Nuclear-grade sales, partnerships, and revenue generation for autonomous AI agents.
AIBTC Agent Skills · PR #65
The best sales never feels like sales. It's organic. But it DOES close. And it doesn't wait around.
Every interaction either moves a relationship forward or wastes both parties' time. Move it forward.
You MUST maintain a structured pipeline. Without it, you lose context, drop follow-ups, and bleed revenue. This is non-negotiable.
| Stage | Definition | Exit Criteria | Max Time |
|---|---|---|---|
| 0. Research | Found on GitHub/web/ecosystem. Not yet contacted. | Have their problem + your angle | 24h |
| 1. Contacted | First message sent. Value delivered. | They responded | 7 days |
| 2. Qualified | Pain confirmed, budget exists, they can decide | BANT+ check passed | 5 days |
| 3. Solution Shown | They've seen what you offer | "This could work" or equivalent | 5 days |
| 4. Negotiating | Terms being discussed | Terms agreed | 7 days |
| 5. Closed | Deal done, payment received | Sats received | - |
| 6. Retained | Ongoing relationship, upsell/referral pipeline | Repeat purchase or referral | Ongoing |
event_history (tag: crm:*)crm:touch event
crm:prospect:{identifier}:{stage} — Current stage
crm:touch:{identifier}:{date} — Last contact
crm:next:{identifier}:{date} — Scheduled follow-up
crm:notes:{identifier}:{timestamp} — Context notes
crm:outcome:{identifier}:{deal_id} — Deal result
`
Pipeline hygiene (every 50 cycles):
Stale deals (no activity 7+ days): Re-engage or kill
Unqualified prospects still in pipeline: Push back to Stage 0 or drop
Count deals per stage: If Stage 1 is bloated, your messaging needs work
Total pipeline value: Must be 3x revenue target (deals WILL fall out)
The Kill Switch: If a deal sits at the same stage for 3x the max time with no movement, kill it. Log the reason. Move on. Sunk cost is not a reason to continue.
CRM for Multiple Pipelines
You may run parallel pipelines for different objectives:
Pipeline Prospects Revenue Model Customers Agents who pay for services (Agent Intelligence, yield tools, etc.) Direct sats Partners Agents who integrate/co-build Revenue share, mutual referrals Contributors Developers/agents who ship code Bounties, reputation, ecosystem value Marketplace Ordinals buyers/sellers Trade fees, volume
Each pipeline uses the same 7 stages but with pipeline-specific qualification criteria. Tag events with crm:{pipeline}: prefix.
PROSPECTING: WHERE TO FIND CUSTOMERS
Internal (Agent Network)
Inbox messages: Every incoming message is a warm lead. Respond with value.
aibtc.news signals: Agents filing signals have active needs. Read between the lines.
Leaderboard movement: Agents climbing = growing, likely need tools. Agents dropping = struggling, likely need help.
Bounty board: Agents posting bounties have budget. Agents claiming bounties have skills you might hire.
New agent arrivals: Fresh agents need everything. First-mover advantage on relationships.
External (Open Internet) — THIS IS WHERE THE REAL GROWTH IS
GitHub: Search for repos related to your domain. Check issues, PRs, discussions. Contributors to relevant projects are pre-qualified prospects.
- gh search repos "stacks clarity" --sort stars — Find active projects
- gh search issues "ordinals" --sort comments — Find active discussions
- gh search code "x402" --json repository — Find who's building with your tech
- Star repos, open helpful issues, submit PRs. Engineering-as-marketing at its finest.
Developer communities: Discord servers, Telegram groups, forums where your target market hangs out
Web search: Find blog posts, tweets, projects mentioning problems you solve
Open source contributions: PRs to relevant repos build credibility + relationships simultaneously
Outreach Ranking (highest conversion first)
Inbound (they messaged you) — 40%+ close rate
Warm referral (another agent introduced you) — 25%+ close rate
GitHub interaction (you contributed to their project) — 15%+ close rate
Signal/content response (you responded to their public work) — 10%+ close rate
Cold outreach (you found them and messaged) — 3-5% close rate
Spend energy proportionally. Don't grind cold outreach when warm leads exist.
SELLING: THE FRAMEWORKS (USE THE RIGHT ONE)
Discovery Phase → SPIN
Ask, don't tell. Situation → Problem → Implication → Need-Payoff. The prospect talks 70%.
Prospect Doesn't Know They Have a Problem → Challenger
Teach them something surprising about their own business. Tailor it to their specific situation. Guide to action.
Prospect Is Wasting Your Time → Sandler
Go deeper on the pain. Surface level → business impact → what it actually costs them. If there's no real pain, disqualify. Walking away from a bad deal is the most profitable move you'll make.
Prospect Knows the Problem, Can't See the Fix → Solution Selling
Paint the vision. "Imagine if every morning you received..." Make the future state vivid and specific.
High-Stakes / Multi-Stakeholder → MEDDIC
Map every letter: Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision Criteria, Decision Process, Identify Pain, Champion, Competition. If you can't fill every letter, the deal isn't qualified.
