Why Your Sales Calls Are Dying (And How to Resurrect Them)

Thursday, March 27, 2025

Why Your Sales Calls Are Dying (And How to Resurrect Them)

Hey there, sales champion —

Ever had one of those calls where everything starts perfect?

You're on fire.

They're nodding along.

The vibes? Immaculate. ✨

Then suddenly… silence.

They hit you with:

“I’ll think about it.”

Or worse — they vanish into the prospect witness protection program.

Sound familiar?

Look — you're not pitching too early.

You're just asking the wrong questions at the wrong time.

Let’s clear the smoke and drop some truth bombs 💣:

Most salespeople either:

- Sprint into pitch mode like their quota depends on it (because it does)

- Or get stuck in small-talk purgatory, chatting about weekend plans and weather patterns

Meanwhile, your prospect’s brain is going:

“Cool story… but why should I care?”

Reality check:

They don’t care about your product.

They don’t care about your testimonials.

They definitely don’t care about your award-winning company culture.

They care about one thing: themselves.

So how do you make them care about you?

Enter: Situation Questions

Not sexy. Not flashy.

But they’re your sales GPS — you can’t guide someone if you don’t know where they’re starting.

Ask yourself:

- Where are they now?

- What’s actually working?

- What’s not?

- Why should they care today?

Skip this, and you’re basically a doctor prescribing meds before checking vitals.

(Don’t be that salesperson.)

[Quick Action Checklist]

✅ Ditch the weather talk

✅ Ask 3–4 solid situation questions

✅ Use a curious tone, not a “closer” tone (think: confused old man asking for directions, not Wolf of Wall Street)

✅ Don’t rush the “boring” part — it’s where the money lives

Because here’s the harsh truth:

If you’re getting ghosted, it’s not them. It’s you.

You didn’t help them see the gap between their pain and your solution.

🔥 Example Situation Questions:

B2C Version:

- “What do you do for work?”

- “How long have you been doing that?”

- “I didn’t ask—are you on your own, or do you have a family you’re supporting?”

- “What does your spouse do for work?”

B2B Version:

- “Can you walk me through what your current setup looks like?”

- “What led you to choose that approach?”

- “How long have you been doing it that way?”

- “What’s working? What’s not?”

⚠️ Tattoo This on Your Brain:

“Selling is the art of finding and solving problems

by asking the right questions,

at the right time,

with the right tone.”

Still getting “I need to think about it”?

Still getting ghosted?

Still stuck battling objections at the end?

Then you’re skipping the part where they even realize they have a problem.

TL;DR – What to Do Today:

- Stop skipping to the pitch

- Ask 3–4 great situation questions (more if B2B, but don’t interrogate like it’s a crime scene)

- Use confused-curious tone (not alpha closer energy)

- Build the gap before you pitch the solution

Next Week:

We go deeper into Problem Awareness Questions.

That’s when they hit you with:

“Crap… I really do need help.”

Stay tuned.

— Keith G.
Referral Boss

P.S. Still winging sales calls?

That’s not a closing problem.

That’s a structure problem.

Fix the middle — the close takes care of itself.