This week on the Yin and Yang Show, Sig and I chatted with Pete Caputa of DataBox about the evolving role of sales and what it might look like in the near future.
What is DataBox?
DataBox, founded in 2012, provides a service that consolidates data from a variety of sources, such as Google Analytics, HubSpot Marketing and SalesForce, into one easy-to-read dashboard. This saves users the time and effort required in checking multiple sources to see how well their website is performing. Users can also run a myriad of reports via the software.
Data Box has experienced dramatic growth. The company's customer base has jumped from just 12 to more than 440 in just 13 months. DataBox CEO Pete Caputa attributes this growth to the company's hands-on approach, as well as its strategy of targeting small and medium-size businesses and ad agencies rather than large corporations.
Data Box offers their product on a freemium basis, meaning that the basic software is free, but some functions and accessories may have a fee associated with them. Says Caputa, "I think freemium allows people to get value quickly out of a product so that they're gradually pulled in and can realize a solution much quicker than if they had to do all that stuff with a salesperson or through reading or checking referrals."
Data Box and Content Marketing
Data Box makes good use of content marketing. Unlike many web marketers, they write from experience, much like bloggers do. Caputa, who has been involved with email marketing for 20 years, puts a huge premium on quality content and using it to fill the Data Box sales funnel. To get this content, Data Box invited more than 600 top web marketers to contribute. The results were astounding. Forty people agreed to contribute right away. The additional benefit of this content approach is that all of those writers will share the content and the link to the Data Box site with their sphere of influence.
Caputa on the Gradual Demise of Sales Jobs
Another key point Caputa makes is that he sees developers and dynamic websites gradually replacing traditional salespeople. However, he goes on to say that since great developers are even more scarce than great salespeople, this is not likely to happen for a decade or more.
To learn more about Data Box and how their service works, visit databox.com or connect with Pete on LinkedIn.
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And as always...keep talking!
