Founder — BizDev Labs. Progressive outbound BDR agency (45+ SaaS clients 🚀)

In 2020, I quit my job with $3K in the bank and no plan. 

Two years later, I built a multi-million-dollar BDR agency and earned a spot on Forbes 30U30.

Today I am redefining the role of a BDR. I believe the BDR role is a lifelong career. And my goal is to build the most tenured BDR team on the market.

—-

Outside of work, I was an Olympic-class windsurfer. 

I lived in Israel, Canada, USA, England, Mexico, Hong Kong, Portugal and Aruba.

Roy Itzhaki

R.I.P. Old-School BDR Roles 🪦
The traditional BDR model is broken, and 2025 just buried it for good.

Here’s what’s failing fast:
• Hire 10 junior reps straight out of college
• Pay them $65K to “prove themselves”
• Give them cookie-cutter scripts
• Tell them “it’s a numbers game”
• Use static lists you bulk downloaded from ZoomInfo 
• Watch the best ones leave for AE roles within a year
• Start the same cycle all over again

Here’s how the new model works 👇
→ Smaller teams of elite BDRs (not 10 rookies, just 3 pros)
→ Dedicated pod: call, email, LI, strategy, GTM engineer
→ Deep collaboration with marketing and AEs
→ Flat structure, no “junior” titles
→ High pay, high ownership, high involvement 
→ Built to last, not just to hit this months quota

The results?
• Fewer reps, higher output
• Consistent pipeline month after month
• Institutional knowledge that stays
• Zero ramp when someone leaves (because no one does)

This is the end of “entry-level sales.”
The new era is BDR as a career, not a stepping stone.

Want to see how we built this model?
I’m giving away the full breakdown:
• The Outbound Pod structure we use for 120+ SaaS clients
• Compensation & role design examples

Like this post, comment "2026 model" below, and I’ll DM you the full Blueprint.
The same model that replaced the old BDR model.
[make sure we're connected!]

#SaaS #BDR #Sales #marketing

---

PS. This is the new way for BDRs. Ask me anything...

Roy Itzhaki 

Founder @ BizDev Labs | Forbes 30 Under 30

🚀 SDR/BDR Jobs in the US, January 2026 Edition!

Here’s a curated list of 34 Software & SaaS companies actively hiring for SDR/BDR roles right now:

1. Giga (65 employees) – Sales Rep – San Francisco, CA
2. Prelude (39 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
3. Phamily (178 employees) – Sales Specialist – New York, NY
4. Hypersonix Inc. (103 employees) – Sales Rep – California
5. Wander (215 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
6. PlanHub (183 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
7. Marigold (1,051 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
8. Sigga Technologies (217 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
9. Elaniin (110 employees) – IT Sales Rep – Remote, US
10. Adobe (41,731 employees) – Sales Rep – San Francisco, CA
11. SchooLinks (2,869 employees) – Sales Rep – Austin, TX
12. Precisely (2,948 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
13. Odoo (7,915 employees) – Sales Rep – SF Bay Area
14. Nexthink (1,140 employees) – Sales Rep – Boston, MA
15. Braincube (172 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
16. Securly (331 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
17. WorkOS (108 employees) – Sales Rep – New York, NY
18. Ressio Software (38 employees) – Sales Rep – Washington, DC
19. EngageTech (172 employees) – Sales Manager – Charlotte, NC
20. Oscilar (135 employees) – Sales Rep – New York, NY
21. TORSH (21 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
22. Novatech (746 employees) – Sales Rep – Nashville Area
23. Nimble (135 employees) – Sales Rep – New York, NY
24. Arrow (94 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
25. Thera (23 employees) – Sales Rep – New York, NY
26. Inworld AI (90 employees) – Sales Rep – Mountain View, CA
27. HubStar (55 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
28. AirGarage (107 employees) – Sales Rep – Las Vegas Area
29. SafetyKit (18 employees) – Sales Rep – San Francisco, CA
30. Selector (149 employees) – Sales Rep – Remote, US
31. DNSFilter (171 employees) – Sales Rep – Tampa, FL
32. Timus (48 employees) – Sales Rep – Tampa, FL
33. Loman AI (19 employees) – Sales Rep – Texas, US
34. Intermedia Intelligent Communications (1,301 employees) – Sales Rep – Denver, CO

🔥 Save this. Share it with someone job hunting.

