To be successful in sales, you need more than money for motivation. Luckily for reps in the Pacific Northwest, there are plenty of growing tech companies with business models to satisfy any ethical aspirations, covering everything from admin efficiency in mental health care to carbon dioxide emissions in the trucking industry.
Oh, and they make money in the process.
To learn more, we spoke with sales reps at five Seattle tech companies about why they’re passionate about the software they’re selling.
When ex-Amazonians Dan Lewis and Grant Goodale learned that a third of the trucks on American highways are hauling empty trailers, they saw a problem waiting for the right software to fix it. Account Executive Claire Mackey took us through how Convoy is boosting profit margins and reducing the environmental impact of an $800 billion-per-year industry.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you're genuinely passionate about selling them.
Convoy has a very unique value proposition that mixes business benefit with a broader societal impact. Trucking is one of the nation’s largest industries, yet it is one of the few business areas that hasn’t yet been transformed by technology. Convoy is now at the forefront of providing technologies and services that save time and money for our shipping customers as well as the truck drivers who transport just about everything that American consumers use every day. What we’re doing is increasing efficiency in an industry where roughly a third of the trucks you see on the road are running empty — which, in addition to wasting time and money, has a significant impact on the environment. By reducing those “empty miles,” we're helping our shippers and carriers, while we're making a positive difference for the environment. It’s truly a win-win, and an exciting time to be here.
Big things are ahead for us as a company.”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
There is a constant buzz of excitement that flows through the halls of the Convoy office. Big things are ahead for us as a company. As a sales team, we take each individual win as a step forward and we celebrate each step together. The teamwork mentality that surrounds me is a huge source of motivation. I want to be a part of the team which completely changes the freight industry, which cuts down on industry wastes, which improves the work lives of both truck drivers and shippers and which contributes to a more sustainable future.
Home improvement and renovations can be a stressful and costly process, and helping people find contractors, solidify plans, take digital walkthroughs of finished projects and more is a key motivating factor for sales reps at Belltown-based Pro.com. Sales team Project Consultant Brooke Archilla said her company centers its services around people, not projects.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you're genuinely passionate about selling them.
Here at Pro.com it is our mission to make the home improvement experience exceptional. We are a full-service general contractor, which means we can plan and build projects from concept to reality. Some homeowners come to us with detailed designs, others with just an idea and a budget. No matter where they are at in their process, our team of experts are committed to exceeding all expectations. For us, it’s not just about homes — it’s about people. It’s about changing lives one project at a time. Clients aren’t “jobs,” they are family.
We really do love improving lives by improving homes.”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
The ability to help individuals navigate decisions that directly impact their lives in a positive way is priceless. Homes are such personal spaces and I feel honored every time a client is willing to open up their doors and trust me to guide them down the often-stressful path of bringing their home project visions to life. It’s also an incredible experience to see all the pieces come together and be able to celebrate those amazing end results with my clients. We really do love improving lives by improving homes.
Suplari’s AI-enabled technology sifts through a business’ financial data to find overlooked opportunities to save money and protect themselves from potential risk. As Sales Account Executive Brad Slitz explained, this allows finance and procurement teams to move from simply laboring over exhaustive reports to a more strategic role within the businesses they serve.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you're genuinely passionate about selling them.
Suplari is an enterprise insight platform that helps procurement and finance people find opportunities to save their organizations money, mitigate potential risk and improve company compliance. The technology we’re creating is exciting in that it’s using cutting edge AI to solve problems around data management that have plagued businesses for decades — it’s making people’s lives easier. Suplari helps finance and procurement by providing dashboards that are easy to use and proactively alert people when actions should be taken. We’re helping finance and procurement stop being the report creators and become strategic advisers, because our dashboards can be easily configured for the needs of the business and intuitive for all people at the company to utilize.
Suplari as a company truly cares about the people with whom we partner...”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
The one thing that truly motivates me above all things in life is doing something that truly matters to the people I have the opportunity to work with. Suplari as a company truly cares about the people with whom we partner, and it shows in the way we spend time listening, understanding and crafting our platform to exceed our clients’ expectations.
Changing work schedules are the bane of any wage worker — and their manager. However, managers and employees at companies that use Shiftboard can communicate, adjust schedules and improve overall operations through a single app. Vice President of Inside Sales Tyler Kimsey said this mission — combined with Shiftboard’s motivated team — makes it a great place to work.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you're genuinely passionate about selling them.
Shiftboard is a leading provider of employee scheduling technology. Our solution helps large organizations build “smart” schedules through automation. The result? A win-win relationship that meets employees’ needs as well as the organization’s overall business goals. I feel good about bringing this kind of value to organizations. Helping to create a platform that provides the foundation for the relationship between a company and its workforce is inspiring. People’s lives and business operations depend on the quality of their work schedules. It’s a privilege to be part of a process that positively affects so many people across an entire organization.
...it’s a culture where everyone is a shareholder”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
This is a company that is growing, and it’s a culture where everyone is a shareholder. We work hard and we’re committed to success, but it’s also a lot of fun. It’s incredibly rewarding to work with a small team, aligned around a common goal and celebrate reaching our milestones together.
Sometimes, it’s the mission that matters. That’s certainly the case for sales reps at Seattle-based Valant, which builds electronic health record software for mental health and psychiatric care providers. Account Executive Brett Quelch discussed how boosting efficiency within this industry is a great motivator for him and his team.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you're genuinely passionate about selling them.
Valant’s software system is an EHR that provides behavioral healthcare practitioners with the tools they need to run a successful practice, allowing them to keep their focus on their clients. Besides the basics, we pride ourselves on being able to offer providers options to help increase their outcomes so that they can provide better treatment for their clients. Helping behavioral healthcare providers be more efficient in their practices also means that they can help more patients seeking treatment. As behavioral healthcare providers typically worry about other people each and every day, it’s a bonus to help them solve their problems.
...every sale has the potential to help providers provide better outcomes for their patients...”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
I’m motivated knowing that every sale has the potential to help providers provide better outcomes for their patients, and make their job easier. Getting to work with people who are passionate about Valant’s mission and overarching goal of helping providers also inspires me to succeed. Lastly, I’m motivated by our sales team’s ethos and collaborative approach. Our director treats everyone as a valuable member of the team. She solicits and listens to our ideas, and makes sure we know that our contributions are important.
