#7 To the Zoominfo SDRs...
It’s 4PM on the 28th day of the month. My phone is buzzing, and it’s an unknown number from a flyover state.
I know exactly who is on the other end.
12 different SDRs at ZoomInfo called me at the exact same time on the exact same day of every month for the past year.
No single SDR called me more than once, and it was clear no one talked to each other when passing my name around the org. I got the exact same elevator pitch every time I picked up.
This time I let it go straight to VM…
Usually when I get a cold call I’m very open to a conversation given my line of work and the empathy I have for those on the other end. I also learn a lot about what does and doesn’t work that goes directly into our playbook.
But after getting the exact same pitch, with no value added from all the previous month’s calls, my patience wore thin. From the buyer intent “experts” no less.
A few times I listened and told them to update their Salesforce to keep me in the loop on any pricing changes, but no need to call every month with the exact same offering.
After that request fell on deaf ears, I simply ignored future calls.
A bit frustrated, I was curious about what was driving this practice. At a certain point I could only assume these calls were on purpose despite me not being qualified.
Were they desperate for business? Was their business imploding so SDRs were trying anything to get opportunities into and through the funnel?
Nope! They killed it in 2022:
36% Revenue Growth
104% Retention
$456M in free cashflow
42% Profit Margin
> 10 LTV:CAC
All in a year where B2B tech got absolutely clobbered. Perhaps they are a little overstaffed and disorganized on their front lines, but it seems to be working.
The annual report gives little indication as to why they were able to flourish while everyone else floundered. But my guess is that because they are the leader in the space and have been around for quite some time:
Their product is really good and generates quick ROI.
They acquired new customers in diversified industries - ones with greater ability to spend in 2022 than their core B2B tech market (energy, materials, manufacturing, etc.)
I can be pretty persistent in my day-to-day and often wonder whether I toe the line and become a pest. My takeaway is that when you have a good product that generates significant value for clients, that line is a lot further than you think.
I won’t be picking up that monthly call anytime soon, but am comforted knowing that persistence still pays.