Kent Venook on the importance of Salesforce integrity while growing a company

A juggling act, to be sure. And, needless to say, these factors aren’t always complimentary in nature.
For example, Kent Venook, Senior Director of Sales Development at San Francisco-based TalkDesk, is fully aware some of the administrative processes he’s
“I feel like I can definitely spend some time on standardizing the sales process. This is very relevant because we are juggling that now at TalkDesk,” says Venook, on a recent edition of The Predictable Revenue Podcast.
“It’s always difficult to do because it will hinder the productivity in the short term as the reps are getting used to the new process.”
This presents an interesting scenario at the company, as TalkDesk is planning to have a very big year in 2018. According to Venook, TalkDesk’s goal for next year is to do $100 million in
Hitting that goal will require dedication two key concepts: organization and nailing their niche.
To keep organized, TalkDesk has designed their Salesforce to reflect granular account details. TalkDesk’s lead / contact / campaign statuses are:
1) Open
2) Nurture
a. Unable to Contact
b.
c. Not ready
d. No Budget
e. Price
f. Integration
g. Using Competitor
3) Working
a. Attempting to Contact
b. Contact Made
c. Contact Made-DM
4) Archived
Inaccurate Data
No Interest
Do Not Contact
Not a Fit
No longer at Company
5) Qualified
Also relevant are activity classifications:
Connect – DM
Connect – Meeting Booked
Connect –
Connect – Opportunity Created
No Connect – LVM
No Connect – No msg left
Wrong Number
Account tiers:
Tier 1 – Whales
Tier 2 – Table
Tier 3 – Wide net
Tier 4 – The rest
As for their niche, TalkDesk is targeting high-growth, customer-centric companies in the e-commerce, software, retail, technology and healthcare verticals.
“Our best fit are companies looking to improve the way they engage with their customers. They’re looking to change their call
“And they have no visibility into metrics or productivity.”
But although TalkDesk has designed specific recording requirements, Venook is quick to add that he believes his reps should be given freedom to engage with prospects in their own voice. Process and commitment are important, but you’ve got to let your team members be themselves.
“There is no silver bullet. You have to keep it creative, what works for one person may not work for the next,” says Venook.
“Use as many channels as possible – phone, email, events, social, snail mail. Then, you track metrics and make adjustments.”
For more on Kent Venook’s sales methods, check out his upcoming edition of The Predictable Revenue Podcast.
Below are some shots of Venook’s account view, contacts view, and account page:


