In this episode of the RevOpsAF podcast, co-host Matt Volm sits down with Jen Igartua, CEO of Go Nimbly, a leading RevOps consulting firm. With over 15 years of experience, Jen has helped drive growth for clients like Twilio, Zendesk, and PagerDuty, making her a seasoned expert in revenue operations.

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The conversation delves deep into the distinctions between sales-led and product-led growth (PLG), the challenges of product-led sales (PLS), and the role of data in modern sales strategies. Jen also shares actionable insights on how RevOps professionals can better align with product teams to boost efficiency and customer experience. 

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Whether your company is sales-led, product-led, or a hybrid, this episode offers strategies for maximizing revenue potential.

The Differences Between Sales-Led Growth and Product-Led Sales

Jen opens the conversation by explaining that product-led growth (PLG) is not a new concept. Companies like Twilio and Zendesk have employed PLG strategies for over a decade, even if the term is relatively new. PLG is just one of several go-to-market motions, much like sales-led growth. Each motion serves a unique function, but they often overlap in practice. 

"Companies still operate in similar ways when they have a PLG motion...the core tenets of RevOps remain." Jen Igartua

Jump to the clip to learn more about the differences between these growth models.

The Challenges of Product-Led Sales (PLS)

One of the most complex aspects of PLS is tracking customer behavior across different funnels. Customers can easily switch between self-service actions – like signing up for a free trial – and sales-led interactions, such as filling out a contact form. This makes it difficult to accurately track customer progress and intentions. 

Additionally, working closely with product teams is crucial for RevOps teams managing PLG strategies. You will be working much tighter with a product team in a PLG motion, Jen emphasizes, which creates new dynamics that require close collaboration across departments.

Jump to the clip to learn more about the challenges inherent in a PLS model.

Building Blocks of Product-Led Sales

Jen introduces a four-step framework that outlines the building blocks of PLS:

• Data Collection: Gather usage data, firmographic information, and account health metrics.
• Signal Translation: Translate this data into actionable signals that are meaningful to the sales team.
• Action Recommendation: Provide the sales team with recommended actions based on these signals.
• Feedback Loops: Feed insights back to the business to continuously refine and optimize sales motions.

Many companies are good at collecting data, but few effectively translate that data into signals that the sales team can act on.

"We have all this data but struggle with figuring out what to send over to the sales team and why." Jen Igartua

Starting small and focusing on one or two use cases is key to building a sustainable process.

Jump to the clip to learn more about the building blocks for PLS.

Real-World Examples of Signal-Based Selling

Jen gives concrete examples of signal-based selling at companies like Intercom, where specific customer behaviors (such as a decline in CSAT scores paired with rapid team growth) trigger sales actions. This type of playbook-driven approach ensures that sales teams are reaching out at the right moments, with tailored solutions based on customer needs. For instance, Intercom’s sales team can recommend their AI product, Fin, when they detect a client experiencing growth-related strain on their customer success operations.

Jump to the clip to hear the real-world example.

Aligning Product Teams and RevOps

One of the most critical aspects of PLG is ensuring that RevOps and product teams are closely aligned. Jen explains that successful product-led sales require collaboration between multiple stakeholders, including marketing, product, sales, and even finance. Without this alignment, it becomes difficult to build cohesive strategies that serve the overall business objectives.

"Product teams bring a user-centric perspective that RevOps teams can greatly benefit from. It's a gift that you get to work with product teams. You'll learn a lot about how they think. And it's practices that, as revenue operators, we could really take hold of." Jen Igartua

Jump to the clip to hear more about filling this need for cross-functional cooperation.

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