Posted by 5 simple ways to bolster your sales results.
Sales is one of the most human professions there is. Behind every metric and dashboard, there’s a conversation, a relationship, and—if you’re doing it right—a genuine connection. Over the years, I’ve learned that the best sales advice isn’t about gimmicks or complicated hacks. It’s about showing up as yourself and consistently doing the simple things well.
Here are five practical sales tips that have worked for me, and that you can start applying right away.
1. Be “Weirder Than Waldo” to Stand Out
We live in a noisy world where your prospect’s inbox is a war zone. Between automated email sequences, LinkedIn spam, and cold calls, it’s harder than ever to be noticed. Most salespeople respond by sending more messages, more often—which only makes the noise louder.
Instead, try the opposite. Be specific, personal, and memorable. Maybe it’s a subject line that references their favorite sports team, or an opening line that connects on a mutual interest. I once had a prospect who ran marathons, so I sent her a short email about my own (painful) half-marathon experience before even mentioning my product. She replied immediately.
Being “Weirder than Waldo” doesn’t mean being gimmicky—it means finding the unique, human angle that breaks the pattern your prospect expects. People respond to people, not pitches.
Action Step: Before hitting “send” on your next cold email, ask yourself: Could this have been written to anyone? If the answer is yes, rewrite it until it couldn’t possibly apply to anyone but your target, and then find a way to liken it back to you. Anyone can personalize about your target; no one but you can write through the lens of shared values between you and the buyer.
2. Invite a “No” — It Clears the Way
This one is counterintuitive. Most salespeople fear the word “no” because it feels like failure. But in reality, a clear “no” is often better than an ambiguous “maybe.”
From my Authority Magazine interview:
“Ask the customer if your solution is a priority for them or not, and let them know that you need to move on if it isn’t.”
When you let a conversation drag on without clarity, you’re wasting time—time that could be spent with a prospect who is ready. I’ve found that saying something like, “If this isn’t a priority right now, I totally understand and we can close the loop,” not only saves me time but also builds trust. Prospects appreciate that you’re not going to hound them indefinitely, and sometimes this approach even prompts them to say, “Actually, let’s move forward.”
By creating space for a no, you give the prospect permission to be honest—and that honesty is the foundation of a real relationship.
Action Step: In your next call with a hesitant prospect, openly acknowledge that “no” is an option. You’ll be surprised how often it leads to a faster “yes” or frees you to move on. At a bare minimum, it may bring to light their objections, and without those, you cannot get to a “yes.”
3. Take “Yes” for an Answer
Every salesperson has been guilty of this at some point: the prospect says, “I’m in,” and instead of stopping there, we keep talking. We rehash features, we over-explain, we try to “lock it in” even more—only to watch them back away.
As I’ve written:
“Once you have done your job, just shut up and move on.”
The truth is, the moment you get a clear yes, your job shifts from convincing to delivering. Continuing to sell after the yes risks introducing doubt where none existed. I once watched a colleague talk a prospect out of a deal by adding extra “what if” scenarios after the prospect had agreed. It wasn’t malice—it was just habit.
In early-stage startups especially, it’s tempting to overcompensate by showing everything your product can do. Resist that temptation once the yes is secured. That’s when you transition to next steps and execution.
Action Step: Practice ending your pitch once you get verbal agreement. Confirm the yes, set a follow-up action, and stop selling. Also, practice answering only the question you have been asked, and do not assume what questions you are being asked unless they are explicitly stated.
4. Master Objections with Empathy, Not Pushiness
When a prospect pushes back, the knee-jerk reaction is to counter immediately. But objections are rarely about what’s being said on the surface. “We don’t have budget” might mean “I’m not convinced of the value.” “We’re too busy” might mean “I don’t trust that this will be worth our time.”
The best salespeople slow down here. They ask questions like, “Can you tell me more about that?” or “How do you typically decide where to allocate budget?” This shows you’re listening, not just waiting for your turn to speak.
Early in my career, I learned that the fastest way to lose credibility is to bulldoze through objections. The fastest way to gain it is to genuinely understand the prospect’s position—even if it means agreeing that the timing isn’t right.
Action Step: The next time you hear an objection, pause and reframe it as curiosity. Instead of rebutting, dig deeper until you understand what’s really at stake.
5. Authenticity Is Your Edge Over AI
AI can write cold emails, run follow-up sequences, and even mimic your tone. What it can’t do is be you.
From my own writing:
“Authenticity is palpable and positively impacts trust… It is the one advantage you have over the robots and machines.”
It can’t reference the time you learned resilience running a Tough Mudder, or the way you saw a customer’s life change after implementing your solution. It can’t build the genuine trust that comes from vulnerability.
In an era when buyers are increasingly skeptical, authenticity isn’t just nice—it’s a competitive advantage. Your job isn’t to sound perfect. It’s to sound real. This means being honest when you don’t have the answer, sharing your genuine excitement when you believe in the solution, and letting your personality show.
Action Step: Audit your outreach and calls for moments of “corporate autopilot.” Where could you replace canned language with a personal story or honest reaction? And can you attach less gravity to each conversation you have, freeing yourself to present an honest version of yourself?
Final Thought
Sales doesn’t have to feel like a battle of attrition. When you focus on being human—standing out with personality, inviting honesty, taking yes for an answer, handling objections with empathy, and leaning into your authentic self—you’ll find that deals don’t just close more often… they close with relationships intact.
Jeff Kirchick 