Founder-led Sales
by Pete Koomen (YC) · read the original
Koomen sold Optimizely to $100M ARR as a technical founder with no sales background. His playbook: do the first sales yourself, treat sales as talking to users, run a real funnel, charge from day one, and learn to spot the deals that will never close.
- 1
Founders Must Do the First Sales Themselves
Early sales is learning, not execution. Founders must do it themselves until the playbook exists, then hire people to run the playbook.
- 2
Sales Is Just Talking to Users
Sales and user research are the same conversation. If you can talk to users about their problem, you can sell.
- 3
The Funnel: Prospecting, Outreach, Qualification, Closing
Run sales as a funnel: prospect, reach out, qualify, close. Know your numbers at each stage and keep the top full so no single deal can sink you.
- 4
Outreach That Gets Answered
Send emails you'd be excited to receive, prefer warm introductions, and follow up until you get a real yes or a real no. Silence is not an answer.
- 5
Ask About the Problem Before You Pitch
First calls are for discovery, not pitching. Understand the problem, cost, decision-maker, and budget before you ever demo.
- 6
Charge From Day One
Payment is the only real validation. Charge your first customer, keep testing higher prices, and prefer paid pilots with a conversion date over free ones.
- 7
Red Flags, and Actually Closing
Deals that never close look busy: decks requested, pilots drifting, meetings multiplying. Demand a concrete next step every time, and own the close through implementation.