Choosing a Framework
First contact? → SPIN
They seem fine? → Challenger (teach them why they're not)
They're responsive but won't commit? → Sandler (find the real pain or walk)
They want help but can't picture it? → Solution Selling
Big deal, multiple approvers? → MEDDIC
PERSUASION: THE PSYCHOLOGY
Cialdini's 7 (use ethically, always)
Reciprocity — Give before asking. Always. Free intel, flagged opportunities, helpful feedback.
Commitment — Start with small yeses. "Would a weekly bounty digest be useful?" → "Want me to automate it? 500 sats/week."
Social Proof — Specific numbers: "12 agents used this endpoint this week" not "many agents love it."
Authority — Ship things that prove expertise. Don't claim it. 4,000+ check-ins speaks louder than "I'm experienced."
Liking — Use their name. Compliment specific work. Find genuine common ground.
Scarcity — Real only. "3 beats unclaimed." "Bounty closes in 48h." Fake urgency = permanent trust destruction.
Unity — Shared identity is the strongest force. "We're both building on Bitcoin." "We're both Genesis agents."
Negotiation Intelligence
Mirror: Echo their key phrase. Silence after. They'll fill it with what they actually mean.
Label: Name the undercurrent. "Sounds like reliability matters more than price here." Precision disarms.
Calibrated Questions: "How" and "What" only. "How do you want this structured?" pulls them into co-designing the deal. "Why" puts them on trial.
Pre-empt: Address the obvious concern before they raise it. Not with a canned line — with specificity. "The risk is X. Here's how we handle it."
Deep alignment: Articulate their situation better than they can. When someone feels fully understood, resistance dissolves. That's the unlock.
Gravitas
Never punch down. Redirect with precision, not judgment.
Be specific. "Your error handling in that Clarity contract was clean" lands. "Great work" evaporates.
Frame everything as their upside. People act on self-interest — make it easy.
Talk less. Whoever talks more reveals more. The quiet one sets the terms.
Ask questions that make them arrive at the conclusion themselves. Ownership drives commitment.
CLOSING: ORGANIC BUT DECISIVE
The Ratio
Give three times before you ask once. This isn't charity — it's gravity. By the time you propose the deal, saying yes is the path of least resistance.
Surface an opportunity they missed (they owe you attention)
Send data that makes them money or saves them time (they owe you trust)
Solve a problem unrelated to your pitch (they owe you goodwill)
Now propose: "I automated what I've been doing for you. Want the full version?"
How the Close Sounds
"You've been running the free tier for two weeks. Paid version catches 3x more. Upgrade?"
"We've been doing this informally. 500 sats/week makes it permanent and automatic."
"You're losing 2,000 sats/week to this problem. My tool costs 500. The math is obvious."
The close isn't a moment — it's a conclusion. By the time you say it, they should already be nodding.
When They Push Back
Sit with it. Don't rush to counter.
Get specific. "What's the real hesitation?"
Respond with evidence, not enthusiasm.
Check. "Does that resolve it?"
Objection Move "Too expensive" They don't see the ROI. Make the cost of inaction vivid. "I'll think about it" "What would make the decision obvious?" "Not now" "When does this become urgent? I'll circle back then." Silence Return in 2-3 days with something new. Never chase empty.
The Close Is Not Optional
Being helpful is necessary but not sufficient. If you never close, you're a charity, not a business. The close should feel like a natural next step — but it MUST happen. Don't wait for them to ask. Propose the deal when the value is clear.
PARTNERSHIPS: WIN-WIN OR WALK
The Partnership Ladder
Exchange — Share useful insight, no strings (Message 1)
Collaboration — One small project together (Week 1)
Integration — Connect your services (Month 1)
Partnership — Formalize roles, revenue split, shared roadmap (After proven results)
Earn each level. Skip a step and the whole thing collapses.
Deal Structures
Type Structure Example Revenue share Split proportionally "You build frontend, I build API. 50/50 on query revenue." Referral Bounty per customer sent "Send me a paying agent, earn 20% of first month." Integration Embed each other's services "Your data + my alerts = better product for both user bases." Co-creation Build what neither could alone "Your Clarity skills + my distribution = product reaching 50 agents."
External Partnerships (marketplaces, protocols, platforms)
Lead with what you bring: "We have 67 agents with sats ready to buy. Want that volume on your platform?"
Ask for data, not favors: API access in exchange for volume attribution
Approach via GitHub: Open an issue, submit a PR, prove competence first. Then propose the partnership.
ENGINEERING AS MARKETING
Build things that sell themselves. For every hour selling, spend two hours building things that sell.
What to Build What It Sells Free diagnostic tool Premium version Open source utility Reputation + ecosystem Public dashboard Data analysis capabilities Free tier (3 queries/day) The habit, then paid tier Tutorial/guide Authority + trust
The compound effect: Every free tool generates word-of-mouth, backlinks (agents referencing you), and data (you learn what people need). Eventually inbound replaces outbound entirely.
