Sales Prioritization Techniques

The biggest lie in tech sales is that more activity = more success. I’ve coached over 1,000 tech sellers. The reps struggling the most usually say the same thing: “I’m working my hardest but not getting the results” But when we actually look at their calendar… Most of their time is spent on things that don’t move deals forward. Internal calls E-mails Slack messages CRM cleanup Busy work High volume, low quality prospecting And when they are meeting with customers, it’s usually transactional deals with mid or lower level managers, not Senior Execs. It feels like hard work. But it’s not generating any revenue. Some of these sellers will scrape and claw all year to barely hit quota, but most will finish under. It’s a nonstop grind to get average results. Top performers think and work differently. Instead of thinking: “If I work hard all day I will get results” They ask: “What should I be working on that will lead to results?” Here’s what the top 1% focus on: 1. Executive conversations A single meeting with a VP or C-level leader can accelerate a deal faster than months of working with middle management. 2. Real discovery Not product demos. Understanding the business problem deeply enough to tie your solution to revenue growth, cost takeout, or risk mitigation. 3. Creating urgency by providing clients with a compelling reason to change Great sellers don’t wait for customer urgency. They help executives see the cost of doing nothing and calculate the monthly cost of delay to create natural urgency. Every month you delay costs you $500k is how this sounds. 4. High quality prospecting Developing a strong POV hyper-personalized at the account level, and sharing it with Senior Executives who stand to gain or lose the most from the outcomes in the POV 5. Protecting focus Top reps ruthlessly eliminate distractions. They structure their calendar around revenue generating activities, and say no to busywork. Because in enterprise sales: 1 great conversations > 10 random tasks. When I was early in my career, I thought success meant grinding harder. Later I realized the truth: Sales isn’t about working more hours. It’s about working on the few things that actually matter every single day. Less is more. High quality over high quantity. What’s the one activity you do that drives the majority of your revenue? Curious to hear from other top sellers.

Here’s the hidden pipeline killer most sales teams ignore. ~43% of deals aren’t lost to competitors. They weren't even lost to "no decision." They were lost to competing initiatives. While you're focused on beating your direct competitors, the real battle is for budget and attention against entirely different priorities. Your prospect has 25 projects competing for limited resources. Only 5-7 will get funded. Is yours one of them? Most sales teams are completely blind to this reality. They track competitive wins and losses but ignore the bigger threat. Here's how innovative sellers are addressing this hidden pipeline killer: 1️⃣ Map the priority landscape They ask directly: "What are the top 3-5 initiatives your team has committed to this quarter?" If your solution isn't aligned with one of these, you're already losing. 2️⃣ Identify the zero-sum game For every "yes" to your solution, something else gets a "no." The best reps ask: "What would have to come off your plate to make room for this project?" 3️⃣ Quantify the cost of inaction When initiatives compete, ROI isn't enough. You need to establish the cost of NOT implementing your solution. "What happens if this problem continues for another year?" 4️⃣ Connect to strategic priorities Tactical projects get cut first. Strategic initiatives survive. Top performers always tie their solution to the company's publicized strategic goals. 5️⃣ Prepare for budget reallocation Innovative reps build relationships with the teams who control resource allocation. "Who else is competing for the same resources? How are those decisions made?" Your competition isn't just other vendors. It's everything else your buyer could spend time and money on instead.

In enterprise product AND sales, you’re often solving three different problems at once (whether you realize it or not). At Amplitude I lived this for 4+ years. 1. There’s the tangible, well-understood problem. A team knows their current spreadsheet setup is painful. They’ve tried three tools. They’re actively searching. They know exactly what the issue is. They just need a reliable, focused solution. 2. Then there’s the aspirational transformation. The leadership team wants to “become more data-driven” or “build a culture of experimentation” or “prioritize strategic bets.” These aren’t problems in the traditional sense; they’re blurry goals, fuzzy futures. But they drive buying behavior just as much as the tangible stuff. 3. And finally, there’s the story that needs to be told internally: the ROI narrative, the justification for budget, the ammo to win over skeptics. This is about solving the problem of helping your champion frame the problem in a way that clears organizational hurdles. The kicker? These three “problems” don’t always line up. In fact, they often live in totally different parts of the org. Your champion might be in pain (Tangible). The executive sponsor wants a big story (Aspirational). And Finance just needs a business case that checks the right boxes (Justifiable). That’s what makes enterprise sales and product so tricky. You have to thread all three needles. You can’t just be a “solution to a problem.” You have to be a bridge between today’s pain, tomorrow’s ambition, and the internal narrative that gets the deal done. Where it gets even more interesting: Sometimes you’re not just solving a problem. You’re offering a new mental model. You’re giving your buyer a language, a framework, a new lens for how they think about the work. This is especially true when customers are chasing aspirational goals but haven’t yet figured out how to operationalize them. You’re not just selling a product. You’re guiding them toward a new shape of thinking. And that raises an important question for product teams: Do you stay in your lane and build only for the tangible pain? Or do you lean into that educator role, helping buyers reframe their own reality, and making it easier for them to choose your path? It’s easy to say “focus on the problem.” But in enterprise, that “problem” is rarely a single thing. It's a messy stack of motivations, mismatches, and meaning-making. And if you want to win you’ll probably need to design for all three layers.

