Robin had Batman. Luke had Yoda. Harry had Dumbledore. Who is your mentor?
Adam Grant of Wharton has done extensive research on what really makes experts.
Turns out that most of the world-class performers first had a mentor or an influencer, who made learning fun.
All of us, at some point in our careers, need someone to show us the ropes. A mentor we can rely on.
Sales is no different.
Having a great mentor can help you stay on top of a discipline that is constantly evolving. From prospecting to qualification, engagement to closing, forecasting to pipeline management, one needs to refine their craft to stay relevant.
With the growth of social media, blogs, and podcasts, you can learn from the collective wisdom of some of the best minds across the world and not be restricted to any one individual.
To kickstart your journey, we’ve compiled a list of top LinkedIn influencers to follow in the world of sales.
Influencers who’ll bring together the most important trends in the field of sales and help you stay at the top of your game.
Without further ado, let’s get started.
1. Aaron Ross
Aaron Ross is the co-author of two best-selling sales books “From Impossible to Inevitable” (called the “Growth Bible” of Silicon Valley) and of “Predictable Revenue”.
He’s the co-founder of Predictable Revenue, Inc. that teaches companies to double their outbound sales using the cold calling 2.0 outbound process which generated around $100 million revenue at Salesforce.com.
If you’re someone looking to accelerate your outbound sales, Aaron is the perfect person to learn from.
Where to follow: Aaron is quite active on both Twitter and LinkedIn. You’ll find him sharing his thoughts and articles almost every day.
Why should you follow: Aaron’s feed is a treasure trove of content that’ll inspire you to become a better salesperson.
Aaron enlightens the sales community by sharing original articles about the latest developments in sales, quick one-minute sales hack videos and thoughts on the latest trends in sales.
2. Mark Roberge
Mark Roberge is a Senior Lecturer in the Entrepreneurial Management at the Harvard Business School and the bestselling author of the award-winning book “The Sales Acceleration: Using Data, Technology and Inbound Selling to Go from $0 to $100 Million”.
He is also an Advisor to HubSpot and former Chief Revenue Officer of HubSpot’s Sales Division.
Where to follow: Mark posts once or twice a week on LinkedIn. It’s recommended to keep an eye on his LinkedIn feed to stay updated.
Why should you follow: Mark shares his knowledge of both the worlds of sales and business. You’ll find articles on the adoption of modern sales practices, data-driven approach to sales, the latest occurrences in the B2B business world - like funding news, etc.
He also posts articles of his research at Harvard, his recent speaking engagements/webinars, books and podcasts for salespeople, etc.
3. Steli Efti
Steli Efti is the CEO and co-founder, a CRM used by 70,000+ inside sales teams across the world.
He has written several bestselling sales books including “Product Demos that Sell”, “Your Growth Hacks Aren’t Working” etc. He also hosts a podcast along with Hiten Shah called “The Startup Chat with Steli and Hiten” where you can grab some unfiltered and actionable advice from the startup and business world.
Where to follow: Steli is active Twitter more than he is on LinkedIn. He tweets almost 3-4 times every week.
Why should you follow: Steli is “The Guy” to follow for all actionable advice on outbound sales. He publishes blog posts and short videos on sales topics, ranging from cold emailing strategies to tips on getting more referrals, etc.
Steli’s passion for sales is infectious - he chooses to write on the relatively less addressed - yet commonly faced problems of salespeople - such as finding a great mentor, avoiding commonly made mistakes while negotiating a deal, overcoming “not-so-common” sales objections, pricing strategies, etc.
4. Morgan J Ingram
Morgan J Ingram is the Director of Sales Evolution and Execution at JBarrows Sales Training, focused on helping sales development teams enhance their skill sets and performance.
He’s also a motivational speaker who has been nominated for TEDxSBY and TEDxUGA.
Besides, Morgan runs his own YouTube series, “The SDR Chronicles”, with more than 100 videos providing SDRs with motivation, advice, and tactics. He has also been named as one of the Top 50 Sales Leaders to follow on LinkedIn, a Top 25 Sales Development Thought Leader by Inside Sales and a LinkedIn Top Sales Voice.
