Three Reasons Why Your Pipeline is Fraught with Risk (And What You Can Do About It)

In the world of sales, an uncertain pipeline is a silent killer. Your pipeline’s size may seem like it’s on track right now, and your sales reps may be saying all the right things about the deals within it, but you can’t help but shake this feeling that there’s something that your reps aren’t saying – or don’t know – that’s putting your organization’s annual number at risk.

Why can’t you shake this feeling? Let’s dig into three of the most common reasons why, and what can be done between now and the end of your fiscal year to make sure your pipeline stays on target.

Complex Decision-Making Processes

B2B decision-making processes are highly intricate. Depending on the deal size, multiple stakeholders may have to sign off, all bringing unique concerns and priorities. Sales reps who don’t understand what’s yet to navigate will provide closing timelines that often end up getting pushed way back. This leaves leaders scrambling as they brainstorm how to satisfy everyone’s needs and bring in deals on time and at close to original scope.

Ever-Changing Customer Needs

Customizing a solution that is tailored to the specific needs of each customer requires a deep understanding of the customer’s business and operational needs, which can (and do) evolve over time. Adapting to the complexity of a customer’s dynamic needs often means more time needed to do discovery and make adjustments to the original scope, adding days or potentially months to deals.

Fluctuating Individual Behaviors

Prospect behavior is influenced by many factors, including budget constraints, company mandates and operational needs. These factors can change unexpectedly, leading potential customers to become skittish when they were once eager. To add to it, economic downturns, shifts in industry trends, and changes in regulatory environments (depending on the industry) can all impact a customer’s willingness and ability to invest in new solutions. Many of these factors are often unforeseen or overlooked, as they can emerge unexpectedly mid-funnel when everything appears to be progressing smoothly.

Invest in Tools That Give Your Teams Real Insight

The commonality between all three of these factors? A lack of timely, accurate, nuanced information. Emissary’s unique sales intelligence solution helps sales teams stay ahead of the blind spots that prolong their sales cycles and jeopardize once-certain deals, ultimately leading your sales pipeline to become more predictable.

Talk to us today to learn how we can support your sales pipeline.