My first job out of college was an analyst position at an energy company. Working with commercial energy brokers sparked my interest in the sales side of the business. I moved to a new energy broker company and began door-to-door, B2B sales. I ended up being quite good and decided for my next career move, I wanted to combine my technology and sales backgrounds.
DISCO was my first interview when searching for this new role, and I was impressed with the product, people, and most importantly, the company’s vision of DISCO becoming the Salesforce of legal. I started at DISCO while we were still based out of our CEO’s former law office in Houston as a sales development representative (SDR) and was tasked with prospecting and booking meetings for my regional sales executive (RSE). My RSEs had been in the legal industry for years and I was lucky to call them a friend and mentor who helped me develop my career.
When DISCO hired its first sales rep in the UK, I saw an opportunity to helpbook meetings across the pond to accelerate the growth of our new market. I asked the UK rep about the differences between UK and U.S. ediscovery and how I should approach conversations with UK lawyers. After that, I started coming to the office around 5 a.m. with a red eye coffee to cold call and book meetings before my actual day started. I did this for several weeks and had huge success — booking over 20 meetings with UK/EU law firms. I then transitioned permanently into the international SDR role. I helped to build contacts and form relationships which will serve as a foundation for future international SDRs who come into the role.
From SDR to AE
After spending two years as an SDR learning the legal domain, becoming a product expert, and understanding the obstacles and problems this industry faces, I was promoted to an inside sales account executive (AE). As an AE, I now own the full sales cycle, from research on potential customers who would be a fit for DISCO to closing the deal. Because of my experience gained as an SDR, I was able to speak as an expert with attorneys and legal professionals, navigate the DISCO platform, and work collaboratively with cross-functional teams.
There were also new skills I had the opportunity to learn and develop, like navigating conversations with probing questions, negotiating, giving an engaging demo presentation, and understanding how each team at DISCO assists with the sales process. I now mentor SDRs and newly hired AEs, and I love passing my knowledge on to others to help them in their careers at DISCO.
Be confident, become an expert, and stay consistent.
Sales did not come easy at first, but my success stemmed from my first sales role going door to door as a commercial energy broker. Because energy is sold as a commodity in Texas and prices are largely the same, people bought from who they liked. I can’t tell you how many times I drove up to a business, walked into the front door, and got told no within seconds of walking in. However, my former company’s CEO made me realize the importance of confidence, becoming knowledgeable about the industry, and staying consistent with prospecting. I stuck with this process and eventually became a top-selling rep at that company.
Door-to-door sales built more character than any cold call I’ve ever made, and made it a lot easier for me to overcome phone objections and quite frankly rejections, since it’s easier to get hung up on than kicked out of a building! I was lucky to have a mentor earlier in my career who taught me these core skills which aided the success I’ve had at DISCO: confidence, becoming an expert in your industry, and staying consistent. Small wins turned to large ones, and few wins turned to many.
