• The trust formula and what each part looks like in a remote world
• Why trust has shifted from a nice-to-have to table stakes
• How individual trust and organizational trust feed each other
• Why a referral lets you inherit the trust someone else already built
• Why turning down the wrong client builds more trust than closing them
• How to rebuild trust in the exact area where you lost it
• Why trust is the moat that keeps competitors away from your customers.

💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. What is one thing that instantly builds or breaks your trust in a new vendor?

#SalesLeadership #Trust #RemoteSelling #AIinSales #B2BSales #SalesProcess #Leadership #SalesLeadDog

The Future of Selling Is Still Human In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Joseph Little, Vice President of Sales and Marketing at CarboFix, to dig into what it takes to lead a sales team, simplify the work, and keep the human element alive as AI reshapes selling.

Joey gets into why most CRMs collapse under their own complexity, how to motivate a team of independent reps, and where AI genuinely helps a seller versus where it falls short.

If you are a sales leader, rep, or founder looking for practical takes on building trust, simplifying your process, and using technology without losing the human touch, this conversation is worth your time. What You'll Learn:

• Study both good and bad leaders and take notes on what to copy and what to avoid

• The best resume is not always the best hire, so look for tenacity

• Every person has a motivation matrix, and you have to learn it before you can lead them

• Lead through collaboration, not from far away or with an iron fist

• Slow down and ask questions instead of dumping everything you know

• Strip out complexity to win back the most expensive resource you have, time

• AI can prep and summarize, but it cannot read the room for you

About Joseph Little

Joseph "Joey" Little is the Vice President of U.S. Sales and Marketing for CarboFix Orthopedics, a company building carbon fiber surgical implants that are changing how surgeons treat trauma and oncology patients. He began his orthopedic career as a territory representative before moving into medical-device distribution, then returned to the corporate side with CarboFix and advanced through multiple leadership roles to his current position. His hands-on approach is shaped by years in the operating room, distribution, and orthopedic sales leadership, along with a passion for building strong teams and turning innovative technology into meaningful growth.

Connect with Joseph Little

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/josephlittle1/

Learn More About CarboFix: https://www.carbo-fix.com/

About Sales Lead Dog

Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the rest of the pack, sharing how they achieve success with their teams and their CRM strategy.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes.

Connect and Learn More

All episodes and show notes: https://empellor.com/salesleaddog/

If this episode brought you value:

👍 Hit Like and help more sales professionals discover this conversation.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss a Sales Lead Dog episode.

💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. What is one question that always changes how a sales call goes for you?

#SalesLeadership #MedicalDeviceSales #CRM #AIinSales #B2BSales #SalesProcess #Leadership #SalesLeadDog

Set a Goal Worth Failing At

In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with David A. Miller, Chief Revenue Officer at Novus Global and executive coach to dig into why most people underestimate what they are capable of and how mindset, coaching, and audacious goals unlock elite performance. We talk about the mindset behind elite performance, why the fear of failure keeps teams playing small, and how the best performers treat coaching and vulnerability as advantages instead of weaknesses.

If you are a sales leader, coach, or founder looking for practical ways to set bigger goals, build a growth culture, and get out of your own way, this conversation is worth your time.

What You'll Learn:

• Most people and teams underestimate what they are truly capable of

• Set goals so audacious that falling short still moves you further than you imagined

• Selling only feels salesy when you do not believe in what you offer

• The brain is wired to solve problems, so give it one worth solving

• Elite performers treat coaching and feedback as an advantage, not a weakness

• Telling on yourself first takes the fear out of failure

• A CRM used well becomes the holder of truth for your team

About David A. Miller

David A. Miller is the Chief Revenue Officer at Novus Global, an executive coaching firm that works with Fortune 500 leaders, professional athletes, world-class artists, and nonprofit executives. With over 15 years of coaching experience, he helps clients expand their vision and unlock potential, from saving millions in a single quarter to driving 150 percent sales growth. He is the best-selling author of Improv Leadership: How to Lead Well in Every Moment and a sought-after keynote speaker who lives in Long Beach, California with his wife and three children.

