Tech Sales Specialist: How to Break Into Tech?

[00:00:00] How translatable are the skills within sports and into sales, right? I identified that and I thought, wow, I can make use of this, right? So whenever I go into interviews, I say, within sales, the key things that you need to have is determination, grit, hardworking ethic, going above and beyond. I used to do that in sports. So if I can relate that amount of information to the recruiter and tell them, hey, this is how this relates and this is how this translates into the corporate space, then it's like, okay, I'm connecting the dots here. And that makes me stand out compared to other candidates who may have a bit more experience than me.

[00:00:29] This is William and William works in tech sales. He is also the founder of Madeway, an organization that helps graduates and Gen Z find their roles in tech. In this episode, William completely demystified the role of tech sales, but also shared some amazing advice for people trying to get into tech.

[00:00:53] William's story is incredible. And the advice that he shared is truly valuable. Honestly, I learned so much speaking to him. In this video, you will learn about the role of tech sales, what they do and how much they earn. You will hear key advice about getting into tech sales, but also tech as a whole. And you will also hear William's incredible story of his journey in the tech industry.

[00:01:20] I can't wait for you guys to see this. But before we get into it, there's one thing that I can't go without mentioning. This podcast has provided so much value to so many people and the guests that come on to the podcast have been so amazing to ensure that we're able to continue to bring these amazing guests onto the podcast.

[00:01:39] We need your support. And you can support us by liking, subscribing and commenting on each podcast episode. This goes such a long way, way further than you might think and truly allows us to keep having amazing podcast episodes.

[00:01:55] So hit the like, subscribe to the channel, leave a comment sharing your thoughts on the episode. Now let's get right into the podcast.

[00:02:09] What are some of the things that prevent people from getting into tech? What are the reasons that people struggle to get into the tech industry?

[00:02:21] Yeah, that's a great question to kind of kick it off with. And I think for me, I've identified three prevalent problems that is, again, stopping people from getting into tech.

[00:02:31] So the first one is just the general knowledge of tech in itself. Obviously, there's so many different industries and areas you can go into from cybersecurity to software development, you know, to data analytics.

[00:02:41] I think the first thing is people can sometimes be, people can kind of sometimes be a little bit more pressured knowing that, hey, there's so many things to pick from. Where do I begin?

[00:02:51] Where do I begin? I don't know if I want to get into cybersecurity. I don't know if I want to become a software developer. What are those essentially? So that's, that's pretty much the first one.

[00:02:59] And then from then on the next kind of problem could be, okay, where do I find the resources to get into this? Right. Is should I go for an apprenticeship?

[00:03:08] Should I go for a grad scheme? Should I pay for my own courses and self teach myself before kind of, you know, start intervening for roles?

[00:03:16] That to me is the second kind of problem. And then the third part would just be, okay, the job market in itself, which I can't speak enough about, which is right now, to say the least, it's cooked.

[00:03:29] It's cooked.

[00:03:30] You know, there's, there's, there's, there's a, there's a lot going on within the job market.

[00:03:35] And this is one of the most important times where people now have to kind of learn, okay, personal branding, self-marketing, to be able to land specific roles.

[00:03:45] It's not good enough to just, you know, have a good CV anymore. That's not good enough.

[00:03:49] You know, you need to have a standout feature that kind of makes you, you know, go through rounds and make recruiters look at you and think, wow, he's a talent.

[00:03:57] And we can do something with them and how much value you're bringing into the companies that you're obviously interviewing for and ultimately trying to get roles.

[00:04:05] So those are the three that I have identified.

[00:04:08] Those are some really, really good points.

[00:04:11] And I love the point about the job market and where it's at right now and what you have to be doing to stand out in this market, what you have to be doing differently than what people would have done five or more years ago or even less than that.

[00:04:30] So what are some of those things?

[00:04:32] I mean, you mentioned some already.

[00:04:34] Can you tell us a little bit more about those things that we need to be focusing on to help us stand out in this job market and get those roles?

[00:04:43] Yeah, sure.

[00:04:44] Because, again, with the different kind of agencies I've worked at and obviously a lot of this is, you know, the audience, the target audience for this would be Gen Z, Gen Z kind of students or graduates, right?

[00:04:57] The key thing that they have is, you know, the key thing for them is they have time.

[00:05:01] Time right now.

[00:05:02] They have the time to invest into creativity and to do things outside of the working space that could give them that edge.

[00:05:10] For example, building a social media personal brand, having, again, creating specific content aimed at whatever it is that you want to get into to, again, to make you stand out.

[00:05:22] So those would be the key kind of little, little things that you could do to just kind of give the edge.

[00:05:26] But now if you're going into specific industries, I'll take tech sales, for example, which is kind of my bread and butter.

[00:05:33] The key things that you can be doing in tech sales is, OK, if I want to focus on giving myself the edge within interviews or CVs, how am I layering out my CV?

[00:05:41] What am I kind of getting across about myself?

[00:05:43] Right.

[00:05:44] And it could be the list of things.

[00:05:46] The key things that stood out for me was, hey, sports.

[00:05:50] How translatable are the skills within sports and into sales?

[00:05:53] Right.

[00:05:53] I identified that and I thought, wow, I can make use of this.

[00:05:57] Right.

