The Trust Paradox in B2B Sales
Trust is the foundation of B2B sales. Without it, buyers don’t share information, don’t provide access, and don’t take the risk of championing your solution. Every sales methodology acknowledges this. Yet many tactics taught to build trust actually undermine it. The paradox: the harder reps try to establish credibility, the less trustworthy they often appear. […]
Emotional Decisions, Rational Justifications: Why Logic-Based Training Misses the Point
Traditional sales training assumes that buyers make rational decisions based on logical evaluation of features, benefits, and ROI. Training therefore focuses on building compelling logical cases: articulating value propositions, calculating return on investment, presenting feature comparisons. This assumption is fundamentally wrong. Cognitive science and neuroscience have conclusively demonstrated that humans make decisions emotionally, then construct […]
The Manager Gap: Training Reps While Ignoring the People Who Coach Them
Sales organizations invest heavily in rep training and wonder why it doesn’t stick. The answer is often sitting in plain sight: the frontline managers who are supposed to reinforce that training have never been taught how. Organizations train reps on methodology, then expect managers to coach to that methodology—even though the managers received no coaching […]
Sales Training as Event vs. Sales Training as System
Every January, thousands of sales organizations converge on convention centers and resort hotels for their annual sales kickoff. There’s energy, motivation, methodology training, and a renewed sense of purpose. By March, most of it has evaporated. The annual SKO embodies a fundamentally broken approach to development: training as event rather than training as system. Events […]
Measuring Behavior Change, Not Knowledge Transfer
Sales training has a measurement problem: it measures the wrong things. Traditional assessment focuses on knowledge transfer can reps recall what they learned? Can they pass a test? Can they articulate the methodology? But knowledge transfer is not the goal; behavior change is. A rep who can explain perfect discovery technique but doesn’t use it […]
The Correlation Trap: Why Post-Training Revenue Bumps Don’t Mean What You Think
Sales leaders often point to revenue increases following training as proof of ROI. “We implemented the new methodology in Q1, and Q2 revenue was up 15%.” This logic is deeply flawed. Post-training revenue bumps are the correlation trap the assumption that because two events occurred in sequence, one caused the other. In reality, dozens of […]
Vanity Metrics in Sales Training: Completion Rates, Smile Sheets, and Other Lies
The sales training industry has perfected the art of measurement theater tracking metrics that look impressive in reports but have virtually no correlation with actual performance improvement. Completion rates show that reps finished the training. Satisfaction scores show they enjoyed it. Knowledge assessments show they can recall information immediately afterward. None of these predict whether […]
Consensus Buying Killed the Hero Rep
For generations, sales training was built around a simple model: identify the decision-maker, build a relationship, make a compelling case, and close. The “hero rep” who could charm executives and close big deals was the archetype of sales success. That model is dead. Research consistently shows that B2B purchase decisions now involve an average of […]
Overcoming Cognitive Biases in Sales Leadership: Ensuring Fair and Effective Management
Overcoming Cognitive Biases in Sales Leadership | Braintrust Home › Blog › Overcoming Cognitive Biases in Sales Leadership Behavioral Neuroscience & Selling Overcoming Cognitive Biases in Sales Leadership: Ensuring Fair and Effective Management Rob Vujaklija Director of Sales Performance, Braintrust October 5, 2024 8 min read Rob Vujaklija Director of Sales Performance, Braintrust 8 min […]
Value Clarity: Beware of Knowledge Dumping
Value Clarity: Beware of Knowledge Dumping | Braintrust Home › Blog › Value Clarity: Beware of Knowledge Dumping NeuroCoaching & Leadership Development Value Clarity: Beware of Knowledge Dumping Dan Docherty Chief Coaching Officer, Braintrust January 29, 2020 5 min read Dan Docherty Chief Coaching Officer, Braintrust 5 min remaining Connect on LinkedIn Dan Docherty Chief […]
