Close

"The sure sign of an amateur is he has a million plans and they all start tomorrow." - Steven Pressfield Swallow the medicine and act. #MondayMotivation

"I Recovered $127K in Lost Revenue by Finally Organizing My Freight Leads (Here's How)" Are you drowning in leads while fighting daily freight fires? I know I was. Look, between us freight brokers, we all struggle with the same thing. I had potential revenue sitting untouched in scattered emails, hastily scribbled notes, and those conversations I swore I'd follow up on but never did. Sound familiar? I'd Zapier everything into my CRM where my leads would quietly expire while I was busy putting out today's urgent problems. Every night I'd go home thinking about all the business I wasn't nurturing. Then I revamped my approach with Close, and honestly? It changed everything. For my carrier sales: Intentionality in Close, by sorts my carriers by lane preferences, equipment types, and which ones actually show up when they say they will (you know who you are!). When I need coverage for a hot load, I filter for the perfect match in seconds instead of endless scrolling and calling. My carrier relationships have gotten way stronger because I'm calling with loads that make sense for them, not just random outreach. For customer acquisition: The system gives me a nudge when shippers haven't heard from me in a month and reminds me of their shipping patterns and pain points before I call. My conversion rate literally doubled because I'm having real conversations about their specific needs instead of the same generic pitch. The real game-changer? me....I am really intentional about keeping my CRM organized. Stop letting valuable leads disappear into your overflowing inbox. Trust me, your next big account is probably sitting neglected in your database right now. I created a video last week about this... I will drop it in the comments and if you need anything at all, let me know!

to all the sales pros out there: treat every deal like you're trying to close Kevin De Bruyne 😤

"With clarity comes courage. With confusion, fear and hesitation." Can you guess who said this — Steli Efti or Aristotle?

I regret implementing HubSpot. The benefit of HubSpot’s CRM is that it's integrated into every app we use. It's a big plus. But the downside is that the app is super-bloated, clunky and old. Salespeople can't find what they need, so they "wing it" on calls or they use personal spreadsheets to keep track of stuff that really matters. I'm not saying it's bad for every company. Some of my companies just need to be on it. But from now on I'm going to recommend that my companies look into Close before picking a CRM. Close is clean, easy, and efficient. It answers my #1 requirement for a CRM: will your people actually use it? And if they need a missing integration, they can use Zapier, Make, n8n, etc. If you try them, use my referral code (BootstrappedGiants20) for a free trial & 20% off after that.

A lead fills out your form and they’re ready to talk. You think, “Let me prep a bit before I call.” You spend 15 minutes looking them up, reading their blog, and analyzing their LinkedIn. By the time you pick up the phone, your competitor has gotten to them first. You were second. Second place doesn’t close the deal. You’re 21x more likely to qualify a lead if you call within 5 minutes. Speed beats perfection every time. - Cap your call prep to 1–2 minutes max - Use a CRM (like Close) that instantly surfaces lead info - Set up a power dialer or automations to notify your team - Call right now, not “later” - Keep it human—no script, just real curiosity Speed-to-call isn't optional if your business depends on inbound leads—it’s your competitive edge. Build a system that helps you (or your team) call within 2 minutes. Stop waiting, start closing. 💪

Not every buyer wants to be sold to the same way. There are two ways to view this reality: 1. Force them into your preferred path and hope for the best. 2. Flex actual sales skillz by meeting them where they are. And yes, you do have those skillz, even if you don’t always recognize them. (Promise I'm done spelling “skillz” like that.) Start by figuring out where you shine. For me? I love the idea of a “book-a-demo” button, but without a massive team behind me, the thought of a buyer waiting two weeks to talk gives me hives. That’s not the experience I want to deliver. Instead, here’s where I see Close’s sales team leaning in: ➡️ SMS ➡️ Chat (human, not AI) ➡️ Audio messages ➡️ LinkedIn ➡️ DMs ➡️ On-camera Zooms We’re also testing a new callback flow: a buyer fills out a form and we commit to calling back ASAP and answering questions, demoing live, or helping with next steps on the spot. It’s early, but conversion is up and the feedback has been 🔥. Iteration and experimentation are key. Evolving along with the buyer and giving them a stellar buying experience is just as important as the product offering, especially when you're in a competitive market! (One more time: SKILLZ)

Are you “social selling” or just social spamming? In Desiree’s Soapbox, Desiree Echevarria breaks down how to do social selling on LinkedIn without annoying the hell out of everyone. You might know her from Desiree Has Opinions, her Substack full of hot takes and truth bombs. Now, we’re giving her the mic. Let the rants begin. 😈 In this episode, she shares no-BS advice for social sellers like: - What to post instead of pitch-slapping strangers - Why your AI comments aren’t fooling anyone - How to slide into the DMs without making it weird  - How to talk to people without reeking of commission breath What are the BEST and WORST social selling moves you’ve seen on LinkedIn? Let’s TOAST 🥂 what’s working and ROAST 🔥 what’s not. 

let's get it. 💪 #MondayMotivation

Most reps are standing in their own way. Many are still afraid of picking up the darn phone. We get it. Calling can feel risky. You don’t know what they’ll say. You might get rejected. But if you can talk to people on the phone—it’s a superpower. 📞 Phone calls are still the fastest path to revenue. The reps who win aren’t the ones with the perfect script. They’re the ones who actually make the call. If fear is getting in your way, here’s how to reframe it: ✅ Clarity kills fear. Before the call, answer these: - What does success look like? - What questions do I need answered? - How will I respond to objections? ✅ Rejection is just data. Stop trying to “win” every call. Start listening. Every “no” teaches you what to fix. That’s a win. ✅ Practice makes courage. The more calls you make, the less scary they get. Make each one a rep in the gym. If it's not perfect, it doesn’t matter. You showed up. 👊 The real superpower? Doing the uncomfortable thing anyway. Let your competition hide behind emails. You? Get on the phone.