7 Best Sales Techniques Every Team Should Master

With budgets tightening and win rates slipping, 67% of sales reps don’t expect to hit their quota.

Yet somehow, one third of reps are consistently exceeding their targets, even in the same challenging market conditions.

We've broken down what sets the top performers apart. 

Here are the seven sales techniques that actually close deals, backed by research and real-world case studies.

What Makes a Sales Technique Effective

The most effective sales techniques share three critical characteristics: they build context before pitching, speak each stakeholder's language, and leverage technology to scale human connection rather than replace it.

Build Multi-Channel Context Before You Pitch

Email remains the dominant B2B sales channel—73% of buyers prefer vendor contact via email. 

But here's what most reps miss: you still need to bring the right context to your messages. Emails that reference previous interactions see 50% higher engagement rates than cold outreach. 

The winning move is connecting with prospects across multiple touchpoints first. Comment on their LinkedIn posts, share relevant industry content, and engage with their company updates. When you finally send that email, you're not a random vendor—you're someone who's been paying attention to their world.

This approach transforms your cold email from interruption to continuation. 

Instead of "Hi, I'd like to show you our platform," you can write, "Saw your post about scaling challenges—reminded me of how [similar company] tackled the same issue." 

Now you're having a conversation.

Align Your Message with Every Stakeholder

B2B deals aren’t usually made with one person. They involve a web of decision-makers, each with different priorities, concerns, and perspectives. The CFO cares about ROI, the IT lead about integration, and the end user about usability. Treating everyone the same is a shortcut to a stalled deal.

Winning reps map out these stakeholders early. They understand who influences the decision, what metrics matter most to each person, and what objections might arise. Then they tailor their messaging accordingly, without diluting the core value proposition.

For example, when interacting with different stakeholders at each stage of the sales cycle, the message to the CFO might highlight cost savings and revenue impact, while the IT lead gets specifics on implementation ease and security. 

Automate Where Possible, Personalize Always

No matter which sales technique you end up using, personalization is non-negotiable—and so is automation.

Today, these two aren’t mutually exclusive—they complement each other. Using both effectively has become the baseline for success.

Let’s take outbound prospecting as an example. 

Automation allows you to reach more prospects consistently through multi-channel sequences without manually managing every step. At the same time, automation enables personalization—the best prospects are identified with precision, outreach is sent at the right moment rather than randomly, and messages incorporate personal details drawn from the prospect’s web activity. 

A successful combo of automation and personalization is what separates effective outbound from “spray and pray.”

Automate your outbound with an AI BDR

Meet Ava—your AI BDR who handles prospecting, outreach, and follow-ups, so your team can focus on closing.

Book a Demo

7 Best Sales Techniques to Close More Deals

Top performers pick sales techniques and execute them with ruthless consistency.

Most importantly, they close deals within optimal timing windows, achieving 203% higher win rates by respecting sales cycle stages rather than rushing through or skipping them.

We've identified the seven techniques that separate quota crushers at each stage of the sales process.

1. Sell to Pain Points, Not Products (Consultative Selling)

Instead of pitching faster processing speeds, better integrations, or shinier dashboards, top performers start by diagnosing the real business pain.

The first shift you need to make to close more deals is rethinking what you’re actually selling.

If you’ve been focused on what your product does, stop. Start selling what your prospect's life will look like after their problem is solved.

Step 1: Dig for the real pain

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  "Walk me through your current process for [specific workflow]."

  
  
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  "What causes [pain point]?"

  
  
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  "How much time does your team spend on [manual task] each week?"

  
  

Step 2: Quantify the impact

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  "So you're saying your team spends 10 hours a week on manual data entry?"

  
  
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  "...and that's across how many people?"

  
  
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  "What could those 50 hours be worth if they were spent on strategic work instead?"

  
  

Step 3: Paint the before-and-after picture

Don’t say, "Our platform has advanced analytics capabilities." Instead, try this: "So right now, you're flying blind on which leads are actually worth your team's time. You're spending 50 hours a week chasing prospects that have a 2% close rate, while missing the high-intent leads. What if your team could focus those 50 hours on prospects that convert at 15%? You'd multiply your pipeline with the same effort."

2. Qualify and Prioritize Your Prospects (Work Smarter)

A lot of reps make the mistake of treating every lead like a hot prospect.

Top performers are ruthless qualifiers. They'd rather disqualify 100 mediocre leads to find 10 perfect ones than waste months chasing ghosts.

One of the most battle-tested approaches is MEDDIC—a methodology developed in the 1990s by sales leaders at PTC, an enterprise software company. Using this framework, PTC grew from $300 million to $1 billion in sales in just four years.

