April 23, 2024
Written by UJJI Team
In a world where start-ups seem to be mushrooming at an unprecedented rate, Connectd is a unique platform that helps connect some very important dots. They bring investors, start-ups, board members and other stakeholders together, helping to create a conducive ecosystem for all of them to interact more effectively, work together and accelerate growth for each other.
However, even a platform as unique as Connectd faces uphill challenges. Connectd launched with a splash and so, to keep up with the fast-pace of growth, aggressive KPIs and milestones were pinned down for the future of the business. Breaking out of start-up mode and into the fast-scaling big leagues had become the name of the game.
Connectd had a strong foundation laid as a thriving start-up. They now needed to transition from being a start-up to a scale-up.
A part of making that transition successfully included scaling up their sales team. Like any start-up, sales at Connectd was founder-driven, with just a handful of people to support. To break into the next level however, they needed to increase their revenue stream, thus the decision to quickly grow their sales function from a group of 3 to a team of over 20 professionals.
However, just hiring a sales team wasn’t enough. They also needed to replicate the know-how, passion and conviction that their founder-led sales would bring to every call. That’s not easy - it requires training on product knowledge and value proposition, lead generation and sales processes, the use of CRM tools and every other aspect of Connectd’s unique market space.
"Transitioning our training to UJJI was a smooth process. Their team understood our needs and made the setup a breeze. We were wary of adding another tech solution, but UJJI's intuitive app proved us wrong. Micro-learning pills fit perfectly into our fast-paced environment” — Jim, Senior Performance Acquisition Manager of Connectd
As is the case with most start-ups, the lack of structured training meant that knowledge transfer was often a one-on-one process. This is both time consuming and expensive.
More importantly, it also meant that training was inconsistent, considering managers bring their individual personalities, behaviors and teaching preferences to the training process.
Being a startup ourselves, we immediately understood the position that Connectd was in and got to work building solutions to answer their needs.
Connectd’s onboarding also entailed a quick intro chat to uncover the areas their sales team needed training in. We also recognized that in order to bring their whole sales team on the same page, they needed bespoke training that mirrored the sales processes and ways of working that their smaller, founder-led sales team had considerable success with.
UJJI provides the support expected of a dedicated partner. They're always responsive, proactive, and genuinely invested in our success. Their customer care embodies our 'conduct yourself as an owner' value. They treat us like a valued member of the team, with open communication and follow up" — Jim, Senior Performance Acquisition Manager of Connectd
UJJI AI seamlessly planned the amount of pathways and sessions within each pathway that was required to deliver bite-sized, unique micro-training modules. These were laid out to make knowledge assimilation easier and faster for their newly expanded sales team. All off the back of their existing internal sales decks.
Our interactive, AI-led gamified approach to training covered a host of topics, including a deep understanding of Connectd’s market offerings, lead generation process, sales process, the use of CRM tools and more.
This is an introductory module, or learning pill, that welcomes the new team to the Connectd family. It gives them a broad overview of what the company does, as well as their culture and values.
A module presented by James Dixon that takes the team through some helpful tips and tricks to achieve success as sales development representatives.
A learning pill that shows new incumbents what to expect in terms of growth and career prospects at Connectd, right from their first year onwards.
UJJI also created an interactive, multi-staged, gamified training pathway for Connectd’s sales development representatives. This pathway covers topics running from what Connectd offers investors, what benefits and discounts Connectd’s clients can expect from their partners, creating sales personas, sales techniques and more.
Lastly, a quiz was created to gauge how much the team members have learned about Connectd’s core values.
UJJI's data insights are game-changers. We track engagement, measure skill development, and identify areas for improvement. This data-driven approach fuels our growth mindset. We can optimize training based on data, maximizing impact and ensuring our investment delivers.” — William, Sales Development Representative Team Lead
The Connectd sales team was brought into their bespoke sales upskilling programme and as individuals went through their action-based training, SDRs started putting into practise their recently acquired learnings.
We got Connectd to transition their training onto UJJI seamlessly, and in just a few weeks, we turned their team of more than 20 green sales development reps into seasoned professionals who understood and spoke Connectd sales language. This language that was once only fluently spoken just by Roei Samuels, Connectd’s founder.
They're addressing a very real and important challenge for businesses. The customer service experience with UJJI has truly been phenomenal. You can tell the team genuinely cares about getting great outcomes for their customers and wants to work alongside them as a partner." — Roei, Co-founder & CEO of Connectd
With their new, well-oiled sales machine came an unprecedented increase in performance, and as a result, revenue. In fact, UJJI’s bespoke training gave Connectd the confidence to accelerate plans to expand to the US market, allowing them to go-to-market in the US region in Q4 of 2023.
Since embracing micro-learning, we've exceeded our growth targets in the past year. Our churn rate dropped by 9%, contributing directly to our 2.5x annual recurring revenue growth. UJJI isn't just training; it's a catalyst for growth." — Jim, Senior Performance Acquisition Manager of Connectd
Irrespective of your business vertical, training is an absolutely necessary function. However, it does not have to be archaic, dry and drab. Come on-board with UJJI, and we’ll convert your existing training modules into fun, interactive, gamified, AI-driven modules that your teams can self-consume. We can even create new modules for you from the ground up.
The results? Your team will upskill themselves while saving you resources and costs! Does that tickle your fancy? Book a demo with our team today, and step into the future of learning and development.
