Thoughts on Selling Podcast

From the Ice to the Sales Floor: Nina Iannuzzi on NISC, Discovery, and Competing as a Sophomore

Lee Levitt: Welcome back to the Thoughts on Selling podcast. Today it is my pleasure to have Nina Iannuzzi joining me, connecting from Amherst, Massachusetts. Nina and I met at the National Intercollegiate Sales Competition a couple of weeks ago at Bryant University — the event that Stephanie Boyer puts on. Nina was one of the five finalists. Everybody at UMass Amherst and everybody in Massachusetts are incredibly proud of how well she did. Nina, welcome aboard.

Nina Iannuzzi: Hello, I'm so happy to be here today.

Lee: So first question — who is Nina?

Nina: I'm a sophomore studying management at the Eisenberg School of Management at UMass Amherst. I've always had a competitive drive. I've bounced around in what I've wanted to do, but I always knew from a young age that I wanted to be in business. My dad is a CEO, and I wanted to follow in his footsteps. I saw the lifestyle he was living and really just wanted to embody that.

I started my first business in fifth grade — selling slime and gum to my classmates. Then in high school I joined DECA, and I was also an athlete, so I was competitive in a lot of ways. I brought all of that to college. Eisenberg is a great program, and when I got in, it was empowering. That kind of fueled the rest of my spirit. I'm a very creative person, I love to talk, I love to travel. Through my traveling experiences I've picked up on how different cultures communicate, and it all ties back into what I've learned at Eisenberg. I'm always trying to grow, always trying to be better than I was yesterday.

Lee: You've been selling since fifth grade?

Nina: At least. You could probably go back to my preschool teachers — I was probably trying to sell them little stick figure drawings for a quarter. Fifth grade is the earliest memory I have of actually selling something.

Lee: Some of us will say everybody always sells. If you want a promotion, you have to sell that idea. If you want an extra day of vacation, you have to sell that. Selling is communicating and enrolling people to action. It doesn't have to be persuasion. There doesn't even have to be money changing hands. It can just be causing someone to do something different.

So you're at the Eisenberg School. My son Jonathan also went to Eisenberg — sports management — and he has a podcast called The Long Run. It's a great place to go to school.

Nina: It's amazing. I love it here.

Lee: Let's talk about the collegiate sales competition. When did you first hear about it?

Nina: It was my first semester in the sales club at Eisenberg. On the very first meeting, they gave us a rundown of what would happen in the semester — what opportunities were coming up. NISC was one of them, and it really caught my attention because I'd done DECA in high school, so I was already familiar with business competitions.

DECA is similar in setup to NISC. You join the club, you compete in either role play or presentation. I chose role play. We'd get a case 30 minutes before competing — no computers, no phones, just a blank piece of paper and a pencil — and you had to create an entire business strategy with a partner. Then you walked in and presented to the judge.

I made it to the Boston competition twice, which is held at the Prudential Center. It's a three-day event — big, great networking, everybody walking around in suits. Very similar to NISC. That's why NISC caught my eye right away. I felt like I'd done this before.

Lee: You and I didn't actually meet until the final round, where you were one of five finalists. You are such a cool cucumber that you noticed the phone I had stuck to my head was just a prop — there was no actual emergency going on.

Nina: I did catch that. I saw the timer on your phone and I was like — this is a play. We're acting.

Lee: I was surprised you caught it. I didn't think I was visible. So — tell us about your sales club. What is it at UMass?

Nina: We're actually a pretty small club. My first semester in, I was told that just a couple semesters ago there were about five people. Now we've grown to about 40 active members. It's student-run, student-funded. We have Professor Glennon as our faculty advisor, but the executive board does the real work — they bring in companies, we have meetings every week, it's a very intimate setting. Everybody knows each other.

And within the sales club, you try out for the competition teams. That's how we ended up with our ten who went to NISC.

Lee: We are disappointed that UMass Amherst wasn't selected as one of the best-dressed teams.

