I started my career on the phones. I logged 75,000 cold calls before I ever moved into leadership.

The lesson that followed me out of that cubicle was simple: Volume creates activity. It doesn’t create influence.

For 15 years across Revenue.io, Inside Real Estate, and BoomTown, I watched the same pattern play out. We optimized for coverage. We treated "The Account" like a single entity. But buyers punished us for sounding like everyone else.

The market has shifted. You can no longer spam your way to a number.Real buying decisions happen in a messy group.

• The CFO feels the problem in budget bleed.
• The Ops lead feels it in the workaround eating their Tuesday.
• The VP feels it when the board asks why the number is off.

If you treat them all the same, you lose.

My work sits where Sales Development, Ops, and Enablement meet. I build systems that stop reps from guessing and start helping them shape consensus.

That is why I am at Influ2.

It is the first time I’ve seen a way to shape the narrative for the specific humans inside a buying group, before the cold call even happens. We don't wait for demand; we build the context that creates it.

The results of shifting from "spray" to "shape":

• 376% pipeline per rep growth
• 55% of new ARR from signal-based outbound
• 48% faster ramp

Based in Charleston, SC. Toddler mom x2. Terrible at unmuting on Zoom. Great at destroying waste ($, effort, time). 

Curious how contact-level signals can help your ABM motion? Happy to share what we're seeing! 

💌m.bross@influ2.com

Maria Bross

📣 It’s official: you can now find me at Influ2!

The exact problem I’ve been duct-taping solutions for over 15 years finally has a real home.

Our CRM said “Meta has engaged.”
Our reps: Sweet...what do I do with this?

The "signal" never told me or my team who to call.
What the human who engaged actually cared about.
And why us contacting was relevant to them.

So we compensated....

I rebuilt outbound plays.
I rewrote MQL criteria with marketing.
I built signal-based sequences that drove 376% more pipeline per rep.
I built 19 sequences that sourced 55% of new ARR.
I built a custom GPT because “engaged” didn’t mean “ready,” and reps were wasting good leads.

It worked.

But it required constant stitching across Salesforce, Outreach, intent tools, call data, and enablement. And burnt me out. 

And the core mismatch stayed the same:

We organized around accounts.
Buyers made decisions as individuals.
Most research happened before we were invited in.
Most of it never showed up as a click.

If we waited for visible intent, we were ghosted. 

Influ2 works at the level the decision actually happens...the human level. 

You can see which named individual was exposed to what.
You can see influence even if they never filled out a form.
You can see buying-group coverage, not just logo activity.

That matters because I care about two things as an enablement leader:
Reps walking into conversations prepared.
Buyers feeling understood instead of chased.

The culture sealed it.

In interviews, I pushed back directly on a few assumptions. I’ve learned that not every company actually wants that. S/O den kozlov 🇺🇦 for being the real deal - seeing this as a feature not a bug. 

💓 Katie Penner for making the intro and supporting me throughout. 

🤍 Hamish Stephenson 🦘for taking my call in the uber ride to meet my future leader. 

Sean Frazer for teaching me so much in such a short amount of time. ("Girl dad" energy meets AI business acumen.) 

If you’ve ever rebuilt your outbound motion because “account engagement” wasn’t enough, we should talk.

My DMs are open.

PS: Olympic Ice Technician, Mark Keown is my supporting role inspo in this new chapter (Making the sheet perfect for GTM teams with a "little rizz and a little style") 😂

Influ2 Enablement + RevOps | Destroyer of GTM waste| Toddler mom x2

"Employee Appreciation Day" got me thinking.

Past roles? Might as well have been National Grilled Cheese Day.

Pre-Influ2, I'd either miss it or spot some sappy LinkedIn post about it. 

(Like this one.) 

But a month in at Influ2? Different story.

Katie Penner (VP) is proactively Slacking me + Carlie Vollert for ideas on appreciating our SDR team.

Unreal.

Not because SDRs don't deserve it - they 10000% do.

But this level of intention by a leader to see the humans keeping lights on? 

Rare as hell.

Okay, now to the real MVPs of this post. 

Influ2 SDRs, I See You. 

You're: 
✅ asking for feedback
✅ roleplaying with zero ego
✅ testing out new approaches in live calls 
✅ building on your already impressive knowledge 

Wins/Rejection, y'all come back every day with professionalism, a growth-mindset and positivity. 

 I have so much respect for what you all do because it's flipping tough. But the ROI? Bigger than a commission check. 

