Author: Jay Mitchell



How Revenue Kickoffs Will Change in 2026: 3 Trends Leaders Should Prepare For

November 20, 2025
Jay Mitchell

Every year, revenue leaders look to their kickoff event as an opportunity to align teams, reinforce strategy and generate momentum for the next 12 months. But 2026 will bring meaningful shifts — not only in what happens during revenue kickoffs (RKOs) but why teams structure them the way they do.

At Mereo, we have supported hundreds of RKOs across industries and business models. As we look ahead to 2026, three trends are surfacing with our clients that stand apart for their staying power and their impact.

Below, we break down what is changing, what it means for your go-to-market organization and how to keep your RKO grounded in what moves the revenue needle.

TREND 1: AI WILL BECOME A PRIMARY TOPIC — NOT A SIDE CONVERSATION

Generative AI has rapidly matured from an experimental tool to an operational requirement. In 2026, every sophisticated selling organization will face the same questions from their teams:

  • How are our buyers using AI today — and how will they expect to use it tomorrow?
  • How are we using AI to create competitive advantage?
  • How are our competitors using AI — and where must we defend or differentiate?

RKOs will become the forum where companies articulate their AI point of view and equip market-facing teams with messaging, guardrails and value conversations for buyers who increasingly expect AI to show up in the solution and in the sales process.

Revenue teams should be prepared to address:

  • How AI accelerates outcomes for buyers
  • How your organization ensures responsible and secure use of AI
  • Where AI drives measurable value in your product / service
  • What claims to make — and what not to make — about AI capabilities
  • How AI enhances (not replaces) relationship-driven selling
Mereo Expert Tip

Do not let your RKO become a product-launch event for AI features. AI is an enabler — not the strategy. Buyers do not want buzzwords. They want clarity around impact. Anchor your sessions on buyer value, not technology hype.

TREND 2: IN-PERSON IS FULLY BACK — AND LEADERS ARE LEANING INTO IT

For the first time since 2020, the majority of B2B organizations are planning fully in-person RKOs for 2026. The logistical and emotional fatigue of hybrid formats has run its course. Leaders are realizing:

  • In-person beats virtual for connection and alignment
  • No need for complex hybrid broadcasting (aside from a CEO-level general session for which the entire company should tune-in)
  • Sellers re-engage more quickly and build trust faster when they meet live
  • Enablement sticks better with physical interaction and shared experience

The pendulum has swung: In-person is no longer “nice to have.” It is the expected norm.

Mereo Expert Tip

Do not overstuff your agenda just because you have everyone together. RKOs do not need more sessions — they need more meaningful sessions. Reserve in-person time for what must be done live: interaction, role-plays / practice, alignment, relationship building.

TREND 3: ROLE-PLAYS WILL BE THE MOST VALUABLE USE OF IN-PERSON TIME

If leaders want the strongest, most lasting ROI from their 2026 RKO, role-play sessions should take center stage.

When sellers are together in person, practice is the ultimate differentiator. Live role-plays help teams:

  • Internalize value propositions
  • Strengthen objection-handling
  • Practice new messaging in real-time
  • Build confidence before entering market conversations
  • Mitigate gaps in skills, product understanding and competitive positioning

Role-plays also help unify teams around consistent messaging — a challenge that continues to plague organizations year after year.

And new AI-assisted role-play tools such as ELB Learning simulation platforms and Quantified conversational intelligence systems make it possible to extend reinforcement long after kickoff ends and the right foundation is set.

When used correctly, these tools allow teams to:

  • Conduct individualized practice year-round
  • Receive objective feedback on tone, clarity and value messaging
  • Reduce manager coaching load
  • Reinforce kickoff learnings with repetition at scale
Mereo Expert Tip

Do not rely solely on AI tools for role-plays or assume a simulation replaces real practice. Human-to-human interaction remains the gold standard. AI should support, not replace, live exercises.

HOW TO MAKE YOUR 2026 RKO COUNT

Revenue kickoffs will evolve in 2026, but the heart of effective enablement remains the same: Equip your teams with clarity, alignment and the confidence to execute.

AI will shape the conversation. In-person will strengthen the experience. And role-plays will reinforce the skills needed to win.

If you want support designing a 2026 RKO that fuels sustainable revenue performance, Mereo is here to help.

→ Download The Ultimate Revenue Kickoff Planning Playbook.

→ Schedule a time with a kickoff expert to assess your current plans.



4 KPIs GTM Leaders Should Actually Care About to Drive Revenue Performance

November 6, 2025
Jay Mitchell

Go-to-market (GTM) teams are drowning in dashboards. Sales, marketing, product and customer success teams all have metrics they swear by, but too often those metrics do not add up to sustainable revenue. Research and practitioner reports over the last few years show a clear pattern: Teams are working toward different goals, speaking different measurement languages, and as a result leaving revenue on the table.

At Mereo we believe fewer, clearer and shared KPIs beat dozens of siloed partial measures. Alignment on the right outcomes matters. Below we summarize the research that shows where GTM organizations miss the mark, then argue for four core KPIs every revenue-focused GTM organization should align on and track together:

  1. Customer acquisition (and CAC)
  2. Customer lifetime value (LTV/CLV)
  3. Deal velocity and conversion rates (stage conversion + win rate)
  4. Customer churn and retention (gross & net)

These four capture both the inflow and outflow of revenue, the efficiency of your buying journey and whether your business actually sustains value once buyers sign deals.