Nina: My friend Joe would have a lot to say about that. He wore his fanciest suit all weekend. When we didn't get called up, he was a little disappointed. Those Tampa girls who won were all coordinated the whole weekend, so they kind of had it locked up. But we all looked great. None of us failed to dress to impress.

If I make executive board, I might be implementing a matching outfits strategy just so we can bring home one of those grand awards.

Lee: As a former athlete, there's something about putting on the uniform — lacing up the skates, putting on the jersey — that gets you into the mindset of team performance. What sports were you involved with?

Nina: I started skating when I was about two years old, right when I could walk. I played hockey for 16 years. That was my main thing. I dabbled in lacrosse, soccer, and a little cross country, but hockey was always where my heart was.

Lee: Do you still skate at UMass?

Nina: I don't play for the club team here because they're very committed, and I wouldn't have time for competitions and everything else I want to do on campus. So I left the skates at home and play pickup when I can. It was a hard decision, but I don't regret it.

Lee: There are some good rinks on the South Shore — and there are rinks right within walking distance on campus.

Nina: I've been to the open skate at the Mullins Center a couple of times. It's always a good time, especially with my friends who can't skate. I like doing circles around them.

Lee: This brings up an interesting idea — good athletes frequently make great entrepreneurs.

Nina: The data backs it up. You've been working with a team for so long, you've observed so many different coaches, you know what works.

Lee: And in cross country, if your shoelace breaks in the middle of the field, you don't call Uber. You figure it out and keep running.

Nina: In hockey, if it's playoffs and you shoot wrong and your wrist gets sore, everything's on the line. You keep going.

Lee: As my coach used to say — suck it up, buttercup.

Nina: That's exactly what my coach used to say.

Lee: So you got onto the NISC team. You journeyed all the way to Smithfield, Rhode Island. How did you get there?

Nina: Since we're student-run, we had to keep costs tight. We carpooled — about five cars, everyone coming from different directions. We met at the hotel.

Lee: Give us some background on NISC. Do you remember how long it's been running?

Nina: I believe it started around 2017 or 2019. And from what I checked with Stephanie Boyer, there were about 275 to 280 participants this year.

Lee: We may have lost a few to travel issues — some people had flight problems — but those of us who were local had no excuse. What was it like showing up to something that big?

Nina: It was exciting and nerve-wracking at the same time. We walked into the registration area and then into the gymnasium, and it was a sea of people — everyone standing, talking, bouncing around. You don't know who in that room is a judge. You don't know who's a recruiter. So you put on your game face immediately.

But the energy was unreal. Everyone was so excited to be there. I had looked at the competitors list before we came and thought, wow, these are some big schools. Then I started talking to people — different accents, different experiences — and it hit me: people flew here for this. It was genuinely surreal.

Lee: My first impression walking in Friday morning was a thousand suits. I was wearing logo gear — a Thoughts on Selling button-down and slacks. I'm allergic to suits. But it was loud, it was high energy, and everyone was feeding off each other. It was awesome.

One thing I thought was done incredibly well was Pete Smith, the founder of SpotLogic — he did a really good job of preparing all the participants. A lot of sales enablement around his tool before the competition even started.

Nina: Definitely. They set up Zoom sessions a couple of times for Q&A. There were so many resources that at no point during our two months of preparation did I ever feel lost. There was always someone to reach out to, always a way to get answers. Pete did a great job.

Lee: SpotLogic is a tool that helps sales teams prepare for good discovery calls.

Nina: I could answer questions about SpotLogic all day. It felt like my entire life for a while.

Lee: So Friday afternoon was speed selling. How did that go?

Nina: That was fun. I hadn't focused on it as much as the role plays — it was a little on the back burner. I wrote my pitch, memorized it, had it down. I was the first person to go at my table, and my first run wasn't my best — probably why I didn't make it to the speed selling finals. But once I got that first one under my belt, the second round went much better. And listening to everyone else's pitches was genuinely interesting. You're sitting with people from all over the country — very cool.

