Sales can very easily become a numbers game.
Pipelines, targets, KPIs, dashboards. It's easy to get swept up in activity metrics and forget what sales actually is at its core.
A conversation between people.
When you're selling a consultative solution, especially in B2B high-ticket environments, the relationship you build with your buyer is as important as the solution itself.
Yet, many sales motions are built around speed and scale, rather than trust or relevance.
The result? A disconnect. A buyer who feels processed, not understood. And a sales experience that may hit the numbers short-term but damages long-term loyalty, referrals, and retention.
If you're not thinking about your buyer as a person, with pressures, blockers, internal politics, and competing priorities. Then what exactly are you doing? You're not selling. You're just pushing. And in this market, that's not going to cut it.
Sales is not just a transaction
Let's face it: we've all had moments where the pressure to close the quarter outweighs the quality of the conversation.
Sales leaders want results. Founders want pipeline. Teams want performance.
But when you sell complex solutions, the person you're engaging is often making one of many high-stakes decisions. They're not just buying a product. They're betting political capital, time, and resources. They're thinking about onboarding, outcomes, and accountability.
So when sellers treat the interaction like a tick-box or a funnel stage, it creates friction. And even if you manage to "close" the deal, you've already weakened the relationship that follows. Because the buyer isn't just choosing your solution. They're choosing you.
In this context, hitting your target isn't just about how many deals you close. It's about how well you set those deals up to succeed long after the contract is signed.
What does it mean to humanise sales?
Humanising sales means designing an experience that works for real people, not just CRM fields.
It's a deliberate shift away from automation for the sake of scale towards relevance, trust, and emotional intelligence.
It's about acknowledging that your prospect is a human being first and a buyer second.
Your job is to support decision-making, not manipulate it; that's how you sell matters as much as what you sell.
This isn't a soft skill. It's a hard advantage. In markets where attention is expensive and trust is rare, the businesses that win are the ones that connect on a human level.
So what does that look like in practice?
1. Empathy over efficiency
Most sales processes are built around velocity. How fast can we move the deal from Stage 1 to Stage 4? How quickly can we schedule a call, send a deck, get the quote out?
But what happens when your buyer isn't ready? When they're still making sense of the problem? Or waiting on internal approval? Or just unsure?
In those moments, speed kills. What's needed instead is empathy.
Empathy means recognising that your timeline isn't their timeline. It means asking deeper questions. Not just about budget and authority, but about internal blockers, decision risks, and competing priorities. It means holding space in the conversation, not rushing to fill it with features or value props.
When buyers feel understood, they open up. And when they open up, you gain real insight. That insight is the foundation for trust. And trust is what gets deals done. Especially the difficult ones.
2. Conversation, not campaign
Scripted sequences. Email cadences. "Bump" follow-ups. These tactics have become the default in many outbound motions.
But let's be honest, they're easy to spot and even easier to ignore.
The moment your outreach feels templated, your credibility drops. And when you sound like a robot, you'll be treated like one.
Instead, treat every interaction as a live conversation. Ask real questions. React to what you hear. Be curious about their context. Let the dialogue go somewhere unexpected.
This is especially important when selling high-ticket solutions, where the real objections and motivators rarely surface in the first few minutes.
They come out over time in signals, in tone, in side comments. But only if you're paying attention.
Sales isn't theatre. It's a dialogue. Act like it.
3. Personalisation that goes beyond {{FirstName}}
Yes, personalisation improves conversion. But what most teams call "personalised" is actually just recycled variables in a template.
Real personalisation means showing that you've done your homework. That you understand the business model, the industry dynamics, and the likely pain points your buyer is facing right now. It means tailoring not just your message, but your value.
Instead of saying, "Here's what we do,"
Try: "From what I can see, it looks like you might be dealing with [insert specific situation]. We've helped businesses like yours navigate that by [solution]. Is that worth a conversation?"
This isn't about flattery. It's about relevance. And in crowded markets, relevance is everything.
4. Real relationships, not transactions
If your goal is to "close," then every conversation becomes binary: win or lose. But if your goal is to build a relationship, every conversation becomes an opportunity.
Not everyone will be ready to buy. Some won't have budget. Some will have internal roadblocks. Some won't trust you. Yet.
That's fine. What matters is how you show up.
When you treat prospects with respect, even when they say no, you leave the door open for future opportunities.
That "no" can turn into a "not yet." And when the timing is right, they'll come back to the person who didn't push them, but just helped them.
This is how real salespeople build real pipelines. Not by chasing deals. But by building trust that compounds over time.
5. Transparency builds trust
In a world full of hype and overpromising, honesty is rare. And rare gets noticed.
Be clear about what your offer does and doesn't do. Talk about trade-offs. Be upfront about pricing. If your solution isn't the right fit, say so.
Buyers are smart. They've seen the tricks. So when you skip the spin and give them the truth, it signals confidence.
And here's the kicker: transparency doesn't lose deals. It qualifies them faster. It earns respect. And it often brings the buyer closer, not further away.
So what?
Humanising sales isn't about ditching process or structure. It's about using them in service of connection.
The companies that will win in the next cycle aren't just the ones with the best product. They're the ones who make people feel seen. Buyers remember that, especially in tough markets.
If your current sales engine is built for scale but not substance, it's time for a rethink.
Start by asking: at every point in your process, from discovery to outreach and follow-up. Are you building a relationship or pushing a product?
Because sales might start with a lead, but it closes with trust.
Let's wrap this up
If you want your sales process to drive sustainable, long-term growth, you need to humanise it and think about the overall experience.
That means slowing down to understand your buyer, having real conversations, and delivering genuine value. And being transparent, whether the deal closes or not.
Here's a challenge: map out your current sales process. Then highlight the moments where your team is building trust, not just moving to the next stage.
Where are you creating real connection? Where are you just ticking a box?
If your pipeline has stalled or your team is relying too heavily on inbound, it's time to take control of your sales engine.
Let's rebuild it around people, not pressure.