[00:05:57] So whenever I go into interviews, I say within sales, the key things that you need to have is determination, grit, hard work and ethic, going above and beyond.

[00:06:06] I used to do that in sports.

[00:06:08] So if I can relate that amount of information to the recruiter and tell them, hey, this is how this relates and this is how this translates into the corporate space.

[00:06:15] Then it's like, OK, I'm connecting the dots here.

[00:06:17] And that makes me stand out compared to other candidates who may have a bit more experience than me or may have leverage in a different area.

[00:06:26] Right.

[00:06:26] So it's just about how you relay that across.

[00:06:28] So that's what I mean by standing out, doing different things that make you stand out.

[00:06:33] Really, really good.

[00:06:34] Really, really helpful.

[00:06:35] And it kind of just reminds me of my time as, you know, a graduate.

[00:06:41] I go like, well, not too long ago, what, three years back, something like that.

[00:06:46] And for me, when I think about, you know, graduating or, you know, trying to get a job as a student, what comes to mind is that a lot of the time you don't have experience.

[00:07:00] You don't have, you know, a year or so working somewhere.

[00:07:05] You know, some lucky people have internships, some have placements.

[00:07:08] But the majority of us at that graduate level didn't have any real experience.

[00:07:16] And so it was all about standing out with the other things that you had.

[00:07:21] And I talk a lot on my channel about how I was able to stand out when finishing university and graduating and trying to get that first job.

[00:07:29] And luckily, I had a mentor who told me this.

[00:07:32] Like, I said it in a few episodes, but I'll say it again.

[00:07:35] I was in church and he was the lead cloud engineer.

[00:07:39] And he spoke to me about getting into tech.

[00:07:43] And what he said was, he literally asked me, you know, what are you trying to do in tech?

[00:07:48] And I was like, I don't really know yet.

[00:07:51] You know, I'm thinking, I'm looking at different areas.

[00:07:53] I was in like second year at the time.

[00:07:55] And he was like, okay, cool, cool, cool.

[00:07:57] So what are you doing to stand out?

[00:07:59] And then I was like, I didn't have an answer, basically.

[00:08:04] And so he told me to go and do some certifications, which at the time I never even heard of that.

[00:08:10] So I was like, okay, yeah, I'll do this.

[00:08:13] This is cool.

[00:08:14] But there's a thing where nobody else graduating with me had done this.

[00:08:20] Nobody that I knew of.

[00:08:20] And so for me, it was really, I really did stand out when it came to looking for a job.

[00:08:27] And there are many ways to do that.

[00:08:29] Like you mentioned, like sports, even though that's completely separate from tech sales or what you're trying to get into.

[00:08:36] It is something that has those transferable skills in terms of determination and whatever the other things are, which is a great, great thing.

[00:08:47] And for Gen Z and for graduates who don't have that experience, this is something to take note of.

[00:08:55] Moving on.

[00:08:56] I actually just wanted to go into your story, you know, your journey and find out a little bit more about you and how you navigated some of these reasons that we've just spoke about.

[00:09:09] So I suppose the journey from where you started to where you are now, how did you get here?

[00:09:16] And what are some of the key things and the key moments that you'd share with the audience?

[00:09:21] Yeah.

[00:09:22] In terms of my journey, I think mine is very kind of unorthodox to say the least.

[00:09:28] So I studied sports and exercise science at university.

[00:09:32] And from then on, I kind of haphazardly kind of stumbled into a internship at Samsung.

[00:09:40] Right.

[00:09:41] And then I finished that internship and got straight into sales.

[00:09:45] You know, as after you finish kind of graduating, the first thing would be, OK, I need a job.

[00:09:49] I need a job like ASAP.

[00:09:51] Right.

[00:09:52] And I just kind of came across sales.

[00:09:55] I mean, I looked on, I think it was Indeed, Indeed or Read, one of those sites.

[00:09:59] And I saw sales, sales professionals or sales executives.

[00:10:03] And I looked at what are the requirements for this?

[00:10:06] And somebody wrote there, you know, determination, time, time, organizational skills.

[00:10:12] And I thought, hey, this, what is this?

[00:10:15] I mean, I can easily do this.

[00:10:16] So I went into the interviews.

[00:10:18] I still remember to this day and I was talking about this on my live the other day.

[00:10:21] I did around 13 interviews.

[00:10:24] The first time I interviewed, I did 13 interviews.

[00:10:29] Out of those 13, I got to the final.

[00:10:32] So I got into the final round of around four.

[00:10:36] And then I had an offer from one.

[00:10:39] So that's how I got into the sales space.

[00:10:44] And then within sales, obviously, once you get your foot into the door, it's all about getting that experience, getting that knowledge, proving, proving yourself.

[00:10:51] And that's how I landed today where I'm in a role right now where, again, I'm kind of selling, selling kind of sustainability tech.

[00:11:01] And I'm more than happy looking back at my journey and looking at the things that I have gone through to get here.

[00:11:08] In terms of the key bits of wisdom that I can give to the audience, again, looking at my story, the key things there is having that drive and that will to already look for those roles.

[00:11:21] And then doing my own research on the side, but then understanding that if it's coming to sales specific or even interview specific things, understand that it's a numbers game.

[00:11:32] You need to understand the numbers.

[00:11:34] So if you're sitting at home and you're sending out five CVs knowing that you don't have that experience, that's not going to work, unfortunately.

