IN THIS EDITION
When asked to pick a number between 1 and 20, it’s statistically proven by an MIT study that most people choose 17.
This deems the number 17 to be “the least random number” under 20 that most people in fact, think is random.
What’s not random about the number 17, is the fact that we’re in your inbox every Wednesday morning with an absolute heater of a newsletter.
And this just so happens to be #17.
Here’s what you can expect:
Hiring 500 people and closing multi-7 figs/mo - Nick Elia
This sales rep lost to employer in federal court case
A thread to read to become a more organized sales rep
And more…
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LIVE FROM THE SALES FLOOR
Recent Events
The average Inc. 5000 sales team size has tripled since 2024 (Inc)
Sales pros discuss: Is cold calling on the way out? (MatthewKhela)
Sales rep takes boss to federal court for harassment and loses (hrdive)
Tips + Tricks
Stay top of mind between meetings w/o being annoying (Mor Assouline)
This cold email will never stop working (Nick Abraham)
How to sell when you work for a “no-name” company (Bill Johnson)
If you’re a disorganized sales rep, try some of this (Inevitable-Cup1344)
Other Stuff
What makes great sales people great (BrooksGroup)
Is this the craziest $1.7mm “close” ever? (litquidity)
Build Rockefeller wealth w/ your sales job in 238 seconds (Serial Sales)
SOC 2 in Days, Not Quarters.
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SELLER’S SECRETS
Who is Nick Elia, and what is Win at Sales?
Nick is a Denver-based CEO of Win at Sales / DFY Sales, running 9 high-ticket sales teams in the coaching/consulting niche producing a combined 8-figures in monthly revenue.
Check out Nick’s full interview on Youtube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
Let’s catch you up to speed on Nick’s story…
2008: Sells weed in high school, gets first taste of sales.
2011: Brief stint knocking doors for Vivint in Gary, Indiana.
2015: Lands copier sales job straight out of college.
2016: Leaves copier sales grind, moves to Thailand to teach English.
2018: Starts freelance marketing after buying a coaching program.
2019: Joins Traffic & Funnels as setter; quickly breaks company records.
2020: Promoted to manager, overseeing 18 reps at the peak.
2021: Tries real estate wholesaling, fails due to market shift.
2022: Consults independently; joins Win at Sales as first “employee.”
2023–25: Scales Win at Sales to millions
in monthly client sales.
Are you tracking funnel metrics like Nick?
Nick’s sales alpha and best practices
The “behavioral profile” hiring filter
Nick’s recruiting process screens applicants with a behavioral assessment before an interview. He auto-rejects the bottom 70% but will still interview anyone who follows up after rejection. A simple way to spot persistence.
17/20 (85%) of his highest performing reps score similarly on this assessment, so using this as an initial filter has shown to be quite effective for him.
For closing clients: Culture is always first, then come the systems
While vetting potential client accounts, Nick starts with “How big of a pain is this person going to be?” and works backwards from there. If communication styles clash or expectations are unrealistic, he passes.
Only after culture alignment does he inspect things like systems, training processes, and marketing to make sure his (primarily rev-share) sales team won’t fail because of upstream problems.
A.I. isn’t beating the boring work (yet)
While others are chasing sexy new A.I. strategies, Nick’s team’s edge comes from the old school stuff done well. Daily pipeline QC, call reviews, and tracking pace-to-target progress intensely.
By resisting shiny objects and sticking to fundamentals, his teams has stayed consistent and avoided the “boom or bust” that other sales teams face in the high-ticket industry
Some happy DFY Sales clients of Nick’s
4 things to steal and 4 tips to implement ‘em
1. Track your numbers daily, not weekly
QC your sales pipeline every morning, or before you get distracted
Monitor lead-to-close metrics vs. others that are easy to manipulate
Compare daily pace to monthly goal to ensure you’re staying on pace
Attack dips before they become negative trends
2. Selling into red ocean market? You must have an edge
Research niche competition thoroughly and understand differences
Look for a unique angle for offer positioning
Lean into assets that may differentiate (personal brand, SEO, ratings, press)
Avoid bad markets all together. Way easier to sell product into good markets
3. Sell only to buyers to shorten your sales cycle
Test a low-ticket (low commitment) front-end offer ($97–$197).
Only allow buyers to be pushed to sales calls.
Track and compare CPA vs. any other mid or high-ticket funnels
Iterate offer and process to increase “buyer-to-upgrade” rate.
4. Stop thinking in scripts and start thinking with context
Binary yes/no will not serve you. Learn to understand nuance.
Run objection role-plays with layered scenarios.
Review and pause call recordings at decision points to discuss.
Seek out creative solutions that keep the prospect first
Connect with Nick:
Sales reps: Win at Sales
Business owners: DFY Sales
Check out Nick’s full interview on Youtube, Spotify, or Apple Podcasts.
BEFORE YOU GO
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