On this episode of Cyber GTM Talk, the cybersecurity podcast for go-to-market leaders, Fred Descloux explains what actually wins cyber sales once your product makes the shortlist. Fred runs privacy, data security and GRC at Nu Skin and has sat on every side of the table: seller, implementer, operator, Big 4 advisor and now buyer. His view is blunt: when three or four products all fit, the product stops being the differentiator and the rep starts being it.
In this episode
- Why a 60% product fit is now enough for Fred, and how vibe coding lets him build the other 40%
- Why the quality of the interaction with the salesperson breaks the tie in cybersecurity sales
- The vendor who claimed to know Fred's boss "Jack" (his boss is Vince), and what it cost him
- Why he'd rather a junior rep had 5 prepared meetings at an event than 20
- How his startup emailed 16 vendors and signed fast with the two reps who came prepared
- The question he asks vendors on purpose, and the vague answer that wastes it
- Why plenty of buyers don't know what they're buying, and why he wants a seller who'll tell him he's wrong
- Overrated or underrated: CISSP for sales reps, ChatGPT for account research, likable sellers
About the guest
Fred Descloux is Global Director of Privacy, Data Security and GRC at Nu Skin and the founder of Zero Drama Security, a boutique advisory practice. Before that he spent close to a decade at EY, led information security governance at the World Bank Group, and worked at Deloitte and CrossCountry Consulting.
Notable quotes
- "Product is not going to be the differentiator."
- "If you match it 60% and I know I can build the 40% myself with an automation or something on the side, that's perfect."
- "It was like literally for me just a conversation he lost before even starting the game."
Chapters
00:00 Intro
04:34 How a buyer researches sellers with AI
09:07 The vendor who invented Fred's boss
13:27 What great pre-call research looks like
18:04 Peer-to-peer, not lecturing
21:59 Five prepared meetings, not twenty
25:36 16 emails and a fast signature
27:44 The 60% fit and why the rep breaks the tie
30:30 Buyers who don't know what they're buying
34:09 What builds trust after the deal
39:29 Givers and takers
42:10 Selling confidence, not a security score
46:51 Overrated or underrated
Cyber GTM Talk helps cybersecurity sales and marketing leaders grow sales, from start up sales to scale.
The Cyber Go-To-Market Talk is the show for cybersecurity sales leaders, founders, CROs, and go-to-market operators looking to improve cyber sales performance and build more predictable revenue growth. Hosted by Andrew Monaghan, founder of Unstoppable.do, covering cyber sales leadership, revenue leadership, sales onboarding, forecasting, pipeline generation, and cybersecurity go-to-market execution.
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