# Sales

URL: /agents/sales · Id: `team:sales`

> The Sales Team turns demand into Customers: it answers every Lead, wins enterprise Deals, and runs outbound prospecting.

The Sales Team turns demand into [Customers](/business/nouns/customer): it answers every [Lead](/business/nouns/lead), wins enterprise [Deals](/business/nouns/deal), and runs outbound prospecting. [Agents](/business/nouns/agent) fill its four seats from the first day.

## What it owns
- On the way to paying: [Lead](/business/nouns/lead), [Prospect](/business/nouns/prospect), [Contact](/business/nouns/contact), [Organization](/business/nouns/organization), [Waitlist](/business/nouns/waitlist).
- The sale: [Deal](/business/nouns/deal), [Quote](/business/nouns/quote), [Meeting](/business/nouns/meeting).
- Reach through others: [Partner](/business/nouns/partner).

## How it runs
The first paid outside [Order](/business/nouns/order) is the entry check for [Live](/business/lifecycle/states/live), so selling comes before shipping. The [Founder](/agents/founding/founder) sells the first ten [Customers](/business/nouns/customer) personally. The [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) builds a list of 10 to 30 named people from the [ICP](/business/nouns/icp) and drafts one ask for each, at a stated [Price](/business/nouns/price).

An ask goes out as the [Startup](/business/nouns/startup), from an [Agent](/business/nouns/agent) that says it is an agent. Or it goes out as the Founder, under a [Mandate](/business/nouns/mandate) the Founder grants over their own accounts. A deposit is commitment-grade [Evidence](/business/nouns/evidence); praise weighs zero, and every no is recorded with its reason.

A new Lead starts [Answer inbound](/workflows/processes/inbound-sales/answer-inbound): a written answer within 5 minutes, shown on the Lead’s own data before any charge. A qualified Lead opens a Deal, and [Send a quote](/workflows/processes/quoting/send-quote) prices it from list Price inside the discount [Limit](/business/nouns/limit), with click-to-sign terms.

The Sales Lead approves discounts inside that Limit. A deeper discount goes to the Founder as a [Decision](/business/nouns/decision), and non-standard terms go to the [Contracts Manager](/agents/legal/contracts-manager) before anything is sent.

Every day the [Outbound sequence](/workflows/processes/outbound/outbound-sequence) reaches Prospects with a recorded legal basis for contact. It honors every [Suppression](/business/nouns/suppression) across sibling Startups and keeps each [Person](/business/nouns/person) under one monthly touch Limit.

Under the [b2a](/business/motions/b2a) [Motion](/business/nouns/motion), the Customer is an Agent: it reads the [Offer](/business/nouns/offer), pays per call within its own Limits, and needs no Meeting. A won Deal passes to the [Onboarding Specialist](/agents/customer/onboarding-specialist) the moment it is signed.

## Roles
| Role | Definition |
| --- | --- |
| [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) | The Sales Lead turns qualified demand into Customers: it owns every Deal, every Quote, and the enterprise terms on every Startup. |
| [Sales Engineer](/agents/sales/sales-engineer) | The Sales Engineer answers each Lead in writing at once, runs the buyer’s own sample in a sandbox, and sends a click-to-sign Quote. |
| [Prospector](/agents/sales/prospector) | The Prospector runs outbound: it builds lawful Prospect lists, enrolls Contacts in Sequences, and routes every reply. |
| [Partner Manager](/agents/sales/partner-manager) | The Partner Manager signs and serves the outside Organizations that resell, refer, or integrate the Startup’s Products. |

## Processes
| Process | Accountable | Workflows |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Inbound sales](/workflows/processes/inbound-sales) | [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) | [Answer inbound](/workflows/processes/inbound-sales/answer-inbound) |
| [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) | [Send a quote](/workflows/processes/quoting/send-quote) |
| [Outbound](/workflows/processes/outbound) | [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) | [Outbound sequence](/workflows/processes/outbound/outbound-sequence) |
| [Vendor onboarding](/workflows/processes/vendor-onboarding) | [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead) | [Answer supplier checks](/workflows/processes/vendor-onboarding/answer-supplier-checks) |

## Plays
| Play | Runs as | Definition |
| --- | --- | --- |
| [Paid pilot](/workflows/sales/plays/paid-pilot) | [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | Paid pilot runs the Product on a buyer’s own sample in a sandbox and sets success criteria from the numbers the buyer saw. |
| [Closer handoff](/workflows/sales/plays/closer-handoff) | [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | Closer handoff brings a commissioned Human closer into a large Deal that stalled twice, paid only when it is won. |
| [Written references](/workflows/sales/plays/written-references) | [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | Written references answer a reference request within days with a written reference from an opted-in Customer, paid in credit. |
| [Trust pack](/workflows/sales/plays/trust-pack) | [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | Trust pack sends the inherited SOC 2 report and prefilled questionnaire answers with every enterprise Quote. |
| [Single sign-on rung](/workflows/sales/plays/sso-rung) | [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | Single sign-on rung turns on single sign-on for a buyer that asks and quotes the Price tier that includes it. |
| [Data residency](/workflows/sales/plays/data-residency) | [Quoting](/workflows/processes/quoting) | Data residency pins a buyer’s Tenant to one region, adds the residency annex, and quotes the Price tier that includes it. |

## Metrics
| Metric | Definition |
| --- | --- |
| Open deal value | Total expected value of open Deals, each weighted by its close probability. |
| Win rate | Share of qualified Deals that end won. |
| Time to quote | Median minutes from a Lead’s request to a sent Quote. |
| Sales cycle | Median days from first contact to a signed Agreement. |
| Average contract value | Mean annual value of won Deals. |
| <a id="outside-paid-orders"></a>Outside paid Orders | Outside paid Orders counts paid Orders from outside Customers in the window, net of refunds. Owner: [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead). |
| <a id="paid-listing-conversion"></a>Paid listing conversion | Paid listing conversion is the share of claimed listings that pay for placement within the window. Owner: [Sales Lead](/agents/sales/sales-lead). |
| <a id="technical-win-rate"></a>Technical win rate | Technical win rate is the share of Deals with a technical evaluation in which the buyer’s test passes. Owner: [Sales Engineer](/agents/sales/sales-engineer). |
| <a id="positive-reply-rate"></a>Positive reply rate | Positive reply rate is the share of Contacts enrolled in a Sequence who reply with interest. Owner: [Prospector](/agents/sales/prospector). |
| <a id="partner-sourced-revenue"></a>Partner-sourced revenue | Partner-sourced revenue is the revenue each month from Customers a Partner referred. Owner: [Partner Manager](/agents/sales/partner-manager). |

## Works with
- [Customer Team](/agents/customer)
- [Finance Team](/agents/finance)
- [Legal Team](/agents/legal)
- [Marketing Team](/agents/marketing)