How to go from idea to pitching Enterprise-level CEOs outside your network for zero dollars.
Today I want to share an underestimated startup move I'm currently using to get access to top-level corporate execs outside my network.
2 months and 3 weeks ago, I had a business idea.
Yesterday, we shared our deck with a top CEO in Portugal.
If you’re a startup founder thinking you need a corporate background in the industry you’re looking to sell Enterprise deals onto, don't sleep on this simple move:
Here's a quick recap of the last 2.5 months:
1. Identified a clear market opportunity.
2. Then came the crucial part - conversations with users. Lots of them.
I focused on two things:
2.1 Validating their pain points: Is this something urgent and worth paying for?
2.2 Confirm this solution actually solves their problems - by asking them and seeing if those conversations turn into action.
During those talks, the fit with Enterprise clients popped up and now we have 6 enterprise leads in our pipeline.
But here's where I learned something interesting:
If you want to break into the Enterprise segment, you don't actually need to have or hire your way into a strong corporate network.
Senior Enterprise executives make for excellent mentors and advisors, and you'll be surprised at their generosity. Partnering with them, you can start selling and don't need to wait until you have budget for an expensive Head of Sales with the right logos on their resume.
Most execs have built impressive corporate careers but simply love entrepreneurship - and wish they had more time in the arena when they were younger.
By bringing them onto your entrepreneurial journey at the earliest stages, you're giving senior execs a chance to be impactful - without the risk of personal failure.
If there's a great fit, they'll happily tap their network for warm intros to the right decision makers, saving you months of GTM work.
If you sell Enterprise deals, you want to talk directly with the people at the top.
Because entrepreneurship is now more popular than ever, reaching decision-makers has never been more straightforward.
You just need to know where to look, and think outside the box.
Hint: There's no cap on how many mentors you can onboard…only in how many relationships you can nurture properly.
Reach out. Start conversations. Expect the “no thanks”.
The right doors will open.