EdSales Edge Show
EdSales Edge is the strategy podcast for education founders, consultants, operators, and leaders selling into education.
For years, this show was known as Breaking the Grade, a space to challenge the status quo in education and think differently about how change actually happens. That mission hasn’t changed.
But the work has.
Over time, one thing became clear:
Education founders don’t just need inspiration.
They need clarity.
They need real strategies for selling into schools.
They need predictable ways to generate leads.
And they need to understand how trust is built in a system that doesn’t move fast, and doesn’t give many second chances.
EdSales Edge was rebuilt to match that reality.
Hosted by Josh Chernikoff, a two-time education founder who’s built and exited companies in this space, the show breaks down how selling into education actually works—across B2C, B2B, B2B2C, and B2E—always through the lens of how education institutions really make decisions.
This is not a show about hacks, shortcuts, or quick wins.
Education doesn’t work that way.
On EdSales Edge, you’ll hear:
- Real strategy for selling into education systems
- Conversations with education decision-makers who explain how buying actually happens from the inside
- Stories from founders, CEOs, and operators who’ve built real traction selling into schools—what worked, what didn’t, and what actually moved deals forward
- Teachings from the EdSales Elevation Experience, the system used to help education founders move from unclear and invisible to trusted and in demand
You’ll learn how to:
- Define your Perfect Client
- Pull the right credibility lever
- Move from being hidden… to trusted… to building a real lead engine
Josh is joined by his good friend and mentor, John Gamba—Director of Innovative Programs and Entrepreneur-in-Residence at Penn GSE, and a former education founder who’s led companies through real growth and successful exits. John brings the institutional lens, shaped by years inside districts, universities, and education systems, seeing how decisions get made when the doors are closed and what earns trust over time.
Together, they sit on both sides of the table, the builder side and the system side, so the show stays grounded in reality, not sales theory.
If you sell into education and you’re tired of guessing,
guessing who to talk to,
guessing how decisions get made,
guessing why interest doesn’t convert—
this show is built for you.
EdSales Edge
Clarity. Credibility. Real traction.
If you sell into education, this is where you earn your edge.
EdSales Edge Show
Breaking Up with Breaking the Grade (and Why It Was Time)
We built Breaking The Grade to challenge the status quo. We spent four years inspiring you to think differently about education. We interviewed visionaries, we debated policy, and we celebrated the "idea" of change.
But here is the hard truth I finally had to face: Inspiration does not pay your payroll.
Over the last 12 months, I listened closely to what you, the founders, the sales leaders, the operators, were actually asking me in private. You didn't need more "inspiration." You needed Clarity.
- You were tired of guessing who the decision-maker actually is.
- You were tired of guessing why the district ghosted you after a "great" demo.
- You were tired of guessing how to build a pipeline that doesn't rely on luck.
In education, guessing is expensive.
So, we made a hard decision. We decided to stop "Breaking The Grade" and start giving you the Edge.
Welcome to The EdSales Edge.
This is no longer a show about "what's broken" in schools. This is a show about how to sell the solution.
We are stripping away the fluff, the theory, and the "hacks." In their place, we are building a razor-sharp curriculum on Lead Generation, Credibility, and Sales Strategy.
I am not doing this alone. I am bringing in John Gamba (Director of Innovative Programs at Penn GSE) as my co-pilot. John brings the "Institutional Lens", he knows exactly what happens behind the closed doors where your deals go to die.
Together, we are going to burn the playbook of "hope marketing" and replace it with a system of predictable revenue.
If you are here for high-level theory, this might not be for you anymore. But if you are here to build a lead generation engine you actually own?
You are finally in the right place.
Let’s get to work.
🔑 The New Rules of Engagement
(What you can expect from The EdSales Edge)
1. No More Guessing: We are moving from "Theory" to "System." Every episode will focus on a specific lever you can pull to generate leads, build trust, or close deals.
2. The "Builder" + The "Insider": I bring the Sales perspective. John Gamba brings the System perspective. You will see every deal from both sides of the table. You will hear from decision-makers—from Early Learning to Higher Ed—who will tell you exactly how buying happens when the doors are closed.
3. The "EdSales Elevation" Blueprint: We are open-sourcing the exact methodology we use to help founders move from "Invisible" to "In-Demand."
Subscribe now. The first tactical episode drops on Sunday.
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