops of both of these boxes are the same size. Hard to see. But they even give you a block to hold over it to confirm. 

It’s harmless in this controlled environment. 

But what if the tops of these boxes represented a critical belief you held about something of importance that was holding you back. 

You know, the belief that: 

— “This business just doesn’t have the potential.”

— “That idea will never work.”

— “I’ve got to have [money, experience, connections, etc]  before I can do that.”

— “I’m too [young, old] to do this.” 

— “That channel doesn’t work anymore.” 

And what if it was just completely… wrong? 

An illusion that was holding you back from a monumental shift and achieving what you wanted. 

I've spent a lot of time this past year with entrepreneurs who've built $50M, $100M, $200M businesses.

I've also spent a lot of time with entrepreneurs who are struggling to get there. 

And the biggest difference I see is their belief systems. 

Founders who struggle to get to the next level typically have a belief that’s holding them back. Something they know to be true… that simply isn’t.  

A common one being that they are more essential to day-to-day operations than they really are. 

The question I’m asking myself today: What am I dead certain is true… that isn’t?

How about you?

I'm on Facebook the other day and see an ad: "Every sales expert is telling you the same lie—you need to build rapport before you sell."

The pitch? Buy my $37 course to learn how to sell without rapport.

If you read on, you'll see this supposed sales expert was making a common mistake: 

Confusing rapport with small talk. 

Rapport = trust & credibility. 

Small talk = likability. 

Talking about the weather. The local football team. The family pictures on the desk.

That might make you likable. But it doesn't make you credible.

And if you're selling anything of real importance to someone, likability only goes so far.

Think of it this way: If you need brain surgery, are you going with the doctor you like most, or the one you trust to get the job done? 

I recorded a podcast breaking down the common misconception. 

In it, I break down:

→ Why small talk doesn't equal rapport (and what does)

→ How to establish credibility in the first 5 minutes

→ The questions that prove you're an expert, not just likable

→ Why rapport is an ongoing process, not a one-time event

Listen now: https://lnkd.in/eDs2mfSZ

You know why so many salespeople waste 10 minutes talking about the weather?

Because they think being liked is the same as being trusted.

It's not.

Here's how I think about it:

If I needed brain surgery, I wouldn't pick the surgeon who makes great small talk.

I'd pick the one who asked questions that prove they've seen my exact condition 50 times before.

Likability gets you in the door. Credibility gets you the deal.

(If you are selling anything of high importance.) 

But there's the psychological trap a lot of reps fall into:

Small talk feels safer. It's comfortable. It doesn't require you to demonstrate expertise or challenge assumptions or risk saying something that might make the prospect uncomfortable.

So you hide behind it.

You talk about dogs and football teams instead of asking the question that might make them think: "Wait, maybe our current IT setup isn't as solid as we thought."

Real rapport is built on confidence, not comfort. 

Confidence that you know their industry. That you've done your homework. That you're not afraid to respectfully push back when they tell you something that's not accurate.

I recorded a podcast breaking down: 

→ Why people confuse likability with trust (and how to fix it)
→ The preparation work that builds real credibility
→ How to show up as an expert, not an order taker

Listen to the whole thing here: https://lnkd.in/eDs2mfSZ

The MSP owner on the phone with me sounded defeated.

His sales rep had just spent three weeks and 20+ hours on what looked like a perfect fit.

Discovery had uncovered real pain points. The assessment was thorough. The proposal meeting went well—good questions, engagement, positive energy.

Then... nothing.

Not a “no thanks.”
Not a “we’re going with someone else.”
Not even a “we need more time.”

Just complete radio silence after weeks of investment.

“This keeps happening,” he told me. “How do we stop bleeding time on deals that were never going to close?”

This was my response:

Open article: Stop Chasing Dead Deals: How to Read Your MSP Prospects Before They Ghost You by mspsuccess.com

Stop Chasing Dead Deals: How to Read Your MSP Prospects Before They Ghost You

taplio

The Battle

Jason Vana

Ray J. Green

Followers

Posts

Engagements

Likes

Performance ScoreJason Vana's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreRay J. Green's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

taplio

The Battle

Jason Vana

Ray J. Green

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);}Jason Vana's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreRay J. Green's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreJason Vana's LinkedIn Performance