[00:11:42] Unfortunately.

[00:11:42] So recognize that it's a numbers game.

[00:11:45] You have to be on, you have to be on every day.

[00:11:49] So sending out 10, 15, 20 applications every day, every day, every day, because once you do that, you understand that, okay, out of those, let's say in the week you sent out 80 applications.

[00:11:59] Out of those 80 applications, I know that at least more than half of them are going to either not respond or turn me down straight away.

[00:12:07] More than half of them.

[00:12:08] Half the time, that's how it is.

[00:12:09] So you're looking at out of 80, at least 60 of them, no response or they'll turn you down straight away.

[00:12:16] Right.

[00:12:16] You're left with about 20 applications.

[00:12:18] Now out of those 20 applications, what happens is let's say about, should we say 12 of them?

[00:12:28] They'll give you a response as to, okay, you stood out, but we're not going to take you forward this time.

[00:12:34] And then you're left with about eight.

[00:12:36] So after those eight, those are actual interviews where you're invited to, to now go on and obviously talk about who you are, understand a bit about the role of speak with a recruiter.

[00:12:46] Now after those eight, you then understand that, okay, out of those eight, how many of them am I going to go to the final round of?

[00:12:50] And sometimes it's just three.

[00:12:52] Let's say three or four.

[00:12:54] And then out of those three or four, you know that, okay, at least I'm going to get one offer out of here.

[00:12:59] So it's a numbers game.

[00:13:01] Once you understand the numbers, you're less displeased with the amount of notes that you receive because you understand, okay, it's coming somewhere, right?

[00:13:12] Yeah.

[00:13:12] And that is that.

[00:13:14] So take on the notes like a conqueror because ultimately when I look at the notes that I receive within interviews or the recruiter that said that, hey, you presented yourself well within the interview.

[00:13:24] We're not going to take you forward because of X, Y, Z.

[00:13:26] Instead, those reasons that they gave me as to why they didn't take me forward, I took those and tailored my CV a little bit, tailored my interview approach a little bit.

[00:13:36] And when I went into the next interview, I've now gained knowledge, right?

[00:13:40] I've gained wisdom.

[00:13:41] So yeah, no's or not, they never end, right?

[00:13:46] They're just the beginning of something new.

[00:13:47] So yeah, that's been a month to get across.

[00:13:50] So true.

[00:13:52] And fact is, your first tech job will most likely be the hardest to get.

[00:14:01] And it doesn't mean that the next one will be super easy, but at least you have some experience to speak about to back that up, right?

[00:14:10] Correct.

[00:14:12] It's easy when you're starting out, when you're a student or someone who's getting their first job to really take rejection personally.

[00:14:22] Yeah.

[00:14:24] And I've been there where you're getting rejected again and again and you're thinking this is happening to just you.

[00:14:32] Yeah.

[00:14:32] But this really is something that happens to every tech professional.

[00:14:39] Right.

[00:14:39] The people who have been, you know, had some experience or been through that experience before understand that it's a numbers game.

[00:14:46] That it's the law of averages.

[00:14:48] And the more you put out, the more likely you are to get something.

[00:14:51] Yeah.

[00:14:51] As well as just, we don't want you to go and just throw out as many CVs as possible.

[00:14:58] One thing to make sure is that when you are throwing out those CVs, you are adjusting each one according to each job description and according to your skills.

[00:15:06] Don't make anything up.

[00:15:07] Correct.

[00:15:08] But adjust it according to the skills that you already have to make sure that you're not just throwing things out there.

[00:15:14] Because if it's not tailored to the role, you might as well not apply a lot of the time.

[00:15:21] No, it's possible.

[00:15:22] So, no, this is some great points that you shared with us, William.

[00:15:26] And I wanted to dive deeper into the role of tech sales.

[00:15:34] You've worked in that area and you worked in that area for a while now.

[00:15:37] Yeah, correct.

[00:15:38] And I want to understand what that role is and what it's like to work in that role.

[00:15:45] And, you know, we hear a lot about tech sales.

[00:15:48] And one of the things we hear a lot is about money and commission and this kind of stuff.

[00:15:53] So, could you just run through the role of tech sales, you know, what people in that role do and the sort of range of salary that people actually make, I suppose, in the UK or, you know, wherever.

[00:16:07] Yeah, sure.

[00:16:07] I'd be happy to do to dive into that.

[00:16:09] I think you hit it off very much well.

[00:16:13] It's all about money and commission.

[00:16:14] That's literally what sales is.

[00:16:16] Anyone that wants to make a quick buck, as the Americans would say, tech sales is the way forward.

[00:16:22] But what is it?

[00:16:23] What is tech sales essentially?

[00:16:24] So, I think people kind of think of it as just a fancy term.

[00:16:29] It's literally just sales.

[00:16:30] Sales.

[00:16:31] Being able to take, I don't know, you have the microphone that you have at the moment.

[00:16:35] So, a company makes those microphones, right?

[00:16:38] They need someone to sell those microphones out there.

[00:16:41] So, they would employ someone like me to find the right target audience to relay and sell that product across.

[00:16:50] That's what it is.

[00:16:51] And then, so that's sales as a whole.

[00:16:52] And then all you do is add tech into it.

[00:16:54] So, the only difference is you're selling now a tech product essentially.

