“Following up” kills your sales. Every time you "check in" without advancing the sale, you lose credibility. The client knows you're too weak to ask for business. Every client I contact has 1 of 3 purposes: 1) Do business 2) Get referrals 3) Both Never just to "stay in touch." When a client said "not now," I didn't schedule a follow-up for next month. I handled the objection on spot. Because if buying was convenient, they wouldn't need a sales rep in the first place. Your job is to push when it's uncomfortable. Stop following up with your fancy “non salesy” emails. Start asking for business.

You’re likely overcomplicating your sales calls. I pitched a client on a $300K deal last year. He was hesitating. Instead of pushing, I asked three questions: "Do you believe you'll need this solution long-term?" "Yes." "Do you believe costs will increase over time?" "Yes." "If there was a way to lock in today's pricing and avoid future increases, would you want to know about it?" "Of course." Then I closed, "If I can guarantee this solves your problem and protects you from price increases, we wouldn't have any reason not to move forward, would you agree?" Deal closed. Most reps push and lose. The best reps lead prospects to the conclusion that buying is THEIR idea. Make it easy to say yes. Hard to say no. Their idea, not yours. If you do that, they close themselves. Simple as that.

The fastest way to build trust on a sales call? Tell them the worst thing about your offer before they even ask. Suppose you’re on the call. Client's thinking: "What's the catch?" You: "Here's the catch. This is a 12-month contract. If you're not willing to commit for a year, we shouldn't do this." Silence. Then: "Okay. Why 12 months?" Now you've got their attention. And they trust you because you brought it up before they had to dig for it. Most reps hide the negatives. They think it'll scare people away. It does the opposite. When you're radically transparent, two things happen: 1. They stop looking for what you're hiding 2. They trust you more than any other sales rep they're talking to Open your next pitch with the biggest objection you usually face. Address it upfront. Watch how fast trust builds.

If I lost everything tomorrow and had to start from $0, I’d just grab a phone. Get a list. Find a product that pays commission. Start dialing. That's what I did 25 years ago. It worked then. It works even better now. Why? Because nobody's willing to do it anymore. Everyone wants funnels. DMs. Content strategies. Nobody just picks up the phone and talks to people. If you've got the nerve to call someone and say, "I've got something you might need. Got two minutes?" You'll make a fortune if you do it right.

Following up is fucking pathetic. “Just touching base.” …Sounds like borderline sexual assault I remember a guy early on who used to call people and say: “I’m just touching your base.” His English wasn’t great. But what he meant is exactly what every follow-up says: “I’m waiting until it’s convenient for you.” But NOTHING that requires selling EVER happens when it’s “convenient.” If it were… They’d already fix the problem. Sales exists because decisions are uncomfortable. They cost money. They require change. They force people to face reality. When you “check in” politely… You’re waiting for a moment that will never come. Instead, treat every interaction with a client as an opportunity to move the deal forward. Ask the question you know they’re hoping you won’t ask. “Is there something here that doesn’t make sense yet?” “Are we actually doing this, or should I move on?” “Is there any reason this shouldn’t move ahead?” Now the conversation has somewhere to go. You either uncover the real problem… Or you get the decision. Both are better than another pathetic follow-up.

Never ask for the sale. “Would you be open to that?” ”Are you interested in this?” Sounds gay as fuck mate. Tell your reps to stop doing it immediately. This is, at best, corporate begging. And nobody has ever bought anything from someone begging for it. Nobody likes being pushed into a decision either. Imagine some prick knocks on your door tomorrow trying to flog you a pram. You don't have a toddler. Your neighbour doesn't have one. And your ailing grandmother needs a fucking wheelchair, not a pram. Now will you be buying it because he asked really nicely three times in a row? Of course not. You can't sell to everyone. You never could. The sooner your reps understand that, the sooner they stop asking for the sale in the exact way that guarantees a no. You have to teach your reps how to walk the prospect through the next steps as if it's already happening. Handle it like the decision has been made and now you're just doing the logistics. Then ask two questions. "Do you believe we can actually help you with this?" If yes: "How would you like to proceed?" That's it. Two questions that put the decision back in the prospect's hands, where it always was. Stop letting your reps beg for the close like maniacs. You can't shove a sale down someone's throat and expect them to thank you for it.

The #1 problem with every underperforming rep I've ever seen? They're selling like their hair's on fire. Pull up their last 10 recorded calls and count how many times they: - Answer a question before the prospect's even finished asking it - Fill a 3-second silence with more pitch - Send the proposal within an hour of hanging up - Follow up the next morning instead of letting the conversation breathe - Move to the close before the prospect has admitted they've even got a problem Every one of those is a rep panicking like they suffer from fucking schizophrenia. Ready-to-close deals fall apart because the rep couldn't shut up for 5 seconds and let the prospect think. My old mentor drilled two words into me 25 years ago that took me a decade to fully understand: "Slow down." Eagerness looks amateur. And when you slow down, there’s a lot you can absorb from a conversation. You can catch the pause after the prospect says "we're already working with someone." You hear the hesitation in their voice when they quote their current results. You notice the way they change the subject the moment their competitor comes up. Fast reps miss every one of those signals because they're already thinking about what they're going to say next. So slow your reps down. Slow them down on their calls. Slow them down on their reactions. Slow them down on sending the contract. Because the rep who’s able to slow down and see what’s happening around him is the rep who closes the deals.