Have you ever wondered how other sales professionals tackle their roles? Structure their days? Overcome their challenges?
We all do.
In this series, we’re going behind the scenes with top salespeople to get the inside scoop. (You’re welcome!)
Today, we’re checking out what an average day looks like for an outside-sales account executive, and for that, we talked to Alyssa Freitas.
About Alyssa Freitas
Company Name: Looker
Title: Account Executive
City/Country: New York, USA
Quick Pitch: Looker brings data-informed decision making to every level of an enterprise.
With our data platform, you have a single source of truth, so every business team can easily ask and answer their own questions.
Looker is powering data-informed cultures at more than 1,900 industry-leading companies.
ACV: Varies
Sales Cycle Timeline: 6–12 months
A Day in the Life of an Account Executive
Pre-Work Routine:
When I’m not traveling, I wake up at 7am and hop right out of bed. (Yes, I’m one of those people that is immediately alert upon waking up.)
After getting ready, I head to the subway and read email newsletters on the way to the office. My favorites are The Morning Brew and Now I Know.
During-Work Routine:
When I am traveling, my schedule varies widely. I could be at a conference or flying to a meeting, and it’s hard to maintain a routine on those days.
I always read my newsletters first, and then set off for whatever the day has in store.
One of my favorite parts about my job is the variety and opportunity to interact with so many different people and organizations.
When I’m in the office, things are a little more regular.
8:00am: I’ll eat breakfast (yogurt, granola, and an apple), and read my go-to blogs to ease into my day.
8:30am: The next 15 minutes to half an hour is spent planning my day.
I ask myself, “What can I do today to move my current opportunities forward,” and, “What can I do today to generate new opportunities?” Based on this, I time block my tasks around the meetings and calls I already have scheduled for the day.
9:00am: I review the status of my deals and next steps, then I submit my forecast.
9:30am I have meetings with my SDR and my Sales Engineer to talk about our plans for the week and to map out what accounts we’re working on. I love strategizing together and learning from both of them!
10:00am: I’m following up on emails. Whenever I send out an email (whether to a prospect or customer, internally or externally), I always use SalesLoft to set a reminder of when I want to reach out if I haven’t heard back. It makes it so easy to jump into my reminder list for each day and bang out my correspondence.
11:00am: I’m on calls, with partners, to talk about accounts where we have joint opportunities, and to brainstorm ways we can continue to work together.
Our partner network is incredibly valuable and a great way to learn more about the space.
12:00pm: I break for lunch. Looker has an awesome culture, with a key tenant being the kitchen table. We all gather for meals, and even use this area as another place to do our work during the day.
No matter who you’re sitting next to, they’ll engage with you. If you’re at the kitchen table it means you’re ready to ask and answer questions, and I absolutely love this about my company.
It’s likely that I’ll have a number of meetings with prospects and customers in the afternoon, which I’ll have prepared for earlier in the day or the day before (that’s where the time blocking comes in!). With my call plans ready to go, my Sales Engineer and I will gear up for these conversations, and always debrief afterwards.
4:00pm: I’m doing research on an account that I’m going to write personalized messaging for (and munching on a chocolate-covered graham cracker… our snacks are delectable!).
I’ve found it incredibly valuable to focus on a few key contacts at my top accounts, and I’ll spend an hour and a half sending out a grand total of 10–15 emails. Working with my SDR, we have a mix of cadences going at any time, but I have found we get the best response to carefully tailored messages.
5:30pm: I follow up on anything I committed to during my meetings from the day (sending a deck to a prospect, shooting over a target account list to a partner) and update my CRM.
6:00pm: For my daily reflection, I ask myself the same questions from the morning:
What did I do today to move my current opportunities forward?
What did I do today to generate new opportunities?
What am I grateful for today?
I write out my answers — and love ending my day on a positive note!
Post-Work Routine:
6:30pm: I’m home and catching up with my fiance about how his day went. We make dinner or order out, watch Seinfeld, and enjoy each other’s company before it’s time to read in bed.
Unique Details About Your Routine:
One of the most fun things about my job is that my routine in the office only happens a few days a week.
Ideally, I’ll be in front of prospects, in person, which means I’m traveling. I get to experience new places and people, and I’ve gotten great at having fun in any city I visit.
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