By Jason Graham, Sales Specialist at Wisenet.

After spending the last 10 years in software and SaaS sales, and coming from sales and marketing roles in the media and advertising industry before that, Wisenet’s new Sales Specialist Jason Graham reflects on understanding customer needs and his first month at Wisenet.

I think Sales is often misunderstood.

What seems on a surface level to be about selling is, in my eyes, more about being able to listen and effectively communicate how a product will fix the problem they have.

This goes double for SaaS. It’s not about a one-off transactional sale, but instead about inviting a prospect to join you on the journey. I don’t see my role as getting people through a door, but about inviting them to start walking in a different direction so they look back and realise they ended up on the right mountaintop.

Jason Graham

While I’ve done software sales before, it’s certainly easier to invite people on that journey when you’re dealing with software that has a positive impact. I can already see that Wisenet is about making things easier for those we work with, with the goal of providing value to customers that Wisenet becomes something they don’t want to live without.

It’s a great feeling when a customer becomes a cheerleader for your product. Working at Wisenet taps into my appreciation for how important education is, and how essential it is for education providers to deliver it with as little friction as possible.

I’ve been doing this for fifteen years, but that doesn’t mean I’m not always improving a little bit every day. On a personal level, I’m trying to appreciate the journey as opposed to the destination, and at Wisenet that means learning how to best serve the needs of education providers.

Who is Jason Graham?

Outside of work, my wife and two-year-old daughter are top of the list, of course, but during COVID I discovered a new hobby that you probably wouldn’t expect: ‘Bonsai’, which is the art of creating miniature trees in a pot. Funnily enough this has since become one of my primary passions, along with making electronic music at home.

I’m also a bit of a nerd. I play chess, read a lot, and tinker around with musical instruments. Food-wise, I’m a big fan of sushi, which I’ve loved ever since I was a kid. It’s still my go-to when ‘life stuff’ happens. I’m a fairly decent cook though, so I like to explore the culinary world from my kitchen.

I’ve always got a few books on the go, I’ve loved reading since I was a kid. Right now I’m reading a book called “A Brief History of Intelligence” by Max Bennett. Basically, it looks at the evolution of the human brain and how it relates to the development of modern AI systems. Given where we are, it sure seems timely.

I’m also currently watching the series Shogun, which I’m enjoying. I love Podcasts too, my favourite being a paranormal or ‘unexplained’ one called “Other Worlds”.

It’s important to me to read and watch widely, and I’m always learning. To me education isn’t something that ever really ends. I guess I’m in the right place.