How many times do you actually attempt to reach out to a prospect before you give up?

On the Sales Gravy Podcast, Jessica Stokes calls out a common sales reality when prospecting:

“We all know the average salesperson typically stops after three, maybe four attempts before moving on. We assume they're not interested. We want to find a juicier lead.”

This common behavior defines The 3-Call Fallacy—the flawed belief that if someone doesn’t respond after a few tries, they’re not interested. It’s where you probably tap out and tell yourself you’ve done enough.

You haven’t. Persistence is key. 
Why Salespeople Quit Prospecting Too Early
The premature retreat from prospecting isn't about laziness; it's rooted in fundamental misconceptions and fear.
The Fear of Being Annoying
The most common excuse? “I don’t want to be a pest.” 

You leave a voicemail, send an email, maybe try LinkedIn, and then you back off. You tell yourself you’re giving them space.

But your prospect doesn't remember you.

When you're looking at your CRM thinking, "This is my sixth attempt—I'm going to tick this guy off," your prospect likely has no idea who you are. To them, today's call feels like the first time you've reached out.
The Momentum Killer
Spacing out your touchpoints destroys any traction you might have built. Waiting a week—or worse, a month—between messages forces you to restart every time. That familiar name? Forgotten. That compelling message? Gone.

Momentum is built with consistency. Familiarity breeds trust, but only if you stay in front of them long enough to become familiar.
The 4 Steps of Building a Fanatical Prospecting Sequence
The fix? Being fanatical about sequencing. 

It’s about consistent, well-timed, multi-channel outreach that keeps your message fresh and front of mind.

* Stay Consistent: Don’t let more than a few days pass between touchpoints. Regular rhythm creates recall. Think of it like a steady drumbeat—not a one-time boom.
* Use Multiple Channels: Your prospect may ignore emails but answer LinkedIn. Or they may screen unknown numbers but reply to a personalized video. Use all the tools available:

* Phone calls
* Emails
* LinkedIn messages
* Video messages
* Direct mail (for high-value prospects)


* Track Your True Attempt Rate: Most reps overestimate their persistence. Implement a rigorous tracking system, whether in your CRM or a simple spreadsheet, to log every single touchpoint.
* Reframe Your Mindset: You’re not bothering people—you’re offering help. If you believe in your product and know it can solve their problems, persistent outreach is a service, not a nuisance.

The Prospecting Challenge
Ready to put this into action? Take 20-50 leads and run a sequence over the next 30-45 days. Make contact attempts every few days using multiple channels. Track your progress.

You’ll likely discover:

Responses after 8, 10, even 12 attempts.
Prospects saying things like "I'm glad you reached out again" or "I was thinking about calling you back."
Booked appointments you never would have gotten with the traditional 3-call approach.

3 Common Personal Objections (And Why They're Wrong)
This is where self-sabotage shows up. Let’s break down the common excuses:

* "I don't want to be annoying." Your prospect deleted your voicemail in 10 seconds. They're not sitting there with a map of all your attempts, getting angrier with each one.
* "If they were interested,

Here's the brutal truth about social media for sales: You're already behind, and it's going to be a grind.

That's the reality Margarita from Dallas discovered when she called into our podcast. She's a seasoned realtor with 20+ years of experience, built her entire business on referrals and warm market relationships, and suddenly realized she needs to master social media to stay competitive.

Sound familiar? You're not alone if you're staring at this digital mountain wondering how the hell you're going to climb it.

But what makes Margarita's situation even more challenging and why her story matters to every sales professional reading is this: She's trying to compress 20 years of relationship building into a social media strategy that can compete with people who've been doing this for decades.
The Tom Cruise Problem: Building Your Social Media Presence Takes Time
Remember the first time you saw Tom Cruise in a movie? For me, it was Risky Business, some kid dancing around in his underwear. He wasn't the "last movie star" then. He was just another actor trying to make it.

But here's the thing: Today, if you saw Tom Cruise walking down the street, you'd lose your mind. You'd want selfies, autographs, the whole nine yards. Why? Because over decades, he created millions of micro-interactions that built trust, familiarity, and fandom.

That's exactly what you need to do on social media. You need to create fans of YOU.