The skills you build subtly trickle into real life: 

- Negotiating with your toddler at bed time
- Making a spouse sharing a concern feel heard 
- Prepping for an interview in a completely different industry and role 
- Working backwards from running a marathon 

 I'm pumped to be your teammate, a coach and appreciate each of you!

PS: Marketing/ABM leaders: If you're at all focused on influencing real *full cycle* revenue, efficiency metrics... and proving it at the named contact level. 
We should talk precision. (and possibly get my team a win today!)

Bout to hit the phones and fingers crossed land this group some meetings toward March target. 

Expecting to eat giant slice of humble pie 👀 . Wish me luck. 

Haven't cold called in ~6 months... what's the biggest change I should expect?

Most deals I've lost came down to one mistake: 

single-threading.

You find one champion. Hand them the pitch. Cross your fingers they'll sell it internally.  

(Greener reps do this all the time.)

Marketing tries to fix it in the opposite way...

Overnights Yeti tumblers to the entire building because the *account* "showed intent."  

Turns out, just an intern checking where their Bumble date worked.  

Only revenue Marketing can prove they influenced? Yeti's 

Sales takes unnecessary risk.  
Marketing burns budget across an account. 

Neither one matches how real buying groups make decisions.  

It's never one person.  
It's six, eight, sometimes ten.  
Some are deep in the research.  
Some are focused on risk, budget, or technical fit.  
One has final approval.  

Problem is that opinions start forming long before you ever join the conversation...

Group threads. Hallway chats. Shared docs.  

By the time your champion brings you in, half the group has already decided. 

That's when deals are lost.  
Not because your champion failed.  
But because no one else ever heard of you until it was too late.  

Doug Madey and Ed VanderBush from LiveRamp are unpacking this at #B2BMX next week:  

"Orchestrate Your ABM Around the Main Characters, Not the Extras."

March 9th  2:30 PM.  

I won't be there, but I'm living this every day.  

Happy to share my notes on what our brilliant customers (like Ed) are building 💪

Who will be in town?? Katie Penner is hosting what looks like the most fun happy hour in walking distance

graphical user interface, text, application, chat or text message

James "Saywhatsales" Buckley

Board Of Directors & Host of The UNCrushed Podcast

Host & Sales Content Creator @ Sell Better

My mission is to walk alongside sales professionals as they develop the skills and best practices needed to find sales success. 

Our purpose is to show salespeople their true worth as the tip of the spear. 

I have the pleasure of hosting the best minds in sales every day and creating content that elevates the sales profession.

Connect with me @saywhatsales on Instagram, Tik Tok, and Twitter. Join us live daily to learn and grow into a top-performing sales professional.

Host & Sales Content Creator

I have the privilege of conducting content with incredible salespeople and leaders. It's my honor to create content that elevates the sales profession. We take great pride in bringing the best sales talent in the world to the screen so they can aid other sellers in their journey to crush quota and earn the results they deserve. 

We are sales practitioners that happen to teach others how to do it, as well. With thousands of members, our content helps change the game and take your sales to the next level. 

Follow us @sellbetter.xyz on the gram and on Tik Tok for daily tips, techniques, and takeaways that will help you in your daily routines.

My Key responsibilities: 

Host and MC public and private events for/with Sell Better by JB Sales
Help sales reps through tough times with proven tactics
Provide best practices to sellers globally
Elevate the Sales Profession overall
Show salespeople their true value and worth
Give salespeople the confidence they need to be successful
Educate and entertain our audience

In 2022, my good friend Rahul M Wadhwa gifted me a WHOOP.

We had already been on a health journey together for a few years, but that moment added a new layer of accountability and insight that changed the game for me.

Fast forward to this week.

I shared a health update here, like I often do. The support was incredible, and I’m always grateful for that.

But then something happened I didn’t expect.

Jade moore saw the post and reached out. She told me she was impressed with my progress and that WHOOP would upgrade my hardware at no cost.

I didn’t ask for it. I didn’t plan for it. It just happened.

That’s what makes it special.
 
On today’s episode of #CoffeeWithJames ☕️, I’m talking about what a great customer experience actually looks like. Not the kind you script. Not the kind you automate. The kind that shows up when a company is truly paying attention.

Moments like this build loyalty in a way no marketing campaign ever could.

This isn’t just a piece of hardware anymore. It represents a company I feel invested in because they’ve shown they’re invested in me.

And that matters.

Quick side note for everyone celebrating St. Patrick’s Day the way I do.

Some of you are heading out tonight and going all in. No judgment at all.

Just do me one favor. Get home safe.