[00:16:58] So, this could be a software.

[00:17:00] It could be a product that the company has created.

[00:17:03] For example, I worked within the Kubernetes space, right?

[00:17:07] There's someone else that's selling AI software.

[00:17:09] So, that's what it is.

[00:17:11] A company creates that product.

[00:17:13] They hire you to go out there and sell that product.

[00:17:15] Find the people that are needed to sell that product to.

[00:17:18] And create new business for the company going forward.

[00:17:21] So, that's the role.

[00:17:22] In terms of the salary, I think within the UK, obviously based on your experience,

[00:17:29] within the UK, the kind of junior sales role, you're looking at just around 25k on the base.

[00:17:38] But then, the beauty of it is now the commission.

[00:17:40] Commission.

[00:17:41] So, per sale that you make, there are some companies that give you a percentage of that revenue.

[00:17:48] Or they give you a percentage for obviously booking and creating that meeting with obviously the client or the client company or the customer company.

[00:17:57] And commission can be anything from first year, anything within 20k and above.

[00:18:03] So, essentially your full package, you're looking at just around 45k on the base.

[00:18:07] That is if you're hitting your target on a consistent basis.

[00:18:12] Now, if you have a bit more experience, you're looking at around a senior, mid to senior kind of sales executive.

[00:18:20] You're looking at anything around 40k on the base with a commission of, or OTE on target earnings of around, again, 30k and above.

[00:18:30] So, it really does depend on each company.

[00:18:32] Obviously, tech companies tend to pay a lot more in terms of commission and base salary compared to fintech.

[00:18:39] But yeah, you're looking at a really kind of fat, healthy, 35 to 40k on the base with a commission of just around 30 to 40k commission.

[00:18:48] So, together, you're looking at 75k or 80k as a whole.

[00:18:52] But I guess the sad thing is when you compare that to the American market of sales, they really go all in on their sales executives.

[00:19:03] So, a role here, a mid to senior kind of role here, they're always paying around 45 or 40k on the base.

[00:19:09] In America, it's paying around 80k to 90k, even 100k on the base.

[00:19:14] So, anyone that's really serious about sales, America is your market.

[00:19:19] Canada is your market and there's market going forward.

[00:19:21] Yeah.

[00:19:23] Makes so much sense.

[00:19:24] And really appreciate that breakdown of the role.

[00:19:27] It's super interesting because when I think about sales in general, I think, yeah, not for me.

[00:19:35] I couldn't do it.

[00:19:36] Why?

[00:19:37] Because, like, I know, like, it's difficult to tell for people that watch this.

[00:19:43] But I'm a massive introvert.

[00:19:44] Like, I do not like talking to people.

[00:19:48] I hate it.

[00:19:51] But in terms of, like, the role of sales and sales in general, it's a role that you've got to be somewhat outgoing.

[00:19:59] I mean, you're talking to people every day and your role is talking to people.

[00:20:03] Yeah.

[00:20:03] Is communication.

[00:20:06] And not just communication, but communication in a way that, you know, you know what a salesman is.

[00:20:12] Like, you're persuading someone to purchase something.

[00:20:15] Yeah.

[00:20:16] And I realized that this is something that I couldn't do.

[00:20:20] And if I had, and if I got into a tech sales role, I would probably make only the base and no commission.

[00:20:27] Because I would be so terrible at my job.

[00:20:30] But tell me, tell me, tell me what that experience is like for you.

[00:20:33] Do you have to be outgoing?

[00:20:36] Like, what's the...

[00:20:38] No, not necessarily.

[00:20:39] I think I'm just like you, Caleb.

[00:20:44] I'm very much an introvert.

[00:20:45] I don't go out much, right?

[00:20:46] If it's not football, basketball, or me stop with the guys to, you know, do something.

[00:20:51] I don't really go out.

[00:20:52] So with the roles, with tech sales or sales in general specifically, I think the most important skill to develop or to have would be being a people person.

[00:21:04] Coming with a consultative approach, a solution approach.

[00:21:09] And being able to be kind of a phone ethicist.

[00:21:14] Very, very important.

[00:21:15] And then recently, as of recently, obviously from the launch of AI, just having a bit of creativity about yourself.

[00:21:22] Right. And I say that because a lot of the time you do spend a lot of the time on the phone.

[00:21:28] So whether it's calling leads, calling customers, candidates, and you know that not everybody is going to say yes to the product.

[00:21:35] Majority of the time, let's say 80 percent of the time is straight no's.

[00:21:39] They're not interested or they don't even care about your product.

[00:21:43] It's your job to make them care about the product.

[00:21:46] Right. It's your job to pitch that product to them, tell them why they should have use of this product.

[00:21:53] Why should they have this product? Right.

[00:21:56] And if you look at the major kind of corporations in the world, I'll take, for example, KFC.

[00:22:02] When I looked into the story of the founder, Colonel Sanders, I read a story of him having, I think before he actually sold the recipe,

[00:22:10] I think he had about 999 no's before he had his first no's.

[00:22:15] Right. So being able to be resilient as well is a very, very important skill because you eat up a lot of no's, unfortunately.

[00:22:24] And as you said earlier with the CV example, you can take them a bit personal, but it's just about understanding that there's a psychology mindset that plays into it.

