HockeyStack

Last week Jesse Hunt joined our sales team. He was the #13 AE at Gong and sold for them as they grew from $5M to $100M ARR in just 3 years. When I interviewed him, he told me 3 things made their HUGE growth possible: Gong is one of the best case studies in category creation, research as a marketing tactic, and branding. We have been happy customers for 2 years, and a lot of our sales process depends on Gong. Why? Because half the battle in GTM is knowing what “good” looks like. People who have seen exceptional execution have a HUGE advantage. So, I asked Jesse what the 3 top things that Gong did. Here is what he said: 1. Hiring and scaling Revops very early The very first thing Jesse told me was surprising. He didn’t say a “growth hack” they found. He said, “We hired revops function when our sales team was fairly small, put a ton of work into making sure all our systems were ready to scale, and scaled revops AS we scale our GTM.“ They didn’t scale GTM and THEN scale Revops (what most startups do). They executed both at the same time. 2. Marketing - specifically Gong Labs The second thing Jesse told me was marketing. “When we were just getting started and trying to increase our ACV, everyone thought we were much bigger than we actually were thanks to our marketing. Especially, Gong Labs made Gong look like an actual enterprise company with a huge research arm” And over time, sales leaders and sellers turned to Gong Labs for relevant data. I've heard the same thing from a few other early Gong employees too. Devin Reed executed very well. 3. Exceptional sales process “Building a product so good that even the worst salesperson could sell it + hiring a sales team so good it could sell even the worst product.” This is what Gong execs repeated all the time. If you are selling to sales leaders, your sales calls, outbound emails, and deal management are constantly being evaluated. It needs to be perfect. Otherwise, who would buy a sales product from a sales team that is not good at sales? Heard from many people that a ton of prospects were offering early Gong sales reps jobs on the spot on sales calls. Similarly, if you are selling to marketers, your marketing needs to be great. I’ve seen this first hand with our buyers. A lot of them turn to us for expertise during the sales cycle as they see how well we do marketing. And it becomes a factor in their evaluation process. TAKEAWAY: Hyper-growth is not a coincidence, and it certainly doesn’t 100% depend on external factors like trends (they of course help). It’s formulated. Gong is an excellent case study on focusing on fundamentals, marketing, and sales execution.

Here's a short list of my favorite content metrics: ?? average session duration + pages per session ?? top pages ?? organic traffic as a whole These metrics are not a crystal ball by any means but they definitely help me answer questions like... Are people actually reading the stuff on our site? Can people find the answers the need? Which content pieces are popular and driving pipeline? Content attribution is more about finding the story in the numbers, looking between the lines, and trusting the trends. I partnered with HockeyStack to help build out my DREAM content dashboard , helping prove attribution and ROI from all of the work that goes into creating even a single article or landing page. Check it out at the link in the comments.

Happy to share that I recently joined the incredible team at HockeyStack I’m thrilled to be working alongside these three scrappy, brilliant, and humble founders. Grateful for the opportunity to contribute to what they’ve built and excited by what’s to come. Let’s go!

45% of our team at HockeyStack are immigrants. Their resilience, work ethic, and determination drive our success every day. The American Dream is alive, and we’re proud to be a part of it. Our immigrant team members bring diverse perspectives, innovative ideas, and an unmatched drive to excel. They remind us that hard work and ambition can overcome any obstacle, no matter where you start or what challenges you face. Their stories inspire us all to dream bigger and push further! At HockeyStack, we are committed to fostering an inclusive culture where everyone, regardless of background, can thrive. I believe the American Dream will never fade because of people like them. Their success stories aren’t just personal victories; they’re a testament to what’s possible when talent and opportunity come together. Here’s to building a future that lifts everyone up. America (specifically San Francisco) is still the best place to build.