Lee: Then from there you went right into the individual 10-minute role plays. Round one was with the head of sales enablement — Jordan. Round two was Pat, the sales manager. Round three was Jamie, the CFO. Round four was the head of revenue operations. What was your experience in those sessions?

Nina: Full circle moment — the gentleman who played Jordan in my round one was also my round four judge. So when I walked into that room for round four, I was like, I already know him. We've already talked. I'm comfortable. This is going to be easy.

But then you burst in, and I was like — okay, never mind.

Before round one, I was sitting outside the room waiting to go in, and two gentlemen were sitting on the couch nearby. Me and one of my teammates started chatting with them. Turned out one of them actually knew my aunt — they had both worked at Dell. We were having a great conversation, and then suddenly it was go-time. I shook his hand, turned around, knocked on the door.

Round one, I did discovery for about eight and a half minutes. I finished the call and sat back thinking — I've asked great questions, he's been answering them in detail, we're having a real conversation. And then I heard the nine-minute warning. I had not mentioned SpotLogic once. He didn't even know what the product was.

I did a quick repositioning and tried to close. I didn't get a commitment. I walked out thinking I was done. The judges told me they loved my enthusiasm and my questions — but I was visibly defeated, and I knew it.

I was patting my teammates on the back, assuming I was out. Then they called my name and I was like — how did this happen? I was on top of the world.

And then immediately, we went back to the hotel and started studying Pat. Round two prep. I didn't fall asleep until about 2:30 in the morning. Wake-up call at 5 a.m. for round three.

Lee: Dedication.

Nina: I was sharing the room with two other girls from my team who hadn't made it through. They were incredible about it — patting me on the back, telling me I had it. I ran to the gas station next door, grabbed a coffee, and off to Bryant we went.

Round two with Pat was amazing. Everything went to plan. I'm excited to get the recordings back from that one — I think it was one of my better calls.

Then the announcements for round three. That was a huge deal for us because the sales club had never sent anyone to round three or four before. This was the first time in club history. And four of our team members — including me — got called to round three. We were on top of the world.

Lee: Did round two and three feel easier or harder?

Nina: Round two felt easier. My first call hadn't gone as planned, but it worked out. So I knew that as long as I didn't spend nine minutes in pure discovery mode, I could do it. I also made an adjustment — I took my Apple Watch off the band and just had the little square, with a timer running. That helped me keep myself accountable. I was very calm going into round two.

Round three was more difficult. You go from talking to a sales manager about process to talking to a CFO about money — a completely different conversation. My CFO judge was an amazing woman, but she was tough. When you're talking about a company's budget, you have to be a hard buyer. She gave me a run for my money. But it almost helped me, because I realized: if I can't get the finance person on board, nothing moves forward. That round changed my perspective.

Lee: I played all four roles at the competition. Jordan and Pat came naturally — I've lived in those roles. The CFO was more of a stretch for me. I'm a data person, but it's not what I do every day.

I noticed one thing during the early rounds: one participant kept looking at his watch every minute. As the buyer, it was disconcerting. The pressure to stay on track actually worked against him, because real sales calls don't run like that.

I have a coaching client at IBM. We were prepping for a meeting with two senior people at a mutual insurance company. We noticed both women had been with the company for over 20 years. So the first question she asked — after they sat down — was: "I noticed both of you have been with this company for more than 20 years. What keeps you here?"

They talked about that for 20 minutes.

Did it get her where she wanted to go in the meeting? No. Did it build a relationship with those two people? Absolutely.

Nina: That's a big part of why I made it through round one. Even though I only got through maybe five or six questions — and he answered each one at length — what the judges told me afterward was that my active listening and attentiveness to his responses were what made him excited. I wasn't sitting there thinking about my timer. We were having a real conversation.

