What's the ideal cyber sales experience? Terra Cooke jumps into the ring to share the story of the best sales interaction she's ever had! George K and George A examine this further... In this episode: 🚨Why you should never go around someone's back to their boss, be it the CISO or whomever 💯 How to keep it real throughout the process 🤝 Why humility and humanity will get you far 🎯 How to listen for when your prospect identifies the target buyer Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts!...
Oct 30, 2023•36 min•Season 2Ep. 12
CISO, market observer, and newsletter author, Mike Privette, joins the show to talk about how a new financial reality is shaping the cybersecurity industry. George K and George A talk to Mike about: 💡 Where companies now need to focus their energy in a new VC reality. 📉 How the end of free money affects sales culture and outreach methods 🤔 How security leaders are thinking about purchases, with tightened budgets 🪗 Why the cyber ecosystem is more like an accordion than anything else! 🎧 Check...
Oct 23, 2023•46 min•Season 2Ep. 11
Long time listener and fellow podcast host, Jason Carrico , jumps into the ring to talk about the challenge of scaling sales teams! George K and George A really get into the nitty gritty on this one! In this episode: 👁️ Where sellers should focus their attention (hint: it’s not the top of the funnel) 📈Common pitfalls to avoid when scaling a startup sales team 🤝 How all that “salesy stuff” is really a team effort with the buyer 🧠 The difference a change in mindset can make vs studying differe...
Oct 16, 2023•42 min•Season 2Ep. 10
What does cybersecurity messaging look like to an outsider? Mariana Padilla, CEO of KIKrr , steps into the ring! George K and George A dialed in from opposite sides of the globe for this one! In this episode: 🙌 Democratizing the software buying process 🤝 The power of community and storytelling 👀 Mariana's outsider perspective on cybersecurity's jargon addiction 💰 Where DEI needs to start in tech (hint: not just jobs) 📲 We want to hear from you! If you have an experience -good or bad- that y...
Oct 09, 2023•34 min•Season 2Ep. 9
With a sick guest, and some time zone tango as George K and George A are both traveling, we bring you a Best Of edition, featuring key moments from recent conversations with Evgeniy Kharam, Eliza May Austin, Medus4 aka Katelyn Bowden, and Jeff Wheatman. In this episode: Tactical booth strategies to build credibility at events Reputation recovery from bad outreach A hacker’s advice on getting started and what male allies can do to stamp out toxic masculinity in cyber And how to lead sales with gi...
Oct 02, 2023•37 min•Season 2Ep. 8
Joel Benge, Principal at Message Specs , and self-described "message therapist," steps into the ring! George K and George A talk to Joel about common sales and marketing messaging mistakes, and Joel runs the first “Messaging Maze,” with on-air reviews of audience-submitted outreach emails! In this episode we get into: 💬 The power of empathy and understanding in building trust and open communication. 🔄 Taking a first principles approach to messaging involving all organizational facets. 🤝Joel t...
Sep 25, 2023•58 min•Season 2Ep. 7
Jeff Wheatman , security evangelist at Black Kite, jumps into the ring with a storied background, from consultant, Gartner analyst, CISO advisor, and now as evangelist. George K and George A talk to Jeff about: 🚑 Ambulance chasing and why exactly it doesn’t work 👉 Who you’re REALLY selling to (hint: it’s not the CISO) 🧘♂️ Jeff’s advice for staying sane amidst the stress and noise in cybersecurity 🦸 Why CISOs are not the hero in their own story (and who really is) ✅ Subscribe wherever you ge...
Sep 18, 2023•51 min•Season 2Ep. 6
🤝 George K and George A join forces with Allan Alford from the Cyber Ranch Podcast, and Aaron Pritz and Cody Rivers of Simply Solving Cyber! 🤨 Together, this trifecta weighs in on the October bonanza that is Cybersecurity Awareness Month. While the month started in 2004 to raise cybersecurity awareness among the general public, it’s now become an excuse for vendors to inundate inboxes with inane messaging. 🙌 Introducing: The Cyber Community Month challenge! Vendors: we’re challenging you to c...