I miss Ireland. Angie and I have been talking about when we’re going back, and it can’t come soon enough. ☘️ 🇮🇪 💚

Hope you all have an incredible day.

And remember, customer experiences are not extras.

They are everything.

#CustomerExperience #CX #CustomerSuccess #BrandLoyalty #CustomerFirst #WHOOP #HealthJourney #FitnessTracking #WellnessJourney #Accountability #Storytelling #Gratitude #Community #GrowthMindset

James Buckley

"Remember the glory days of LinkedIn back in say 2021?" - Tom Boston

Tom and I have been friends since 2016, and watching his #linkedinjourney has really been something. 

Today on #CoffeeWithJames ☕️, Tom and I chop it up about the SSI post I put out recently and how it translates to what's working today. 

Spoiler, he agrees with Darren McKee and says it's simply "Not a true measure of your success on LinkedIn." Darren heard that straight from LinkedIn, so there we have it, folks. 

So why do we have tens of thousands of connections and followers, yet the exposure just doesn't match the network?

Tom has a few thoughts, as well. 🎙️

#morningvibez #saywhatsales #contentcreation #exposure

Host of the Sell Better Daily Sales Show 🎥

Here I come #Atlanta!

RevPartners bustin out the big g*ns for Southbound and the speakers are insane! 

Yamini Rangan
Varun Anand
Donald Miller
Jen Allen-Knuth
Sangram Vajre
and many more!

I got some tix for those looking to come out and hang with me at this event. 

It's packed with value, and a great time! Atlanta is one of my favorite cities to spend some time in.

Hit me in a DM for details on my special tix. :-)

See ya there!

Yesterday's Sell Better show had so many great questions that didn't get answered! 

On today's #CoffeeWithJames ☕️, I decided to answer some of those questions as best I can.

Shoutout to these folks for being a part of the best audience in the world:
Samantha DePasquale
Jack M.
Dido Torchi
Victoria Laya Andueza
and many more!

Special thanks to Adia Toll for delivering one helluva value bomb show! 

Thanks Later & Parakeet 🦜 for providing my dope swag for today's episode. Friends like you make it all worth doing! 🥂

#MorningVibes #QandA #LIVEshow #Saywhatsales #yourquestions

Most sales teams are experimenting with AI right now.

Few are using it well.

There is a big difference between AI that creates more activity and AI that actually helps you close more deals.

That’s exactly what we’re digging into on March 18.

I’ll be joined by Samantha Lowery from ZoomInfo live on the Sell Better Daily Sales Show to talk about where AI actually fits in a modern sales workflow.

Not the hype.

The real applications sellers are using right now to improve:

• prospecting
• messaging
• call performance
• and deal execution

If you’re trying to figure out how AI should actually support your sales process, this will be a great conversation to join.

Grab your seat here:
https://lnkd.in/eqBmSnK5

See you there.

#sales #b2bsales #salesai #prospecting
#saywhatsales #revops #sellbetter

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Everyone says outbound is broken.

But what if the real problem is how we are using #LinkedIn?

On Monday, March 16th, I’m going live with Darren McKee to break down what actually works right now.

If you have spent any time on LinkedIn, you have probably seen Darren’s work. He has coached thousands of professionals on social selling and personal brand growth and built a massive following by teaching sellers how to build real relationships instead of hiding behind automation.  

This conversation is going to be practical.

No theory.
No “post every day and hope.”
Just real tactics that are working in 2026.

Here are 3 things we’ll unpack live:

🔥 Why most LinkedIn outbound fails
The subtle mistakes sellers make that instantly destroy trust before a conversation even starts.

🔥 The relationship-first playbook
How Darren uses content, comments, and conversations to create real pipeline instead of vanity engagement.

🔥 Turning LinkedIn into revenue
How sellers can turn their network, brand, and conversations into consistent opportunities.

If LinkedIn is part of your sales motion right now, you will want to see this one.

Grab your spot here:
👉 https://lnkd.in/e5ty3bya

Let’s learn how to use LinkedIn the way it was meant to be used.

#saywhatsales #sellbetter #sales #socialselling #b2bsales #prospecting

You think you’re being honest with yourself about why your deals don’t close?
Most reps aren’t.

They tell themselves:
 “It was pricing.”
 “It was timing.”
 “It was the prospect.”

The call is then reviewed, and the real reason becomes apparent.

#Discovery is where deals live or die.

Most deals don’t die from bad demos.
They die from weak discovery.

That’s exactly what Yael Morris and Celeste Berke Knisely, MTA are breaking down LIVE on Sell Better.

Not theory.
Not frameworks for slides.
Real calls.
Real deal reviews.
Real reasons deals were actually lost.