Who else should I add?

EDIT:

35. Sardine is hiring a BDR please DM Eric Zimmerman 🐟 
36. Climate X is hiring SDRs in NYC DM Tom Giles
37.  Hexmodal is hiring SDRs in NYC DM Benjamin Nordwick
 
#saas #salesjobs #techsales #startups

Here’s a list of 20 SaaS companies hiring for BDR / SDR roles in Canada:

1. Club Caddie (50) is hiring a BDR in CA
2. tofu (11) is hiring a BDR in Toronto, ON
3. Basetwo AI (33) is hiring a BDR in Toronto
4. Aragon.ai (14) is hiring a BDR in CA
5. DataFramer (2) is hiring an SDR in CA
6. Folks (68) is hiring a BDR in ON
7. Traild (181) is hiring an SDR in CA
8. CyberQP (41) is hiring an SDR in Vancouver
9. Faronics Corporation (116) is hiring a BDR in BC
10. Great Question (71) is hiring a BDR in Van
11. Swapcard (182) is hiring an SDR in CA
12. Spotwork (39) is hiring an SDR in Toronto
13. Quadient (3) is hiring an SDR in Markham
14. Besty AI (14) is hiring an SDR in GTA
15. TechPOS (33) is hiring an SDR in Vancouver
16. D3 Security (171) is hiring an SDR in CA
17. Mycroft (28) is hiring a BDR in Toronto
18. Huzzle.com (78) is hiring a BDR in Toronto
19. DBSync (112) is hiring an SDR in ON
20. CoLab (177) is hiring a BDR in Toronto, ON

Who else is hiring? Comment below and I’ll add them.

EDIT (added from comments):

21. ServiceTitan DM Tai S. for ENT BD in GTA
22. Spellbook DM Lara Bragan 
23. Ordesa AI

#hiring #bdr #sdr #saas #sales #canada

Two BDRs.
One makes $70K.
The other? $120K+.

Same product.
Same tech stack.
Same sequences.

Why?

It’s not luck.
It’s not the territory.
And it’s not effort.

It’s the STRATEGY behind the motion.

The top rep didn’t start the day guessing.

They started with:

✅ Picking the right channel
✅ Running actual campaigns not static lists
✅ Prioritizing intent signals
✅ Building cold plays with real triggers
✅ Layering in value touch points
✅ Tracking everything weekly as tests

The average rep?

They open Salesforce and just started calling.

📉 Random activity = random results
📈 Strategic activity = predictable pipeline

If you’re trying to build consistent pipeline...

💥 I am sharing our Strategic Outbound OS Framework.
Built from working with 120+ SaaS companies.

Want access? 
Write "Outbound OS" in the comments.

[and make sure we're connected!]

#BDR #Outbound #LeadGeneration #Sales

I didn’t accidentally become a lifelong BDR.
I chose it.

Early in my career, I was told the same thing everyone hears:
“BDR is just a stepping stone.”

Do your time.
Make your calls.
Get promoted.
Move on.

But once I was actually inside the role, 
I noticed something most people ignored.

I was the first person talking to buyers every day.
The first hearing why they weren’t interested.
The first seeing which messages landed.
The first hearing how people describe their problems.

And yet… none of that insight was valued.

BDRs were treated like executors, not thinkers.
Volume mattered more than signal.
Activity mattered more than learning.

That never sat right with me.

So instead of rushing to “escape” the role, I leaned into it:

• I tracked patterns, not just outcomes
• I fed objections back into positioning weekly
• I tested ICPs in real time, not anually
• I optimized order of operations, not scripts
• I treated outbound like a system, not a grind

That’s how you book more meetings.
That’s how you create real momentum.
That’s how you build a repeatable system.

This is also why I stayed a BDR, by choice.

Because mastery compounds.

--

Now let me ask you:

If you’re the one closest to the market...
Why treat your role as temporary?

#BDR #Outbound #Pipeline #GTM #SaaS

Outbound isn’t hard, it’s just built wrong...

