The Founding AE20 Sep 2025

EP 3 - From Founding AE to Biz Dev Lead: Selling Beyond Tech

On this episode of The Founding AE, host Justin Dorfman sits down with Justin Silsbee - fresh off a stint as a Founding AE and now leading Business Development at a drone light-show company - to unpack what he learned on the front lines. We dig into selling to traditional industries like construction, prospecting when your buyers aren’t glued to a laptop, partnering closely with a founder through constant pivots, and how those reps translate into future entrepreneurship.What you’ll learn:How a Founding AE mindset accelerates your career (and preps you for founding)Prospecting playbooks when your ICP isn’t living on email/LinkedInTranslating frameworks into casual, human conversations (and when scripts get in the way)Partnering with founders: gathering real field data, shaping territory bets, and surviving pivotsTooling and experimentation: building your GTM stack from a clean slateChapters:00:00 Intro & why the Founding AE role matters01:02 Justin’s path: SDR → AE → Founding AE05:06 Selling into traditional industries (construction, trades)08:46 Prospecting channels that actually work when buyers aren’t online12:21 Beyond quota: tools, HubSpot, enrichment & experimentation18:04 Partnering with the founder, territory testing & pivots22:56 The hardest parts of being a Founding AE24:38 New chapter: Business Development in drone light shows27:24 How to connect with JustinAbout the guest:Justin Silsbee is a sales leader who’s sold into traditional markets and now leads Business Development in the fast-growing drone light-show space. Connect with him on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/justin-silsbee-0508251a3/Connect & Subscribe:Subscribe for more real talk with first sales hires & early sales leadersFollow the playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7LrHo-zZHw2BXnFzl8CVAc33CHpkg-swHost: Justin Dorfman | Co-Founder & CEO, AssetMule https://www.linkedin.com/in/justindorfman87/Say hi:Got questions about selling into non-tech industries or the Founding AE path? Drop them in the comments, and connect with Justin Silsbee on LinkedIn.

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Episoder(15)

EP 15 - Selling SaaS to Contractors Channels, Objections, and the Local GTM Advantage

We’re closing out 2025 with a real Founding AE conversation.In this episode of the Founding AE Podcast, Justin Dorfman sits down with Matthew Smith, a multi-time Founding AE and current early hire at ...

19 Des 202540min

EP 14 - $13M in Year One: How Founder-Led Sales + One Elite Founding AE Built a Rocketship

What does good founder-led sales actually look like in the AI era - and how do you successfully hand it off to a Founding AE without losing the magic?In this episode of The Founding AE Podcast, Justin...

11 Des 202537min

EP 13 - From Writer to Founding AE: How a Fractional Services Seller Tripled Inbound Close Rates

What happens when a writing & PR major becomes an early sales hire at a fractional back-office firm - and 3x’s inbound close rates in under two years?In this episode of The Founding AE Podcast, Justin...

11 Des 202533min

EP 12 - 3x Founding AE: Why 70 % of First Sales Hires Fail (and How to Get Yours Right)

Most founders massively underestimate how hard it is to make their first sales hire. The data says ~70% of first sales hires don’t make it to 12 months — and for early-stage startups, that mistake can...

8 Des 202545min

EP 11 - How to Succeed as a Founding AE: Red Flags, Green Flags & Real Advice

What does it really take to be the first sales hire at a startup?In this episode of The Founding AE Podcast, Justin Dorfman sits down with Anda Willett, a seasoned B2B SaaS seller with 15+ years exper...

19 Nov 202533min

EP 10 - Cold Calls to 6 Figure Deals: Building Outbound Magic

On this episode of The Founding AE Podcast, host Justin Dorfman sits down with Richie Duignan (Founding AE, Magic, a global digital marketing agency) to unpack how he went from referral-driven sales t...

10 Nov 202531min

EP 9 - Selling Services vs SaaS, the No Demo Playbook & When to Hire Your First AE

Sales isn’t “Wolf of Wall Street.” In this episode, Chris Taylor (Founding Sales Lead at New Charter Technologies) breaks down how he went from being skeptical about sales to leading zero-to-one teams...

4 Nov 202529min

EP 8 - Founding AE Playbook in HR Tech: Selling the UK & EU, Signal Led Prospecting & SDR

How do you break into an “unsexy” but massive category like HR—and win—when incumbents loom large? In this episode of The Founding AE, host Justin Dorfman sits down with Quentin Le Roy, Founding AE at...

27 Okt 202528min