MEDDIC Framework Overview

Here’s the MEDDIC qualification framework:

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  Metrics (M): What specific, measurable outcomes are they trying to achieve?

  
  
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  Economic Buyer (E): Who owns the budget and final decision?

  
  
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  Decision Criteria (D): What factors will determine their choice?

  
  
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  Decision Process (D): What steps must happen before they can buy?

  
  
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  Identify Pain (I): What's broken that they need to fix?

  
  
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  Champion (C): Who internally is fighting for this solution?

  
  

The Disqualification Questions That Save You Months

Ask these questions early to disqualify leads unlikely to turn into customers:

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  Budget: "Typically, solutions like this run between $X and $Y annually. Is that range something your team has budgeted for this year?"

  
  
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  Timeline: "When you say 'soon,' what does that mean exactly? Are we talking weeks, months, or next quarter?"

  
  
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  Authority: "Besides yourself, who else would need to sign off on a decision like this? And what's the typical process for getting their approval?"

  
  

How Cisco Offloaded Lead Qualification to Machine Learning

At one point, Cisco’s sales teams managed 40,000 global accounts, with each rep juggling 70 to 80 prospects at once.

Before any outreach, they had to manually check if an account was already assigned, which products were a good fit, and who the right contacts were. The process ate up hours and slowed reps down—yet cutting corners risked hurting lead quality.

To fix this, Cisco built AI workflows that flag buyer-readiness signals. Machine learning then scores and prioritizes leads automatically, so sellers spend less time sifting and more time closing.

The system delivers lead scores, priority rankings, and suggested next steps through the dashboard built directly into Cisco’s CRM. 

3. Leverage Psychology & Persuasion (Science-Based Selling)

Behind every B2B purchase is a human being who's worried about looking stupid, missing their targets, or getting fired. Master these psychological triggers, and you'll close deals that your competitors can't touch.

Social Proof: The Herd Mentality Advantage

People want to make the "safe" choice. When someone similar to them has already succeeded with your solution, it removes risk and validates their decision.

Weak social proof: "We have over 500 customers."

Strong social proof: "Three months ago, the VP of Sales at [similar company] was in your exact situation. 70% of his team was missing quota, and leadership was breathing down his neck. After implementing our solution, his team's close rate went from 8% to 23%. He just got promoted to Chief Revenue Officer."

Scarcity and FOMO

Scarcity works because loss aversion is two times stronger than gain motivation. People fear missing out more than they value getting something.

Use one of these tactical scarcity triggers when appropriate:

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  "The current pricing tier expires at the end of the month."

  
  
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  "Your competitor just started using this approach—they're seeing a 40% lift in response rates."

  
  

Strategic Storytelling: Make It Stick (PAS Framework)

Stories bypass analytical thinking and hit emotional centers directly. Structure yours with the Problem, Agitation, Solution (PAS) framework.

Here’s an example of the PAS in action: 

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   Problem: "A client told me they were losing $2M annually because their best prospects were going to competitors."

   
   
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   Agitation: "They tried everything—new CRM, more training, hiring expensive consultants. Nothing worked. The board was asking tough questions."

   
   
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   Solution: "That's when they started using our solution. Within 90 days, they were closing 30% more deals. The CEO called it the best investment they'd made in five years."

   
   

4. Overcome Objections & Close the Deal

When prospects object, they're telling you exactly what's preventing them from saying yes. The best reps welcome objections as a roadmap to the close.

The LAER Method for Objection Handling

One proven approach is the LAER method—a framework that aims at making customers feel heard and understood before you address their objection.

Here’s an overview of the LAER method: 

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  Listen (L): Don't interrupt, even if you've heard it 1000 times.

  
  
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  Acknowledge (A): Validate their concern as legitimate.

  
  
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  Explore (E): Understand the root cause.

  
  
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  Respond (R): Address the real issue, not surface objections.

  
  

Common Objections & Proven Responses

Now, let’s look at how to apply the framework to the most common objections you’ve definitely heard from your prospects.

"It's too expensive."

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  Listen: Let them fully explain the cost concern.

  
  
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  Acknowledge: "I understand budget is always a consideration."

  
  
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  Explore: "When you say expensive, are you comparing us to other solutions you've looked at, or is this about total budget availability?"

  
  
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  Respond: "I hear you on the investment. Let's look at it this way—you mentioned you're losing 50 qualified leads per month to slow follow-up. At your average deal size of $15K, that's $750K in missed revenue annually. Our solution costs $60K per year but recovers 80% of those lost deals."

  
  

"We need to check with other stakeholders."

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  Listen: Let them explain who else needs to weigh in.

  
  
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  Acknowledge: "Smart to get everyone aligned."