Sep 11, 2023•38 min•Season 2Ep. 5
George K and George A reflect on recent cyber news, trends, and podcast updates! In this episode: 🤝 Cybercrime Crowdsourcing : Sophos is out with a new report on Russian hacker forums are gamifying cyberattacks. Borrowing from legitimate security events like Pwn2Own, they're offering cash prizes for innovative attack methods, but with darker aims. 🪞 Deepfake Tech Surge : With deepfake technology becoming more accessible, what are the implications for cybersecurity and public trust? Read more i...
Sep 05, 2023•33 min•Season 2Ep. 4
🐍 🔥 🧨 Medus4 aka Katelyn Bowden leaps in the ring, flamethrower at the ready. A member of Cult of the Dead Cow, Katelyn is a hacker and self-described “sinfluencer.” George K and George A wanted to catch up with Katelyn after her talk at DEFCON31 on what she’s building on top of the new Veilid application framework. …And in light of our previous episode, wanted to touch on her own experiences with toxic masculinity. In this episode we get into: 💥Katelyn’s origin story and the formation of th...
Aug 28, 2023•33 min•Season 2Ep. 3
🤯 Response to our Hacker Summer Camp recap was immense! Shorter episode this week as George K and George A reflect on listener feedback, and touch on some plans for season ✌️, including… 👊⚡️ Listener support to produce MORE SWAG and hosted events! 🧳 🎙️ Bringing the Bare Knuckle energy to your next conference or gathering! Have pod, will travel. 🔥🔥 The heat can’t stop, won’t stop! ✅ Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts!
Aug 21, 2023•15 min•Season 2Ep. 2
What happens in Vegas...should not stay there! George K and George A share highlights and low points from Infosec’s big shindig in Sin City. The Good: 🤝 The magic of meeting folks IRL 💡 Exchange of ideas 💪 Vendors showing up with the C-suite and experienced technical staff✊ SquadCon as a show and a vibe The Bad: 🗣️ Public speaking skills need a boost 🏎️ Why are there so many F1 cars?? 🙄 If you need gimmicks, how good can your solution be? The WTF: 🛑 Endemic levels of sexual harassment NEE...
Aug 16, 2023•41 min•Season 2Ep. 1
The team is taking a break to celebrate the end of season 1. Here’s a replay of our conversation with JD Sherry. It offers valuable insights from the VC side, with advice on how and when to scale sales teams, and a cautionary tale about what happens when cyber startups try to do that too early. George K and George A talk to JD Sherry about his journey from CIO to VC, and everything he's learned along the way, like: 📈 Common pitfalls in GTM strategies 💰 How to scale a sales team successfully 💸...
Aug 01, 2023•45 min•Season 1Ep. 35
💡 Evgeniy Kharam, cybersecurity architect, advisor, and evangelist, steps into the ring to talk about conferences, event follow up, and more! George K and George talk to Evgeniy about his unique journey from the Israeli Navy to working with a superstar MSSP. The conversation touches on: 🤝 How to build common ground between buyers and sellers at cybersecurity events and conferences. 🗣️ Effective communication lessons from very particular paintball training course. 💪 Strategies for effective b...
Jul 24, 2023•48 min•Season 1Ep. 34
🙌 Eliza-May Austin, founder and CEO of th4ts3curity.company steps into the ring! Her viral LinkedIn post seeking someone to help with sales without being pushy or a knob set off something of a firestorm in cybersecurity sales. 😳 George K and George A talk to Eliza about: 🚀 How she went from frustrated tech insider to CEO 🧞♂️ 🦄 ✨ The “magic genie” role she’s looking for, a consultative advocate who’s curious and works with a longer time horizon 🤝 The culture she’s built that seems 4 years ...