WHY KPI MISALIGNMENT IS A REVENUE PROBLEM

Misalignment is not theoretical. Organizations that align go-to-market teams around common goals grow faster and more profitably.

Weaknesses often show up in three ways:

  1. Marketing measures activity (impressions, MQLs) while sales measures outcomes (opportunities closed), and neither translates cleanly into revenue impact.
  2. Dashboards report correlation, not cause — so leaders chase vanity improvements that do not move revenue.
  3. Different teams use different definitions for the “same” metric (what counts as an MQL, how to compute churn), so one team thinks performance is healthy while another is alarmed.

If your organization struggles to predict revenue, investigate whether the problem starts with shared KPIs and consistent definitions — that is the highest-leverage fix.

4 KPIS TO ALIGN ON (AND HOW TO MAKE THEM ACTIONABLE)

1) Customer Acquisition Cost (CAC)

What it tracks: The number (and cost) of new buyers acquired in a period. CAC = (sales + marketing spend to acquire customers) ÷ (number of new buyers acquired). You can also measure new ARR or new revenue per period as a complementary volume metric.

Why it matters: Acquisition feeds the top of your revenue funnel, but acquisition without efficiency kills margin. Tracking both volume and CAC tells you whether growth is sustainable and whether your investment in demand is delivering profitable buyers.

How to track:

  • Define “new customer” consistently (e.g., first paid invoice or signed contract).
  • Use integrated data: CRM for deals closed, billing for revenue recognition and your finance ledger for marketing + sales spend.
  • Calculate CAC by cohort and channel (e.g., CAC by campaign, partner, or vertical). Cohort CAC lets you see which channels deliver profitable customers over time.
  • Monitor CAC payback period (months to recover CAC from gross margin) as an operational threshold for investment decisions.

2) Customer Lifetime Value (LTV or CLV)

What it tracks: The expected gross margin-contribution from a buyer over their entire relationship. A simple formula: LTV ≈ (average revenue per account per period × gross margin %) × average customer lifetime (in periods). Advanced models use cohort retention curves and discounting.

Why it matters: LTV tells you the long-term value of the buyers you are winning. Comparing LTV to CAC (LTV:CAC) is the single clearest test of whether your growth investments pay off. If LTV is low relative to CAC, scale will destroy value.

How to track:

  • Use billing/subscription data to compute average revenue per account (ARPA) and realized gross margin.
  • Derive average customer lifetime from historical retention cohorts rather than a single-period snapshot. Cohort analysis reduces noise from seasonality or one-off churn events.
  • Report LTV and LTV:CAC by segment (e.g., SMB vs. mid-market vs. enterprise, or by product line or by geography). That tells you where to allocate GTM effort and pricing.
  • Update LTV quarterly; re-run cohort lifetimes annually or when you change pricing or packaging.
  • Consider emphasizing customer expansion by selling more services or solutions within existing accounts. This contributes meaningfully to gross dollar retention and should be captured in your LTV calculations.

3) Deal velocity and Conversion Rates (stage conversion + win rate)

What it tracks: The time it takes to move an opportunity from first qualified contact to closed-won (sales cycle length), and the conversion rates between funnel stages (lead → MQL → SQL → opportunity → discovery → proposal → negotiation → closed-won). Win rate (closed-won ÷ total opportunities) is a summary conversion metric.

Why it matters: Deal velocity affects the speed of revenue realization and cash flow; conversion rates determine how many leads you need to hit targets. Improvements in sales cycle length or stage conversions reduce required lead volume and improve forecast accuracy.

How to track:

  • Standardize your sales stages and definitions across reps and channels so conversion percentages are comparable.
  • Capture stage entry and exit timestamps in CRM to compute median and mean cycle lengths; watch distributions (high variance is as telling as the mean).
  • Monitor stage-by-stage conversion rates and identify major drop-off points (e.g., marketing-to-sales handoff or proposal-to-negotiation).
  • Pair conversion metrics with win-rate by persona/industry to prioritize deals and refine ICP (ideal customer profile).
  • Run rolling 90-day and 12-month analyses so you are not chasing short-term noise.

4) Buyer Churn and Retention Rates (gross and net)

What it tracks: The percentage of buyers (or ARR) lost in a period (gross churn), plus net churn which considers expansion (up-sell/cross-sell) and contraction. Retention rate is the inverse view. Cohort retention curves show how different vintages behave over time.

Why it matters: If you are losing buyers faster than you acquire new ones to replace them, no amount of acquisition will produce sustainable revenue. Net retention >100% signals healthy expansion-led growth; high gross churn indicates product-market or onboarding problems that will throttle growth. For SaaS, retention is critical for growth and valuation. High churn rates for software firms can usually reveal other problems within the company: product quality, service, value recognition, competitive and contract terms.

How to track:

  • Compute gross churn (lost ARR / starting ARR for the period) and net retention ((starting ARR + expansion – churn) ÷ starting ARR). Report both.
  • Use buyer cohorts (by signup month, industry, segment) to spot structural retention differences.
  • Develop a health score that includes a strategic action plan for “yellow” and “red” lit buyers.
  • Instrument product usage, onboarding milestones, and NPS/CSAT as leading indicators for churn risk. Connect those signals into renewal playbooks.
  • Make renewal and expansion a cross-functional KPI — success requires product, customer success, sales and marketing coordination.
  • For SaaS, look both to customer number and dollar value retention and break down by solution, geography, industry and company size to directly influence contracting, product roadmap, account management structure / coverage and compensation plan direction.