  
  
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  Explore: "Who specifically needs to be involved, and what will their main concerns be?"

  
  
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  Respond: "Great, let's make sure they have everything they need to make an informed decision. How about I put together a business case that addresses [stakeholder concern], and we can review it together before you present it?"

  
  

Once you've handled objections, close with confidence. Stop selling once they're ready to buy, assume the sale is on, and focus on implementation.

5. Master Nonverbal Communication (Body Language & Tone)

Top sellers speak less than half the time, but nonverbal communication is at work throughout the entire conversation. The general secret to effective sales communication is energy matching.

Here’s how to match a prospect’s energy. 

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  If they're high-energy and fast-talking, mirror their pace.

  
  
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  If they're analytical and measured, slow down and be more deliberate.

  
  
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  If they're casual, loosen up; if formal, tighten up.

  
  

Depending on whether it’s a video call, a phone conversation, or an in-person meeting, you can adopt more specific techniques.

6. Go Multi-Channel & Social (Meet Buyers Where They Are)

It takes 71 touchpoints to generate a marketing-qualified lead (MQL), 96 touchpoints for an MQL to turn into a sales-qualified lead (SQL), and 99 touchpoints until an SQL becomes closed-won. 

That’s a lot of interactions—and the higher the deal value, the more touchpoints you need.

Most importantly, these touchpoints aren't just cold outreach attempts. We're talking about all interactions at all stages of the sales cycle: organic website visits, ad clicks, email opens, webinar registrations, social media engagement, content downloads, and then direct sales contact. 

And even when you finally connect with a prospect—maybe on the 124th touchpoint—you still don’t jump straight into a pitch. You nurture the relationship first. Here’s how that might look:

Week 1 Nurture Sequence

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  Day 1: Cold email (problem-focused, not product-focused)

  
  
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  Day 3: LinkedIn connection request (reference the email)

  
  
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  Day 5: Follow-up email with valuable resource (case study, industry report)

  
  

Week 2  Nurture Sequence

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  Day 8: LinkedIn message (share relevant insight)

  
  
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  Day 10: Phone call (reference previous touchpoints)

  
  
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  Day 12: Email with social proof (customer story similar to their situation)

  
  

Week 3 Nurture Sequence 

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  Day 15: LinkedIn comment/share on their content

  
  
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  Day 17: Email with scarcity element ("closing three spots for Q1 implementation")

  
  
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  Day 19: Final phone call and voicemail

  
  

Social Selling Done Right

Forty-two percent of salespeople say social media has the highest prospect response rate versus just 26% for email.

Still, most "social selling" is just spam with a LinkedIn DM wrapper. Real social selling builds relationships through value. Instead of hitting prospects with a pitch the moment they accept your invite.

Follow these steps for social selling: 

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   Follow prospects' companies and key executives.

   
   
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   Set alerts for company news, funding, and executive changes.

   
   
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   Comment thoughtfully on their posts (add insight, don't just praise).

   
   
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   Share content they'll find valuable (tag them when relevant).

   
   

7. Leverage AI and Automation (Your 24/7 Sales Assistant)

As much as we’d like to call AI the big competitive differentiator, that moment has already passed. Today, only 8% of sales reps aren’t using it. 

AI in sales isn’t a nice-to-have that sets you apart anymore. It’s a must-have just to keep up.

Using AI sales assistants is the new essential sales technique for top performers. You have to unload the repetitive stuff (prospecting, initial outreach, data entry) to AI so you can focus on delivering value. 

How AI Transforms Each Stage of Sales

Here are the four main ways that AI transforms sales: 

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  Prospecting: AI can analyze thousands of companies in minutes, identifying perfect-fit prospects based on technographics, funding events, hiring patterns, and behavioral signals.

  
  
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  Research: AI pulls comprehensive company intel, recent news, mutual connections, and buying signals in seconds.

  
  
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  Outreach: AI writes personalized emails at scale, pulling from successful templates and adapting messaging based on prospect characteristics and response patterns.

  
  
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  Follow-up: AI manages sequences, tracks engagement, and escalates hot prospects while nurturing cold ones automatically.

  
  

Real Success Story: How Bioaccess Booked Dozens of Meetings with Artisan

Bioaccess is a biotech services company that was struggling with manual prospecting. Their team didn’t have a consistent sales process, and they mainly relied on word-of-mouth.

They brought in Artisan's AI BDR Ava to handle prospecting. Ava started to run 24/7 outreach for Bioaccess, achieving a consistent 1.2% positive response rate. 

With AI-powered prospecting, the company booked more meetings than ever before without expanding its small sales team.

Implementation Strategy

Here’s how to implement AI in your sales process: 

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  Phase 1: Start with AI-powered prospecting and research. Let AI identify and research prospects while humans handle all outreach.

