And the concern is indeed a real one.

[rifat28dddd]

“What’s the issue?” I asked. “Do your reps not have enough leads?”

“No,” he said, “they have lots of accounts to call on, but they’re just not calling on enough key stakeholders.”

“Why?” I asked again. “Do they not know how to get customers on the phone?”

“No,” he continued, “I think it’s just that a lot of my reps are new to the team and they’re not confident calling high-level customer executives and talking to them about their business.”

“And why’s that?” I asked. (I’m a fan of the 5 Why’s methodology.)

“Because they feel they don’t have the stories and insights yet.


They feel they lack credibility and won’t be able to add value spain telegram data to the conversation. They’re afraid.”

And there lies the root of the problem.

Most modern buyer-seller relationships suffer from experience asymmetry. Meaning most sales reps have rarely held the roles of the customers they are calling on. They may not understand what it’s actually like to be in their shoes and that lack of perceived credibility manifests as fear (and even worse, lack of conviction – a critical skill in pipeline development). Unfortunately, that fear can be a big impediment to sales productivity, especially for new, younger, or inexperienced sales reps.



Suppose you had a medical condition that required you to see a specialist. When you walk into the doctor’s office to share your concern, ideally, you want them to take one look at you, say they’ve seen what you have a thousand times before, and confidently recommend a course of treatment to get you well. On the other hand, you’re less likely to value the interaction with a less-experienced but well-intentioned, new physician stumbling through a diagnosis.

So how do you infuse your sales reps with the confidence and credibility they need to make the big calls and drive the pipeline you expect?