Jul 17, 2023•50 min•Season 1Ep. 33
Today, we have a special Replay episode, courtesy of our friends at Hacker Valley Media . This is an interview that George K did along with Dani Woolf, founder and CEO of Audience 1st. They released a report in June analyzing vendor marketing messaging at RSA, and compared those finds with survey data from security buyers. Our mission was to examine any divergence and suggest ways to close the gap. We talked to host Chris Cochran about the findings. ------ In a world overflowing with buzzwords a...
Jul 14, 2023•57 min
Short episode this week! George K and George A weigh in on threads, cyber news, but most importantly, how to meet up at Black Hat 2023! 👀 🧵 So Threads is a thing, but are we just all playing in the billionaires’ sandbox? 🛡️ Supply chain and OT attacks are bananas right now 🎲 Meet the Bare Knuckles & Brass Tacks squad at Black Hat! We’ll be alongside Audience 1st, The Cyber Queens, Hacker Valley Media, and Alissa Knight! Register here: https://cyberpodworld.com/ 👊 ⚡️...
Jul 10, 2023•17 min•Season 1Ep. 32
🤖 👍 Longtime listener and seasoned BDR, Nafis Muhammad, steps into the ring! What a story this guy has! George K and George A talk to Nafis about what he learned about building relationships and trust from selling door to door. Also in this episode: 😳 How Nafis persevered after trying to cold connect with George A 💡 How he incorporated ChatGPT and Bard into his workflows without sacrificing relationship building 🤝 His approaches to personalization 🩺 Why domain health means so much to his o...
Jul 03, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 31
👊 ⚡ GIVEAWAY TIME! We're giving away 3️⃣ Bare Knuckles & Brass Tacks custom snapback and sticker sets this week! George K and George A are busy planning the next few episodes. No new drop this week, but we wanna hear from you! Here's how you can win: 🔗 Share the link to a favorite episode on #LinkedIn this week. ✅ Be sure to tag the show so we know! 💬 And tell us why you liked the show and what you learned! ⏳ *Deadline: Friday, June 30th* Ready, set, go! 🚀...
Jun 26, 2023•1 min•Season 1Ep. 30
This week, George K and George A delve into the sales shenanigans they endured recently, and report from the frontlines of enterprise AI tech. In this episode: 🏆 Dubious honors that don’t help anything 🫠 How to royally botch a demo 📢 What old school event outreach can teach about personalization 🤖 And George A reports back from the AWS Summit on new enterprise AI capabilities ✅ Listen and subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! 🧢 Stay tuned for SWAG giveaways this week!...
Jun 20, 2023•28 min•Season 1Ep. 29
😳 🥊 🥊 Somehow we convinced a VC client partner to step into the ring! George K and George A talk to JD Sherry about his journey from CIO to VC, and everything he's learned along the way, like: 📈 Common pitfalls in GTM strategies 💰 How to scale a sales team successfully 💸 and how NOT to scale one 🤝 Why a consultative approach leads to longer term success ⚙️ and all the elements that need to lock into place across sales, product, engineering, and success to drive growth Don’t miss this one!...
Jun 12, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 28
In this Special Episode, George K and George A catch up with three women who attended the Canadian Women in Cybersecurity conference hosted by SiberX. All three bring different levels of experience to the conversation. In this episode: 💡 What they took away from the conference 🤝 The role of mentorship and how to seek them out 🚪 Breaking into the industry and HR barriers ⚡️ Tips for networking and how to get the most out of your next conference experience ✅ Listen and subscribe, wherever you g...
Jun 05, 2023•47 min•Season 1Ep. 27
We're back! After a little break, George K and George A are back in the ring. This time, they're talking to Ben Kelly, the BDR referred to us by past guest, Mike Rogers! 📅 Learn how Ben is getting more meetings by sending FEWER emails! 🤝 Why Ben operates by the golden rule 📑 Why research and carefully crafted emails beat generic automation 🗣️ What he says when gets pushback 🐉 🛡️ And the return of the SALES GAUNTLET! Listen wherever you get your podcasts!...
