Is your inbox overflowing with cold outreach, making email 10x harder to manage? If email is central to your work, you're probably being barraged by constant sales-driven communications.
In an era of AI-infused B2B sales tactics, many are experiencing an overwhelming influx of pitches, laden with grandiose promises, and myopically focused on product or service features.
Blind sales outreach like this can feel impersonal and self-serving. It’s common for an email sequence to close with a patronizing message like “I guess you don’t want to 5x your revenue”.
It is no wonder we ignore these communications, or send them to spam.
Understanding B2B Sales
Unlike B2C sales, where the end customer is an individual, B2B sales brings its own set of challenges and opportunities. B2B sales typically feature higher price points, longer sales cycles, and more intricate decision-making processes involving multiple stakeholders.
Longer sales cycles make building and maintaining relationships crucial. Sales teams must be patient, persistent, and strategic, focusing on long-term value rather than quick wins.
The Modern B2B Buyer
Modern B2B buyers are tech-savvy, well-informed, and empowered. They conduct extensive research online, read reviews, and seek recommendations from peers before making purchasing decisions. A significant portion of these buyers are millennials, who prefer to gather information independently. According to a Gartner survey of almost 1,000 B2B buyers, "43% of surveyed respondents agreed that they would prefer a rep-free buying experience". For Millennials, this figure was 54%!
This shift in buyer behavior means that sales teams must adapt to meet the expectations of informed, savvy decision-makers. Personalized experiences, targeted content, and timely communication are no longer optional. Sales teams must leverage data to understand buyer preferences and tailor their approach accordingly, building trust and fostering long-term client relationships.
From Features to Value: The Key to Unlocking Buyer Decisions
A feature-based B2B selling approach is limited by design. It ultimately commoditizes an offering, rendering it easily replaced by competitor products with feature parity.
Alternatively, value-based selling focuses on the outcomes clients can achieve and the broader possibilities that result. By painting a picture of the future, you can put imagination to work in creating new potential realities once your offering is in play.
In this article, we introduce The Outcome of the Outcome framework—a philosophy grounded in value-based B2B sales—and show you how to harness the approach to sell with confidence.
If we fall into the vendor trap, there are two issues: if you’re selling on price, features and benefits, then your product is interchangeable. But you also become a commodity. You and your business become interchangeable.
- Ross Mackenzie
The Outcome of the Outcome Framework in B2B Selling
As we move from features to value-based B2B sales, our focus shifts to the initial outcome our prospects can unlock by engaging with our brand. The next question beckons: what becomes possible, present and available, once the outcome has been achieved?
Why is "outcome" the operative word? It focuses on what truly matters: the tangible and intangible benefits that resonate with a prospect's deeper motivations and goals. Rather than stopping in the shallows—like implementing a solution or fixing a pain point—it dives into the ripple effects, exploring how achieving the initial outcome impacts broader goals. Closing a deal might not just solve an immediate need; it could drive efficiency, catalyze growth potential, or even enhance team morale.
By zeroing in on outcomes, the framework emphasizes value over features or transactions. It prioritizes results that prospects genuinely care about, creating a stronger emotional connection. This mindset positions sales professionals as partners invested in long-term success, not just short-term wins, making "outcome" the linchpin for meaningful engagement.
It creates a future state for a client and inspires “new thinking”.
By igniting imagination, new possibilities come into view, stories are rewritten, and boundaries redrawn.
A Practical Example of The Outcome of the Outcome Framework
So, how does the framework operate in practice?
Here is an example—based on a true initiative—of a leading medical diagnostic imaging equipment company, Godin Medical, trying to sell new equipment designed to address the often impersonal and anxiety-inducing process of getting an MRI, CAT scan, or X-ray.
To combat the fear many people feel when getting an MRI scan, Godin Medical has created a new ambient design with lighting and electronics, allowing the patient to choose an environment, music and even a movie. This new experience works especially well for children, giving back control to the patient, reducing anxiety and the need for conscious sedation.
In the table below, we show our framework in action for this case. The Outcome is the immediate benefit of the new product, the Outcome of the Outcome is what becomes possible that wasn’t before, and the Value is the financial win associated with the new possibility.
|
Outcome |
Outcome of the Outcome |
Value |
|
Patients no longer squirm or move because of anxiety and excess adrenaline. |
Scans and X-rays are clear and complete on the 1st run, meaning repeat scans are less needed. |
Decreases the rate of repeat scans by from 40% to 20%. At $750 per scan and 15,000 scans yearly, this leads to an annual cost savings of $2.25 million per annum. |
|
Patients are calmer before the procedure. |
Reduces the need for conscious sedation significantly. |
Decreases the rate of conscious sedation from 20% to 10%. At $30 per vial, this leads to annual savings of $45,000. |
|
Improves clinical efficiency and productivity. |
Reduced time spent on re-scans. |
Decreases the average time for each scan from 1 hour to 45 mins, leading to increased capacity of 5,000 additional scans and an annual revenue increase of $3.75 million. |
By focusing on getting to the Outcome of the Outcome, Godin Medical identified over $3.75 million of increased revenue opportunity and a decrease in costs of $2.6 million per annum for users of Godin Medical’s scanners.
