Sales Lead Dog Podcast

Customers don't stay loyal to companies. They stay loyal to people they trust. In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith welcomes Carl Bailey, Chief Marketing Officer at Elan Fuels, and Riley Vidock, Director of Sales at Elan Fuels, for an insightful conversation about leadership, operations, sales, and why lasting customer relationships are built through trust, not transactions. Drawin...

What separates average sales leaders from the ones people actually want to follow? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Joy Wilder Lybeer, Chief Revenue Officer at Source Advisors, for a conversation on sales leadership, team building, accountability, trust, and why servant leadership still wins in high-performance sales organizations. Joy shares the leadership lesso...

What does it take to drive growth, lead change, and build winning sales organizations? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Rodrigo Hijar, Head of Sales Strategy and Planning at Vilore Foods Company, to discuss sales leadership, growth strategy, change management, consumer behavior, CRM, and the future impact of AI on sales organizations. Rodrigo shares lessons from...

What does it take to build high-performing sales teams in an AI-driven world? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Leala Dueno, CRO and Founder at LATTIX, to discuss sales leadership, team development, mentorship, CRM strategy, AI, and what it takes to create repeatable revenue growth. Leala shares lessons from her journey building and scaling sales organizations, le...

What separates great sales leaders from the rest? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Aaron Coleman, Chief Revenue Officer at ZSuite Technologies, to discuss sales leadership, team development, process discipline, CRM adoption, AI, and what it takes to build a consistent revenue engine. With more than 25 years of experience in financial technology sales and revenue...

In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Listy Limon, Chief Revenue Officer at GFS Home Loans, to discuss leadership, mortgage sales, AI, CRM adoption, customer trust, and building high-performing sales teams in a challenging market. With more than 20 years of experience across the mortgage industry, Listy shares practical lessons on leadership, structure, accountability...

Why do so many salespeople lose deals even when they think meetings went well? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with James White, Founder of James White Sales, to discuss emotional intelligence in sales, buyer psychology, CRM adoption, prospecting persistence, and the habits that separate top sales performers from everyone else. With more than 30 years of experience i...

Why do so many sales conversations fail before they even begin? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Darren Haygood, Chief Revenue Officer and Managing Partner at Streamline Auto Solutions, to talk about the real skills behind successful sales leadership, customer relationships, and long-term business growth. With more than 25 years of experience across OEM, dealersh...

What does it take to lead a global sales team selling drone navigation technology to the Department of Defense, in environments where GPS cannot be trusted? Kara Kramer, Vice President of Raptor Sales at Vantor, joins Sales Lead Dog to break down her journey from the intelligence community to the front lines of defense technology sales, and the leadership philosophy she built around one core princ...

What actually holds businesses back from scaling? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Wayne Hunter, President & CEO of AvTek Solutions, to break down the real challenges behind growth, leadership, and operational success. Wayne brings over 30 years of experience in IT, cybersecurity, and compliance. He shares practical insights on why most businesses struggle no...

Why do some salespeople consistently win while others struggle to close deals? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Michael Ritsema, Principal and President of I3 Business Solutions, to discuss persistence, sales discipline, and why consistent outreach still drives results in modern selling. Michael began his career in sales in the early days of technology distributi...

Why do so many sales conversations fail before they even begin? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Christopher Smith sits down with Ian Spandow, Sales & Dog Whisperer, Author, and Sales Enablement Consultant, to explore one of the most common mistakes in modern selling: pitching before understanding the buyer. Ian has worked with sales teams across the world and previously led the sales coachi...

What if AI is not the solution to your sales problems? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, we sit down with Jim Iyoob, President of ETS Labs, to break down what actually drives performance in sales and contact centers. Jim shares his journey from call center agent to building a global organization, along with practical insights on leadership, accountability, and why most companies struggle with CRM...

What if the secret to a long, successful sales career had nothing to do with scripts, tactics, or closing techniques? Richard Cassell, Senior Director of Business Development at Black Box, learned his most important sales lesson at age 12 working at his family's gas station in Valdosta, Georgia. That moment set the foundation for a career built on one core idea: stop focusing on yourself and start...

AI is not coming for sales. It is already here. In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Victor Antonio joins us to break down what AI agents really mean for sales teams, sales leaders and the entire buying process. Victor’s background is rare. Electrical engineering. MBA. Global sales leadership. President of global sales and marketing for a $420M company. VP of international sales for a Fortune 500 or...

Is inside sales broken? Or are we leading it the wrong way? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Chris sits down with Lynn Hidy, founder of UpYourTeleSales, LLC and author of Mastering Inside Sales Leadership, to unpack what is really happening inside modern sales teams. Lynn explains why inside sales leadership has not evolved fast enough, why many teams consistently miss quota, and why most compan...

Why do customers say no even when your offer looks great? In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Chris sits down with Matt Sucha, CEO of Mindworx and author of The Hidden Yes, to break down the real reason offers fail and how behavioral economics changes the way we sell. Matt explains why most sales teams ask the wrong question. Instead of asking “How do we motivate customers?”, the better question is...

Most sales opportunities aren’t lost at the end; they’re lost in the very first meeting. In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, Chris sits down with sales strategist and bestselling author Lee Salz, creator of The First Meeting Differentiator, to unpack why traditional “discovery calls” are broken and what top-performing sales professionals do instead. Lee explains why salespeople rely too heavily on...

Scaling companies is hard. Exiting them successfully is even harder. Doing it repeatedly takes a different mindset. In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, host Chris sits down with Jeff Fleischer, a senior operating executive, capital advisor, and entrepreneur with more than 25 years of experience scaling technology and cybersecurity companies through hypergrowth, acquisitions, and strategic exits. Je...

What starts as a dream of becoming a jazz musician turns into an unexpected journey of building a healthcare technology company impacting millions of lives. In this episode of Sales Lead Dog, host Chris sits down with Gerry Miller, Founder & CEO of Cloudticity, to explore a career shaped by passion, courage, and the ability to say yes to unexpected opportunities. Gerry shares how early curiosi...

Sarah Rahall-Lunsford, the visionary behind Centered Strategies Consulting, joins us to share her unexpected leap from marketing to sales and business development. Her journey began with a simple piece of advice that transformed her approach, leading her to success in helping companies translate their expertise into effective sales strategies, particularly in professional services. Sarah's insight...

Rob Israel, a versatile leader whose journey spans from the Navy to healthcare leadership, joins us for a compelling discussion on Sales Lead Dog. Rob opens up about the essential principles that have bolstered his career, emphasizing the strength in empowering and supporting team members, surrounding oneself with intelligent peers, and championing employee growth. One notable story features a lea...

Mark Schaefer returns to our show, bringing with him a wealth of insights from his latest book about the sweeping changes AI is bringing to sales and marketing. As part of a global research initiative with 300 futurists, Mark shares his predictions for AI's impact by 2035, highlighting both the opportunities and challenges businesses face, especially those small to medium-sized. We explore how tec...

Unlock the secrets of business growth with Andy Drummond, the mastermind behind ShireGrowth Partners, as he shares his wealth of experience in nurturing mid-market and low-mid-market industrial companies. Discover how Andy's background as a "solopreneur" and his family's legacy in sales have shaped his approach to overcoming the challenges faced by companies pursuing growth strategies, particularl...

Kami Thompson, our vibrant Key Account Manager at Vervint, is ready to share her insights on building a career driven by curiosity and resilience. Her journey is a testament to the power of embracing challenges and the importance of nurturing strong partnerships. Together, we explore Vervint’s evolution from OST and how the company is at the forefront of digital transformation. Kami’s story is a b...