Sales

I’m going to take a break the next two weeks in the run-up to Labor Day. That will allow me to spend a bit of time on planning, figuring out a new podcast concept and preparing to move – always a fun experience.

I tried a shorter version of the newsletter this week. It’s summer, and I got a note that politely encouraged a few forays into brevity. I need to heed my own advice.

Chronicles of an ad salesman

It was my first job in journalism when my boss, Jason Calacanis, introduced me to the cliche “sales solves everything.” No matter the problem with a business, you can be sure it will be better if you’re getting sales in the door.

One of the good parts of starting from scratch is you get to do every job, particularly sales. Outside of Orlando’s Bakery, I’d pretty much never been in a sales role. I was more inclined to the back of the house.

Here's my incomplete guide to sales from a non-salesperson perspective: