Role Fit Beats Title: Why Friction Matters More Than Seniority
- Cormac Repman
- 11 hours ago
- 2 min read
We've been analyzing call recordings and meeting outcomes for the last two months, and a pattern emerged that contradicts everything we thought we knew about cold calling seniority. The titles that book calls aren't always the most senior. What matters is whether the person has an active problem they're trying to solve right now.
Our best conversions came from three scenarios where operational friction was real and current. Mike Blumberg, owner of Tornado Express Laundry, is three months into a six-month marketing platform trial. He's busy running a laundromat chain, but he booked because he's actively comparing options. Cole Hubbard manages plant operations at Cenovus Energy and is rolling out mobile devices to his field teams. He booked a demo in eight minutes because the gap between paper plans and actual field execution is costing him money every week. A Business Owner we reached was in active marketing trials with his website provider. All three had specific, measurable problems they were working to solve.
Now compare that to our rejections. Jason Wooten, Head of Finance Operations at Clickup, told us directly: they have efficient ACH processes, credit card processing is handled, no friction, not interested. John Kolinofsky rejected us before we could finish the pitch. Both are senior decision makers. Both have the authority to buy. Neither has the motivation to meet, because their problem isn't on their desk this week.
We're seeing this play out across 30+ calls in the past month. The Operations Director books because they own the daily consequence of poor execution. The Accounting Director books when credit card processing is a documented burden, something they mention in team meetings or budget reviews. The Business Owner books when he's actively in a trial with a competitor. The VP of something books when nothing is broken and they're managing a larger portfolio anyway.
The mistake we made was targeting seniority as a proxy for decision-making power. Of course senior people can make decisions. But cold calling isn't about finding who CAN decide. It's about finding who NEEDS to decide because the status quo is causing them friction right now.
What changed our approach: We now ask about current state, not job title. "What tools are you using today?" "How long have you had that in place?" "Any pain points with how it works?" If we hear hesitation, urgency, or "we've been meaning to fix this," we book time. If we hear "it's working fine, we're not looking," we thank them and move on. Title is less important than timing.
The data supports this. Our booked meetings came from Directors and Owners in active pain states. Our rejections came from VPs and senior finance leaders whose domains had no friction. One prospect told us he explicitly didn't want to minimize transaction fees because velocity mattered more to his workflow. That's not rejection from a senior title. That's a clear signal: no problem, no meeting.
Role fit and current pain beat title and budget every time.
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