While the commission is an undeniably important factor for sales pros, it can be hard to make money selling a product you don’t believe in, or with a team you don’t like. Money makes the world go ‘round — no-one knows that better than sales teams — but doing your best work often requires more motivation than fat stacks. It’s important to feel like you’re selling something truly useful, and doing so on behalf of a team you trust.
So what are the most exciting software products for sale in LA tech? We spoke with sales reps at six high-flying local tech companies to find out.
ZestFinance’s machine learning algorithms ingest thousands of variables to help money lenders make fair, transparent credit decisions. Founded by a handful of Google data science alumni, the technology has applications in auto financing, commercial lending, mortgages and more. The Burbank company has raised more than $200 million in funding to date.
Sales Manager Bobby Flanigan finds motivation in his company’s mission to provide credit for those who may not qualify under traditional vetting practices.
Tell us a little bit about the products you sell and why you’re genuinely passionate about selling them.
ZestFinance builds some of the world’s most powerful machine learning software to help lenders make better loans and meet the financial needs of people around the world. It’s amazing to be able to sell a cutting-edge technology that has both a massive impact on our customers’ bottom line, and also does a lot of good in the world. I love that with each sale we get to further ZestFinance’s mission of expanding the availability of fair and transparent credit — particularly to the underbanked who need it the most.
At Zest I get to work with some of the smartest people I have ever met, including rocket scientists...”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
I like to make an impact right away, and being in sales is the most direct way to help solve business problems. Zest software changes our customer’s core business in a major way — we’re talking 10-to-50 times the return on investment in the first year. That makes these challenges extremely fun to solve. At Zest I get to work with some of the smartest people I have ever met, including rocket scientists, PhDs and engagement managers from top MBA programs. I learn from these people every day as we collaborate to create something awesome.
When hospitals and other medical facilities need nurses, lab technicians and other staff, they turn to Medely’s on-demand platform. Professionals who value flexibility can find per diem work, while healthcare systems can shore up their staffing ratios and avoid surgery cancellations. Headquartered in Santa Monica, the company works with more than 3,000 healthcare facilities.
Senior Account Executive Blake Baird has enjoyed seeing Medely’s technology taken up by thousands of organizations in the healthcare industry.
Tell us a little bit about the products you sell and why you’re genuinely passionate about selling them.
At Medely we built a two-sided marketplace created specifically for connecting medical facilities with top-quality, pre-screened healthcare professionals. My role is to engage these healthcare facilities and get them set up with their free Medely account. I love what I do because of the reactions I get when facilities use us for the first time. These facilities are amazing, and many people don’t know just how much is constantly in motion each and every day. The relief they feel when their job fills in minutes is priceless.
...for me, the possibilities continue to drive me each and every day.”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
What really attracts people to startups is the opportunity to come in and make an imprint on the company. I’m motivated each and every day by the big picture of what this can be. I have seen us grow from a single city to more than 60 cities in a few short years. It’s validation that what we’re doing is making a difference, and for me, the possibilities continue to drive me each and every day.
While replacing binders and textbooks with sleek laptops has eased achy backs at schools all over the world, the digitization of school materials has created new challenges for educators and their students. GoGuardian’s Chromebook management software technology monitors, filters and prevents the theft of devices, helping educators manage how school technology is used.
Director of Customer Success Terence Davy loves the way his job allows him to learn new skills and confront stimulating challenges.
Tell us a little bit about the products you sell and why you’re genuinely passionate about selling them.
We sell several different products that are aligned around the same goal: helping to facilitate effective use of technology to unleash student curiosity. I place a high value on learning and education, so it’s easy to feel passionate when empowering better learning. Beyond that, our clients love us! Working in customer success, I get to chat with tons of clients that are happy to work with us.
GoGuardian has provided constant opportunities to solve interesting problems and develop new skills...”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
Learning and growth are core to my being, and the real reason that I get out of bed every morning. GoGuardian has provided constant opportunities to solve interesting problems and develop new skills, which is a great motivating factor. However, the thing that fuels me even more than my personal development is that I have the ability to observe and participate in the growth of the incredibly passionate, creative and intelligent people that make up my team.