We’re going to show:
 • Where discovery breaks
 • What top reps do differently
 • Why “Closed Lost” in your CRM is usually wrong
 • How to fix the leaks in your deal flow fast

If you care about winning more of the deals you already have, you should be in this session. 

Register here👇  and come ready to be uncomfortable: 
https://lnkd.in/gszeTyv9

#saywhatsales #sellbetter #closedwon #closedlost #behaviorchange

AI is everywhere in sales right now.

Some teams are saving hours every week.
Others are moving faster but seeing worse outbound.

The difference is not the tool.
It is the decisions behind how AI is used.

Next week on Sell Better, I’m joined by Samantha Lowery, Strategic Account Executive at ZoomInfo, to unpack how strong sellers actually use AI in their day-to-day execution. And thanks to ZoomInfo for helping make this conversation possible.

This is not a “100 prompts” session.
We are focusing on the practical workflows that reps actually trust and use. 

Here are a few of the takeaways we’ll cover:

✔️ How to decide what should be automated and what should stay human
We’ll walk through a simple framework for evaluating prospecting and pipeline tasks so automation supports execution instead of hurting message quality or response rates.

✔️ The AI workflows that actually save reps time:
Instead of chasing every new tool, we’ll break down a small number of high-impact workflows that help reps reclaim hours each week without adding complexity.

✔️ How to avoid AI overreach in outbound
Over-automation quietly damages relevance and trust. We’ll talk about where automation often goes too far and the guardrails that keep messaging sharp and human.

If you’re trying to figure out how AI fits into your outbound motion without turning your outreach into robotic noise, this will be a practical session.

Join us live 3/18 at Noon ET 👇
https://lnkd.in/eqBmSnK5

#saywhatsales #sellbetter #dailyshow #Sales #OutboundSales #SalesExecution #AIinSales #SalesTips

Cold email is not dead. Bad cold email is.

Most reps are still sending emails that:
 • Try to say 4 things at once
 • Lead with “we help companies like yours…”
 • End with “Do you have 30 minutes?”
And then they wonder why no one replies.

We’re fixing that LIVE with Samantha Novak-Federmeyer of SuperSend
🎯 The Cold Email Checklist: Hook. Proof. CTA.

It goes down 3/4 at 12 pm ET!

On this show, we’re breaking down exactly how to build cold emails that get read, understood fast, and actually convert to meetings.

Here’s what we’re covering:
✅ How to write the first 2 lines so they feel specific, not templated
✅ The checklist mindset: what to verify before you hit send
✅ One idea per email and how to avoid cramming
✅ Social proof that matches the persona without sounding like you’re bragging ✅ CTAs that drive action without begging for 30 minutes

Plus, frameworks you can reuse so you’re not staring at a blank page:
• Relevance-first: why you, why now, simple ask
• Problem-impact: pain → impact → insight → next step
• Trigger/signal: what changed → why it matters → suggestion → ask
• Pattern interrupt: stand out without gimmicks

We’ll also cover:
• No signal vs light signal vs strong signal
• SDR vs AE/leadership outreach
• What to send after email #1
• How to build a 3 to 5-touch sequence where every message has a job
• What to change between follow-ups so you’re not “just following up”
• Deliverability guardrails that actually matter

And yes… we may do LIVE rewrites.

If you or your team send cold email, this is a must-attend.

Use the link to register 👇
https://lnkd.in/eXhk3ZKM

#SellBetter #ColdEmail #Saywhatsales #EmailTactics

You could get 99 pieces of feedback that tell you how amazing you did.

1 person could tell you they didn’t like it.

Guess which one we choose to fixate on. 👀 

Be conscious of what you focus on! 

#saywhatsales

At some point, “just send more” stopped working.

And a lot of teams are still stuck there.

We wanted to take a different approach, so we teamed up with Jed Mahrle to build:
Modern Prospecting with Jed

It’s a focused look at how prospecting is actually being done today from messaging to channel mix to using signals the right way.

If you’re trying to create more pipeline without burning out your list, you’ll probably find this useful.

Here’s the course:
 👉 https://lnkd.in/ecZxzxrb

#saywhatsales #sellbetter #modernprospecting #ProspectWithJed

No greater feeling than when a deal closes before the expected close date!

#saywhatsales

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The Battle

Maria Bross

James "Saywhatsales" Buckley

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The Battle

Maria Bross

James "Saywhatsales" Buckley

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);}Maria Bross's LinkedIn Performance

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Performance ScoreMaria Bross's LinkedIn Performance