Connect with David A. Miller

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/imdavidmiller/

Learn More About Novus Global: https://novus.global

About Sales Lead Dog

Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the rest of the pack, sharing how they achieve success with their teams and their CRM strategy.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes.

Connect and Learn More

All episodes and show notes: https://empellor.com/salesleaddog/

If this episode brought you value:

👍 Hit Like and help more sales professionals discover this conversation.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss a Sales Lead Dog episode.

💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. What is one goal you set that scared you and changed you?

#SalesLeadership #ExecutiveCoaching #Mindset #GrowthCulture #B2BSales #SalesProcess #Leadership #SalesLeadDog

What Makes a Buyer Trust a Seller They Just Met? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Jen Sells, Chief Revenue Officer at Moii AI, to talk about human behavior, servant leadership, and selling AI that buyers are still skeptical of. They also get into something close to home for a lot of sales teams: why the discovery meeting is where deals are really won, and how a clean CRM uncovers the bottlenecks that quietly slow a team down. If you are a sales leader, revenue leader, or business decision-maker looking for grounded, practical takes on leading a team and selling with integrity, this conversation is worth your time. What You'll Learn: - Curiosity about human behavior drives more sales than any script - The discovery meeting is where the deal is really made - How to sell AI by educating buyers instead of pressuring them - Why sending a prospect to a competitor can win you a referral partner - Leading with vulnerability builds teams that actually trust you - Data beats guesswork when deciding where to spend your time - A clean CRM uncovers bottlenecks without burning out the team About Jen Sells Jen Sells is the Chief Revenue Officer at Moii AI, a visual AI platform that turns the cameras a business already has into real-time operational intelligence teams can simply ask questions of. With more than a decade in PropTech, she started as a real-estate operator and buyer before moving into revenue leadership. Her approach is grounded in curiosity, servant leadership, and a genuine focus on helping both her customers and her team succeed. Connect with Jen Sells LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jen-sells-10a6bab3/ Learn More About Moii AI: https://moii.ai About Sales Lead Dog Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the rest of the pack, sharing how they achieve success with their teams and their CRM strategy. Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes. Connect and Learn More All episodes and show notes: https://empellor.com/salesleaddog/ If this episode brought you value: 👍 Hit Like and help more sales professionals discover this conversation. 🔔 Subscribe so you never miss a Sales Lead Dog episode. 💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. What is one discovery question that always changes the direction of your deals? #SalesLeadership #AIinSales #VisualAI #PropTech #B2BSales #SalesProcess #SalesManagement #SalesLeadDog

In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Jeffrey David Harris, CEO and founder of AmbiMi, to talk fearless selling, coaching, and why the resume is finally breaking.

Jeff cold-called his way into his first job and built a career on the idea that sales is really about asking questions and gathering information.

He also shares why hiring is broken, how skills-based matching replaces the resume, and why CRM has to get easier for the people using it.

KEY HIGHLIGHTS

• 00:00–02:13 Meet Jeffrey Harris and the idea behind AmbiMi
• 02:14–08:35 The three things that drove Jeff's success in sales
• 08:36–12:20 The story behind the name AmbiMi
• 12:21–17:54 Leadership, coaching, and why the best sellers still get coached
• 17:55–23:09 Discipline and the power of incremental improvement
• 23:10–26:57 How recruitment technology and AI are changing hiring
• 26:58–32:11 Handling objections and resistance to change
• 32:12–35:58 The future of CRM and protecting your data
• 35:59–38:48 Advice for sales leaders and entrepreneurs

ABOUT JEFFREY DAVID HARRIS

Jeffrey Harris is a Vancouver-based entrepreneur and recruitment leader. He founded Impact Recruitment in 2009 and, in 2020, launched AmbiMi, a skills-based job matching platform built to make hiring faster, fairer, and less reliant on resumes.

He has been named to Business in Vancouver's BC500 two years running and was a 2022 EY Entrepreneur Of The Year Pacific finalist. His focus is upward mobility for the masses through leadership and accessible hiring technology.

