Steve Waters is the former VP of Sales at DiscoverOrg (now ZoomInfo) where he led 70 sellers through an IPO, 12 acquisitions, and growth from 100 employees to 3,700, including a gutsy June 2020 IPO while everyone was watching Tiger King in their basements.
He sat down with Eric from Modern GTM to discuss storytelling fundamentals, practical tone training, and building teams that coach each other.
On the storytelling practice that closed $100K
My mentor Stephen Wurmke asked if I had any calls where I'd tell a story. I said yeah, the Business Development Institute call. I'm telling the iGel story. He said, "Let me hear it."
I didn't want to, but he insisted: "Steve, let me hear the F****** story."
I told the Pixar version: Company had an event, removed tables because not enough people showed up, lost money. Then they added Discover Org, now it's standing room only, closed two deals worth $250K from one event, you can do it too.
He said it sucked. Do it again, fix this and that. I did it again. He said it was really good, but do it once more to lock it in. Third time was perfect.
Twenty minutes later, I'm on the call with the CEO and two VPs. After pleasantries, he says he's excited to learn about Discover Org. I say, "I think the best way to start is with a little story. Probably take a minute and a half." He says he'd love to hear it.
I told the iGel story. He says, "Wow Steve, that's a really compelling story." We closed that 13-person company for $33K per year, three years. A $100K deal.
Stories are probably the most powerful invention in human history. You can ask Jesus or any of the bad guys. If you emotionally engage someone with a story first, the inevitable next step is they're going to want to buy.
On practical ways to train your tone
We ran a "Speak with Conviction Challenge." Reps picked speeches from movies like Braveheart or Any Given Sunday and competed for best delivery.
It was super embarrassing because we're not theater nerds, we're jocks. But if 70% of communication is how you sound and only 30% is what you say, why don't you get better at how you sound?
I won as the new rookie in February 2016. Our CRO Patrick had told me in the interview, "We're four times the cost of competitors. You need an extra gear to command that price. I don't know if you have that." After I won, I walked up: "Remember when you said I didn't have conviction? Then I beat everyone five minutes ago?" He said, "Steve, you don't do it on your calls."
So I started recording myself. I'd practice my opener: "Hey Eric, it's Steve Waters from Discover Org. How are you?" The first part was friendly, transfer of enthusiasm. The "how are you" was almost threatening in how serious it got. That tonal contrast made people think, "Who's this guy?"
Nobody likes hearing their own voice, but it's like eating vegetables. You just do it. Zig Ziglar used to say read the King James Bible out loud. Or the "I Have a Dream" speech. Whatever muscle you need to work out, just keep practicing talking with conviction.
On building cross-coaching between reps
The format: Find someone exceptional at one skill, pull three call clips, build hype ahead of time.
I'd say, "We're listening to Leif close. He's incredible at it. You'll want to show up." Play the first clip. Don't let Leif talk yet. Open it up: "What do you think? Give me compliments, what would you do differently?" Give the take you want them to have.
Play the next two clips the same way. Then interview Leif: "What were you thinking during this part? Why'd you say that? He said this other thing but you completely ignored it. Why?" He explains. Leave 10-15 minutes for team Q&A: "When you asked for the three-year commitment after he said they wouldn't do that, what gave you the courage?"
As long as reps take one to three things from each session, and you do it weekly, they build up tactics in the exact context of how you sell. This beats any consultant talking about Sandler or SPIN. It's your exact product, your exact audience, nothing more center-of-the-bullseye.
The real magic: Confidence goes up for the featured rep. Everyone sees what excellent looks like. And reps start asking each other for help: "Hey Jack, can you review this email for my 100K deal?" Now they're coaching each other without you in the middle.
On failing as a manager by pretending to know everything
My first management job, I was 28 managing people in their 50s and 60s with 30-40 years of experience.
I thought earning their respect meant being the expert with all the answers. If I didn't know something, I'd make it up, hope I was right, then get caught not knowing. That destroys trust.
Nobody knows everything all the time. Putting that pressure on yourself turns your amygdala on. Your lizard brain tightens you up and makes you shitty.
I should have earned respect by outworking them, not by pretending to be omniscient. It's so much better to say, "I don't have the answer either, but let's figure it out together."
The other lesson: the trust bank. You earn it in drops, lose it in buckets. Every time you help someone close a deal or go above and beyond, that's a deposit. When you need them to do something hard, you can make a withdrawal, but only if you've built enough credit. If you ask for a withdrawal with nothing in the account, it won't work.
On finishing work as anxiety-reducing therapy
Five o'clock hits and you'll always have more work in sales. But you know what needs to be done today: send that follow-up, make those notes, create that opportunity, build tomorrow's presentation.
Do it that night. Even if you leave at 6:15. The mental clarity and anxiety reduction is pure therapy. Otherwise it weighs on you. You're thinking about it all the time. And what are you giving up? Bad TV? Your friends will still be at the bar.
This isn't grind culture. It's getting to a logical stopping point so you can enjoy the rest of your night. When you come in tomorrow with more Slacks and emails, you're not already behind.
The bonus: You make more money. Nothing worse than a prospect asking, "Steve, where's that quote you said you'd send?" You're literally taking money out of your own pocket by not doing the work.
That’s it for this week!
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‘Til next time!
