"We grow apples and sell to apple buyers—don’t waste time convincing orange buyers." - Gui Costin, Founder & CEO of Dakota.
In this episode of Preferred Return, we revisit former host Jeff Williams’ conversation with Gui Costin, Founder and CEO of Dakota. Together, they explore the art of capital raising and how Dakota became a leading data platform for investment firms. Gui dives into Dakota's journey, the importance of consistency in sales, and why building a transparent, high-performance culture matters as much (if not more) now as it did when this conversation was originally recorded. Gui also shares the story behind the creation of Dakota Live, their unique content-driven sales tool, and how it revolutionized capital raising.
In this episode, you’ll learn:
Things to listen for:
(00:00) Introduction to Gui Costin
(01:05) Gui's background and how Dakota was founded
(04:17) The challenges of fundraising in today’s market
(06:52) The philosophy behind "every day is a great day to sell"
(09:34) Core principles: Building a culture of transparency and accountability
(11:47) The creation of Dakota Live and its impact on capital raising
(15:10) "We grow apples and sell to apple buyers" – avoiding the convincing game
(17:45) The role of consistency in successful sales
(20:12) How Dakota's culture of kindness drives high performance
(23:03) Understanding the importance of knowing your buyer
(25:35) Gui’s perspective on the future of investment sales and tech
(28:48) Collaborating with teams to maximize effectiveness
(32:01) Final thoughts on culture, consistency, and scaling
Resources:
Learn more about Dakota: https://www.dakota.com/
Connect with Jeff: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jeffwms/
More from Altvia: https://altvia.com/
Connect with Gui Costin
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/guicostin/