What do you do when the sale that used to take a week suddenly takes three months?
It’s happening in real estate, where listings are sitting longer and buyers are taking more time to make decisions. But it’s also happening across sales and small business. Proposals sit. Prospects hesitate. Customers ask more questions. Decisions take longer.
In Episode 406 of The MindShare Podcast, David Greenspan breaks down what needs to change when the sales cycle slows down - from smarter follow-up and better communication to managing your own frustration, keeping your pipeline full and knowing whether someone needs more time or whether something actually needs to change.
Because sending another “just checking in” email isn’t a follow-up strategy.
The longer the decision takes, the more important it becomes to stay useful, stay relevant and understand what your customer actually needs from you next.
00:00 – What Happens When the Sale Takes Longer?
Listings are sitting, prospects are hesitating and decisions are taking longer across all kinds of businesses.
03:01 – Why “Just Checking In” Isn't Good Enough
As an opportunity gets older, the quality of our follow-up often gets worse. Staying in the conversation requires more than reminding somebody you exist.
07:27 – Helping Sellers Make Sense of a Slower Market
When a listing sits, sellers need context. What are buyers saying, what has changed, and what is the market actually telling us?
10:57 – Persistence Doesn't Just Mean More Follow-Up
Frequency without relevance becomes noise. Good follow-up helps people work through the decision instead of constantly asking them to make one.
15:21 – Managing Your Own Frustration
Longer sales cycles test your patience, especially when you need the business. Why your pipeline affects how you behave with every opportunity.
19:43 – Do They Need More Time, or Does Something Need to Change?
Some prospects genuinely need time. Others aren't moving because price, value, trust, strategy or priorities need to be addressed.
22:42 – Staying Relevant Long Enough to Win the Business
When a decision takes months, building MindShare becomes even more important. Staying useful matters more than simply staying visible.
25:38 – Audit the Opportunities You're Waiting On
Look at the listings, buyers, proposals and prospects that haven't moved and determine what each one actually needs from you next.
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