May 30, 2023•26 min•Season 1Ep. 26
Now dropping on Mondays ! In this episode, George K and George A take on: Toronto! That's right, both Georges are heading to the Canadian Women in Cybersecurity conference, hosted by SiberX. This podcast was cooked up after a ten-minute conversation at Black Hat 2022. Imagine what the crew can cook up in 24 hours! 💸 Sales tomfoolery continues, including ghosting warm leads...?! Isn’t revenue the goal…? 🛑 How to lose business!…by breaking trust and going around the project owner. 🙌 Developing ...
May 15, 2023•30 min•Season 1Ep. 25
How do you make an authentic connection with security buyers? London Miller jumps into the ring to talk about his journey from D1 athlete to cybersecurity sales Jedi. George K and George A talk to London about: 🏈 Translating "non-technical" skills sets to cyber 🤔 The mix of humility and curiosity needed to succeed in sales 🤝 How seeking connection builds trust with buyers ✊ And how DEI efforts need authenticity to have any chance at success ✅ Subscribe to Bare Knuckles and Brass Tacks whereve...
May 10, 2023•42 min•Season 1Ep. 24
While away at RSA, George K and George A heard about or received some heinous (and hilarious) outreach attempts including: 🥣 Alphabet soup terror 🗓️Calendar missiles fired at personal email addresses 🫠And using public fines to get a meeting Then they dig into new technologies announced at RSA and talk potential impacts to security team practices. Enjoy! ✅ Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! 🛎 Follow our LinkedIn page for more snark, tips, analysis, and giveaways! 👊 ⚡️...
May 04, 2023•42 min•Season 1Ep. 23
We're away at RSA this week, but the hits keep coming! Enjoy this "best of" episode featuring parts of our episodes featuring: (Serial killer) SCARY BDR tactics Erika Eakins 👑 on sexism and misogyny from the buying side Maria Graham ⚔️ runs the SALES GAUNTLET Mike Rogers 🥋 on sales tactics that break trust or leave buyers feeling icky Kayla Cytron-Thaler 💡 on the creativity and curiosity the SDRs need to break through the noise Enjoy! ✅ Subscribe wherever you get your podcasts! 🛎 Follow our ...
Apr 26, 2023•24 min•Season 1Ep. 22
What if there was a better way to align what cybersecurity leaders are looking for and what vendors are selling? Victoria Germanova, founder and CEO of Callity believes technology can help do just that. In this episode, George K and George A talk to Victoria about: 🔥 Her experience with the cold-call trial by fire 🛡 Her mission to repair trust in B2B sales 🤝 How technology might liberate sellers to focus on what really matters: relationship capital 💰 And what she would tell a room full of CR...
Apr 19, 2023•44 min•Season 1Ep. 21
What makes a successful SDR? And how do they stand out against all the noise? SDR Manager Kayla Cytron-Thaler enters the ring, after having successfully gotten through to George A on LinkedIn! No really, he tried to ignore her, but she's that good. 👀 George K and George A jump in, and there are real gems in this episode: 3️⃣ Kayla's 3 Cs for SDR success: Creativity, Curiosity, and Coachability 📈 Understanding CISOs' "zone of resistance" 🥳 How to stand out, while keeping the focus on the custo...
Apr 12, 2023•40 min
👀 If sales were a dating game, how would the other side look at your behavior? Cordial, friendly, or creepy incel? CISO Mike Rogers jumps into the ring - and he's a legit trained fighter! - to talk about what works and what's grounds for dismissal. George K and George get real loud on this one! 😬 🔥 tips in this episode: Is the CISO really your buyer? Is that where outreach should start? How vendors can better equip CISOs with managing stakeholder engagement? Confronting sexism and bias in the...
Mar 29, 2023•40 min•Season 1Ep. 19
