In this episode of The Buyer’s World LinkedIn Live, host Hannah Ajikawo is joined by Kristen, a seasoned sales professional with a teaching background, to discuss multithreading and how it can strengthen your pipeline. They share practical tips and strategies for effectively multithreading deals to improve win rates and de-risk decisions for buyers.

Kristen's Background

Kristen has been a sales rep at three unicorn companies: Salesforce, Tableau, and Outreach. With a strong background in both sales and teaching, she now focuses on using her experience to help others learn from her successes and mistakes. Her approach combines high-level sales experience with educational techniques to guide reps and leaders toward success.

What Multithreading Isn’t

Kristen and Hannah clarify common misconceptions about multithreading:

• It is not mass emailing everyone in an organization.

• It is not asking at the end of a call who else should be involved without a strategic plan.

• It is not connecting with multiple people at a target account without a purpose.

What Multithreading Is

Multithreading involves strategically engaging multiple stakeholders within an organization to build consensus and support for a decision. This approach de-risks the decision for the buyer, making it easier for them to move forward with a purchase.

Initial Interaction and Preparation

Before the first interaction with a new prospect, reps should:

• Conduct thorough research to identify potential stakeholders.

• Reach out to key decision-makers and influencers to inform them of the upcoming meeting.

• Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator or similar tools to map out the organization and develop a hypothesis about the decision-making unit.

Post-Meeting Strategies

After the initial meeting:

• Verify who the key stakeholders are and involve them in follow-up discussions.

• Send concise, value-focused recaps to all relevant parties.

• Use digital sales rooms or virtual selling environments to facilitate ongoing communication and track engagement.

Internal Multithreading

Kristen emphasizes the importance of internal multithreading:

• Engage internal executives and other team members to align with the prospect's executives.

• Use ghostwritten emails to facilitate introductions and communications between internal and prospect executives.

Addressing Common Challenges

When dealing with large organizations with many potential stakeholders:

• Focus on strategic initiatives and compelling events highlighted in public documents like 10-K reports.

• Develop a hypothesis based on the organization's priorities and structure communications accordingly.

Handling Resistance

If a leader expresses concern about reaching out to multiple people:

• Be transparent about your approach from the beginning.

• Use permission-based strategies to keep stakeholders informed and involved.

• Recognize that resistance can indicate a potential blocker and adjust your strategy accordingly.

Final Tips for Sales Leaders

Sales leaders should:

• Provide reps with a Persona Matrix to simplify the process of identifying and engaging stakeholders.

• Create templates for initial outreach, follow-ups, and introductions to make multithreading easier.

• Encourage reps to seek insights from customer success and marketing teams to refine their approach.

Actionable Takeaways

1. Conduct Thorough Research: Identify key stakeholders and develop a hypothesis about the decision-making unit before the first interaction.

2. Be Transparent: Inform all relevant parties about meetings and follow-up actions to maintain trust and alignment.

3. Leverage Internal Resources: Engage internal executives and team members to support multithreading efforts.

4. Use Tools and Templates: Provide reps with the resources they need to effectively multithread and track engagement.

5. Embrace Mistakes: Understand that mistakes are part of the learning process and focus on continuous improvement.