Another VP of Sales told me last week, “Our marketing team isn’t generating enough leads.” I’m so tired of hearing this. Why? BECAUSE YOUR MARKETING TEAM ISN’T A LEAD GENERATION MACHINE. We celebrate revenue numbers from sales: “Mark crushed his $5M quota!” “Lauren’s team landed 15 new logos!” "James generated $250,000 in pipeline" But where’s the recognition for marketing when: Their campaign brought in 3,000 new accounts into your pipeline? They wrote the case study that sealed your biggest deal? Their LinkedIn presence made you the obvious choice over your competitors? Marketing’s job isn’t to be a lead factory—it’s to influence demand, build trust, and create a brand that sells when sales isn’t in the room. 2024 is the year to align Sales and Marketing under one unified revenue goal. Because if your marketing team is burning out chasing MQLs, your sales team will burn out chasing unqualified leads. Align them. Reward them. Celebrate them equally. Revenue is a team sport. Treat it that way.

Want to take your brand growth to the next level? Thrilled to share my HockeyStack Brand Growth Dashboard; the ultimate blueprint for brands that want to connect metrics with meaningful outcomes. What I love most about this dash is that it isn't just about tracking numbers—it’s about simplifying the complex process of brand building and aligning your team around growth. What makes it unique? ???Holistic View of Brand Metrics: Track everything from engagement rates to audience retention, all in one place. ???Data-Driven Creativity: Align hard data with impactful storytelling to drive results. ??? Action-Oriented Design: Every metric ties directly to actionable goals for maximum ROI. ???Streamlined Collaboration: Break down silos and align cross-functional teams on brand priorities. ???User-Friendly Interface: Simplify complex data so it’s accessible and actionable for all decision makers. Could this dashboard be your secret weapon for creating impact and driving value? Take a spin here: https://lnkd.in/g7FNuMN8

Is content contributing to pipeline? How much? Asked every CEO ever. We will be talking about how to respond to this question, build a strategy for long-term success and deliver quick (but meaningful) wins so you have the freedom to run content marketing the right way. Don't miss it, link in comments below ??

Cold outbound works. White papers work. SDRs work. SEO works. Google ads work. Automation works. Cold calling works. Gated content works. Everything WORKS if you do it right. It pays to be negative on Linkedin. But the fundamentals of B2B GTM still work. And they will continue to work… If you invest the time to understand your buyer, their pain, and how you can solve it. It’s not the channel that’s the problem. It’s the message. Adjust your strategy. Hire the right people. Have empathy for your buyer. You got this.

Two years ago I was a college dropout making $500/mo living with my parents in Istanbul, Turkey. Today, the startup I co-founded with my best friend?Bu?ra Gündüz?put up billboards all over San Francisco. I’m excited to share that October was HockeyStack’s best month ever! Getting close to our first $XXM quarter, and we added 15 people to the team. I’m extremely proud of everyone on our team - there is an insane push on new product development, pipeline, and revenue. We are very close to a breakthrough in our space. And I thought seeing HockeyStack everywhere in SF would be the perfect way to celebrate the year. Here’s how it happened: I made a post about a sticker on our office building that led to many people talking about it. The post went semi-viral on LinkedIn, and I got a DM from?Charlie Riley?about doing the same thing at scale using billboards. It was the first time I’ve heard about?OneScreen. I did a ton of research online, talked to their team and customers, and we went live. It moved quickly! But this is not just another marketing campaign... It’s a testament to how far we have come. Ever since I left my family and friends behind and moved to SF for YC, it’s been my dream to plant our flag in the city where most of the companies I look up to were born. (OpenAI, Rippling, Airbnb, and pretty much all other YC unicorns) Billboards are now live on both sides of 101 highway, 3rd street, South SF, all bus stations, and more. (Send me pics if you see them!) I’ll share the results, and how I am tracking them soon!

???? NEW HIRE FRIDAY ?? ?? We're so happy to welcome Jackson Stevens to our GTM team! Some fun facts about Jackson: Outside of work, I am: - a big golfer - a reigning fantasy football champion - a contestant on Wheel of Fortune HE'D LIKE TO SOLVE THE COLD CALL PUZZLE!! Welcome, Jackson!