Kyle Asay

As an AE, I spent months trying to get into an account at “senior” levels. No one responded.

I started reaching out to entry-level professionals. One agreed to meet.

I could have quickly disqualified them as they were clearly not the right contact. Fortunately, I still decided to run a full discovery.

They gave me insight into a C-Level goal (NPS at 60 by 2021) and a breakdown of internal systems.

Using this information, I created a business case for how we could help them achieve that goal within their current internal systems.

Sent a message to the CEO with the subject line, “NPS to 60 by 2021?” and attached my business case for how we could help. He responded immediately, and we kicked off the evaluation.

Here’s the lesson: stop thinking that initial conversations are only valuable if they convert into an opportunity.

Your first conversation with an account is probably not with your eventual buyer. If you worry only about “converting” the opportunity, you’ll leave the call without being any closer.

Shift your mindset from “how can I qualify an opportunity” to “how can I better learn the value I can add to this company,” and you’ll end up with the strongest opportunities of your career.

As an AE, I spent months trying to get into an account at “senior” levels. No one responded.

I started reaching out to entry-level professionals. One was kind enough to meet.

While this individual was not a “buyer,” they gave me insight into a C-Level goal (NPS at 60 by 2021) as well as a breakdown of internal systems.

Armed with this insight, I put together a business case for how Qualtrics could help them achieve that goal within their current internal systems.

Sent a message to the CEO with the subject line, “NPS to 60 by 2021?” and attached my business case for how we could help. He responded immediately and we kicked off the evaluation.




AEs: stop thinking that initial conversations are only valuable if they convert into an opportunity.

Your first conversation with an account is probably not with your eventual buyer. If you worry only about “converting” the opportunity, you’ll leave the call without being any closer.

Shift your mindset from “how can I qualify an opportunity” to “how can I better learn the value I can add to this company” and you’ll end up with the strongest opportunities of your career.

As an AE, I spent months trying to get into an account at “senior” levels. No one responded.

I started reaching out to entry-level professionals. One agreed to meet.

I could have quickly disqualified them as they were clearly not the right contact. Fortunately, I still decided to run a full discovery.

They gave me insight into a C-Level goal (NPS at 60 by 2021) and a breakdown of internal systems.

Using this information, I created a business case for how we could help them achieve that goal within their current internal systems.

Sent a message to the CEO with the subject line, “NPS to 60 by 2021?” and attached my business case for how we could help. He responded immediately, and we kicked off the evaluation.

Here’s the lesson: stop thinking that initial conversations are only valuable if they convert into an opportunity.

Your first conversation with an account is probably not with your eventual buyer. If you worry only about “converting” the opportunity, you’ll leave the call without being any closer.

Shift your mindset from “how can I qualify an opportunity” to “how can I better learn the value I can add to this company,” and you’ll end up with the strongest opportunities of your career.