How To Build Your First Go-to-Market Team with Swing Search

What It Covers

Magna Sundstrom and Debbie Whistle from Swing Search explain how early-stage founders should build their first go-to-market teams, covering when to hire, what roles to prioritize, and how to avoid common hiring mistakes.

Key Questions Answered

• •Seniority mistake: Founders typically hire too senior for first go-to-market roles, bringing in VPs who want teams and infrastructure instead of hands-on sellers who can execute tactical work for the next eighteen months and drive immediate revenue without building foundations.
• •Timing error: Hiring go-to-market talent before achieving product-market fit creates an oil-and-water problem where sales skills become orthogonal to product discovery needs. Founders should stay in sales themselves until customer conversations consistently validate the product and buying motion.
• •Metrics test: Strong sales candidates know exact performance numbers like ranking third with 112.2% quota attainment, not vague statements about exceeding goals. This specificity reveals both competitive drive and intellectual discipline required for the 80% process-repetition nature of sales execution.
• •Two-AE strategy: Hiring two founding account executives simultaneously instead of one provides trenches companionship, creates healthy competition, and protects against single-hire failure risk. Hire complementary spikes covering different verticals or deal complexities to fill multiple gaps at once.