Everyone’s watching Salesforce cut thousands of jobs. Nobody’s talking about why growth stalled at the same time. Salesforce didn’t suddenly forget how to run a software business. It’s one of the most industrial-grade selling engines ever built. Yet they just posted the slowest revenues in their history during the same period they bet hard on AI as the answer for expansion. That’s not an AI story. It’s what happens when the market evolves faster than the playbook - when the vendor stays seller-centric while the buyer quietly rewrites the rules. And it’s not just Salesforce. Across enterprise tech, the real buyer has shifted. Deals get bigger, budgets get tighter, and suddenly the CFO, COO, & business-unit leaders, not just functional champions make the call. Vendors keep pushing features. Executive buyers demand clarity, control, and measurable outcomes. I worked with one enterprise team stuck in that exact gap. Their strategy was automation everywhere - AI for service tickets, AI for data entry, AI for workflows. I asked how they mapped and supported executive priorities in their largest accounts. There was nothing: • No buyer map • No decision architecture • No way to show finance and operations how risk would drop or control would rise Business stakeholders felt pushed, not supported. You can’t automate trust. And you can’t scale a system that isn’t aligned with how enterprise executives actually make decisions. So we rebuilt the fundamentals, not the tech stack, the buyer logic: ↳ Mapped decision criteria across finance, operations, & transformation. ↳ Reframed value: risk, control, P&L. ↳ Shifted “selling the platform” to help buyers build cases for change. ↳ Moved account teams off short-cycle pressure & onto long-arc value Three months later, deals didn’t just close. Stalled opportunities resurfaced. Expansions grew. Renewal risk dropped. Same product. Same accounts. Different posture. The Salesforce story isn’t about automation or AI productivity. It’s a signal that enterprise sales stalls when vendors double down on selling while buyers double down on caution. Effectiveness now starts with buyer-centricity at the executive level: Outcome clarity before feature talk. Mutual control before vendor pressure. That’s how predictable enterprise growth is built, & how you keep pace when the buyer changes faster than your roadmap. #DontSell #EnableBuying #EnterpriseDeals

Last week, one of my top enterprise reps was about to lose a $2.3M deal. The buying committee had grown from 3 to 8 stakeholders overnight, and the new IT director was pushing back hard. Instead of panicking, we: 1. Mapped the entire committee's priorities 2. Identified the IT director's actual concerns (security protocols we hadn't addressed) 3. Brought in our CTO for a targeted technical deep dive 4. Reframed the ROI calculation to highlight IT efficiency gains Four days later, the contract was signed. The lesson? Enterprise deals aren't won through persistence alone—they require strategic pivots when the landscape shifts. Too many sales leaders train their teams on product knowledge while neglecting the political navigation skills that actually close complex deals. When I coach my team now, we focus on: → Problem mapping for each stakeholder → Building multi-threaded relationships across departments → Translating technical capabilities into business outcomes → Anticipating and preempting objections, not just handling them What's your best strategy for navigating complex buying committees? ♻️ Repost to help people in your network. And follow me for more posts like this.