Selling medical imaging equipment is not an easy feat, but by engineering a creative, human-centered approach to their design, they activate the imaginations of the hospital buying group. The focus is shifted away from the cost of the new equipment to the tangible value.
4 Practical Sales Strategies for Selling with Confidence
Confidence in sales comes from aligning sales and marketing teams to deeply understand client needs, shifting from insecurity to security. Overcoming limiting beliefs and misconceptions helps foster a confident mindset.
Show Up
It’s more than just being there; it’s about showing up in a way that builds trust and keeps clients coming back. Approach each interaction as unique, refreshing your mindset before every meeting. Focus your attention, listen actively, and always look to bring value.
Paint a Picture
Get practical with outcomes and strategies clients can picture right away, helping them feel inspired and ready to act. Use storytelling, metaphors and vivid descriptions to help clients envision success.
Quantify the Win
Success feels great, but it’s even better when you can measure it. Help clients see the wins and experience the progress. Provide clear, measurable benefits in financial, emotional, or reputation terms.
Seek Feedback
Growth is all about listening. Make feedback a regular part of your approach so you’re always improving. Learn from clients about why they chose your service and refine your B2B sales approach.
Selling has never been about products or services...it's about the experience that people have once they've bought those things.
- Ross Mackenzie
Handling Challenges for Sales Teams
Skeptical or negative buyers will challenge you, and aligning your sales and marketing teams can help address these challenges effectively. It’s a natural and healthy part of any B2B sales process.
Here are some key tactics for artfully dealing with challenges.
Ask Open-Ended Questions, Listen and Empathize
Shift the focus from selling to understanding by asking questions that invite dialogue and insight. As a sales rep, it’s not just about open-ended questions, it’s about creating an environment where the prospect takes the lead in thinking through their challenges, opportunities, and goals. This means avoiding questions that inadvertently “lead the witness” and instead framing discussions that encourage genuine reflection and insight.
By doing so, you shift the focus onto the prospect’s thought process, empowering them to articulate their needs and visualize solutions. This approach aligns seamlessly with the “outcome of the outcome” framework, where the goal is to guide the prospect toward imagining what’s possible—both in terms of solving their immediate pain points and achieving their broader aspirations.
When executed well, this strategy allows for a dual connection: you empathize deeply with their current struggles while also inspiring them to envision transformative outcomes. The result is a more meaningful dialogue, where the prospect feels heard, supported, and ultimately motivated to take the next step toward a solution.
Some examples of questions might be:
- “What challenges are you facing with your current approach?”
- “What would success look like for you in this area?”
- “What is keeping you up at night as it relates to your day-to-day”?
- “What would have to happen to make you feel like a hero in your position?”
Open-ended questions encourage buyers to share their perspectives, uncover hidden concerns, and feel heard, setting the stage for a more productive and engaging conversation.
Validate Assumptions
Demonstrate empathy and respect by paraphrasing or summarizing what you hear to confirm your understanding. For example:
- “It sounds like you’re concerned about implementation timelines. Is that correct?”
- “You mentioned ROI is critical. Can I clarify your expectations around that?”
This positions you as a partner committed to the long-term client relationship rather than a pushy sales rep looking to close a deal at all costs.
Directly Address Resistance
Avoid skirting objections; tackle them head-on with confidence and transparency. For example:
- “I understand this seems like a big investment. Can we explore how this aligns with your long-term goals?”
- “You’ve mentioned hesitations about switching providers. What would it take to feel confident about making a change?”
Addressing resistance openly turns potential roadblocks into opportunities to build trust and find common ground.
Each of these tactics fosters mutual understanding, reduces tension, and helps transform a skeptical or negative buyer into a curious, engaged collaborator.
A Deeper Dive into Outcomes of Outcomes Thinking [Webinar]
We recently ran a deep dive webinar with our founder, Brian Sena, and Ross Mackenzie, who developed The Outcome of the Outcome framework. At Ever Wonder, we practice what we preach by layering in the outcome of the outcome into every project we take on.
As well as sharing key insights into the concept, Ross and Brian conducted a live, unscripted role play, showing how to incorporate the Outcome of the Outcome into a selling situation.
The webinar emphasizes the power of approaching B2B sales with curiosity, empathy, and a focus on outcomes, aiming to elevate client conversations from transactional to impactful.
Watch the full webinar below.
Transform your B2B Sales Approach to Fuel Growth in 2025
Are you a B2B scale-up or enterprise company looking to transform your sales process and accelerate growth?
Contact us today to organize a training workshop for your team.
How Outcomes of Outcomes Thinking Can Radically Transform Your Brand
by Brian Sena
< 1 min read
B2B Lead Nurturing: The Power of Segmentation & Full-Funnel Activation
by Conor Ebbs
< 1 min read