Most teams fail because they expect one BDR to do everything,
and then wonder why pipeline is random.

I wish someone had shown me a clear system earlier.
So I built one.

📌 The Outbound Pod System™ Cheat Sheet
Who does what.
Who owns what.
How pay actually works.

All on ONE page.

Save it.
Use it.
Stop guessing.

If you want to see how we run this with real B2B SaaS teams,
it’s all here →

https://lnkd.in/gZVTJ5vA

This photo was taken a few weeks after I quit my job.

COVID had just started.
Everything was shutting down.
And I had no real plan beyond betting on myself.

No runway.
No safety net.
No clear idea how this would work out.

Very few people believed in the move.
Some days, I didn’t either.

If it failed, I genuinely didn’t know how I’d recover.

But I did have one thing most people overlook:

Outbound.

No industry credibility.
No big-name network.
No unfair advantage.

Just the ability to reach out, start conversations, and get real responses.

When everything around me was unstable, that skill stayed predictable.

Here’s the lesson people miss:

If you know outbound, you’re never actually stuck.

You can create surface area on demand.
You can open doors without waiting for permission.
You can build momentum when there is none.

Practically, that looks like this:

* Selling a product with no brand
* Finding your next role without referrals
* Getting time with people “out of your league”
* Asking for capital, partnerships, or sponsorship

Most people wait for opportunities to appear.

Outbound people create them.

That’s why this skill compounds under pressure.

I didn’t survive that period because I was confident.
I survived because I could generate conversations on demand.

Now to you:

If you already know outbound or lead gen, don’t downplay it.
You’re holding leverage most people never bother to build.

#outbound #leadgeneration #bdr #sales #gtm

Everyone calls BDR “entry level.”

It’s not.

It’s just treated like one.

Here’s the reality most people miss:

-> BDRs are the first ones to feel the market.
-> They hear objections before leadership does.
-> They test messaging before marketing knows what works
-> They see which ICP actually leans in and which one looks good on a slide but never buys.

That’s not entry-level work.
That’s front-line strategy.

The reason it looks junior is simple:

• Little context
• No ownership
• No feedback loop
• Paid to “execute,” not to think

So most BDRs are stuck dialing lists they didn’t choose,
pushing messaging they didn’t shape,
for a pipeline they don’t control.

But when you flip that?

When a BDR owns:
• ICP learning
• Signal detection
• Messaging iteration
• Channel strategy

They stop being a stepping stone.
And become a growth lever instead.

The best BDRs I know aren’t trying to “graduate” out of the role.

They’re building unfair advantages inside it.

#BDR #Sales #Outbound #SaaS

If BDR is “entry level”… why is it the hardest role to replace when someone great leaves?

Every company I worked with had the same setup.

• Marketing planned campaigns in theory
• Sales closed whatever showed up
• BDRs sat in the middle, expected to “execute”

But from the inside, I kept seeing something different.

I was the first one hearing real objections.
The first one testing messaging in live conversations.
The first one feeling friction in the market.
The first one seeing which ICP actually leaned in.

And almost none of that intelligence was being used.

So I leaned into it.

Instead of treating the BDR role as a middleman,
I treated it like a market research engine.

Someone who:
• Tests messaging daily
• Listens for patterns, not opinions
• Iterates within the same week
• Feeds real, unfiltered feedback back to leadership

Over time, that does one thing extremely well:
It shows you the path of least resistance to pipeline.

Here’s what I’ve noticed since:

• Most companies don’t have a lead problem
• They have a feedback problem
• They’re slow to learn
• The people closest to the market aren’t empowered to think
• And none of this is even valued as a KPI

That gap is one of the reasons why I started BizDev Labs.

Not just to “book meetings.”
But to help companies learn faster than their competitors.

---

The fastest way to scale revenue isn’t more activity,
it’s faster truth.