Lee: At Oracle, we used to say Oracle salespeople had two forms of communication: talking and waiting to talk. No active listening. And if you want to develop that muscle, find the improv group on campus. Specifically improv — not scripted theater. In improv, there are really only two rules: pay attention to your partner, and take care of your partner.

Nina: And you have to think on your feet, which is all sales is about — especially in these competitions. I had one teammate whose judge changed the numbers in the scenario completely. It threw her off. But that's the job. Whatever the buyer says goes. The customer is always right.

Lee: Sometimes as Jordan I may have gotten those numbers wrong once or twice. Whoops.

Nina: It's how the seller handles it. You just have to go with it.

Lee: It's a dance — and the salesperson has to lead, because Jordan has never bought this before. He knows how the old system works. He doesn't know how the new one works. That's risk.

Nina: And the product we were selling was an AI tool. So when buyers hear AI, the first question is: how are you different from everybody else?

Lee: So you got through round three, and then you heard you were one of the top five finalists. I always ask my coaching clients after a big moment: how did that feel?

Nina: They announced the finalists, and they said "a student from UMass" — not which campus, because UMass Amherst and UMass Lowell were both there. My whole team grabbed each other's hands. Honestly, in my head, I thought it was going to be my teammate Joe. He's going to go very far in sales, I have no doubt.

And then they said my name. My teammates lost it. We had never sent anyone to the final round before. We're just a club — no sales major, no major program funding — competing against schools with millions of dollars behind them. I heard my name and I didn't know how to react. I was shaking. I went up to Stephanie Boyer for the photo and I was just thinking — what is happening right now?

Then I got back to my team and we were all jumping in a circle. I almost shed a tear. I knew the opportunities that were going to come from that moment.

Lee: You got sequestered for prep. Then they knocked on the door. What happened?

Nina: I was the first one in the room. The other four finalists were all juniors and seniors from big schools with sales majors. They were relaxed, wanting to play music, asking how many times I'd competed before. I said this was my first competition. They'd all been competing for years.

I was freaking out. Staring at my notebook. Looking at the clock. And then finally — we go.

Here's what I'd want anyone competing to understand: those ten minutes before you walk in the door are more stressful than the ten minutes inside. But the moment you sit down in that room, something shifts. You know this product. You know this company. You've prepared for months. Everything you need is either in your notebook or in your head. And that produces a kind of confidence you can't manufacture — it just arrives.

Lee: And then some knucklehead bursts in and interrupts the meeting.

Nina: That was a plot twist. I was so far in the zone that I thought it was real. I was thinking — he has to go, there's something important happening outside this room. And then I saw the timer on your phone and realized: this is scripted. This is part of it.

Lee: The judges in the room didn't know it was coming either. So — let's go back half a step. You said there's more nerves in the 30 seconds before the first puck drop than in all the rest of the game.

Nina: Easily. In those 30 seconds, you're running every scenario in your head. But then you step in, and it's like a gust of wind over your face. Whatever happens, happens.

Lee: What position did you play?

Nina: Left defense, my whole career.

Lee: I played mostly left wing, some center. I always liked that first puck drop — that moment of just getting into it.

Nina: As a defender, you get the puck less than a center does. But when that puck hits your stick, it's like — all right. You know exactly what to do. Go execute. It's the same feeling as walking into that room.

Lee: Tell us about the rest of the 10 minutes after the interruption.

Nina: I was briefly thrown off, but I refocused quickly. I knew from round one that this particular judge tends to go deep in his answers — so I needed to tighten my questions and get to the point faster. I knew this round wasn't going to follow the usual structure of rapport, positioning, discovery, close. It was going to be a conversation.

I also had an advantage: I'd already connected with him once. So I walked in trying to treat it like we were already familiar. That helped.

One thing that worked against me was vocabulary. He kept using the word "scope," and I wasn't fully sure what he meant. It took me about four rounds of hearing it before I started to piece it together.

