What is the JOLT Effect? Everything You Need To Know

By the JOLT Effect Marketing Team

The JOLT Effect is a transformative sales framework developed by Matthew Dixon and Ted McKenna to tackle the issue of customer indecision in sales. Our research found that a staggering 40% to 60% of deals are lost to customer indecision—representing a significant opportunity to improve win rate. What’s even more surprising is understanding why. Of those deals lost to “no decision,” 44% were lost to a preference for the status quo, while the majority–56%–were lost to indecision stemming from risk or fear of failure. 

While that might not seem like a huge difference, our research highlights two important lessons to help you seize this opportunity. First, while there is no shortage of playbooks designed to build a compelling case for change, there is very little guidance on how to tackle indecision. In other words, improving the 44% won’t make nearly as much of an impact as addressing the 56%.

Secondly, our research found that what most sellers do when they encounter indecision often makes the situation worse—they double down on making the case against the status quo. In fact, our research showed this approach backfired 84% of the time. Indecision often appears as indifference, so recognizing and responding to it differently is crucial.

Finally, there is a playbook for addressing indecision that high performers use to achieve nearly double the win rate of average performers.

That’s what JOLT has codified. The JOLT method is complementary to any selling methodology, and for the first time equips sales professionals with the tools to help hesitant buyers through the sales process, ultimately guiding them toward decisive action. In an increasingly competitive landscape, mastering the JOLT Effect can significantly enhance close rates and foster greater customer loyalty, positioning sales organizations (like yours!) for long-term success.

Today, we’ll take a closer look at each of the four skills of the JOLT method—and cover how each can change how you think about selling forever.

J: Judging the Customer’s Level of Indecision

The first skill in the JOLT method is judging the indecision. While experienced sellers know all about qualifying a prospect in terms of external criteria like company size or use case—what you may not be considering is the internal criteria. Is this buyer prepared mentally to sign on the dotted line? Are they willing to champion your product or service to the right person? Are they comfortable putting their name on the line—essentially taking ownership of the success or failure of this implementation? 

The key here is to learn to tell the difference between qualifying the decision to buy, conceptually, and the ability to buy. These are very different criteria!

 Judging customer indecision needs to start from the first moment you contact them—our research has shown that buyers often bring doubts and fears to them from the beginning. Some of these are human drivers, some of these come from the complexity of the buying journey, and some of these come from the context or situation of the purchase. And by better understanding these drivers of indecision, knowing what to look for, and using techniques to help surface these risks, you can work to overcome these risks and fears throughout the buyer journey. 

Indecision is a spectrum. 

Remember: Indecision is a spectrum. Even indecisive buyers still make purchase decisions. The key is your ability to sense the level of indecision and help get it down to reasonable levels. Any indecision that a buyer brings to a purchase will surface after a sale. It’s important to help customers get comfortable with the tradeoffs and risks they’re taking.  

O: Offering a Recommendation

The second skill is to offer a recommendation to the customer. Traditional sales methods may suggest asking the customer more questions and presenting a wealth of choices, but high performers know this approach is doomed to fail. The problem with too much choice is that it increases the chances that they’ll make the wrong decision. Buyers get stuck in analysis paralysis, where it’s easier to do nothing than to risk making the wrong decision. The prospect needs the reassurance of the seller's firm and informed opinion on the best option to choose. 

This works because when you offer a recommendation, you share the blame for any wrong choice with the buyer. When the buyer is stuck, they may be inclined to table the issue until they feel more confident—but you can reach out your hand to guide them with a strong recommendation. This is infinitely more effective than adding more choices to an already-overwhelmed buyer’s plate. 

Imagine you’re selling to your best friend.

Remember: The simplest way to handle recommendations is to imagine that you’re selling to your best friend. Why does that work? Well, you’d cut to the chase, you’d tell them what matters and what doesn’t matter, how to place value on different capabilities. Why don’t we sell that way with a customer? The idea that the customer is always right leads us to give them anything they ask for. This can lead them to struggle with making tradeoffs and picking the right solution. As long as you explain and justify or evidence your recommendation, the customer will value that guidance. 

L: Limiting the Exploration

The third skill in the JOLT method is limiting the exploration. Again, this is counterintuitive to traditional sales methodologies. Where you were trained to provide every resource the customer asks for and more, this can make customer indecision worse, not better. All that data you’re providing can cause information overload and paralyze the customer so they can’t decide. It can even stop your deal from closing. 

Instead, use your expertise as the seller to reduce unnecessary exploration and keep the buyer on the straight and narrow. Let them know when information isn’t crucial to a purchase decision, and highlight moments when it is. You don’t have to indulge your buyer’s every request. Instead, let them know what data they need to make an informed choice and own the flow of that information.

Building trust with your buyers gives them a sense of relief. 

Remember: The most important part of limiting exploration is all the trust you’ve built through the sales process. We’ve all experienced being oversold, so proving you can be trusted is crucial. But, once you’ve proved you’ve done the homework and are on their side, your indecisive buyer will welcome guidance through this stressful process. They may even feel a sense of relief!

T: Taking Risk Off the Table

Finally, the last skill is to take risk off the table. The first three skills have helped you identify and limit sources of indecision around researching and choosing. But there are still risks associated with the outcomes you’re trying to drive. Taking risk off the table involves addressing customer fears about adverse outcomes by offering solutions that reduce perceived risks. This can look like trials, opt-outs, land-and-expands, or anything else that lessens the height of the hurdle the buyer must jump for you to close the sale. Ask yourself: How can I provide a safety net for my buyer at this stage? How can I make it easier for them to succeed? Or harder for them to fail? That’s how you take risk off the table. 

Set practical expectations. 

Remember: When discussing risk, set practical expectations. If you promise an optimistic time to value post-purchase based on best-case implementation, that’s going to increase the indecision due to risk. If, however, you lay out the common obstacles to full value, have a clear action plan to proactively guide the customer through them, and set realistic expectations from a time perspective —that gives the customer greater confidence and lowers their risk. 

How to Apply the JOLT Effect in Sales

Now that you’ve had a crash course in the four-part approach we call the JOLT method—let’s talk about how to use it. As you start at J and apply tactics from the O, L, and T in each sale, you’ll start to understand customer indecision and see the signs more and more often. And this is the key to understanding JOLT. 

Customer indecision is the biggest drag on win rate that all salespeople struggle against, whether they know it or not. And even if we can’t overcome it, we can at least help make buyers a little less afraid. 

If you want to become an expert in the JOLT method and learn how to apply it through real-life sales scenarios, check out our book, The JOLT Effect: How High Performers Overcome Customer Indecision. We go in-depth on each of the steps covered above, and share every detail on how to achieve higher close rates using this method. 

Ready to Start Beating Customer Indecision? 

As you begin to understand customer indecision, you’ll start to see it more and more often. You’ll be able to identify moments of hesitation, and sense when your buyer may be afraid—but not saying that out loud. A keen understanding of indecision and how to combat it will serve you well in moments like these.

Book a consultation with our team to learn more about how your team can start beating customer indecision. We’ll walk you through using the JOLT method to improve close rates for yourself, your team, or your entire organization. Let’s talk!