The Most Important Trait for Top Sales Performers in 2025

By the JOLT Effect Marketing Team

In 2025, top sales performers will once again stand out by their ability to tackle the biggest growing challenge in sales: customer indecision. With so many options and information available at our fingertips, customers need help making decisions. To navigate this landscape effectively, one critical skill sales professionals need to work is the ability to listen with intention. 

Today, we’ll cover what intentional listening is, why it matters in sales, and how top performers are using this skill to close more deals. 

Intentional Listening: The Secret to Unlocking Sales Success

We all know about active listening—the practice of listening to a customer with your full attention. But what if we could redefine this concept to unlock even greater potential? 

Enter "intentional listening"—a modern approach that focuses on who we listen to, what we listen for, and when we engage in these conversations. This shift in perspective can transform how we understand and address customer indecision, a common hurdle in closing deals.

Intentional listening is more than just paying close attention; it's about strategically tuning into the right voices and signals. In sales, this means not only hearing the buyer's ability to purchase but also their capacity to decide. Often, salespeople focus on the former, missing critical cues about the latter. 

By expanding our listening to include a broader range of stakeholders within the buying group, we can better gauge the levels of indecision that might be present. By focusing their listening on the right people, sales reps can cut through uncertainty and hesitation more effectively, and tailor every conversation to not just the right concerns but the concerns of the critical person in the sale. This is one of the most important skills a salesperson can have!

The Who, What, and When of Intentional Listening

1. Who Are You Listening To?

Engaging with multiple voices within the buying group is crucial–sellers cannot rely on their champion or advocate alone. Because indecision can exist at both the individual and the buying group level, engaging with a diverse set of individuals provides the most comprehensive view of the decision-making landscape. 

Thanks to our research outlined in The Jolt Effect, we know that indecision exists in 87% of opportunities—so if you don’t see indecision present in your conversations, you may not be talking to the right person. If you’re struggling to progress your deal, your next best step may be to have more conversations throughout the organization. Many sellers fail to earn time with enough individuals in the buying group, missing out on critical insights.

And–if you haven’t yet tried to earn time with the senior-most decision makers within the account–it’s time to start investing in your communication with those folks. Senior decision-makers often regard themselves as decisive but suffer equally from hidden indecision given the visibility and consequence of their choices. These senior buyers may also be less likely to admit when they are suffering from indecision, in part because their past decisiveness likely helped them to land their current role!

2. What Are You Listening For?

Sellers must re-tune their listening to detect not only the ability to buy, but also the ability to decide. This involves discerning verbal and non-verbal cues that indicate hesitation or uncertainty. Often, these signals are related to the three most common fears our buyers face: fear of picking the wrong option, fear of a lack of complete purchase information, and fear of outcome uncertainty. 

Recognizing these signals early allows you to tailor your approach to address specific concerns and build confidence in the decision-making process. 

It’s worth noting a more subtle aspect of listening for indecision at this point. Some forms of looking or listening for indecision provide more insight than others. For example, it’s possible that you could pick up on indecision in the form of a text or email – perhaps you are getting bombarded by buyers with requests for more information or references, a sign of information overload. A better option would be an indirect view, such as signs of indecision relayed to you through your champion or another advocate on the account. But the best way to listen for indecision is through a direct conversation, either virtually or in-person, where you can judge both verbal and non-verbal cues for yourself. 

3. When Are You Listening?

Regularly updating your understanding of the customer's mindset is essential. When reflecting on any given deal, consider your answer to this question: “How recent is my point of view on the level of indecision within this buying group?”

Past interactions may not reflect current conditions, especially if you're dealing with existing customers considering renewals or new purchases. Conditional drivers of indecision, such as time pressure related to the purchase or the overall importance of the purchase for the client, require recent intentional listening to understand the organization’s mindset at the time of this purchase.

Continuous engagement ensures your insights remain relevant and actionable. Always remember that outdated information can lead to misjudgments about a customer's current state of mind.

Conclusion: Applying Intentional Listening to Overcome Indecision

Active listening, a foundational element of sales training, is not a new concept. However, its application in the context of intentional listening brings new urgency. Intentional listening is a powerful tool in addressing customer indecision, which affects a significant portion of sales opportunities. 

By actively seeking out and interpreting the right information, salespeople can make the invisible visible, uncovering hidden hesitations that might otherwise derail a deal. By focusing on the right people, signals, and timing, you can better understand and address the underlying causes of indecision, ultimately leading to more successful outcomes and significantly enhancing your ability to navigate complex buying environments. 

This approach aligns with the principles of the JOLT method, which emphasizes judging the level of customer indecision, offering recommendations, limiting exploration, and taking risk off the table. Intentional listening supports these strategies by providing the insights needed to tailor your approach effectively.

As we continue to refine our approach, intentional listening stands out as a critical skill for any sales professional looking to elevate their conversations and close more deals. Engaging with a broader spectrum of voices and maintaining an updated perspective on customer needs will ensure that your sales efforts are both effective and impactful, in 2025 and beyond. 

Start Listening To Your Customers In 2025

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