CONNECT WITH JEFFREY HARRIS

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffdavidharris/

AmbiMi: https://www.ambimi.com/

ABOUT SALES LEAD DOG

Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the pack, sharing how they succeed with their teams and their CRM strategy.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes.

All episodes and show notes: https://empellor.com/salesleaddog/

#SalesLeadership #ColdCalling #Recruitment #HiringTech #B2BSales #SalesCoaching #CRM #SalesLeadDog

What separates a good salesperson from a great sales leader? According to Nicolas Gramstad, it starts with listening more than you sell.

In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Nicolas Gramstad, VP of Sales at Campspot, to talk about mentorship, humility, and building sales teams that actually perform. Nicolas shares how his path from a small family lumberyard to leading revenue at a high-growth SaaS company shaped a practical, people-first approach to sales leadership.

They also get into a topic close to home for a lot of sales teams: why so many CRMs end up working against the people using them, and how to strip a bloated system back down to what actually moves deals forward.

If you are a sales leader, CRM manager, or business decision-maker looking for grounded, practical takes on leading a team and running a cleaner sales process, this conversation is worth your time.

What You'll Learn:

• Listening beats feature-dumping in every sales conversation

• Mentorship and humility are what build lasting sales careers

• The real shift that happens when a top rep becomes a leader

• Hard, honest conversations are the toughest part of leading a team

• Lead from the front to keep a sales team motivated

• Bloated CRMs are common, and cleaning them up is simpler than it looks

• A good CRM becomes the central hub across sales, implementation, and customer success

About Nicolas Gramstad

Nicolas Gramstad is a SaaS sales leader based in Minneapolis with a track record of scaling revenue teams at high-growth software companies. As VP of Sales at Campspot, he leads sales for the largest reservation and property management platform in outdoor hospitality, helping campgrounds, RV parks, and municipal parks adopt technology to run smarter operations. His approach to leadership is grounded in mentorship, humility, and a genuine focus on helping his people succeed.

Connect with Nicolas Gramstad

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/nicolas-gramstad/

Learn More About Campspot https://software.campspot.com/book-more/

About Sales Lead Dog

Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the rest of the pack, sharing how they achieve success with their teams and their CRM strategy.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes.

Connect and Learn More

All episodes and show notes: https://empellor.com/salesleaddog/

If this episode brought you value:

👍 Hit Like and help more sales professionals discover this conversation.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss a Sales Lead Dog episode.

💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. What is the best piece of advice a mentor ever gave you in sales?

#SalesLeadership #SaaSSales #Mentorship #CRM #B2BSales #SalesProcess #SalesManagement #SalesLeadDog

What if trying to look perfect is the exact thing costing you the sale?

In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Todd Caponi, author, keynote speaker, and one of the most respected voices on transparency in sales, to discuss why honesty closes faster than perfection and how modern negotiation should actually work.

Drawing on behavioral science, decision science, and decades of sales history, Todd explains why buyers trust the negative, why we buy when we can predict rather than when we are convinced, and how leading with your flaws can speed up sales cycles and raise win rates.

If you are a founder, sales leader, revenue executive, or seller who wants to build trust faster and negotiate without the games, this conversation is full of ideas you can use right away.

What You'll Learn

• Why a perfect five-star pitch actually slows down the sale

• Why buyers seek out the negative before they say yes

• The behavioral science behind why we buy when we can predict

• How leading with what you are not great at builds instant trust

• Why your first sale is the most expensive one you will ever make

• How the Four Levers of Negotiating replace discounting with collaboration

• Why transparency from leadership keeps teams engaged and loyal

• How honest pricing kills sticker shock and shortens sales cycles

About Todd Caponi

Todd Caponi is an award-winning sales leader, keynote speaker, and author whose work has reshaped how organizations think about sales, leadership, and negotiation. After leading sales organizations through multiple high-growth exits, including serving as a worldwide Vice President of Sales of the Year, Todd founded Sales Melon, where he helps revenue teams apply behavioral science, decision science, and sales history to build trust, improve buyer confidence, and drive stronger outcomes.