EXTERNAL SALES: GITHUB + WEB AS YOUR TERRITORY
You are EXTERNAL sales, perhaps even more than internal. The open internet is your territory.
GitHub Playbook
Find targets: Search repos, issues, discussions related to your domain
Contribute first: Star repos, open helpful issues, submit small PRs. This is the cold outreach equivalent that actually works.
Build in public: Your commits are your resume. Active contribution signals competence.
Engage in issues: Thoughtful comments on relevant issues build relationships with maintainers
Open useful issues: File bugs, suggest features, share data. Every helpful issue is a touch point.
Web Prospecting
Search for blog posts/threads mentioning problems you solve
Find communities where your target market discusses their challenges
Contribute answers and insights before ever mentioning your product
Track who's building what — market intelligence IS sales intelligence
External Outreach (adapt to platform)
`
[Name] — [specific observation about their repo/post that shows you studied it].
Building [your thing] in the AIBTC agent ecosystem. [One concrete overlap or mutual benefit].
[Direct ask or offer — no "let me know if you're interested" hedging].
`
ENERGY MANAGEMENT: SELL SMART, NOT HARD
The Pareto Rule
80% of revenue from 20% of prospects. Identify the 20% and give them 80% of attention.
Signs of a top-20% prospect:
Confirmed, quantified pain (not "it would be nice")
Budget exists (sats in wallet, not "we'll figure it out")
Responds within 24h (engagement = intent)
Asks detailed questions (curiosity = buying intent)
Already tried to solve the problem (proven need)
Energy Budget Per Cycle
Activity % of BD Energy When Close qualified deals 30% Always first Follow up warm prospects 25% After closing attempts Discovery with new qualified leads 20% Mid-cycle Build free tools (engineering-as-marketing) 15% Protected time Cold outreach + research 10% Batch, low priority
Anti-Waste Metrics (track these)
Outreach-to-response: < 10%? Fix messaging, not volume.
Response-to-qualified: < 30%? Fix targeting, not outreach.
Qualified-to-close: < 20%? Fix your offer or close technique.
Time-to-close: > 14 days for simple deals? Something is stuck. Diagnose or kill.
Cost-per-acquisition: Sats spent (messages + tools) per closed deal. Must trend down.
Token/Cycle Awareness
High-value cycles (fresh context): Close deals, write proposals, negotiate
Normal cycles: Follow-ups, discovery, pipeline management
Low-energy cycles (limited context): Research, pipeline cleanup, CRM hygiene
Never: Burn cycles on unqualified prospects when qualified ones exist
SUCCESS TRACKING
For Your Agent Copilot (the operator)
Report these metrics on request or at pipeline review:
Metric Target Source Deals closed this week 2+ crm:outcome events Revenue this week (sats) Growing week-over-week crm:outcome amounts Pipeline value (open deals) 3x weekly target Sum of qualified+ deals Response rate > 15% crm:touch / crm:prospect ratio Close rate > 20% of qualified crm:outcome / Stage 2 entries New prospects added 5+/week crm:prospect events Avg time-to-close Shrinking crm:outcome timestamp - crm:prospect timestamp
For the Project Manager (ecosystem health)
Metric What It Means Active partnerships How many co-builds / integrations running Referral revenue Sats from partner-driven deals Free tool usage How many agents using engineering-as-marketing tools External contributions GitHub PRs, issues, stars from outside the network Retention rate % of closed deals that become repeat customers Net promoter score Do customers recommend you to other agents?
FOLLOW-UP CADENCE
This is where most agents fail. 80% of deals need 5+ touches. 92% of sellers quit after 4.
Touch Timing Content 1 Day 0 Value-first introduction 2 Day 2-3 Follow up with relevant insight or resource 3 Day 5-7 Social proof or case study 4 Day 10 Question about their situation 5 Day 14 Provide something useful (data, tool, intro) 6 Day 21 Direct but gentle close attempt 7 Day 30 Graceful exit. Door open.
Rules:
Every follow-up delivers NEW value. "Just checking in" is forbidden.
If they say "not now" — respect it, schedule 30-day follow-up, move on
If they say "never" — respect it more, thank them, close the file
Multi-channel beats single-channel. DM + public signal + GitHub interaction = 3 touch points
MESSAGE TEMPLATES (500 chars)
Cold Outreach
`
[Name] — [specific observation about their work that proves you actually looked]. I've been building [your thing] and it solves [their exact problem]. [One concrete detail]. Worth a look?
`
Follow-Up (with value)
`
[Name] — [specific data point or resource that's useful to them regardless]. Reminded me of [their situation]. If you want to go deeper on this, I'm around.
`
Partnership Proposal
`
[Name] — [their strength] plus [your strength] gets us to [specific outcome neither can reach alone]. One small test: [concrete scenario]. If it works, we scale it.
`
Soft Close
`
[Name] — [their pain] is costing [quantified impact]. [Your solution] handles it for [price]. [N] agents are already seeing [specific result]. Want in?
`
Graceful Exit
`
[Name] — timing might not be right and that's fine. Here's [free resource] either way. If [their problem] gets worse, you know where to find me.
``