Buyers are often too polite to voice concerns. To get past this, actively ask what parts of the presentation are unclear, challenging, or seem like they won't work. This "leaning into the negative" provides a library of information to tailor your next steps and address their real blockers.
When doing outbound recruiting for sales talent, flip the script on the first call. Instead of grilling the candidate, treat it as a sales call where you're selling them on the company. The goal is to determine if it's a "great or terrible use of time" to continue, with the promise that the grilling comes later.
Effective call planning goes beyond setting a goal; it involves scenario planning for failure. A powerful question for managers to ask reps is, "If this call were to go sideways, what would be the most likely way that it does?" This forces reps to anticipate and prepare for common objections or derailments.
Many sales leaders run pipeline reviews solely to extract information for their forecast. The meeting's primary purpose should be to help the rep understand what to do next. Effective coaching leads to closed deals, which in turn creates an accurate forecast naturally.
Managers often enforce sales tactics rigidly without understanding the underlying principles. To be a true coach, a leader must grasp the 'why' behind every tactic (e.g., 'no demos on the first call'). This enables them to teach reps not just the rule, but also the context for when it's smart to deviate.
A simple Google Sheet, or "deal board," can be more effective for deal management than a complex CRM. It tracks a rep's assessment of the buyer's belief system (e.g., problem, solution fit, business case) for both the champion and economic buyer, using a simple red/yellow/green system.
When preparing for a sales call, reps often confuse tactics ('walk through price') with the actual goal. A manager should coach them to articulate what they are trying to *accomplish* (e.g., 'align on value with the economic buyer'), not just what they plan to *do*. This separates productivity from busyness.
Reps see customers agree to next steps then disappear because they haven't gauged the buyer's true feelings. Before suggesting next steps, reps must 'calibrate' by asking what's relevant, what's not, and what's fuzzy. This surfaces objections and ensures next steps are co-created.