[00:22:32] Right. If someone tells you, no, we don't need this product.

[00:22:35] A lot of the time people will hang up the phone or shut it off, but it's just about to go in there and say, why do you, you know, why don't you want this product at the moment?

[00:22:43] You know, again, I'm not selling the product.

[00:22:46] I'm selling the solution.

[00:22:48] Right. But I need to understand that.

[00:22:49] OK, what is the problem that you currently have?

[00:22:52] Because there's no point in me trying to sell the product if I don't understand the problem that you currently have.

[00:22:56] And sometimes they may not be a problem.

[00:22:59] Right. But it's for you to kind of probe and identify, is there a problem at the moment?

[00:23:03] Right.

[00:23:04] So those are the skills that you need in terms of the role in general.

[00:23:07] It can be a bit.

[00:23:12] It's a role that demands a lot of attention.

[00:23:18] I would say attention to detail.

[00:23:20] A role that demands a lot of focus.

[00:23:23] For example, those that work from home doing this role, you know, you can make around 40, 50 calls per day.

[00:23:29] Within that time, you're watching a TV, you're playing a PlayStation.

[00:23:32] So you need to have that focus.

[00:23:35] Right.

[00:23:36] Yeah.

[00:23:37] You need to have that focus.

[00:23:37] You need to have that phone etiquette.

[00:23:39] It's a role that is very demanding because it very much is goal orientated, goal orientated, KPI driven.

[00:23:46] So you need to hit your call KPI, hit your emailing KPI, hit your meetings book KPI, hit your revenue KPI.

[00:23:53] So if you're not doing that, the company and this may sound harsh, but the company may not have use for you within the company itself.

[00:24:02] Right.

[00:24:03] So I spoke about this earlier on creating value for yourself.

[00:24:06] So, yeah, that's it.

[00:24:09] No, amazing.

[00:24:10] I really appreciate that breakdown.

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[00:24:38] I'm going to leave a link to it.

[00:24:39] Here's an example of me taking it myself and getting some pretty good recommendations for my own assessment.

[00:24:44] So, guys, check this out.

[00:24:45] And I hope this is really helpful.

[00:24:47] Thank you guys for watching.

[00:24:47] I'll see you guys later.

[00:24:49] I wanted to ask you, working within tech sales, how does that come off in your character and in the things that you've learned?

[00:25:01] You know, how has your role changed William as a person?

[00:25:06] Or what has William developed from that role that serves you in your day-to-day?

[00:25:13] That's a phenomenal question.

[00:25:15] When I think about it, from the first kind of three months being in my very first sales role, it has taught, not that it's taught me, but I was able to pick up on a few things in regards to discipline.

[00:25:28] How I organize my day is very different to prior starting sales, right?

[00:25:33] Prior to that at university, I could go to bed at 3 a.m. because I've been, you know, playing my PlayStation, playing pro clubs with the guys.

[00:25:41] Wake up at, you know, 8 a.m. and just start my day.

[00:25:44] But my first kind of three months there, I needed to understand that, okay, the way that I manage my time, the way that I manage my energy is very, very important.

[00:25:53] I need the most amount of energy from 9 a.m. to about 5 p.m.

[00:25:58] And I need to now understand how do I, when are the peak times where my energy is at its peak and notice that, okay, energy is kind of going low now.

[00:26:06] I need to refuel, right?

[00:26:07] So little nuances like that was one of the key things that I picked up.

[00:26:11] But then from sales as a whole, I think I was able to really kind of pick up on the psychology needed to make a sale.

[00:26:24] The psychology needed to understand personas and to make a sale, right?

[00:26:29] For example, when I launched Madeway and I was trying to, you know, connect with a lot of these recruiters, a lot of them said no, right?

[00:26:36] And I understood why.

[00:26:37] Like, I'm a new player in the game.

[00:26:39] You know, I have nothing special about the agency at the moment.

[00:26:43] So I needed to find ways in which I can bring value to that recruiter agency and then get what I need to get in return.

[00:26:53] So that's one of the key things I learned from sales.

[00:26:56] And again, to be able to make a sale and market a product as well, which is very important.

[00:27:01] Being able to pick something, market it, give you the value of it.

[00:27:04] And finally, understanding how to be solution orientated, solution orientated, probing questions, the way that I ask my questions, the etiquette.

[00:27:14] I think those are things that I've picked up from sales that have been very useful for me in my outside 9 to 5 life.

[00:27:21] And yeah, I think there's other people can tell you different things, but those specifically have been for me.

[00:27:28] Really good, really good and super good stuff.

[00:27:31] You mentioned, you know, how you've started, you started Madeway.

[00:27:37] And I want to talk a little bit more about that.

[00:27:40] Tell us exactly what Madeway is and, you know, what you guys do.

[00:27:46] Yeah, so this is kind of a bit of a funny story.

[00:27:49] So, you know, prior to launching the agency, whilst kind of working within kind of sales and tech sales, I used to have a lot of DMs from different people asking me, hey, you know, what is tech sales?

[00:28:02] How do I get into this? Right.

[00:28:04] I used to make a lot of content in regards to it.

[00:28:06] And I was helping out people one by one and thinking that, hey, give me your CV.

[00:28:10] I can touch it up a little bit.

[00:28:12] Give you a couple of tips on how to present yourself within interviews.