Banks are conservative by nature, and tend to flee any kind of business that they deem “risky.” The result is that a broad range of organizations — from nonprofits to hunting retailers — find it tough to gain credit card processing services. PaymentCloud has stepped into this gap, offering the necessary technology for tens of thousands of businesses.
Senior Account Manager Amanda Castro said she loves to help merchants grow their businesses.
Tell us a little bit about the products you sell and why you’re genuinely passionate about selling them.
As a senior account manager at PaymentCloud, my main role is to help businesses set up payment processing to accept credit card payments. We primarily work with companies that are considered high-risk due to the types of products or services they offer, so finding the best fit for them can be more of a challenge than your typical sales job! Setting up a merchant account is often the last step before a business is officially up and running, so it is extremely rewarding to be part of the process. Seeing a merchant through their initial request for processing to an all-functioning business is what I’m passionate about
I love being a part of the last step to growing their businesses.”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
What motivates me the most is being able to help our merchants. A lot of them have struggled to find an appropriate solution and are relieved when they finally hear that they are approved. Merchants are proud of their businesses and being able to provide a resource for them before, during and after approval can be invaluable to their success. I love being a part of the last step to growing their businesses.
Video gaming has become an inherently social activity over time, allowing users around the world to meet, socialize and chase each other around with laser guns in cyberspace. Mobcrush is one of the foundational technologies that helps these interactions take place, with a video streaming platform that helps gamers broadcast and watch streams, and chat in real time.
Head of Eastern and Midwestern Sales Lee O'Connor helps Mobcrush fund these efforts by bringing gaming content creators and like-minded brands together.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you’re genuinely passionate about selling them.
Mobcrush creates comprehensive live streaming, VOD and experiential advertising campaigns by aligning brands with live creators. We do this by integrating brand messaging into their content through lower thirds, logos, animation and in-stream co-viewing of the brand’s video assets among other things. I am passionate about what we do because we can identify the ideal creators for each brand based on their targets and needs. The intimate connection that our vast network of live streamers has with their audience — as well as the instant results and efficiency of the campaigns — gives any brand a leg up and consistently over-delivers results.
I love that we can give a brand amazing results while also contributing to the success of the creators we work with.”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
I am motivated by the constant innovation and opportunity in the live streaming space. There is no other medium out there that can create instant buzz and brand awareness the way live video can. Since the advertising community hasn’t had as much experience in the live realm, it’s also an opportunity for me to constantly learn and help to educate the industry. I love that we can give a brand amazing results while also contributing to the success of the creators we work with. It’s a win-win-win.
Pasadena-based Redgate Software builds tools designed to help businesses get the most out of the Microsoft Data Platform. With digital tools designed to service various stages within a company’s database DevOps process, Redgate focuses on building technical tools that are tough to build, yet easy for users to get the hang of.
Enterprise Account Executive Stephen Fontanella highlighted Redgate’s leadership in the field, and the culture that has grown up around building data tools for customers.
Tell us a little bit about the product/s you sell and why you’re genuinely passionate about selling them.
Data is truly the next gold rush, and organizations that are able to properly leverage it will profit immensely. However, that opportunity comes with huge concerns around security, compliance and scalability. Redgate’s solutions minimize those challenges by making it easier to develop and manage the databases that back end the applications driving business today. I love the chain that Redgate starts — we invest heavily into research and development so that our customers can develop their own software faster and more reliably, which then allows their end users to operate more efficiently. I’m also proud to say that we’re a thought leader in the space and a lot of the processes that are in vogue today were championed by our team many years ago.
I care for the people I work with and I know that the company is invested in me...”
Beyond a commission, what motivates you to succeed in your role?
I’m primarily motivated by the culture that has been built at Redgate. I care for the people I work with and I know that the company is invested in me because of the programs they’ve put in place, from ongoing professional training to office-wide activities. Going above and beyond my sales target means that we can invest more in our solutions, we can acquire well-built technologies that integrate with ours and, most importantly, we can expand our workforce. Those are difficult goals to attain if I don’t make my sales quota, so my main objective each day is to be a part of our collective success.