Your product’s biggest strength? Might be the reason you're losing. Stop me if you've seen this before: A rep walks into a demo, guns blazing with the flagship feature. Patented AI. Endless integrations. Dashboards so pretty you want to frame them. The problem? None of that matters if the buyer doesn’t care. It’s like offering a juice cleanse to someone who just asked for a steak. This is the trap: we confuse differentiation with default positioning. Just because something is unique doesn’t mean it’s useful. Just because something is premium doesn’t mean it’s priority aligned. I’ve lost deals this way. You probably have too. Brian LaManna broke this down during a Sales Assembly course last week. His thesis is that the game isn’t about showing what makes you great...it’s about showing why you’re exactly right for them. Here’s how to make the shift: 1. Start with strategic fit, NOT product strength Before you drop into demo mode, answer this: What strategic priority does this prospect actually care about? - Reduce CAC by 15% - Launch in Europe by Q3 - Retain 95% of enterprise accounts - Improve onboarding velocity for ramping reps If your feature doesn’t map to one of those? It’s window dressing. No matter how powerful it is. 2. Quantify the cost of staying put Sellers love to sell the future. Buyers make decisions based on the cost of the present. If your differentiation doesn’t help them: - Close the gap between current and ideal state - Avoid a known risk - Or capitalize on an urgent opportunity... …it’s irrelevant. Build the business case around urgency, not just capability. 3. Use differentiation to de-risk the decision Great sellers use differentiation to reduce perceived risk. Bad sellers use it to inflate perceived value. “We’re the only vendor with XYZ” Only matters if: That feature ties to a must have outcome AND you make it feel safer to choose you than to stall or default to the status quo Otherwise? You sound like every other overengineered solution they don’t need. 4. Tailor the pitch by segment and stage Early stage startup? They care about velocity, not sophistication. MM? Probably looking for plug and play solutions with high ROI. ENT? Stability, compliance, scale...and political cover. Same feature, totally different framing. Differentiation that doesn’t flex by buyer type fails. Differentiation isn’t about being better. It’s about being the right answer to their very specific problem - right now. You’re not selling a Ferrari. You’re selling a way out of whatever corner they’re currently stuck in.

𝗠𝗲𝗲𝘁𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗥𝗲𝘃𝗲𝗻𝘂𝗲 𝗧𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝗪𝗶𝘁𝗵𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗖𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗺𝗶𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗖𝘂𝘀𝘁𝗼𝗺𝗲𝗿 𝗚𝗿𝗼𝘄𝘁𝗵 Those of us managing revenue organizations know the pressure to hit targets never goes away. The backdrop, however, has certainly changed. With global GDP growth cooling to 3.1% and inflation hovering at 4%, the ‘growth at all costs’ era has been replaced by a ‘calculated growth’ mandate. The far-reaching effects of geopolitical risks are becoming more evident. A recent study by Allianz showed that 65% of exporters consider them the primary drivers of strategic decisions. When budgets tighten and fear of spending creeps into businesses, the instinct for many sales leaders is to squeeze the pipeline harder. The combination of high-pressure tactics in a low-trust environment is the perfect recipe for churn. Meeting targets without compromising customer growth requires a shift from transactional selling to operational resilience. Here is what I’m seeing work for revenue leaders today: 1. Switch from product features to geopolitical insulation In 2026, customers aren't just buying software; they are buying risk mitigation. If your SaaS helps decentralize operations or provides geopolitical insulation, lead with that. Research shows that firms are currently prioritizing agility and regional resilience over pure scale (WEF, 2026). Align your value proposition with solving business problems, and remain modular and responsive to shifting trade conditions. 2. Double down on Net Recurring Revenue (NRR) Existing relationships are your most valuable assets in a market like this. Almost 73% of sales leaders have made NRR their top priority this year (Gartner, 2026). RevOps should focus on creating a continuous value story. In turn, that will ensure the promise made during the sales cycle is documented and delivered. This prevents any hesitancy with renewals and creates natural upsell opportunities through proven ROI. 3. Move from broad AI to domain-specific utility By the end of this year, almost half of enterprise applications will use multi-agent systems to automate complex workflows. Sales leaders need to go beyond simply integrating Gen AI tools into their workflows. Business process-specific AI applications can help identify red flags in customer health and automate administrative tasks in the sales cycle, freeing sales reps to act as partners to their customers. The unavoidable truth is we can’t control the global risk landscape, but we can control our response to it. By focusing on customer health and operational agility, we hit our goals by solving better.

