The surprising truth about what closes deals: Insights from 2.5m sales conversations | Matt Dixon

Matt Dixon is one of the world’s foremost experts in sales and the author of The Challenger Sale, which sold over a million copies worldwide and was a #1 Amazon and Wall Street Journal bestseller. His most recent book, The JOLT Effect, focuses on overcoming customer indecision—one of the biggest challenges to closing deals. Outside of writing, Matt co-founded DCM Insights, a boutique consultancy helping organizations understand customer behavior, and is a frequent contributor to the Harvard Business Review, with more than 20 print and online articles to his credit. In our conversation, we discuss: • Why 40% to 60% of qualified sales opportunities are lost due to customer indecision • Why dialing up FOMO doesn’t work, and what to do instead • The “pings and echoes” technique to catch issues early • The JOLT method for overcoming indecision • Key lessons from The Challenger Sale • Practical examples of how to apply these principles to close more deals — Brought to you by: • Enterpret—Transform customer feedback into product growth: https://enterpret.com/lenny • Webflow—The web experience platform: https://webflow.com • Heap—Cross-platform product analytics that converts, engages, and retains customers: https://www.heap.io/lenny Find the transcript and references at: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/close-more-deals-matt-dixon Where to find Matt Dixon: • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/matthewxdixon • Website: https://www.jolteffect.com/ Where to find Lenny: • Newsletter: https://www.lennysnewsletter.com • X: https://twitter.com/lennysan • LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/lennyrachitsky/ In this episode, we cover: (00:00) Matt’s background (01:57) The research behind Matt’s books (06:08) Insights from The JOLT Effect (10:15) FOMO vs. FOMU (18:18) An example of selling software (26:04) The JOLT method Step 1: Judge their level of indecision (29:41) The “pings and echoes” technique (34:49) Step 2: Offer a recommendation (38:36) Step 3: Limit the exploration (41:43) Step 4: Take risk off the table (45:58) When to hit the pause button with a customer (47:27) Insights from The Challenger Sale (49:07) An example of a challenger sale (55:23) Where to find Matt Referenced: • A step-by-step guide to crafting a sales pitch that wins | April Dunford (author of Obviously Awesome and Sales Pitch): https://www.lennysnewsletter.com/p/a-step-by-step-guide-to-crafting • The Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation: https://www.amazon.com/Challenger-Sale-Control-Customer-Conversation/dp/0670922854 • The JOLT Effect: How High Performers Overcome Customer Indecision: https://www.amazon.com/JOLT-Effect-Performers-Overcome-Indecision/dp/0593538102 • Gartner acquires CEB: https://www.gartner.com/en/about/acquisitions/history/ceb-acquisition • Tiger King on Netflix: https://www.netflix.com/title/81115994 • Why sourdough went viral: https://www.economist.com/1843/2020/08/04/why-sourdough-went-viral • Neil Rackham: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Neil_Rackham • Status quo bias in decision-making: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Status_quo_bias • Omission bias: https://thedecisionlab.com/biases/omission-bias • Gartner Magic Quadrant & Critical Capabilities: https://www.gartner.com/en/research/magic-quadrant • Dunning-Kruger effect: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dunning%E2%80%93Kruger_effect • Stop Losing Sales to Customer Indecision: https://hbr.org/2022/06/stop-losing-sales-to-customer-indecision • Dentsply Sirona: https://www.dentsplysirona.com/ • “We happy?” Briefcase scene from Tarantino’s Pulp Fiction: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FGchDuOpbhE • Nupro Freedom Cordless Prophy System: https://www.dentsplysirona.com/en-us/discover/discover-by-category/preventive/hygiene-handpieces.html Production and marketing by https://penname.co/. For inquiries about sponsoring the podcast, email podcast@lennyrachitsky.com. Lenny may be an investor in the companies discussed.