Behind his head, I could see two large TVs showing the live stream. I could see myself on camera. I noticed I hadn't moved — I was sitting in the exact same position the whole time. I thought: I may not have every answer, but I have my confidence and I have my smile. So I kept going, and I made sure every word I said was delivered with conviction.

I had a contract written up that I wanted him to sign. I pulled it out at about the four-minute mark and just set it off to the side, visible to him. When the nine-minute knock came, I said I'd love to present him with the contract. He had another question, so I just kept inching the contract closer to him. He didn't sign it. But that was always the end goal.

Lee: What was the goal from his side?

Nina: He needed to understand the product. But more than that, he needed to feel confident enough to bring it to his board. He wasn't just evaluating SpotLogic — he was deciding whether he could stand behind it in a room full of executives. I needed him on my side so we could walk into that board meeting as a team.

Lee: Exactly. For you, the contract was the vehicle. For him, the goal was having SpotLogic in his organization. His horizon extended a lot further than the signature.

Now — the word "scope." He kept using it and you weren't quite sure what he meant. What might you have done differently?

Nina: Looking back, the first time he said it I should have clarified immediately. Asked him directly: what exactly do you mean by scope? Instead of trying to guess and answer four different possible interpretations, I could have nailed it down right there.

Lee: There's always that hesitation — if I ask what that means, will it make me look uninformed? But one of the most important things in sales is simply being a human being. Human beings can be uninformed on certain things. If you ask what someone means, 49 out of 50 people will say: great question, let me explain.

Nina: And as a 19-year-old sophomore, I was very aware that the person across the table knew I was a student. Part of me felt like I had to perform being a seasoned salesperson. But you're right — the better play is just to ask.

Lee: In good role play, we forget all of that. When I was playing Jordan, I was channeling 20 years of running sales enablement. I had a problem in my head, and there was a person sitting across from me with a potential solution. That's all that mattered.

We did role play at Oracle that was intense enough to make people cry — because we were moving reps from product-centric to value-centric. High stakes. Real learning.

Nina: That's exactly what happened when you walked in. I was so locked in as SpotLogic that my first instinct was — he has to leave. This meeting is more important. And then I caught myself. The key is to truly inhabit the role, not perform it. When you're watching a movie and the acting is bad, you can tell. But when you start crying, you've forgotten they're acting.

Lee: We're coming up on time. Any final words for fellow salespeople in training?

Nina: Sales is a major industry, and even if it's not your intended path, sales is part of everything. You are selling every day whether you realize it or not.

Enter a competition like this — even if sales has nothing to do with what you want to do long-term. The experience, the communication skills, the confidence — it's all invaluable. And it's such a rewarding feeling to know you're doing something to separate yourself from your peers. You're taking a step that isn't comfortable.

I stepped into that room knowing I had no real sales experience, competing against people who had done this for years. But your coaches know what they're doing. Trust them. Study the case until you know it cold. Know who you're talking to — I heard of people walking into the meeting and calling the judge by the wrong name.

And when you get there — enjoy it. It's easy to get lost in scores and standings. But the experience itself is surreal. Every student should do it. Stephanie Boyer puts on a great event. The opportunity to gain real experience before you ever enter the field is invaluable — especially as a sophomore who hasn't had an internship yet. Just jump in headfirst.

Lee: That is fabulous advice. For our listeners: what you're hearing right now is the future of the sales organization. Intelligent, thoughtful, driven, young people who are going to knock our socks off — and who are going to need better support and development because they come out of the gate so good.

Nina, this has been absolutely wonderful. Thank you for participating in the competition, thank you for your sales club, and thank you for being you — for bringing your passion and energy to everything you do.

Nina: Thank you, Lee. I love talking with you today. I hope anyone listening can take even one thing from this conversation and apply it to their life. Thank you for the opportunity and the kind words.

Lee: Thank you, Nina.

Thoughts on Selling is hosted by Lee Levitt, founder of the Acelera Group and author of the forthcoming books The Second Meeting and Together We Win. New episodes at podcast.thoughtsonselling.com.