Even talented sales teams struggle when the process underneath them is broken. And heading into 2026, the companies that win won’t just have strong reps—they’ll have strong systems.
After working with many organizations on sales diagnostics and GTM structure, I’ve found the same six breakdowns cause the majority of revenue stalls.
Here’s what to look for inside your own organization.
Too many teams accept opportunities that never should’ve been in the pipeline. Reps feel pressure to keep numbers up, so they loosen qualification standards.
The result?
This is often the first area I assess during a structured Sales Consulting engagement.
Marketing hands off a lead…
Sales isn’t ready…
The follow-up is inconsistent…
And the buyer disappears.
Misalignment slows momentum, erodes trust, and creates a poor customer experience. This is exactly why many companies invest in fractional or hybrid leadership to build clarity across teams.
Buyers aren’t persuaded by product specs—they’re persuaded when a seller understands:
Shallow discovery leads to weak proposals, vague value, and discounted deals.
If two reps define “Committed” differently, your forecast isn’t a forecast—it’s a guess.
Clear deal stages:
This becomes especially important for organizations scaling or reorganizing their sales team.
The best messaging:
The worst messaging? Generic, jargon-filled noise.
If you haven’t evaluated your messaging for 2026, this is the right time to refresh it. My broader Consulting work often begins right here.
The fortune is absolutely in the follow-up. Yet most teams:
Clear follow-up builds confidence—and wins deals.
Your sales process doesn’t need to be complicated. It just needs to be consistent, predictable, and aligned to how buyers actually make decisions.