[00:28:15] And then, you know, go on your way and, you know, you go and land a role.

[00:28:19] And then eventually the more I thought about it and looking at the content creator space and saw that there was different people doing a lot of this within the field.

[00:28:26] And I thought, hey, let me launch something that an agency that can obviously help a lot of students doing it.

[00:28:31] And the reason as to why I named it Madeways, because I'm into a lot of motivational speakers.

[00:28:38] And Eric Thomas is one of the greatest motivational speakers that I kind of listen to.

[00:28:43] And he used to say something that he used to say something along the lines of, if nobody gives you a seat at the table, create your own.

[00:28:51] And I thought about that and I just kind of thought, OK, within my journey into sales, you know, nobody kind of just offered me a free seat at the table.

[00:29:02] Nobody kind of just, you know, gave things to me for free.

[00:29:04] And in fact, my whole life, nothing was just kind of given to me.

[00:29:07] I've had to always work to get the things that I wanted.

[00:29:10] And with Madeway, I wanted it to kind of resonate, resonate with that.

[00:29:14] But right, if nobody kind of gives you a way, create your own path, create your own way.

[00:29:18] Hence the name, Madeway, you've made a way.

[00:29:21] Even when nobody's kind of giving you that way, you've made a way.

[00:29:25] And essentially at the core, we just want to help as many graduates, Gen Z students, get into the tech space.

[00:29:33] Right. But to be able to do that, the three things that we focus on is equipping you with the skills needed to get into that space.

[00:29:40] So that's interview tips, self-marketing yourself, personal branding and kind of CV workshops.

[00:29:47] But then we work on the other side of, OK, getting together with consultants or content creators within that space and giving them the opportunity to tell you about their day-to-day and their roles.

[00:29:59] What is the day-to-day of someone working in data analytics?

[00:30:03] What is the day-to-day of someone working in project management?

[00:30:05] What is the day-to-day of someone working within tech sales?

[00:30:08] Remember at the start of this call, I told you that a lot of people or students, they don't really know the path to take within kind of tech, right?

[00:30:17] So we want to obviously solve that problem by putting consultants or content creators within that space around you so that you can make informed decisions.

[00:30:27] Companies have these guys that obviously look into the data of things to help them make informed decisions before they buy products.

[00:30:33] Why can't we do that with students and human beings?

[00:30:37] Giving you the information so that you can make informed decisions in regards to your career.

[00:30:42] So those are the two things that we focus on.

[00:30:45] Creating webinars, gathering together content creators and again, giving all that knowledge to a vast amount of graduates.

[00:30:54] Amazing, amazing, amazing, man.

[00:30:56] And super helpful, definitely for a lot of people that are watching this podcast.

[00:31:01] I know there's loads of students and Gen Zs that watch this podcast.

[00:31:06] Can't remember the percentages, but a lot of them.

[00:31:10] And this is something that could be super helpful for that audience and those people.

[00:31:16] So we'll definitely link that for people who are interested in getting involved and being a part of that and who actually need that help.

[00:31:29] I think it's super helpful and super interesting and a great initiative that you've taken to start that up, which is amazing.

[00:31:42] So how long have you been doing that?

[00:31:45] So we launched recently.

[00:31:48] So just around last year, summertime last year was when things started to pick up.

[00:31:54] So around June, June, June ish, we kind of started to pick things up.

[00:31:59] We officially launched around May, so April, May time.

[00:32:03] And it's only recently that it's picked up.

[00:32:05] I think we were able to partner up with Course Careers, who are an American course creating service.

[00:32:14] So they've created a mass amount of courses from data analytics to software development to AI to project management.

[00:32:22] We partnered up with them and they've given us kind of a space to obviously get a lot of students.

[00:32:29] We have a lot of students within kind of our database and we're just partnering them with the courses that are available to them.

[00:32:36] Some of the courses are completely free and they're tasteless to get into different spaces.

[00:32:41] And then there's obviously other courses that you can pay for and you get a certificate out of it as well.

[00:32:46] So that's really, really good.

[00:32:48] So that partnership happened in literally just last month and going into 2025, there's so much, so much that we're looking to kind of achieve.

[00:32:57] And, you know, it's the power of gathering people together for one focus goal and creating something for the purpose and the embedment of generations of different people.

[00:33:08] There is something that is really kind of, I like doing, right?

[00:33:13] It's a blessing to the community.

[00:33:16] So, yeah.

[00:33:16] Yeah.

[00:33:17] Amazing.

[00:33:18] Thanks so much, William.

[00:33:19] And super cool.

[00:33:21] Cool.

[00:33:21] I think you're the perfect person to answer this question.

[00:33:27] Just being that you help so many people, Gen Zs, students get into tech, get their first roles in tech.

[00:33:35] Yeah.

[00:33:36] And a lot of the audience watching this podcast, the people that watch this podcast are people who are either, you know, just getting into tech or they are transitioning from one area of tech to another.

[00:33:50] Or they are transitioning from a non-tech background into tech.

[00:33:56] Yeah.

[00:33:57] Or they're in the early stages of their tech career.

[00:33:59] But I wanted to ask you this question.

[00:34:02] You know, what advice would you give to someone who wants to get into tech?

[00:34:10] What advice would I give to someone who wants to get into tech?