HOW TO MAKE THESE KPIS OPERATIONAL (SO THEY ACTUALLY CHANGE OUTCOMES)

Tracking these four KPIs is only useful if your organization uses them in alignment. Use this short operational checklist that separates teams that talk about metrics from teams that move them:

  1. Agree on definitions — and document them. One canonical definitions document (MQL, SQL, new buyer, churn event). Store it in your revenue playbook.
  2. Single source of truth. Integrate CRM, billing, product-usage, and finance data and publish a single dashboard for executives and a light-weight tactical view for GTM teams. Reports that pull from different systems and are left unreconciled are the root cause of disagreement.
  3. Segment everything. CAC, LTV, win rate, and churn look very different by segment. Treat KPIs as dimensional and you will know where to invest and where to tighten.
  4. Set cadence + SLAs. Weekly or bi-weekly pipeline reviews, monthly KPI reviews and quarterly strategic resets. Tie team-level OKRs to the four KPIs (not vanity metrics). Studies show alignment (shared goals + SLAs) materially improves growth and profitability.
  5. Use cohorts and causal thinking. Do not just report “conversion up 4%.” Ask why. Use cohort analysis to infer causality from experiments (pricing changes, playbooks, onboarding flows) rather than assuming correlation equals cause.

FEWER, SHARED AND CONNECTED METRICS WIN

GTM teams are happiest when every function can point to a number that ties to revenue. The path forward is simple, if not always easy: Agree on a small set of shared KPIs that capture acquisition, value, efficiency and retention — and then operationalize them with rigorous definitions, integrated data and cross-functional accountability.

We can help.

  • Map your current KPI landscape and find gaps.
  • Build a single “revenue truth” dashboard integrating CRM + billing + product.
  • Run a 30-day KPI alignment sprint with definitions, SLAs and a pilot dashboard.

Which of those would you like to tackle first? Reach out here and let me know.



Confident Sellers Inspire Confident Buyers

September 25, 2025
Jay Mitchell

In today’s complex B2B marketplace, buyers are not only evaluating solutions. They are evaluating the people providing them, too. One theme that consistently emerges from our conversations with clients and their buyers is that buyers want to work with salespeople who exude confidence. This is not arrogance or bravado, but the steady assurance that comes from preparation, practice and proven support.

Confidence translates to more than an attitude. Confident sellers drive winning outcomes:

  • Top-performing sellers are 10 times more likely to use collaborative terms like “we,” “us” and “our,” increasing success rates by 35%. (Slack, 2024)
  • Optimistic sellers outperform their pessimistic counterparts by 57%, even when the latter possess superior selling skills. (Hubspot, 2024)

How can you instill the right level and flavor of confidence in your sales force? Here we cover the techniques and assets that will foster trust and certainty in your buyers.

CONFIDENCE WORKS IN TWO DIRECTIONS

Confidence is not spontaneous. It is built step by step throughout the sales process, supported by the right techniques and tools. When salespeople have a structured process to lean on, when they know how to target the right opportunities, and when they are equipped with value stories that resonate, they naturally perform at a higher level in buyer-seller conversations. This foundation gives sellers the courage to ask better questions, challenge assumptions and position solutions with conviction.

  • Techniques: Buyers confirm this repeatedly: they want to see that a salesperson understands their industry, knows the solution and can apply that solution to their unique challenges. When a seller demonstrates this mastery, the buyer feels more secure in moving forward. In fact, the confidence of the salesperson often accelerates the confidence of the buying group, reducing hesitation and propelling opportunities closer to a decision.
  • Assets: Sales scenarios, messaging frameworks and client-specific value stories allow the team to anticipate objections, tailor conversations and demonstrate relevance. With these tools in hand, salespeople are not improvising in front of a prospect — they are executing with purpose. That clarity translates into a confident presence that buyers notice.

Confidence works in two directions. When sellers are confident, they instill confidence in their buyers. And when buyers feel assured, deals progress faster and with fewer obstacles. This dynamic is what allows opportunities to move smoothly from early qualification all the way to close.

GAIN CONFIDENCE TO ACCELERATE REVENUES

For B2B selling leaders, the message is clear: invest in the process, the tools and the practice that enable your sellers to project confidence. Because in the end, confident sellers do more than deliver strong pitches — they create trust, reduce buyer risk and accelerate revenue.

Uncover the 10 selling skills to build confidence in your sellers and, in turn, your buyers. Download The Complete Revenue Accelerators Guide today.

 

DOWNLOAD THE GUIDE



DEAL MANUFACTURING VS. INTERCEPTING: WHY B2B SELLERS MUST MASTER BOTH

August 28, 2025
Jay Mitchell

Our marketplace is always evolving, and B2B selling organizations cannot afford to rely on a one-size-fits-all approach to pipeline generation.

Two sales motions are particularly critical to understand: deal manufacturing and deal intercepting.

While both require strong business cases, trusted advisor skills and differentiation, the paths to winning look quite different.

WHAT IS DEAL MANUFACTURING?