Where to follow: Follow Morgan on LinkedIn for regular advice on being a better SDR while his Twitter is a better place to keep an eye on his speaking engagements.
Why should you follow: Rightly called as the most valuable content curator on the internet, Morgan is a great person to follow for actionable, day-to-day tactics for young B2B sales reps.
His short tips for sales reps on LinkedIn, under the name of #TacticalTuesday, ranging from building an accurate pipeline to short videos on enhancing productivity has been a massive hit.
You’ll also find him advising on building a personal brand, honing outbound sales skills, enhancing productivity, building a network, etc along with updates on his upcoming webinars and workshops.
5. Anthony Iannarino
Anthony Iannarino is a highly respected sales leader, specializing in the complex business-to-business sale. He is best known for his work at The Sales Blog that established him as a thought leader in sales strategy.
Iannarino is also an entrepreneur, international speaker, and bestselling author of sales books like “The Lost Art of Closing”, “The Only Sales Guide You’ll Ever Need” etc.
He is the designer of Level 4 Value Creation and Building Consensus, methodologies that help sales organizations achieve transformational, breakthrough results.
Where to follow: Iannarino tweets almost every single day - follow him for a full roundup of a well-curated variety of blog posts on sales, apart from his own articles.
Why should you follow: A prolific writer with a sage perspective on sales, Iannarino’s Twitter feed is a convenient way to stay updated with his blog.
Iannarino’s choice of topics is what makes him stand out - he publishes original articles on more intricate topics of sales such as convincing your dream customer to take action or reasons to work in sales apart from just money - giving you a strong reason to follow him.
Apart from content that establishes him as a thought leader, you’ll also find articles on coverage of hot industry events, latest trends in sales, etc.
6. Jim Keenan
Keenan is the celebrated author of the bestselling sales books “Gap Selling” and “Not Taught”. He is also the CEO and President at A Sales Guy, Inc where he helped several companies increase sales by as high as 300%, rebuilt sales cultures, implemented ABM strategies, etc.
He wraps his 37 years of sales experience, ranging from inbound to outbound, inside sales to field sales in his sales blog - which is full of actionable, practical advice.
Where to follow: Keenan is quite active on LinkedIn and you can see him posting something almost every single day.
Why should you follow: Keenan is an unconventional sales influencer - you’ll see him advising on lesser-known topics such as Gap selling, Problem Centric selling, etc.
Most of his articles revolve around his sales principles - he regularly posts short motivational videos on being true to yourself, bringing your best to the table and his upcoming speaking engagements.
Be it revoking the popular advice on “upselling” or his cynicism about selling a training course on building a business, Keenan’s courage to speak his mind in unfiltered language makes you rethink your selling strategies.
7. Paul Castain
Paul Castain is the Vice-President of Rock Star Development Castain Training Systems. He has trained and mentored over 20,000 sales reps, sales leaders and business owners to sell more.
In addition, he has written sales training content for several Fortune 500 companies and owns the site Paul Castain’s Sales Playbook. He also hosts The Sales Playbook Podcast which is full of practical, functional sales tips for sales teams striving to stay at the top of their game.
Where to follow: Paul is super active on both LinkedIn and Twitter - you can see posting something every few hours - sometimes as high as 20+ posts a day!
Why should you follow: Paul is the go-to guy for tons of great yet rare advice such as dealing with difficult customers, being more productive or upgrading your prospecting game.
His one-liner question tweets on “your prospecting frequency” or “the reasonable amount of time for a customer to wait for a response” help you understand the nuances of the sales process.
His occasional short videos and posts on LinkedIn teach you to stand out from the crowd and make an impression on your buyers. All in all, follow Paul to get a first look at his hottest videos, podcasts, and blogs.
8. Jill Rowley
Jill has an impressive track record: 20 years in Silicon Valley and 52 quarters in software sales at companies like Oracle, Salesforce, and Eloqua.