[00:34:16] I like to use the rule of three.

[00:34:17] So I focus on just three key things.

[00:34:19] The first one is that's a great initiative.

[00:34:22] Phenomenal.

[00:34:24] But looking to, so you're looking at tech.

[00:34:27] There's, as I mentioned again, there's different industries within tech that you can go into, right?

[00:34:32] It's your job to do the research.

[00:34:34] It's your job to do the research as to, okay, I know I want to get into tech, but what part of tech do I want to get into?

[00:34:40] Do I want to get into cybersecurity?

[00:34:42] Do I want to get into data analytics?

[00:34:45] Do I want to get into, it could be possibly project management, but I want to get into tech sales, right?

[00:34:49] Do the research on your own or look for different kind of mentors or people to speak to about it and they can kind of direct you.

[00:34:58] And then from then on, it's about, okay, now that I know the sector that I want to get into, what do I need to get into that sector?

[00:35:08] There may be certain certifications you need to get.

[00:35:10] There may be certain things you need to do, such as experience or different projects that you can do on the side that will obviously be using.

[00:35:21] And then the final thing is just go out there and act.

[00:35:26] Action is key.

[00:35:28] Tailor your CV, send out applications, learn, go to different tech events, speak to people, you know, get stuck in, act.

[00:35:37] Action is the most important part of the whole of that process, right?

[00:35:41] There may be some people that will skip part, you know, advice one and two and they literally just act.

[00:35:46] They will still land somewhat of a role because they've gone out and acted, right?

[00:35:51] The only difference between you and that person is, okay, you're making, again, an informed decision and you're timed out in with the action and you're doing the research and you're tailoring different advices as you're going through.

[00:36:03] So those would be the three key things that I would highly, highly advise for anyone that's looking to get into tech.

[00:36:09] Again, very simple.

[00:36:10] Number one, refine that, refine that decision of what sector do I want to get into?

[00:36:16] Number two, number two, yeah, that's number one.

[00:36:21] Number two, tailor that approach.

[00:36:23] Do the research.

[00:36:26] Speak to people, go to these events, connect with people, network and finally act.

[00:36:32] Send out CVs, connect with people, tailor your CV, interviews, go into interviews.

[00:36:39] Even if they say no, come back.

[00:36:41] It doesn't matter.

[00:36:42] Use LinkedIn.

[00:36:43] Use as many resources as you can to get you to where you want to get to.

[00:36:49] Create your path.

[00:36:50] Create your way.

[00:36:51] Yeah.

[00:36:53] Love that, man.

[00:36:54] I love that.

[00:36:54] And it's really the proactivity.

[00:36:57] Like you're proactive in finding out what area of tech you want to focus on, what area you want to learn.

[00:37:06] And, you know, you're finding people in those areas.

[00:37:09] You're asking for advice.

[00:37:11] You know, you're proactive in sending out the CVs and understanding the numbers game.

[00:37:17] And you're also just acting, right?

[00:37:19] You're going to events.

[00:37:20] You're doing things in this area.

[00:37:23] You've made a commitment to finding that role.

[00:37:26] And you're not doing it half-heartedly.

[00:37:27] Exactly.

[00:37:28] So that's some great advice and some great points.

[00:37:32] I wanted to get into my favorite part of this episode or this podcast.

[00:37:38] Yeah.

[00:37:39] Since episode one, episode two, actually, we've been doing this.

[00:37:44] And I'm going to keep it going.

[00:37:46] I'm going to keep it going.

[00:37:47] So the question is, tell me your most interesting career story.

[00:37:54] And it could be interesting in a good way or a bad way.

[00:37:59] We've had people tell stories about how, you know, they've shut down a whole company system before.

[00:38:07] We also have people, you know, tell good stories about how they found something that was amazing, that helped a lot of people.

[00:38:13] So what is your interesting career story that you want to share with the audience today?

[00:38:19] My interesting career story?

[00:38:23] I can speak about so many different things.

[00:38:25] I think for me, the one that really stands out and, you know, it's really kind of lit and sticks in my heart would be my very first role.

[00:38:36] And for anybody that knows door-to-door sales, you know, you're pretty much, you're on the goal, you're walking.

[00:38:43] There's no time to just kind of sit down unless it's your lunch break, right?

[00:38:47] And the only difference is, instead of knocking on your door, we were doing it for businesses on a street front, on literally a street road.

[00:38:54] And for me, you know, being very young, enthusiastic and wanting to just go out there and make sales, I came across this, I like to call him a wise man.

[00:39:03] You know, Caleb, I know you read the Bible.

[00:39:05] I like to call him a wise man, right?

[00:39:07] And I came into his store.

[00:39:08] He had an eyeglass store.

[00:39:11] And I came in and I was just like, I came in with the enthusiasm and I was just kind of looking to get a sale in there.

[00:39:18] I felt it there.

[00:39:18] And I came to him, I introduced myself, introduced a product like I always do, right?

[00:39:25] And he sat there.

[00:39:27] He listened.

[00:39:28] He didn't say anything.

[00:39:29] He didn't say anything at all.

[00:39:31] Another customer came in.

[00:39:32] He tended to that customer and I was a bit agitated because I was like, hey, I just kind of came into your store.

[00:39:37] You're not going to acknowledge me yet.

[00:39:38] You looked at me, but he didn't even say anything.