Deal manufacturing is the proactive, often uphill battle of creating demand where none yet exists. In this scenario, the buyer likely has no formal initiative underway, including no allocated budget, no executive mandate and no external catalyst adding urgency.

It falls on the seller to:

  • Present the catalyst: Help the buyer recognize why the status quo is no longer acceptable. Give them a “why.”
  • Build urgency: Answer not just “Why do something?” but “Why do something now?”
  • Shape the vision: Guide the buyer to see the problem, the value of solving it and the path forward with you as their trusted advisor.

For example: Imagine an executive team casually discussing operational inefficiencies but pushing off action until “next year’s budget cycle.” A skilled seller can manufacture urgency by quantifying the opportunity cost: “Every month you delay, your margins erode another 2%. If we start in June, you’ll see measurable impact before December year-end.”

When you successfully manufacture a deal, you often gain a natural edge. Because you sparked the initiative, you have differentiated not through features but through insight, partnership and foresight. Even if procurement requires an RFP, you are likely the favored choice because you helped the buyer see and prioritize the problem in the first place.

The differentiator here? You win by breaking the status quo and serving as the trusted advisor who compels action.

WHAT IS DEAL INTERCEPTING?

Deal intercepting, on the other hand, is when you step into an opportunity already in motion. An initiative exists. Budget may be allocated. Leadership has already identified a pressing catalyst — often triggered by external forces such as new regulations, tariffs, market shifts or competitive threats.

Here, the buyer is already moving. Your challenge shifts:

  • Differentiate against competitors: You often are one of several vendors under consideration.
  • Elevate your value proposition: The buyer already believes in doing something. Now you must prove why your solution delivers greater ROI than the others. A variation that may present itself here is a need to “re-calibrate” the buyer on their problem and the attributes they are looking for in a solution.
  • Win on “why us?”: The business case is less about justifying action at all and more about justifying why you are the best choice.

For example: A company faces tariffs disrupting its supply chain. Leadership launches a project to relocate distribution. Vendors are called in. You are not convincing them to act — you are convincing them to act with your solution.

The differentiator here? Trusted advisor relationships built over time can pay off. If you have provided value in the past — even outside of formal engagements — you may be the first selling organization they call when an initiative kicks off.

If no previous relationship exists, your sellers need to bring their differentiation game with clear, compelling value that sets you apart and above the others.

LETTING THE DEAL SHAPE YOUR APPROACH

Understanding whether your team is in a manufacturing or intercepting motion should shape:

  • Go-to-market strategy: Are your offerings positioned as “must-have” solutions tied to pressing catalysts, or do they require you to build the business case from scratch?
  • Revenue enablement: Manufacturing demands challenger skills: insight-driven conversations, ROI quantification and urgency-creation. Intercepting demands competitive differentiation, proof points and ROI comparisons.
  • Marketing alignment: Campaigns should anticipate which catalysts matter most in your buyers’ industries. For example, if tariffs are looming, have messaging ready to intercept. If budgets are frozen, arm sellers with insights to manufacture urgency.
  • Talent development: Not every seller excels in both motions. Coaching must reflect the different skills required: breaking status quo versus outpacing competitors.

BUT MAKING THE BUSINESS CASE IS ALWAYS CENTRAL

Whether manufacturing or intercepting, the business case is non-negotiable.

  • In manufacturing, the business case primarily answers: Why do anything at all, and why now?
  • In intercepting, the business case answers: Why choose us over alternatives, even if we cost more?

In both, trusted advisor behaviors amplify the impact. Sellers who consistently Seek to Serve™ — guiding buyers with insight and credibility — are more likely to be the partner of choice when the moment arrives.

FOSTER A TEAM FLUENT IN BOTH DEAL MANUFACTURING AND INTERCEPTING

Rarely will your pipeline consist of just one or the other. Different industries, offerings and geographies may call for different motions simultaneously.

The sellers who succeed will be those who know when they are up against the status quo and when they are up against competitors — and adjust their approach accordingly. In B2B, winning is never just about having the best solution. It is about knowing how to create and capture the opportunity in front of you.

Amplify your sales force’s skills to meet deals head-on with The Complete Revenue Accelerator Guide.

For more sales messaging and skills, enablement, and organizational alignment, reach out to our revenue experts here.



A Reading List for the High-Performing B2B Selling Leader

July 24, 2025
Jay Mitchell

Take these final days of summer to open a book on personal improvement, business optimization or game-changing leadership approaches. These are three titles I have been reading this year (or revisiting in some cases) that have transformed the way I work and live.

FOR MOVING OTHERS TO ACT

Daniel Pink’s To Sell Is Human: The Surprising Truth About Moving Others has been on the shelves for more than a decade — but the book’s lessons remain highly relevant in today’s selling culture. People buy from people. Remembering that can help you adjust your sales team’s approach to engage the human in the journey. With practical tips and frameworks, this book can help you and your sales force become more persuasive and effective not just in business but in life. Learn more here.

FOR SUCCESSFULLY SCALING YOUR ORGANIZATION

In Greg Alexander’s The Founder Bottleneck, founders are faced with a game-changing question: Are you working on the business or in the business? In the latter scenario, where founders manage every aspect of their day-to-day operations, they are holding their business back from scaling. In the former, they are developing a success plan and expanding on the value their business can deliver for clients, employees and themselves. Full of practical guidance and insights from 10 founders, you will learn how to step out of your organization’s way and step into growth. Learn more here.