Over the last decade, she served as an advisor to some of the most noteworthy tech companies and has been a keen observer of trends in sales and marketing.
But what stands out is her uncanny ability to identify and connect emerging trends in sales to build a clearer picture of the future. Today, she’s the go-to expert for social selling and helped numerous startups structure their selling strategy.
Where to follow: Jill is frequently seen on Twitter with her tweets varying from her personal to professional life, while her LinkedIn feed is more of a full roundup of all things business.
Why should you follow: Jill’s feed maintains a healthy balance of marketing, sales and the recent developments in SaaS businesses. Her feed is an excellent way to keep up with curated sales content, helpful podcasts, and latest industry conferences.
Her thoughts on sales social engagement or the relevance of your current sales practices nudge you into evaluating your performance and take a step to action.
9. Lori Richardson
Lori Richardson is recognized on Forbes as one of the “Top 30 Social Sales Influencers” worldwide.
She’s also the CEO of Score More Sales that helps companies grow revenues through strategic sales efforts, using the lessons learned from her two-decade experience in B2B sales and leadership roles.
Where to follow: Lori is active on both LinkedIn and Twitter - you can find her checking in almost every single day on both the platforms.
Why should you follow: A strong advocate of women in sales, Lori’s feed covers a broad spectrum of all things sales - from the most interesting webinars/conferences in the sales world to valuable tips on common struggles faced by salespeople.
She’s also regularly advising on holding your buyers’ attention or achieving your sales quota. Her feed is also a convenient way to stay updated with her blog which is full of actionable advice. Don’t miss out on her “Friday Five” - 5 short tips on the weekend to shift your performance into high gear.
10. Trish Bertuzzi
Trish is the author of “The Sales Development Playbook” and CEO of “The Bridge Group, Inc.”
Over the last two decades, she has helped over 320+ companies build, expand and optimize Inside Sales - building pipeline and generating revenue.
Today she’s considered as a renowned inside sales evangelist, full of wisdom on what it takes to launch strategies that drive better deals in bigger companies.
Where to follow: You’ll find Trish checking into her social media profiles (LinkedIn and Twitter) 2-3 times every week.
Why should you follow: Trish gets straight to the meat of the matter - and puts it most straightforwardly.
Her posts under the name of #truthbomboftheday are thoughtful and profound - she covers a broad range of topics from avoiding commonly made sales mistakes to hiring and retaining top sales talent.
Her feed is also full of valuable resources geared towards identifying your ideal prospects, handling critical objections and of course, increasing sales.
11. Jill Konrath
Jill Konrath is recognized as the “#1 B2B Sales Leader to Follow on LinkedIn” in 2019 and one of the “Top 7 Most Influential Sales Thought Leaders of the 21st Century”.
Besides, she’s also a regular speaker on the conference circuit, author of four best-selling sales books including “More Sales, Less Time” and helps sales organizations understand how to apply fresh approaches that work.
As a renowned leader in modern sales strategies, she swiftly translates complex sales concepts into actionable insights that sales teams can apply.
Where to follow: You’ll find Jill logging into her social media profiles, both Twitter and LinkedIn almost every single day.
Why should you follow: Jill shares a wide variety of excellent sales articles and the perfect person to keep a pulse on the latest developments in the sales discipline. Her feed ranges from LinkedIn sales secrets, honing your value prop to email prospecting tips.
Jill mostly advises from her experience and mistakes, which is what makes her posts invaluable. Her bite-sized videos on topics like SPIN selling or dealing with crazy prospects will have an immediate, positive impact on your day.
12. Max Altschuler
Max is the author of the bestselling book “Hacking Sales” and the founder of SalesHacker - a global online publication that brings sales execs across the world to share their experiences in tech sales.
Recognized as one of LinkedIn Top Voices of 2018 for Sales, Max helps sales organizations build high-velocity sales machines by leveraging technology, virtual assistants, empathy and modern sales tactics.
He’s also passionate about helping millennials smoothly navigate their careers and achieve their goals.
Where to follow: Max is active on both Twitter and LinkedIn. You can find him posting at least 3-4 times on both the platforms every week.