The problem is that most sales professionals want to skip the relationship-building phase and jump straight to the closing phase. They want to post a few listing videos and magically generate leads. That's not how it works.
The Algorithm Rewards Consistency, Not Perfection
Here's the part that's going to hurt: You need to post every single day. Not when you feel like it. Not when you have something "good" to share. Every. Single. Day.

When you first start, your content is going to suck. Your first TikTok video? Three people will watch it. Your first Instagram post? Crickets. Your first LinkedIn article? Your mom and your real estate buddy will like it.

I know because I've been there. We've all been there. The algorithms don't care about your feelings—they care about consistency.

Think about it this way: You're not just competing with other sales professionals for attention. You're competing with Netflix, YouTube, TikTok, and every other form of entertainment for your prospects' eyeballs. The only way to win that battle is to show up relentlessly until people start recognizing your name and face.
The Two-Bucket Strategy: Marketing vs. Lead Generation
When you think about social media as a sales professional, you need to separate it into two distinct buckets:

Bucket 1: Marketing and Brand Building This is about name recognition, familiarity, and staying top-of-mind. When people in your market are ready to buy or sell, your name should be the first one they think of. This bucket is about volume, consistency, and building your personal brand.

Bucket 2: Direct Lead Generation This is about watching what prospects are doing, engaging with them directly, and converting social interactions into sales conversations. This bucket is about quality, relationship building, and moving people from digital relationships to actual appointments.

Most people focus entirely on Bucket 1 and wonder why they're not getting leads. Others focus only on Bucket 2 and wonder why their content isn't reaching anyone. You need both working in harmony.
Your 3-Pillar Content Strategy System
Here's what you need to post consistently:

Original Content: This is your unique perspective,

You think you're being helpful. Your clients think you're being annoying.

Early in his career, Justin Goldstein learned this lesson the hard way. He admits, "I thought that picking up the phone and calling a client to talk about almost everything was the right way to go. I personally hate communicating over email. I'd rather just talk to you and figure it out." 

The reality hit hard: clients viewed his frequent outreach as a burden rather than a benefit. Weekly update calls meant to show dedication became time-wasters in clients' minds. Daily email updates intended to demonstrate thoroughness turned into inbox clutter.

This scenario plays out in sales organizations everywhere. Well-meaning professionals mistake quantity for quality, frequency for value, and availability for service excellence.
Why Your Communication Style is Pushing Prospects Away
The key to avoiding this trap isn't about reading minds; it's about understanding communication preferences. As Justin puts it, "You really have to understand what makes your clients tick, and you have to understand the nuances of how they work."

This means recognizing that being understanding matters more than simply being helpful. Your client might prefer monthly check-ins over weekly ones, or end-of-week summaries instead of daily updates. They might prefer text over calls, or structured emails over casual conversations.

The biggest mistake most sales professionals make is assuming their communication style is universal. It isn't. Effective communication emphasizes understanding and adapting to individual client needs.
Reading the Room (and the Inbox)
Here are the warning signs your communication style might be pushing prospects away:

Response Time Changes: If a prospect who used to respond quickly starts taking longer or giving shorter replies, you might be overwhelming them.
Meeting Resistance: Clients rescheduling frequently or suggesting less frequent meetings signal communication fatigue.
Email Behavior: Prospects responding to every third email instead of each one indicates your messages lack sufficient value or arrive too frequently.
Energy Shifts: Noticeably decreased enthusiasm in client responses means it's time to reassess your approach immediately.

The Professional Sales Communication Framework
Instead of guessing what works, use this framework to optimize your communication:

* Ask Direct Questions Early

During your initial meetings, ask prospects about their preferred communication style:

"What's the best way to keep you updated on progress?"
"How often would you like to connect during this process?"
"Do you prefer calls, emails, or something else for routine updates?"


* Start Conservative, Then Adjust

It's easier to increase communication frequency than to dial it back after you've been labeled "high maintenance." Begin with less frequent touchpoints and let the client guide you toward more contact if they want it. 

* Make Every Interaction Count

When you reach out, ensure it delivers value. Random check-ins and meaningless updates train clients to ignore your communications. Each email, call, or message should serve a clear purpose and advance the relationship or project.

Focus on quality over quantity. One valuable update weekly beats five pointless check-ins that add no value to the client relationship.

* Establish Communication Boundaries

Be explicit about when you'll reach out proactively versus when they should contact yo...

Here's a question that'll keep you up at night: What do you do when your emotions are sabotaging your sales performance?