FOR MEN IN BUSINESS SEEKING LIFE GUIDANCE 

The Five Marks of a Man Devotional: 60 Days to a Powerful Life by Brian Tome is intended as a daily devotional book for personal growth, but I have found it equally impactful as I apply its lessons in the business arena. While the five tenets are simple, the application can be life-changing: men have a vision, men take a minority position, men are team players, men work, and men are protectors. Learn more here.

FOR A SELLING APPROACH THAT IS ALWAYS EFFECTIVE

Having a Seek to Serve, Not to Sell attitude and approach stands out in a buying culture that can feel forceful and void of relationship. Seeking to serve buyers builds trust and relationships — the true currency of a successful business. Putting buyers and their needs first and being an authentic salesperson wins every time — without exception. Download this game-changing eBook to enable your workforce toward serving buyers as a true trusted advisor.



Nurture a Future of Trusted Advisors, Not Algorithms

May 15, 2025
Jay Mitchell

Young selling professionals are readying their caps and gowns, eager to join the B2B workforce. But recent data paints a sobering picture. According to Workplace Intelligence on behalf of Hult International business School, 37% of hiring managers would rather employ AI than hire a new graduate. The outlook gets even grimmer:

  • 44% would prefer to assign the work to a seasoned freelancer
  • 45% would recruit a retired worker
  • 30% would rather leave the role vacant entirely

These numbers should stop every B2B executive in their tracks.

Our new generations are not incapable — but the business world increasingly doubts whether recent graduates are prepared to sell, compete and thrive in today’s high-stakes environment. At the same time, AI’s capabilities are surging forward faster than our human pipeline is evolving.

At Mereo, we believe the right question is not “Should AI replace our workforce?” — but rather, “How can we intentionally cultivate the next generation of human sellers to lead where AI cannot?”

As leaders, we owe it to our up-and-coming selling professionals to serve as guides and mentors. We must give our recent graduates a chance like we were given. Otherwise, the future could have talent gaps that will be hard to fill retroactively.

AI SHOULD ENRICH, NOT REPLACE

If you should not replace your up-and-coming workforce with AI, what should you use it for? AI can replicate tasks. It can respond with information. But it cannot build authentic trust, navigate human complexity or create long-term buyer value at the level elite sellers do.

As a selling leader, you have the opportunity to help recent graduates by:

  • Investing in human sellers intentionally.
    Equip your young talent with not only product knowledge but with the complex emotional intelligence, strategic thinking and value-based selling skills that differentiate humans from machines.
  • Redesigning your onboarding and enablement programs.
    Graduates entering your organization should not simply be “trained.” They must be shaped into trusted advisors who can outmatch AI, not mimic it.
  • Leading with purpose.
    Sellers who are connected to a clear, meaningful mission outperform those chasing only quotas. AI has no sense of purpose. Humans do. Build on that.

If the marketplace’s current sentiment holds, a future workforce may be composed more of algorithms than trusted advisors — but it does not have to be that way for your organization.

The leaders who act now and invest in nurturing and equipping their future human sellers will be the ones who win the long game.

 

ACCELERATE THE NEXT GEN’S SELLING SKILLS



Joel Reed Sees 2 Parts to the Sales Excellence Equation

January 30, 2025
Jay Mitchell

Selling teams that achieve sales excellence translates to organizations that can realize sustainable revenue performance and growth.

We sat down with our expert principal Joel Reed, who brings extensive marketing and sales operation leadership experience, to talk about how B2B selling organizations can lead their teams to sales excellence this year. Read our conversation below.

Q: Our principals have been hearing B2B and private equity leaders fretting over how to achieve “sales excellence” this year. How do you define sales excellence, and why is this an important marker for revenue sustainability and growth?

Sales excellence is about achieving and exceeding revenue goals — month after month, quarter after quarter, and year after year. As a salesperson, sales excellence is all about you achieving your goals and meeting and exceeding your quota. As an executive, you need to think big picture about the entire sales force: Are they all following a consistent process and leveraging the leading practices to help exceed revenue goals? Are the outcomes predictable enough to allow me to invest in pipeline creation ahead of revenue recognition?

Achieving sales excellence comes down to having a consistent execution of the sales process and solid sales techniques:

  • Consistency of process leads to predictability in outcomes. And when you have predictable outcomes, then you can proactively invest in the outreach and realize growth.
  • The best sales techniques lead to a higher rate of success at each stage of the buying and selling cycle. Having a higher rate of success in each stage and building value throughout often leads to higher value in the deals themselves.

With a common process and leading practices, you will realize sustainable performance — and have better buyer satisfaction as well.

Q: Business leaders have been dealing with stagnant macro-economics over the past few years. With the recent election and geo-political dynamics, this year marks another point of significant disruption for the marketplace. What changes pose potential threats to reaching sales excellence and achieving sustainable revenue performance? What about the opportunities those changes create?

This year is going to be very interesting. The overall business environment is going to remain fluid, as it has been for several years. We are going to have trade policy changes. There is market volatility that is going on in many countries. Regulation activity continues to expand. And there is huge technology disruption again, and it is funny, because it seems like over the last 25 years, that is just been constant. All of this creates a lot of challenges for the buyers in defining and executing on their strategies, and it means that the salesperson is going to have to really think about how to navigate, and help prospects navigate, all those changing environments.