Why should you follow: Max is one of those very few people who went from being a sales rep to the CEO and now the CMO - and his feed stands true to his massive transformation - it covers everything from sales, business and now, marketing.
His feed primarily focuses on seeking efficiency in sales, getting better at Account-Based Marketing (ABM), hiring the right people and the latest updates on sales summits organized by his company.
13. Jeffrey Gitomer
Self-proclaimed as “The King of Sales”, Jeffrey has written an astounding number of 13 bestselling books, including “The Little Red Book of Selling” and “The Sales Bible”.
From startups to Fortune 500 companies, he has helped multiple sales teams get better at understanding the buying motives of their customers and stay at the top of their game.
Having held around 2500 corporate events as a professional speaker, he helped shape the concept, the voice and the implementation of the new sale.
Where to follow: You’ll find Jeffrey posting on Twitter and LinkedIn, almost every few hours, every day - except during the weekends.
Why should you follow: Jeffrey’s feed is a reservoir of invaluable sales content - he primarily shares scholarly articles on sales - articles that demonstrate his thought leadership.
He covers a broad spectrum of sales topics - right from cold calling to presentation skills, attitude and social selling. Apart from these, Jeffrey’s feed is also an easy way to stay up-to-date on his latest podcasts at “Sell or Die” and has just started his LinkedIn short, live videos as well.
His one-liner tips on best sales practices are insightful and inspire you to become your best self.
Follow him for the most finely curated podcasts, tons of actionable advice and motivational quotes that’ll have an immediate positive impact on your work.
14. Mark Hunter
Mark is a veteran salesperson with over 30+ years of experience in sales prospecting and leadership. He’s also the author of two best-selling sales books “High-Profit Selling: Win the Sale Without Compromising on Price” as well as “High-Profit Prospecting”.
He is also a Certified Speaking Professional, trainer and founder of “The Sales Hunter”, which is aimed at helping companies find and retain better prospects.
Today, Mark’s sales techniques are used by salespeople from across 5 continents and more than 100 countries.
Where to follow: Mark is super active on both LinkedIn and Twitter - you’ll find him tweeting every few hours, sometimes as high as 9-10 times a day.
Why should you follow: If you’re trying to step up your game in prospecting, Mark is the person to follow! Rightly called as the connoisseur of prospecting, Mark’s ability to transform complex sales concepts into easily implementable tactics is simply amazing.
His feed is also peppered with quick, short seven-second videos where he shares an important tip/ a question to ponder in just 2-3 lines.
Apart from these, Mark also shares multitudes of great videos and articles from his YouTube channel and blog covering everything from dealing with cold prospects to building your reputation. Don’t miss out his invaluable Monday Motivation videos!
15. Jeb Blount
Jeb Blount is one of the most sought-after and transformative speakers in the world today. The author of two best-selling sales books, “Fanatical Prospecting” and “Sales EQ”, he’s one of the most respected thought leaders in sales, leadership and customer experience.
He’s also the founder of Sales Gravy, a sales enablement consultancy and runs a famous podcast with the same name.
Where to follow: Jeb is quite active on both LinkedIn and Twitter - you can see him posting on social media almost every single day.
Why should you follow: Rightly called as the “Modern-day Zig Ziglar” by another veteran sales expert, Anthony Iannarino, Jeb is an ideal person to follow if you want to get better at prospecting or apply emotional intelligence in sales to close more deals.
His feed is a handy way of keeping a pulse on his latest blog posts at The Sales Gravy. Jeb also shares new job opportunities in sales, coaching opportunities and a broad mix of important industry articles.
You’ll also find the latest installments of his podcast where he interviews impressive entrepreneurs and other sales thought leaders. He’s also often retweeted by many other sales experts included on this list.
Conclusion
With the growth of social media - where everyone is a self-proclaimed “expert” - finding the perfect influencer can be tricky. But the key is to seek someone who you want to emulate, someone who can help you in areas where you’re deficient in knowledge and skills.
And we hope this post helps you find your Yoda!