That's the exact challenge posed by Kurt O'Donnell and the sales team from Joyland Roofing in Lancaster County, Pennsylvania. They're crushing it—doing $10 million in revenue with individual reps generating $2 million each—but they identified a critical weakness that could derail their ambitious goal of hitting $100 million in 10 years.

Kurt put it perfectly: "We need to actually learn how to read ourselves better and just be consistent. Emotionally consistent, even when everything else can heave around us. How do I show up at the door and be that consultant... and not just kind of be desperate because I had a few bad calls?"

If you're nodding your head right now, you're not alone. Emotional inconsistency is the silent killer of sales careers, and it's costing top performers millions in lost revenue.
The Hidden Performance Killer: Your Emotional State
Most sales training focuses on techniques, scripts, and closing strategies. But here's the brutal truth: Your emotional state in the moment of truth determines your success more than any other factor.

Think about it. You can have the perfect pitch, flawless product knowledge, and ironclad objection handling skills, but if you walk into that appointment carrying the baggage from your last three rejections, you're dead in the water before you even ring the doorbell.

Your prospects don't know about your bad morning. They don't care that the last homeowner beat you up on price or that your competitor just undercut you again. All they know is the energy you bring to their front door—and that energy determines whether they trust you enough to invite you in.
The Compartmentalization Imperative
The first skill every elite salesperson must master is emotional compartmentalization. Here's how to think about it:

That homeowner you're about to meet? This is the only conversation they're having with your company today. They don't know about your other appointments, your wins, your losses, or your quota pressure. To them, you represent their entire experience with your organization.

More importantly, their home is their biggest asset—the most valuable thing in their life. When they're considering a roof replacement or new windows, they're not just buying a product; they're making an emotional decision about protecting what matters most to them.

Their emotional experience with you is more predictive of the outcome than any other variable. People buy you first, then they buy your product. They buy you because they feel like you care about them, that you listen to them, that you understand them, and that they can trust you.

That doesn't happen if you show up desperate, distracted, or carrying emotional baggage from previous calls.
Process Goals vs. Outcome Goals: The Mental Reset
The difference between average performers and elite closers comes down to one thing: focus.

Average performers obsess over outcome goals. They walk up to the door thinking, "I need to close this deal." When they've had a few bad calls, they skip the relationship-building and go straight to pitch mode because they're desperate for a win.

Elite performers focus on process goals. They have a systematic approach: "I'm going to greet them this way, connect like this, ask these discovery questions, present like this, and ask for the business using this method." They trust the process because they know it works.

When you focus on running your process perfectly, you give yourself the highest probability of getting the desired outcome. Sometimes the putts go in, sometimes they don't—but you ran the process every time.

As one wise salesperson once said: "If you try to control ...

The second quarter of 2025 delivered some incredible conversations on the Sales Gravy podcast. From discipline strategies that separate winners from wannabes to the psychology of selling that most reps completely miss, here are the five most powerful insights that can transform your sales results immediately.
1. Focus on Activity, Not Outcomes
The Problem: Most sales reps get discouraged when they don't book meetings, causing them to change their approach daily.

The Solution: Cynthia Handal, who runs high-performing BDR teams, revealed her game-changing mindset shift: "The outcome isn't to book a meeting. The outcome is to do the three hours of work."

Her approach is deceptively simple but incredibly powerful:

Time block your prospecting activities (she does 9 AM to 12 PM daily).
Set a timer and don't stop until the time is complete.
Focus on controlling what you can control—the work itself.
Trust that results will follow consistent activity.

This eliminates the emotional rollercoaster of good days and bad days. When you focus on process over outcomes, you build the discipline that creates sustainable success.
2. Get a ‘No’ Then Aim for a ‘Yes’
The Problem: Most salespeople chase prospects desperately, making them less attractive.

The Solution: Mike Maples Jr., a Silicon Valley VC and former software entrepreneur, uses a counterintuitive approach to actively trying to disqualify prospects.

The "go for the no" technique works like this:

Start conversations by suggesting you might not be the right fit
Use body language that shows you're willing to walk away
Make prospects convince you they need your solution
Qualify out aggressively those who don't value your advantage

This approach leverages the psychological principle that people want what they can't have. When you're not desperate, you become magnetic. 
3. Align Your Entire Organization's Message
The Problem: Five sales reps with five different value propositions confuse customers and create internal friction. They need to be unified.