Sales professionals need to stay attuned to that macro environment and be extremely knowledgeable of changes in the markets that their clients are competing in — and they must be experts on translating and connecting the dots between what is happening in the market, what is happening in buyers’ businesses, and how your solutions can solve those problems.

It is not going to be a cut-and-paste answer. It is important that salespeople get very comfortable in addressing the changes that are going to be unique to every single business environment that you are in or you are intersecting with. Salespeople also need to be practiced in and ready to articulate confidently answers to buyer questions and objections. This all creates a huge opportunity for the most astute salespeople to differentiate and distinguish themselves by the value they can add throughout the whole engagement process.

Q: How should B2B leaders prepare for these market changes at varying degrees, from the organizational level to supporting their sales teams?

Sales leaders need to take a multi-threaded approach. First, at the most basic level, you need to get your sales teams access to the right research and resources that enable them to be viewed as knowledge resources to your buyers. Second, you need examples and scenarios that best leverage their solutions and services to help the buyers address growth and improve productivity. Third, you must align those sales scenarios to target markets, so that you give your team the best opportunity in every interaction to create value.

Then success comes down to practice. How do you enable that sales team with the knowledge and leading practices to support the buyer’s process? And what are you doing to facilitate their practice to be the best at what they do? Elite sports professionals practice, practice and practice. Salespeople need to practice as well. And like sports professionals they need good coaching.

Leaders unfortunately rarely receive training on coaching. The best sales processes include coaching questions for each stage to ensure process alignment and to reinforce the best sales techniques. The best leaders know how to coach in every interaction with their teams. Investing in the leaders has a multiplier effect on sales performance.

Q: What B2B leaders or organizations come to mind that exemplify leading practices for achieving sales excellence?   

In the past we have had a couple of Mereo clients set up their revenue kickoffs to mimic external trade shows, treating their salespeople as buyers. They set up demo environments to show how the solutions would take care of a buyer’s specific situations and how they can create value for the buyer. They took the time to not just educate by lecturing about the solution but showing the sales team through a hands-on approach.

Other clients have built-in sales technique practice through role-playing in their regional sales training. They run them through actual sales cycles and mock sales cycles, giving them a chance to practice the craft in front of others to get feedback and increase their comfort level. Watching peers perform is often one of the best ways to learn and adopt techniques that improve your own capabilities.

Lastly, we have helped clients check that their sales process is aligned with the buying process, taking a step back and interviewing buyers and the sales team. This process yields so much knowledge about how buyers are actually buying and how you can arm your salespeople (and marketing team) to support them through those buying cycles — as opposed to just trying to push your sales process on the prospect.

Q: You have said in the past that a sales process is no longer enough on its own. Can you unpack that? Why do essential sales skills and behaviors matter just as much?

The sales process is foundational. It drives the consistency that I talked about in the first question, that predictability. But process alone is insufficient for you to meet and exceed your goals.

The techniques the sales team leverages as it executes that process — that is what enables the team to increase the conversion rates and the deal sizes. Does that salesperson understand the buyer’s industry? Do they understand the solutions? Do they understand the solutions and the application of those solutions in specific scenarios within that industry? When salespeople excel at the techniques, they foster confidence in themselves and, in return, in their buyers, helping to accelerate opportunities to close.



Make 2025 The Year of Sales Excellence

January 9, 2025
Jay Mitchell

This year our selling tools and data are more advanced than ever before. Our buyers are growing savvier and more value-hungry, expecting sophisticated customization and personalization in seller interactions. And, after a couple of years of stagnant macro economics, market indicators are for a more promising commerce flow emerging.

Every business leader wants their selling team to achieve sales excellence. Yet it is folly to think salespeople can meet and exceed their quotas without the right leadership, revenue enablement and coaching support.

If you want to make 2025 the year of sales excellence — and why would you not? — support your sales force with these three efforts.

SALES EXCELLENCE STARTS AT THE TOP

The chief revenue officer (CRO) is tasked with managing an organization’s revenue operations and leading the sales force to great heights. Yet, for as important and impactful a CRO can be in an organization, these leaders currently have the shortest tenures, averaging about 25 months. Turnover grew by more than 50% from 2022 to 2023 according to research from SBI Insights. This constant churn disrupts continuity and weakens overall sales leadership. How can a selling organization achieve sales excellence when one of their key leadership roles is in disarray?

The majority of CRO failings — missed revenue targets, quotas, revenue team turnover and more — we witness at Mereo result from misalignment. Many CROs come into their roles with a plan and approach that does not sync with the business. They are tactical versus strategic. They just focus on sales rather than the entire revenue engine, which needs to include marketing and product as well as account management teams responsible for revenue retention / expansion.

In order for CROs to support sales excellence from top-down, alignment is in order. Take the extra time in the first 100 days to develop a plan and an approach that fits with the organization and that helps the entire revenue engine run as effectively as possible.

SALES EXCELLENCE IS ONLY POSSIBLE WITH THE RIGHT REVENUE ENABLEMENT

In today’s evolving sales environment, the highest-performing salespeople will be experts on their buyer — and they will use that expertise to craft the most compelling value proposition as possible to shepherd compelling sales conversations with buyers. Fortunately, with more-sophisticated data sources, such as 6sense, Apollo and ZoomInfo, sales teams have more accessible buyer data at their fingertips than ever before.