#BDR #Outbound #Sales #GoToMarket

What people think successful outbound requires:

• A clean launch where execution works immediately
• Messaging that’s mostly “done” after kickoff
• Targeting that doesn’t need much refinement
• Meetings booked quickly to justify the motion
• KPIs that prove ROI before learning is complete
• Low tolerance for mistakes or missed handoffs
• Systems that run smoothly without senior input
• Confidence that scale comes before clarity

What successful outbound actually requires:

• Senior context early (founder, exec, or product expert)
• Clear ownership of ICP, pain, and buying trigger
• Time to learn what doesn’t work before optimizing
• Fast feedback loops between market and message
• Signal quality prioritized over raw activity
• Space to move from noise → patterns → consistency
• Pressure applied only after repeatability exists
• Trust built through progress, not instant outcomes

Outbound fails when it’s judged like a finished product.
It wins when it’s treated like a system under construction.

If you’ve owned outbound before,
which assumption took you the longest to unlearn?

#outbound #bdr #gtm #sales #leadership #founders

Most outbound problems aren’t execution problems.

They’re thinking problems.

BDRs jump straight to:
emails, calls, sequences, tools.

Before answering the harder questions:

* Who exactly can we sell to?
* How big is the real market?
* Which segments deserve focus first?
* How much runway do we actually have?

Without those answers, outbound becomes random.
Busy, but random.

After working with 120+ teams, the pattern is always the same:
the reps who perform best aren’t “working harder”,
they’re operating inside a clear system.

They know:

* which campaign they’re on
* why it exists
* how much is left
* and whether it’s working

That clarity compounds.

I wrote down the framework we use internally to create that clarity.
Not as a playbook, as a mental model.

If you want a copy of the Strategic Outbound OS Framework,
comment Outbound OS and I’ll share it.

[and make sure we're connected].

#BDR #Outbound #Sales #GTM

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.

"We have some stuff to figure out before starting a strategy."

I was having this convo with a B2B service founder.

It made me shake my head and laugh.

Strategy is the act of making decisions about:

- how you'll be different
- for whom
- how
- where

It's literally working through the stuff you need to figure out.

How you want to be seen in the market, which offers you'll keep and kill, who you want to attract, what platforms to show up on, how to structure operations, what positions you need to open, if you need to change your look, how you'll communicate to your prospects, the sales process you'll use, which marketing channels will work...

Creating a strategy figures it all out for you.

With a professional.
Who knows how to structure decision-making.
So you don't keep second-guessing yourself.
And actually stick with a decision long enough to see results.

You can wait until you figure it out by yourself.

Or you can get structured help to make those decisions faster.

One will land you clients quickly.

The other? 

Let's just say the businesses reaching out to me this month spent all last year trying to "figure some stuff out"...

And have made 0 progress.

Imagine that.

✌🏼

#shftyourbrand

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

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

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.

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

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

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

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.

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

The only ideal customer profile you need:

(save this for later)

Most founders have a shallow understanding of their ideal customers.

- Job title
- Industry
- Interests
- Assumed Problems

None of that actually helps you create messaging, offers, or marketing to attract them.

If you want to know your ideal customers...
to the level that you can attract and convert them...

Ask yourself these 6 questions:

1. What role do they have?
- Be specific about who they are, what they do, and who they answer to

2. What does their business look like?
- Include industry, size, revenue, stage, offer, ICP, structure

3. What are they struggling with?
- Explore their pain and how it makes them feel

4. What ideal state are they aiming for?
- Focus on the transformation that solves their deeply felt pain

5. How do they buy?
- Include what they look for in a vendor they trust

6. What's their core DNA?
- Include defining attributes that are true for 90% of your customers

Document those 6 elements.
Share it with your team and vendors.

You'll actually know your ideal customers.

And be able to create messaging and marketing to attract and convert them.

Want a copy of the editable Google Doc template?

Comment ICP and I'll send you the link, no email required.

Or, you know, keep using that basic customer profile you got from Hubspot.

I'm sure it will magically work this year.

(NOT)

✌🏼

#shftyoubrand

------
PS - Comment ICP for the Google Doc template.

6 Questions to Build Your ICP | 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

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The Battle

Roy Itzhaki

Jason Vana

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taplio

The Battle

Roy Itzhaki

Jason Vana

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);}Roy Itzhaki's LinkedIn Performance

Performance ScoreJason Vana's LinkedIn Performance

Ready to grow your LinkedIn presence?

Performance ScoreRoy Itzhaki's LinkedIn Performance