  
  
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  Phase 2: Add AI-powered email sequences for top-of-funnel outreach. Human reps take over once prospects respond.

  
  
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  Phase 3: Run full automation of initial sales outreach and qualification, with seamless handoffs to human reps for sales conversations.

  
  

As AI handles more of the repetitive work, your human reps get more practice with high-value activities. They become better at discovery calls, objection handling, and closing—while AI gets smarter about which prospects are worth pursuing.

Automate your outbound with an AI BDR

Meet Ava—your AI BDR who handles prospecting, outreach, and follow-ups, so your team can focus on closing.

Book a Demo

How to Apply These Techniques to Your Sales Strategy

Whether you choose to design a new lead qualification framework or an objective handling strategy, you need a detailed week-by-week plan. 

Week 1: Audit Your Current Sales Process

Before you can fix what's broken, you need to know where you stand. Pull your CRM data from the last 90 days and answer the following questions honestly.

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  How many leads enter your pipeline versus how many actually close? If you're converting less than 13-20%, you have a qualification problem.

  
  
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  How much time do your reps spend on actual selling versus administrative tasks, research, and unqualified prospects? If it's less than 20%, you need better systems.

  
  
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  What are the top 3 objections your team hears? If you don’t have a framework for addressing those, it’s time to build it.

  
  
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  Which touchpoints actually generate responses? If you're still relying on email-only sequences, you're leaving money on the table.

  
  

Week 2: Map Your Stakeholders and Personas

When you’ve detected qualification gaps, build persona cheatsheets to improve your targeting and messaging.

Persona cheatsheets should include:

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  Primary pain points

  
  
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  Metrics they value (revenue growth, cost reduction, efficiency gains)

  
  
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  Decision-making processes and who influences them

  
  
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  Preferred communication style (data-driven, relationship-focused, urgency-driven)

  
  
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  Common objections they raise and proven responses

  
  

Once you have these, customize your MEDDIC questions and social proof stories for each persona. A one-size-fits-all approach is a one-size-fits-none approach.

Week 3: Automate Your Outreach (the Smart Way)

You’re here to think, strategize, and close deals—let automation do most of the manual work.

Here’s how to automate outreach: 

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  Set up multi-channel cadences: Your prospects are on LinkedIn, email, and phone. Meet them where they are with coordinated messaging across all channels.

  
  
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  Create value-driven touchpoints: Each interaction should solve a problem, share an insight, or provide social proof. If your touchpoint doesn't make the prospect's life better, scrap it.

  
  
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  Build trigger-based sequences: When a prospect downloads your case study, visits your pricing page, or engages with your social content, they should automatically enter relevant follow-up sequences.

  
  
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  Use AI to power your workflows: Let AI handle lead scoring, rep action recommendations, and personalized messaging at scale. It can surface the hottest prospects, suggest the right follow-ups, and free up your reps’ time to focus on conversations that actually close deals.

  
  

Ongoing: Track & Optimize Key Metrics

Your CRM is full of vanity metrics that don't help. First off, isolated metrics mean nothing. Look at your performance dynamically—how the changes you've made are actually affecting your results.

For instance, if you're getting more rigorous with targeting and qualification, your reply rates might tank, but your closed-won rate should increase. This is what matters most. Make decisions based on the full picture only, not individual metrics in isolation.

Why Tools Like Artisan Give You an Edge

Your competitors are already using AI. The question isn't whether you should adopt these tools—it's whether you want to compete with one hand tied behind your back.

Built for Multi-Channel Outreach

Artisan orchestrates email and LinkedIn outreach in one place, so your prospects get consistent, coordinated touchpoints without your team juggling several different platforms.

Ava Is Your AI BDR

Ava frees your best reps to focus on what humans do best: building relationships, handling complex objections, and closing high-value deals. Behind the curtains, she discovers leads, researches them, writes personalized messages, and follows up when needed.

Outbound That Actually Scales

With Ava, outbound is no more manual—you get the most qualified leads without lifting a finger. Features like the email deliverability optimizer and background A/B tester also work on autopilot to improve your campaigns without any human input. 

Luck Won’t Close Deals: A Smarter Stack Will

The companies winning in 2025 don’t stop at using better techniques. They're using better tools to execute those techniques at scale, with precision, and with the persistence that moves deals forward.

Pick one tactic from the list and put it into practice today. But remember, it all starts with automated personalization. Artisan can become your “unfair” advantage—helping you do more, faster, and with impact that luck alone could never deliver.

Automate your outbound with an AI BDR

Meet Ava—your AI BDR who handles prospecting, outreach, and follow-ups, so your team can focus on closing.

Book a Demo