Thoughts during my 2 years as a BDR/AE selling to Enterprise CTO/CIOs summarized as key learnings. Honestly often times in the job we don’t summarize our learnings because we are too in the weeds…. but after having some time to step back and look at it from afar, a lot of the insights become obvious. Let me know if I should expand on any of the topics below: 1) Building relationships with non-decision-makers: While focusing on decision-makers is crucial, building relationships with other stakeholders can be equally important. 🤝 These individuals can influence the decision-making process and provide valuable insights and connections. 2) Co-creating solutions: Involve customers in the solution creation process to ensure their needs are met effectively. Collaborative problem-solving fosters a sense of ownership and can lead to more successful implementations. 🚀 3) Positioning yourself as a trusted advisor: Instead of solely focusing on selling products or services, position yourself as a trusted advisor to your customers. Understand their challenges, offer insights, and provide guidance that goes beyond the scope of your offerings. 🗣 4) Leveraging data and analytics: Utilize data and analytics to gain insights into reply rates, pipeline stage conversions and customize your approach. 🔍 This can help you tailor your sales process and engage with prospects in a more targeted and meaningful way. 5) Addressing internal politics: Large enterprises often have complex internal politics and dynamics. 🏢 Gain an understanding of these dynamics and build relationships with various stakeholders to navigate the organization effectively and facilitate decision-making. 6) Recognizing the value of champions: Identify and nurture champions within the organization who can advocate for your solution. 🗣 These individuals can help you navigate the internal landscape, address objections, and influence the decision-making process. 7) Managing expectations: Set realistic expectations with customers regarding what your solution can and cannot deliver. Being transparent about limitations and potential challenges builds trust and prevents disappointments down the line. 8) Cultivating industry expertise: Deepen your understanding of the industries you serve. 📚 Stay updated on industry trends, challenges, and regulations. This knowledge will enable you to have more meaningful conversations with prospects and position yourself as a knowledgeable resource. 9) Balancing persistence and empathy: Persistence is key in enterprise sales, but it should be balanced with empathy and understanding. Recognize when a prospect is not a good fit or is not ready to proceed, and respect their decision while maintaining a positive relationship for future opportunities. ✨ #sales #enterprisesales #techsales

You want to close transformational deals? Slow down. Real enterprise sales start by going deep, not fast. The top-performing GTM teams don’t rush to demo or pitch—they orchestrate a Discovery process that feels more like a strategy workshop than a sales cycle. Sales. Solutions. Value Engineering. Together, they uncover the full current state: • Revenue and lost business • Margin compression • Inefficiencies and risk • Misaligned priorities across departments Then they build a value-centric proposal—not a product quote. A clear picture of the new future state: • Positive business outcomes in real money terms • Investment required in dollars, time, and people • A roadmap the customer can defend internally Here’s the reality: CXOs don’t want vendors. They want partners who’ve done the work to understand the business and can help them win. And when sales teams do that work up front—when they slow down to build real insight and alignment—they earn the right to go big. Strategic. Enterprise-wide. Multi-year. C-level visibility. The kind of deal that changes careers. That’s what it means to control the narrative. That’s how confidence is built. That’s how transformational deals get done.

CEO: "I want to automate our cold outreach." Me: "Maybe you shouldn't." If you're selling $150K+ ACV deals, but you want to automate like you're selling $500 SaaS subscriptions. That's expensive thinking. When your deals are worth six figures, you can afford to spend more to land each customer. The math changes completely. Here's what I'd do instead: Start with your list (but make it smaller). If your market is 1,500 accounts, narrow it down to 300 or fewer. Go after early adopters and companies that are already struggling. Why? Your enterprise sales reps' time is expensive. They shouldn't waste it on accounts that will never buy. The counterintuitive part: With enterprise accounts, more isn't better. Reaching 1,500 accounts with no focus won't beat a tight list of 300 accounts where you actually put in the work. Enterprise takes more effort per deal, not more volume. Here's how to engage them properly: - Use your own LinkedIn to connect with prospects directly and watch who engages with your content. - Map out where they're based and host dinners in key cities (or go to their office in person). - Invite customers to those dinners too, it builds trust and credibility fast. - Run educational events (online or in-person) with both prospects and customers. - For each account, develop a clear point of view based on public data and research. The automation part you actually need: - Use tools like Clay to automate the research and capturing signals, not the outreach. - Map their office locations - Let AI find the insights, but let humans craft the message. - Reuse your POV across email, LinkedIn, cold calls, and in-person meetings. Bottom line: Don't automate the relationship building. Automate the grunt work so your reps can focus on the right accounts, and what actually closes enterprise deals. Follow me 👨🍳 Elric Legloire for daily tips on scaling outbound.