This rapid access to buyer data empowers sellers to deliver personalized and tailored value propositions that resonate with each specific buyer’s needs. Failing to leverage these tools is not only a missed opportunity but gives competitors an edge. You can be sure they are using every resource available to win every sales conversation to earn the business, so you should too.

Armed with buyer insights, you can tailor value propositions based on situational dynamics, unique use cases and pain points specific to the buying organization and key decision-makers — connecting the dots to compelling, differentiated solutions. Build your winning sales proposition now.

SALES EXCELLENCE DEMANDS CONSISTENT SALES COACHING

Front-line sales managers today are stretched thinner than ever before. A decade or two ago, their primary role was hands-on coaching — joining “ride-alongs,” conducting account reviews and helping their teams rehearse sales calls. Fast forward to today, sales managers are often expected to focus more on reporting on team performance using the tools within their sales stack, like CRMs, which does not necessarily improve performance but rather enhancing forecasting and pipeline management — in theory.

Yet the most effective and time-tested way to improve sales performance and help achieve sales excellence remains in active sales coaching — running alongside sales professionals, participating in pursuits and carving-out space for meaningful coaching on best practices.

As a sales leader, you must find a balance between time spent coaching versus forecasting. Gong or Chorus, can help enable you and your fellow sales leaders to leverage AI-driven insights for more systematic coaching, rather than relying solely on instinct or anecdotal evidence. By combining the power of AI with traditional coaching practices, sales managers can bridge the gap between reporting and leading their teams to sales excellence.

SALES EXCELLENCE HELPS YOU WIN AN UNFAIR SHARE™ OF THE MARKET

Sales excellence does not happen in a vacuum or due to one salesperson being a genius or selling savant. Sales excellence can be achieved with strategic, concerted efforts and enablement from leadership.

Win an unfair share™ this year and achieve sustainable revenue performance. Give your sales force an extra boost with these 10 Revenue Accelerator training guides.

ENABLE SALES EXCELLENCE

Book a call with one of our revenue experts to discuss the heights you want to take your selling teams in 2025.



Driving Sales Excellence During Mergers & Acquisitions: A Playbook for PE Leaders

December 12, 2024
Jay Mitchell

In the high-stakes world of mergers and acquisitions (M&As), private equity firms often juggle the complexities of aligning diverse goals, integrating teams and merging corporate cultures — all while working to keep the revenue engine humming. The margin for error is razor-thin, and sales teams are typically on the frontlines, tasked with delivering results amid the turbulence.

And recent conversations with private equity leaders have illuminated key challenges many face in achieving sales excellence during these transitions. From Chief Revenue Officer (CRO) turnover to declining sales rep performance, pricing pressures, and disappointing win rates, the hurdles are both numerous and nuanced.

In this piece, we will cover what portfolio companies are struggling with most — and provide some time-tested paths toward maximizing sales performance and meeting growth objectives.

4 KEY CHALLENGES FACING SALES TEAMS DURING M&As

  1. CRO Turnover and Misalignment

    The role of a CRO is critical, especially in the assimilation following a merger or acquisition. Yet, many firms experience frequent CRO churn, which disrupts continuity and weakens sales leadership. Another recurring issue is a mismatch between a CRO’s skillset and the unique demands of the new organization. Too often, the problem they are tasked with solving does not align with their strengths or past experience, leaving a gap in strategic leadership of commercial operations.

  2. Sales Rep Attainment

    Achieving sales quotas has become a tall order. A leading private equity firm found that between 2021–2023 only 37.5% of their sellers achieved 90% or more of their quota targets. While some reps thrive in an M&A environment, many struggle, pulling overall team performance down. Private equity leaders must identify the most effective investments for uplifting underperformers or else reallocate resources elsewhere.

  3. Pricing Pressure vs. Pricing Power

    Price increases have averaged about 8% according to BLS to upwards 12–13% (according to same PE firm) over the last three years, but this trend is leveling out. Companies have been able to “justify” price increases under the inflation economic conditions that have engulfed the U.S. economy. As pricing power wanes, firms can no longer rely on pricing adjustments to mask revenue shortfalls. Instead, the focus must shift to demonstrating and delivering clear, differentiated value.

  4. Win Rate Volatility

    Win rates often serve as a barometer of sales health. In many sectors, win rates are slowing, raising questions about pipeline quality, lead qualification processes and sales team effectiveness. Are there fewer at-bats? Or are teams failing to close at the same rate? Sales leaders should assess the true quality of their leads and how well their sales force is prepared to take them on before they can begin to address these issues.

A PROVEN PATH TO SALES EXCELLENCE

Amid these challenges, Mereo LLC offers a blueprint for achieving sales excellence during M&As. The solution lies in two critical focus areas:

  1. Strategy and Due Diligence Support

Successful integration begins with a solid foundation of strategic alignment:

  • Joint Value Proposition: Develop a compelling and unified value proposition that speaks to buyer needs and differentiates your offering.
  • Competitive Positioning: Identify and articulate your differentiated edge in the marketplace.
  • Solution Message Alignment: Ensure all teams are on the same page with a clear, resonant message for buyers.

