Lessons Learned from Selling Databricks, Microsoft, and Meltwater: Ray's Insights as a Veteran in B2B Tech Sales

Welcome to the latest edition of our newsletter! Today, we’re thrilled to spotlight Ray Liew, a seasoned tech sales professional with a remarkable track record at industry giants like Databricks, Microsoft, and Meltwater. Specializing in data and AI, Ray’s approach to sales is both strategic and customer-centric, focusing on building trust, extensive preparation, and genuine authenticity. Whether he’s helping enterprises maximize their data investments or co-hosting the "Talk Lah" podcast, Ray’s dedication to understanding and solving customer challenges sets him apart as a leader in the B2B tech sales arena. Here are the highlights: 

Who is Ray?

Ray Liew is a seasoned tech sales professional with experience at Databricks, Microsoft, and Meltwater. Specializing in data and AI, he focuses on helping enterprises in Hong Kong maximize their data investments. Ray also co-hosts the "Talk Lah" podcast, exploring the journeys of successful millennials.

What Does Databricks Do? 

Databricks is a data platform company that specializes in unifying structured and unstructured data through an open lakehouse architecture. It enables efficient data management, analytics, and AI applications, facilitating tasks such as BI reporting, real-time analytics, and customer segmentation. By integrating various data sources, Databricks empowers organizations to derive actionable insights and drive personalized business outcomes. The platform serves as a foundation for diverse downstream applications.

Lessons from Ray’s Sales Journey:

"Sales is about more than deals; it's guiding customers to success through tailored, long-term solutions."

• Meltwater:

  • Mastering Value-Based Selling: At Meltwater, Ray learned the importance of quickly identifying customer pain points and wrapping a compelling narrative around them. This taught him how to craft and deliver a message that directly addresses customer needs, leading to faster sales cycles.

  • Sharpening Prospecting Skills: Ray honed his ability to identify and engage the right decision-makers, a crucial skill in ensuring that the sales process starts on the right foot.

• Microsoft:

  • Navigating Complex Sales Cycles: Transitioning to Microsoft, Ray encountered far more complex sales cycles involving multiple stakeholders. Here, he developed a deep understanding of enterprise sales, learning to manage long-term relationships and navigate organizational hierarchies.

  • End-to-End Value Creation: Selling Azure required Ray to not only sell a platform but to work with partners and customers to ensure the platform’s integration and eventual value realization. He learned the importance of building comprehensive solutions that address both IT and business needs, enhancing his strategic thinking and project management skills.

• Databricks:

  • Deepening Expertise in Data Analytics: At Databricks, Ray’s focus narrowed to data analytics and AI, allowing him to deepen his expertise in these areas. He learned to tailor solutions to highly specific use cases, such as AI-driven customer segmentation and data warehousing, which required a more nuanced understanding of the technology.

  • Balancing Flexibility with Structure: Unlike traditional SaaS, Databricks offers customers flexibility in how they configure solutions. Ray learned to balance this flexibility with the need to guide customers in realizing value, further refining his consultative selling approach and his ability to customize solutions to meet unique business needs.

How Ray Does Prospecting

"Disqualifying early is essential. By focusing on the right accounts, I can avoid wasting time and resources on deals that are unlikely to close."

• Rigorous Qualification Process:

  • Cloud Platform Alignment:

    • Ray begins his prospecting by determining if the prospect is using one of the three cloud platforms supported by Databricks: Microsoft Azure, AWS, or Google Cloud.

    • If a prospect isn’t on one of these platforms, he often disqualifies them, understanding that the sales cycle would likely be too long and resource-intensive.

  • Key Personas Presence:

    • Ray looks for the presence of key roles within the organization—data analysts, data engineers, and data scientists—who would be the primary users of the Databricks platform.

    • If these roles are absent, he knows there’s no one within the organization to champion the product, making it unlikely that Databricks can deliver value.

• Focus on the Right Fit:

  • Strategic Disqualification:

    • Ray strategically disqualifies accounts that don’t meet his criteria, freeing up his time to focus on more promising prospects.

    • His 80/20 rule prioritizes accounts with the highest potential to contribute to his revenue goals.

    • Observation: Ray’s ability to say "no" to the wrong prospects is as crucial as his ability to say "yes" to the right ones, ensuring maximum efficiency in his sales efforts.

Bottom-Up Approach and Insights on Finding Champions

"The bottom-up approach works for us because the end-users are often the biggest advocates for Databricks within the organization."

• Bottom-Up Approach:

  • Starting with End-Users:

    • Rather than targeting C-suite executives immediately, Ray begins by building relationships with the end-users—data analysts, data engineers, and data scientists—who will interact directly with Databricks.