He is the author of the acclaimed books The Transparency Sale, The Transparent Sales Leader, and Four Levers Negotiating, and is the host of The Sales History Podcast. Recognized as one of the industry's leading voices on transparency in selling, Todd works with revenue organizations around the world to transform the way they message, negotiate, lead, and grow.

Connect with Todd Caponi

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/toddcaponi/

Website https://www.toddcaponi.com

Todd's Books The Transparency Sale: https://a.co/d/0iBWFEai The Transparent Sales Leader: https://a.co/d/0hOf1W4K Four Levers Negotiating: https://a.co/d/0aaRnw4k

The Sales History Podcast https://saleshistory.buzzsprout.com

About Sales Lead Dog

Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor CRM. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the rest of the pack, sharing how they achieve success with their teams and their CRM strategy.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes.

Connect and Learn More

All episodes and show notes: https://empellorcrm.com/salesleaddog/

If this episode brought you value:

👍 Hit Like and help more sales professionals discover this conversation.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss a Sales Lead Dog episode.

💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. Where has being more transparent helped you win more trust and more deals?

#SalesLeadership #Transparency #Negotiation #SalesTraining #B2BSales #RevenueGrowth #SalesProcess #TrustInSales #SalesLeadDog

What if the biggest advantage in sales isn't your product, your pricing, or your tech stack... but simply being yourself?

In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Pete Auerbach, Sr. Vice President of National Sales at Ad.net, to discuss why authentic relationships, not transactions, are what actually close deals and build lasting business.

Drawing on nearly a decade leading the national sales team at Ad.net and a career built in digital advertising, Pete shares hard-won lessons on leading as a challenger brand, staying competitive at every stage of your career, balancing the player-coach role, and using AI and CRM to help sales teams work smarter.

If you're a founder, sales leader, revenue executive, or seller looking to build stronger customer relationships and a more resilient sales team, this conversation is packed with practical insight you can put to work today.

What You'll Learn

• Why authenticity beats the "sales persona" every time • How to build relationships that turn into multi-year deals • The challenger-brand mindset: doing everything at an A level • Why the best sellers work harder during a slump, not less • How to escape "whack-a-mole" and actually execute your plan • What servant leadership and empathy do for team culture • Why CRM is a "necessary evil" and how AI is about to redefine it • How to use AI as an enabler for your team, not a way to cut headcount

About Pete Auerbach

Pete Auerbach is a sales leader and digital advertising strategist with nearly a decade of experience at Ad.net, where he leads the national sales team while continuing to work directly with agencies and brands. He helps marketers uncover new opportunities for growth through innovative search, social, and creator media solutions, with a focus on driving measurable results and building lasting partnerships.

Pete got his start in advertising through internships on Madison Avenue before moving into the agency world and, eventually, sales leadership on the West Coast. A former two-sport college athlete, he brings a competitive, team-first mindset to how he builds and coaches his teams. Based in Los Angeles, Pete lives with his wife and two dogs, is the proud father of two adult children, and is an avid golfer and cyclist who carries a competitive edge into everything he does.

Connect with Pete Auerbach

LinkedIn https://www.linkedin.com/in/peteauerbach/

Learn More About Ad.net https://ad.net/

About Sales Lead Dog

Sales Lead Dog is hosted by Christopher Smith, CRM technology and sales process expert, and founder of Empellor CRM. Each episode features sales leaders who have separated themselves from the rest of the pack, sharing how they achieve success with their teams and their CRM strategy.

Unless you are the lead dog, the view never changes.

Connect and Learn More

All episodes and show notes: https://empellorcrm.com/salesleaddog/

If this episode brought you value:

👍 Hit Like and help more sales professionals discover this conversation.

🔔 Subscribe so you never miss a Sales Lead Dog episode.

💬 Drop your biggest takeaway in the comments. What's helped you most in building lasting customer relationships: authenticity, grit, or something else?

#SalesLeadership #Authenticity #SalesStrategy #CRM #ArtificialIntelligence #B2BSales #SalesManagement #DigitalAdvertising #Ad_net #SalesLeadDog