Good Morning. Happy National Take a Walk Outdoors Day! It’s perfect timing because taking a sales call while walking outside is the ultimate setup. Your brain activity skyrockets, ideas flow easier, and you're crushing your 10K steps while closing deals. Multitasking at its finest. Plus, your prospect can't see you pacing around the block in sweatpants, so it's a win-win. Now, let's get into today's Follow Up. (:
Dealing with the budget next quarter 🗓
How do prospects experience your sales process? 🧭
More sales calls should be walking phone calls. 📞
Sales jobs & a meme 😂
Sales Tip of The Day 💡
When a deal depends on “budget next quarter,” test how real the budget objection is.
❌ “Okay, let’s reconnect next quarter.”
✅ “Makes sense. Out of curiosity, who decides what that budget is, and how it will be spent?”
Real budgets have owners. If you can find out who owns it, you can identify another decision maker.
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The Easiest Way to Become the Obvious Choice
A few weeks ago, I became the customer.
I was buying a B2B service (I know, a sales rep in the buyer’s seat… not something that happens every day).
I sat through multiple demos. Looked at a handful of proposals. Waited to see who would actually follow up.
After a couple of weeks, the difference was obvious.
A few reps ran solid demos, knew their stuff, and sent over proposals.
Then I never heard from them again.
No follow up. No next step. Days went by. Then a full week.
Other reps did the opposite.
They followed up quickly. They summarized calls. They confirmed timelines. They multi-threaded without being prompted.
Their perceived value felt 10X higher than the rest.
Not because they had a better product. Because they made it clear they actually wanted my business.
Buyers Read Into Everything
When you’re buying, you’re doing more than just evaluating the product.
You’re evaluating how each vendor makes you feel.
Harvard Business Review found that nearly every customer interaction impacts how buyers view the relationship. The early sales process becomes a preview of what it will be like to work together after signing.
As a buyer, I caught myself thinking: “If this is how hard they are to reach now, what happens once we sign?”
If you're slow to respond, hard to get ahold of, and unlikely to follow up on your own, prospects assume that's how the rest of the relationship will go.
Which is why it needs to be obvious that you actually want the business.
And that you are putting in the effort to show it.
The Reps That Stood Out
The best reps didn’t do anything flashy. They were just intentional.
The same behaviors showed up every time.
They followed up and sent the things they said they would without being reminded.
They multi threaded my team early instead of waiting.
They owned next steps instead of leaving things vague.
They treated the deal like it mattered and like they actually wanted my business.
One rep sent a note minutes after the proposal went out.
“Excited about this. Happy to pull others in or walk through it live if helpful.”
That message landed.
Not because it was clever. Because it felt genuine and personal. Like they were on my team.
I had to remind another rep to send pricing. And after they finally did, I got 0 follow-up.
At one point, I remember thinking, “Do they actually want my business?”
Prospects Want to Feel “Wanted”
Who doesn’t want to feel wanted… amiright?
Even if we don’t want that job, or that opportunity, or to work with that person. It feels good to have a company or person want you.
When you forget to follow up with a prosepct you leave them wondering if you’re too busy, uninterested in their business, or just waiting for them to do your job.
Sales reps who are proactive and show clear action feel like a safer buy.
Their perceived value goes up without changing the product, pricing, or pitch.
How to Show You Want Their Business
Showing someone that you want their business is pretty simple when you break it down.
It means taking responsibility for the process and letting them know that you’re genuinely excited to help them fix their problem.
The reps who stand out all do a few small things consistently.
Following up quickly.
Bringing in the right people early.
Sending clear recaps and next steps.
Underpromise and overdeliver.
Going slightly above what is expected.
That effort sends a simple message.
“I care whether this works.”
In B2B, where mistakes are expensive, that message matters a lot.
How long do you wait to follow up after your first call with a prospect?