[00:39:40] He took care of the customer and then the customer went out.

[00:39:44] But I stayed.

[00:39:45] I could have left, but for some reason I stayed.

[00:39:49] And he told me to sit down on a bench in his store.

[00:39:54] I sat down on the bench and he kind of, he got some coffee, got some tea, asked me if I wanted his coffee or tea.

[00:40:02] I said, no, I don't.

[00:40:03] I'm here to make a sale.

[00:40:05] I don't really want any coffee or anything.

[00:40:06] But he brings his tea.

[00:40:08] He brings his coffee.

[00:40:08] He sits down next to me and he tells me, young man, I see the passion and the fire in your eyes.

[00:40:14] You know, I can see that you're good at what you do.

[00:40:18] But he taught me a very important skill.

[00:40:21] And it was to understand that, you know, within sales as a whole, and you can apply this in life as well.

[00:40:29] The importance of being a people person, the importance of understanding relationships,

[00:40:35] the importance of understanding dynamics within the relationships that obviously we as human beings create.

[00:40:41] And essentially he went on to tell me his life story about the things that he experienced.

[00:40:48] And I just literally sat there in amazement and was just listening to him.

[00:40:52] And this is why I call him a wise man, right?

[00:40:54] He transformed the way of the psychology and the thinking mindset that I had around sales.

[00:41:00] It's not about just always selling someone a product.

[00:41:04] It's about, again, being a people person, understanding and listening to what they're saying,

[00:41:09] listening to what's being told.

[00:41:12] And, yeah, I think that to me is the most meaningful kind of moment within my sales career.

[00:41:17] You know, it's nothing kind of, it's not a big achievement, oh, I made 50K in sales.

[00:41:21] No, I think it's just the mind shift in regards to understanding the methodology of sales.

[00:41:28] And it's very important because that has actually applied into other areas of my life.

[00:41:32] Understanding to be a people person, it makes you humble.

[00:41:36] You think about others, you think about service to others rather than service to yourself.

[00:41:41] At the end of it, obviously, after coming back another day, I was able to get the sale eventually.

[00:41:47] But from that point on, I changed my outlook and the thinking I had in regards to sales in general.

[00:41:54] So that's why I called him my wise man, my wise man.

[00:41:57] So, yeah.

[00:41:58] Wow.

[00:41:59] What an incredible story.

[00:42:01] Yeah, that was a really good story, man.

[00:42:04] And I really appreciate you sharing that and how this man really changed your perspective on sales to really understanding the person and not just wanting to make the sale.

[00:42:15] So, yeah.

[00:42:16] Super, super great story.

[00:42:19] Really, really cool.

[00:42:21] So to end off this podcast, I wanted to ask you to, you know, promote, share.

[00:42:29] You know, where can the audience find you and anything else you want to shout out?

[00:42:34] Yeah, yeah, sure.

[00:42:35] First of all, I'm going to shout out all the UK tech content creators.

[00:42:39] Because I've managed to work with so many great people.

[00:42:42] So, Harry, Olive, Angel, Katarina, Yamura, I think Yamura, Yamura, my bad.

[00:42:51] Obviously, yourself, Caleb, you know, continue to do the things that you do.

[00:42:54] Start off there.

[00:42:55] And then secondly, I think anybody that's, you know, looking to get into the tech space, first of all, connect with these people within the content creator space.

[00:43:03] People working within those fields.

[00:43:05] Speak to them.

[00:43:06] Ask them to mentor you.

[00:43:08] And then just go out there and act.

[00:43:10] If you're looking to get specifically within the sales space or tech sales space, obviously, you can hit me up at Willisprints on Instagram or Madeway, Madeway Co.

[00:43:19] So my team will be happy to take on your CV, give you some interview tips, provide you with a few roles.

[00:43:25] And it's completely free.

[00:43:27] You guys don't pay anything at all.

[00:43:28] It's all about giving back to the community, which is really important for us.

[00:43:32] So that is that.

[00:43:33] In regards to next year, 2025.

[00:43:36] So be on the lookout for the tech sales webinar that's going to launch in January.

[00:43:41] So we're currently working on that.

[00:43:42] We're partnering with a recruitment company who's kind of going to outline that and put that out there.

[00:43:47] And then we're going to launch a massive, massive tech webinar, hopefully the start of February or end of February with, again, a lot of these content creators that are named.

[00:43:56] It's going to be a massive one.

[00:43:58] So make sure you're there.

[00:43:59] And yeah, that's pretty much all I can say.

[00:44:02] And again, massive thank you to yourself, Caleb.

[00:44:05] Continue to do what you do.

[00:44:06] You should be getting so much more subscribers, so much more followers.

[00:44:10] You guys should follow him.

[00:44:11] And it's amazing.

[00:44:13] It's amazing to be in the presence of, you know, like-minded people like yourself.

[00:44:16] So thank you again.

[00:44:17] Amazing.

[00:44:18] Thanks so much, William.

[00:44:19] This has been a great episode.

[00:44:21] For everyone watching, we're back weekly.

[00:44:23] And thank you so much for watching this episode.

[00:44:26] We'll see you in a bit.

[00:44:27] See you.

[00:44:28] Bye.

[00:44:33] Bye.

[00:44:34] Bye.

[00:44:34] Bye.