This is a recap of Mihnea’s talk at the first 9th Floor meetup on February 10, 2025 at Builders House.
Random buttons, random outcomes
Activity doesn’t equal progress. Without a system, you don’t know why something works — and you can’t repeat it. Revenue needs structure.
Sales as a system
Predictable revenue comes from repeatability. The framework has four stages:
- Foundation — ICP definition
- Stage 1: Data — ICP + signals
- Stage 2: Preparation — GTM strategy
- Stage 3: Execution — Channels, rhythm, measurement
- Optimize — Feedback loop
Stage 1: Data — ICP + Signals
Define your ICP in one sentence. Have the right dataset. Use timing via detected signals:
- Hiring spikes — they’re growing and investing
- Leadership change — new decision makers with new priorities
- Expansion / funding — budget is available, priorities are shifting
- Tech stack change — they’re re-evaluating, open to alternatives
Stage 2: Preparation — GTM Strategy
Choose the right motion: outbound, ABM, or partnerships. Focus beats coverage. The most important decision is what you don’t do.
Stage 3: Execution
Channels work best as a system, not in isolation. You need a consistent weekly rhythm, CRM hygiene and follow-up discipline, and a commitment to measure and iterate. Consistency creates momentum, momentum enables scale.
Cold calling inside the execution system
Geography affects pickup rates significantly. Romania has a strong pickup culture. Western Europe is average. The US is low. Calls work best after ICP definition and signal detection — keep it contextual, not generic.
What actually breaks in EMEA GTM
International expansion fails more often due to misreading buying behavior than product or ambition. Three common failure patterns:
- Assumptions travel faster than evidence. What worked in one market gets copy-pasted to another without validation.
- Local success is mistaken for repeatability. Winning in your home market doesn’t mean the same playbook works elsewhere.
- Activity is scaled before understanding is built. Hiring reps and increasing volume before you understand the local market dynamics burns cash.
70% of transformation initiatives fail to meet their objectives — often due to scaling execution before validating local market dynamics.
EMEA is not one market
Each region has its own buying behavior:
- UK — Speed and fast rejections. Get to the point.
- DACH — Risk awareness and proof. They need evidence before committing.
- Nordics — Clarity over persuasion. Simplicity and directness win.
- Southern Europe — Context and credibility. Relationships and trust matter more.
The costly misstep
Hiring and volume is a mistake before validation. As David Skok (General Partner, Matrix Partners) puts it: scaling sales before the growth process is predictable and repeatable will defocus the company and burn cash.
What strong teams do differently
- Treat regions as hypotheses, not rollouts
- Use sales as a learning instrument
- Adapt messaging before scaling volume
- Shorten feedback cycles