The Solution: Lisa Dennis discusses that messaging alignment must extend beyond just the sales team to the entire organization.

Her process includes:

Involving the whole company in messaging rollouts, not just sales
Ensuring customer success and support teams understand the same value propositions
Providing discovery questions and conversation frameworks to salespeople
Creating organizational congruence from marketing through delivery

When everyone in your organization tells the same story, customers experience consistency at every touchpoint. This builds trust and reduces friction throughout the customer journey.
4. Trust Commands a 30% Premium
The Problem: Salespeople focus on features and benefits while underestimating the value of trust.

The Solution: Yoram Solomon's research that people will pay an average of 29.6% more to buy from someone they trust versus someone they don't know (not someone they distrust—just someone neutral).

The trust-building behaviors that matter most:

Listening instead of pitching
Showing genuine care for the customer's situation
Being attentive and present during conversations
Making and keeping promises consistently

Trust is worth dollars.
5. Get Your Math Right
The Problem: Most businesses stay stuck in six figures because they're fundamentally undercharging for their service.

The Solution: David Neagle, who has helped countless entrepreneurs break through seven figures, says the issue is usually mathematical, not motivational.

Here's a question that'll make your blood boil: Why do most sales leaders spend their pipeline reviews asking about dollar amounts and close dates while completely ignoring whether their reps actually have real deals?
That's the brutal reality I see in sales organizations every single day. Leaders are obsessing over MEDIC, BANT, and other qualification frameworks while their pipelines are stuffed with dead deals that will never close.
Meanwhile, their forecasts are consistently wrong, deals keep getting pushed, and reps are burning time on opportunities that died months ago.
If you're nodding your head right now, you're not alone. Focusing on surface-level qualification instead of true deal engagement is one of the most backward approaches to pipeline management I see today, and it's costing companies millions in missed forecasts.

The Qualification Theater Problem: When Frameworks Become Fantasy
Remember when everyone thought MEDIC and BANT were the holy grail of qualification? Sales leaders everywhere started drilling reps on budgets, authority, need, and timing like they were conducting a police interrogation.
But here's what actually happens: Reps learn to check the boxes without understanding whether they have a real deal.
They'll tell you they've qualified the budget, but they're talking to someone who has to "go talk to the boss." They'll say there's urgency and timing, but the prospect is waiting to hire an executive in a completely different department before making a decision.
Traditional qualification frameworks are the opposite of real pipeline inspection. They're vanity metrics disguised as sales rigor.
Here's the brutal truth: You can have a deal that checks every qualification box and still have a 2% chance of closing. Meanwhile, a deal that looks "unqualified" on paper might be ready to close tomorrow because the right stakeholders are engaged and moving forward.

Why Most Pipeline Reviews Are Theater, Not Strategy
The reason most sales leaders run terrible pipeline reviews is because it's easy. It requires zero investment in actual deal coaching, stakeholder analysis, or strategic thinking.
Think about it: It's much easier to ask, "What's the budget?" than it is to dig into whether the decision-maker actually sees value in solving this problem.
But here's what happens when you manage this way: You end up with pipelines full of zombie deals that look good on paper but will never close.
Your reps get comfortable keeping deals in the pipeline because they've "qualified" them. Your forecasts become fiction because you're counting revenue from prospects who aren't actually buying.

What Actually Matters: The One Question That Reveals Everything
Instead of obsessing over qualification checklists, elite sales leaders focus on the one metric that actually predicts deal success: What's the next step?
This isn't just another question—it's the ultimate deal quality detector. Here's why:


Dead deals have no next steps. When a rep says, "They're going on vacation, so I'll call them in a few weeks," that deal is dead. When they say, "They told me to call back in a month," that's not a pipeline deal—that's a prospect.
Real deals have committed next steps. When a rep says, "We're doing a technical demo with their IT team on Friday, and the CFO specifically asked to see ROI projections by Tuesday," that's a deal with momentum.
Engaged prospects match your effort. If you're doing all the work—sending proposals, scheduling calls, following up—while they're giving you vague responses, you don't have a deal. You have a prospect who's being polite.

The Three-Question Pipeline Inspection System
When I'm inspecting pipeline quality, I use a simple three-question Show more...