PETER BUTTON
Not just winning the sale. Taking greater care about what customers achieve
I believe salespeople are becoming increasingly accountable not just for winning the sale, but for what the customer gets from it. Here I explore what that means for salespeople, leaders and the customers they serve, and what AI is changing.
IN MOST SALES TEAMS, SALESPEOPLE ARE JUDGED ON JUST ONE THING
“Did they win the business?”
This single accountability is not a choice any one salesperson makes. It is built into targets, training, reporting and compensation. It is designed into how selling is run.
Dual accountability
One accountability is added. None is removed.
REMAINS
Commercial results
Salespeople remain accountable for achieving commercial results. That does not change.
INCREASINGLY
How rigorously expectations are agreed
Before commitments are made, for everyone with a stake in the sale:
Those who decide
Those who will use it
Colleagues who deliver it
Customers own their outcomes. Salespeople are not accountable for whether outcomes are achieved. What changes is the quality of the agreement on which everyone commits.
Why this is changing now
Good practice, finally within reach
I
Always good practice, rarely achievable
In forty years of working with B2B sales teams, I have seen very few salespeople able to do it consistently. It took more time, skill and careful documentation than the job allowed.
II
AI makes the work possible
Conversations can now be recorded and turned into clear documents. Who said what and what was agreed become visible, and gaps become easier to spot.
III
Leaders make it accountable
A record alone changes nothing. Accountability needs clear responsibilities, agreed standards and leaders who review the quality of the work.
THIS IS OUTCOME-ACCOUNTABLE SELLING
“In Outcome-Accountable Selling, salespeople remain accountable for achieving commercial results and become increasingly accountable for how rigorously the expected outcomes of all key stakeholders are identified, defined, aligned and agreed before the relevant commercial commitments are made.”
This changes how selling is led and governed: roles, incentives, systems and the way deals are reviewed. I believe the organisations that make this shift first will outcompete the rest, and build lasting value as they do.
ABOUT ME
I've spent the last four decades as an independent B2B sales trainer, coach and consultant, developing other people's sales teams. I originated Outcome-Accountable Selling.
I've seen what the best sellers do, and why most salespeople have found it incredibly hard to work that way. I believe AI is now making this possible for far more salespeople. Here I develop that argument, in films and writing, and test it in the open.
Follow the argument as it develops
New films and thinking, by email. Free. Unsubscribe at any time.
For practical guidance, films and resources to apply the approach, visit Sales Reset.