  1. Sales and Marketing Assimilation

Unifying sales and marketing efforts post-merger or -acquisition is essential to driving synergies and results:

  • Rationalized Sales Process/Methodology: Standardize approaches to selling and buyer engagement.
  • Sales and Customer Success Enablement: Equip teams with the tools, training, and insights they need to perform.
  • Cross-Sell Plays: Leverage the combined portfolio to unlock new revenue opportunities.
  • Joint Buyer Profile / Personas and Buyer Journey: Map out the buyer’s path to purchase with insights from both organizations.
  • Marketing Campaigns: Launch initiatives that energize the combined brand and drive demand.

EQUIP YOUR TEAMS WITH TOOLS FOR SALES EXCELLENCE IN THE YEAR AHEAD

Private equity leaders must view sales force support as a strategic investment, not a checkbox item. Sustainable revenue growth is the most effective lever for value creation. By addressing the core challenges with tailored strategies and enabling teams with unified processes and tools, portfolio companies can accelerate performance and drive growth — even during M&A transitions.

🤝 At Mereo, we specialize in helping sales teams thrive during M&As through proven frameworks and tools. Book a 30-minute call to talk through the issues your portfolio companies are facing.

👉 Looking for tools to equip your sales teams with to achieve sales excellence in the year ahead? Look to the Mereo Revenue Accelerators guide, covering the 10 essential sales skills every salesperson needs to master for success.

Your sales teams are capable of extraordinary results — but they need the right guidance and support. Partner with Mereo to navigate your next M&A with confidence and deliver unparalleled value to your portfolio.



Can a Source of Urgency Be More Valuable Than a Sense of Urgency?

October 24, 2024
Jay Mitchell

Let’s face it — today’s buyers are often buried under competing priorities, internal resistance and constant demands. They may know they need to act on a deal but are weighed down by uncertainty. This can cause delays in deals, costing your business time and opportunities, and threatening to hold your buyers back. It is your sales force’s job to help them overcome this deal paralysis.

How? Today’s buyers often fail to see their pain points as critical enough to act swiftly. They may know risks exist in their status quo — but without a seller guiding them to see the full scope of their exposure, they may delay action indefinitely.

Instead of passively searching for buyers with a “sense of urgency,” sellers need to become the source of urgency. You are not just solving pain points — you are revealing them. Here is how to make it work in practice.

HELP YOUR SALESPEOPLE EMBRACE THE ROLE OF CHALLENGER — WITHOUT BECOMING “PUNKS”

Many B2B leaders are familiar with the “Challenger” sales model, which emphasizes challenging the buyer’s status quo to drive action. But for some, the word “challenger” conjures up images of an overly aggressive or confrontational salesperson, something no one wants to be. However, becoming a source of urgency does not mean becoming a “punk” or a pushy salesperson. Instead, it means asking the tough questions and bringing to light the realities that can compel your buyer to consider what is truly at stake and what they could gain from addressing their issues.

When your salespeople are persistent, when they poke at the buyer’s complacency, they may feel like they are being too assertive. But when done right, they can take on the role of a trusted advisor who is genuinely helping the buyer by bringing hidden risks to light.

Whether they verbalize it or not, buyers often wrestle with fears like, “Can I handle this project right now?” or “What will happen if I take this risk?”

Your salesperson’s No. 1 job is to help them see that not taking action is the bigger risk.

CREATE URGENCY IN EVERY STAGE OF THE SALES PROCESS

  • Prospecting: During prospecting, your goal is not simply to qualify leads who already feel an urgent need. Instead, you should help prospects identify what is at stake if they do not take action. Ask probing questions that uncover risks or challenges they may not fully realize. Instead of waiting for the buyer to recognize their need, you proactively show them what they could be missing.
  • Discovery: Discovery is a pivotal stage where you begin to dig deeper into the buyer’s situation — this is the quest of discovery. Here, you are not just learning about their business; you are uncovering hidden issues. Buyers may say they are doing fine, but through thoughtful, curious questioning, you can help them see potential business problems they have ignored. This is where you apply the concept of “status quo busting.” By revealing the dangers of inaction, you create an internal tension that compels them to move forward.
  • Proposal: When presenting your solution, do not just focus on features and benefits. Instead, tie your solution directly to the urgent problems you uncovered during discovery. Highlight the cost of doing nothing — whether that is missed opportunities, increased risk or falling behind the competition. Sellers who understand how to align their value propositions with their buyers’ pain points can accelerate decision-making.
  • Negotiation: Even at the negotiation table, you can create urgency. By reminding the buyer of the risks they face without your solution, you position your offering as the only viable path forward. Negotiation is not about price alone; it is about helping the buyer see that delaying action will cost them far more in the long run.

CONVEYING URGENCY AUTHENTICALLY WITH SEEK TO SERVE™

Today’s broader market climate would not be characterized as a hot market, where buyers are scrambling to solve clear and present dangers. And often is the case as the marketplace ebbs and flows. But in these quieter times, your salespeople’s roles are even more critical.

Instead of hoping they find the sense of urgency themselves, empower your salespeople to be the ones to show them why acting now is essential — be the source of urgency for buyers. This is not about manipulating the buyer; it is about genuinely helping them by revealing the cost of their inaction.

Being a source of urgency takes the highest caliber of sales skills. Elevate your team’s selling prowess with these 10 most-important individual performance drivers.

 

Accelerate Your Revenue