    • These end-users are crucial in demonstrating the product’s value, as they will directly interact with Databricks.

  • Gradual Climb to Decision-Makers:

    • As these end-users begin to see value in the platform, they naturally bring Ray into conversations with their managers and eventually with higher-level executives.

    • Tactic: Ray uses this approach to build credibility at each level of the organization, ensuring that when he does reach the C-suite, he has multiple internal advocates backing his proposal.

• Importance of Champions:

  • Identifying Strong Champions:

    • Ray identifies champions as individuals within the organization who are not only willing to try new solutions but also have the influence to advocate for those solutions internally.

    • Ray looks for people who are eager to stand out and challenge the status quo.

  • Nurturing and Empowering Champions:

    • Ray invests time in nurturing these champions, providing them with the tools, resources, and support they need to advocate for Databricks internally.

    • Tactic: He might offer tailored demos, case studies, or even direct access to Databricks’ technical experts to equip his champions with the evidence they need to persuade others in the organization.

    • Observation: Ray understands that a well-supported champion can be the difference between a stalled deal and a successful enterprise sale.

How Ray Keeps Engaged with Prospects

"I don’t just reach out for the sake of it. Each touchpoint is meaningful and tailored to the prospect’s needs, ensuring they see the value in every interaction."

• Sustained Engagement:

  • Regular Touchpoints:

    • Given the long sales cycles typical in enterprise deals, Ray ensures he maintains regular touchpoints with prospects, but he does so strategically.

    • Tactic: Instead of generic follow-ups, Ray uses each touchpoint to advance the conversation, ensuring every interaction adds value and keeps the prospect engaged.

• Value-Driven Communication:

  • Tailored Content and Updates:

    • Ray focuses on delivering content that is specifically relevant to the prospect’s needs and pain points.

    • This could involve sharing industry insights, case studies, or updates on how Databricks can address specific challenges faced by the prospect.

    • Observation: Ray believes that by consistently providing value, he can keep the prospect interested and maintain momentum in the sales process.

  • Personalized Engagement Across Channels:

    • Ray leverages a mix of communication channels—emails, LinkedIn messages, and offline interactions—to maintain a personalized approach.

    • Tactic: He might use LinkedIn to share a relevant article or comment on a prospect’s post, keeping the relationship warm without being overly salesy.

    • Insight: Ray has found that using a variety of channels helps him stay top-of-mind with prospects without overwhelming them, allowing for more natural and productive conversations.

How Ray Handles Objections

"I’m comfortable walking away from deals that don’t align with Databricks’ strengths. Not every customer is the right fit."

• Reassessment:

  • When faced with objections, Ray takes a step back to reassess the situation. He evaluates whether the objection stems from a genuine misalignment or if it’s something that can be addressed through education or a demonstration of value.

• Realistic Mindset and Acceptance:

  • Ray accepts that not every deal is meant to be won and that rejection is a natural part of sales.

  • Observation: Ray’s ability to recognize when to disengage allows him to refocus his efforts on more promising opportunities, increasing his overall efficiency and success rate.

• Turning Objections into Opportunities:

  • When possible, Ray uses objections as an opportunity to deepen his understanding of the prospect’s needs and refine his approach.

  • By reframing objections as opportunities to address specific concerns, Ray often turns potential deal-breakers into closed-won opportunities.

Ray Liew’s Secret Sauce in B2B Tech Sales

"Trust takes a lifetime to build, but when something goes wrong, basically the trust is gone. And I like to try to hold that same standard to myself to always provide the best that I can for my customers."

• Authenticity and Transparency:

  • Ray’s approach is deeply rooted in being authentic and transparent. He understands that being genuine builds stronger connections with clients, making his interactions more impactful and trustworthy.

• Extensive Preparation:

  • Ray goes beyond the basics by conducting thorough research and engaging in offline conversations with various stakeholders before any meeting. This preparation allows him to deeply understand the customer’s priorities and challenges, ensuring that his solutions are highly relevant and tailored.

• Building and Maintaining Trust:

  • Trust is the cornerstone of Ray's sales philosophy. He believes in consistently delivering value and maintaining high ethical standards, knowing that trust takes a long time to build but can be lost in an instant.

We hope Ray‘s journey in tech sales has provided you with valuable perspectives on the importance of preparation, authenticity, and trust in building long-lasting client relationships. Ray's approach, rooted in understanding customer needs and delivering tailored solutions, underscores the significance of a customer-centric mindset in today’s competitive landscape. His experiences across industry-leading companies remind us that true success in B2B sales comes from a blend of strategic thinking and genuine human connection. Stay tuned and subscribe HERE for more insights and stories from industry leaders who are redefining the future of business.