Santosh Sharan
Gaurav Nemade
Go-To-Market Innovation, AI, and Scaling Sales with Santosh Sharan
In this episode of The Inventor Podcast, we sit down with Santosh Sharan, an expert in go-to-market strategy, sales development, and AI-driven sales innovation. Santosh has played key roles in scaling major B2B companies, including ZoomInfo, Apollo.io, and Retention.com, helping them grow from startup phases to multi-million-dollar enterprises.
We discuss how go-to-market innovation can be even more powerful than product innovation, the role of AI in transforming sales, and the strategies that helped Apollo and ZoomInfo disrupt their markets. Santosh also shares his insights on sales hiring, pricing models, and why alignment across teams is the key to success.
This episode is packed with actionable lessons for founders, sales leaders, and entrepreneurs looking to build scalable and differentiated go-to-market strategies.
- How Santosh helped ZoomInfo grow from $8M to $100M ARR and Apollo.io scale beyond a $1B valuation
- Why go-to-market innovation is often more powerful than product innovation
- The biggest mistakes founders and sales teams make in scaling revenue
- How AI is revolutionizing sales and what leaders need to do to stay ahead
- The power of vertical-based sales strategies and how they unlock new revenue streams
- The importance of alignment in sales, marketing, and product teams
- A behind-the-scenes look at how RB2 scaled from $0 to $1M ARR in just 16 weeks
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Key Highlights
1. Go-To-Market Innovation: The Real Competitive Advantage
Key Insight: While many companies focus on product innovation, the biggest market disruptors win through go-to-market (GTM) innovation. Companies like ZoomInfo and Apollo succeeded by creating new sales models rather than just improving their product.
Actionable Takeaway:
- Instead of copying competitors’ playbooks, founders should test their own go-to-market approaches.
- SMB-focused disruption can be a powerful strategy—most companies move upmarket, leaving room for innovation at the lower end.
- Successful GTM strategies rely on deep buyer research and testing unconventional methods rather than following industry trends.
2. AI in Sales: A Transformation is Happening
Key Insight: AI is reshaping every stage of the sales process, from lead generation to deal execution. The future of sales is about leveraging AI for research, contextual triggers, and deal acceleration rather than relying on old-school tactics.
Actionable Takeaway:
- AI tools can analyze CRM data, emails, and behavioral signals to provide better forecasting and sales insights.
- Sales leaders must train teams to use AI for deep research and strategic outreach, rather than just automation.
- Instead of replacing salespeople, AI augments their abilities, making them more effective at closing deals with personalized, data-driven engagement.
3. The Biggest Mistakes Founders Make in Scaling Sales
Key Insight: Many founders assume their personal ability to sell translates to a repeatable sales process, but this often leads to misalignment between hiring, sales strategy, and customer acquisition.
Actionable Takeaway:
- Founders should trust sales leaders and let them build scalable processes, rather than micromanaging sales teams.
- The biggest revenue killers are lack of clear customer segmentation, pricing mistakes, and poor onboarding.
- Founders often underestimate the time required for effective sales scaling—expecting revenue growth in six months instead of 18-24 months.
4. RB2’s Playbook: Scaling from $0 to $1M ARR in 16 Weeks
Key Insight: RB2's explosive growth was driven by a hyper-targeted go-to-market motion, leveraging LinkedIn content, AI-driven outreach, and a demand-first approach.
Actionable Takeaway:
- Focus on creating demand before building a sales team—RB2 used LinkedIn content and automation to generate thousands of inbound leads.
- Simplicity in messaging and product helps drive viral adoption—RB2 ensured their product could be understood in seconds.
- Instead of relying on outbound sales, leveraging personal credibility and trust-building at scale accelerates growth.
5. Pricing Strategies: The Art of Continuous Optimization
Key Insight: Pricing is not a one-time decision—it’s a continuous optimization process that can be a major revenue driver.
Actionable Takeaway:
- ZoomInfo increased prices six times in 18 months, testing different pricing structures to maximize revenue without increasing churn.
- Introductory pricing vs. value-based pricing—RB2 started with a $500 plan but adjusted to $99 based on initial adoption data.
- Instead of offering deep discounts, companies should focus on packaging and feature adjustments to create perceived value increases rather than just price hikes.
6. Why Alignment is the Most Overlooked Growth Lever
Key Insight: Most go-to-market failures are not due to bad sales execution, but misalignment between product, marketing, sales, and customer success.
Actionable Takeaway:
- Sales and marketing should be tightly aligned with product development, ensuring messaging and features match customer needs.
- The best sales teams leverage customer insights to refine positioning and drive inbound interest.
- Companies that scale successfully build seamless handoffs between teams, ensuring pricing, onboarding, and messaging remain consistent.
Conclusion: The Future of Sales & AI
The sales landscape is evolving faster than ever. AI, go-to-market innovation, and alignment across teams will determine the winners and losers in B2B sales.
Santosh’s insights reinforce that success isn’t about copying competitors—it’s about finding unique ways to engage buyers, leveraging AI for smarter decision-making, and constantly optimizing sales processes.
For founders and sales leaders, the takeaway is clear: focus on differentiation, build trust at scale, and continuously adapt to evolving market dynamics.
