Life@Demodesk | Account Executive at Demodesk: Frederick Meiners
“Being an Account Executive nowadays isn’t about consistently hard-pitching potential customers. The role of an account executive has evolved, and in order to be successful, before pitching a prospect, you really need to understand their needs, the challenges they face, and the potential product-fit, whilst exercising the required empathy and active listening.”
In this spotlight post, we sat down with Frederick, our Senior Account Executive for our DACH Territory.
After completing his Master’s degree in Lisbon, he decided to stay in sunny Portugal and pursue a career in Sales. He began working for a Portuguese scale-up, as an Intern in Sales Development and eventually grew into the role of Account Executive. After an amazing 4 years at his previous employer, Fred decided to get out of his comfort zone. He left an established company and joined Demodesk in September of 2021, a startup in its early stages. Keep reading to find out what it’s like to be an Account Executive at @Demodesk.
How did you and Demodesk cross paths?
I was open to new opportunities and I received a message from Demodesk, inviting me to an interview. I knew it could be an amazing opportunity for multiple reasons. First, Demodesk is a Munich-based company that allowed me to work remotely, with the intent of growing its presence here in Portugal. Secondly, I loved their product — it was an instant no-brainer — and it gave me the type of responsibility I wanted to experience in my next career step.
What’s the most rewarding part of being an Account Executive?
At Demodesk, I’m the only AE responsible for the DACH territory, and this gives me a lot of autonomy to create and develop the strategy for growth in the market. I also get to work closely with Veronika, our CEO, so I’ve also learned a lot about how to be an entrepreneur and what it takes to build a company. In a very short time frame, I’ve learned different skills that are key in order to pitch clients and I’m starting to understand better what is required to pitch to investors!
“It is like creating your own little business within the bigger business„
The coolest thing about being an AE at Demodesk is that the tool itself really helps you get better results. It is obviously important to work in a company that provides you with the right tool stack — and with Demodesk, I’ve been able to learn best practices and apply those learnings directly on the battlefield. At the start of my tenure at Demodesk, it was easy to start selling, because the tool provided a strong safety net. The playbooks were already prepared and the scheduling system was superb and easy to work with.
I’ve also had the opportunity to work with other teams on different initiatives. Examples of those are:
- Marketing, understanding how we can improve our inbound channel, map out the market and improve our messaging.
- Customer Success, debating how we can expand our existing accounts — as an AE, I also get to be part of upselling and expansions
- Product, evaluating potential contractions or additional revenue when changes to our features occur.
Why do you think you and Demodesk were a match made in Heaven? 😃
I think the main characteristics that made me a good fit were centered around my being naturally curious and having good active listening skills. I also learned how to balance being extroverted and introverted, which has helped me a lot in closing deals with different personalities. I think you can succeed in an AE role if you are genuinely curious about your customers’ stories, are able to structure solutions, and if you can stay resilient. I always strive for improvements rather than perfection!
What’s your favorite thing about working with your team?
I feel that everyone here is on the same page and we all have a mutual goal. No one feels isolated because the team is very supportive and always available. Work-life balance is something that is very important, and I can have it with Demodesk. This hybrid solution really enables me to get the best out of my life. From small perks, like optimizing personal time, to the ability to work from Germany and spending time with my family without using up all my vacation days.
If you could get a new skill in 10 minutes, what would it be?
Be an amazing surfer!
What’s your secret talent that no one knows about?
I was a vice-champion in a Hockey team when I was a kid.
