Why Most Sales Teams Fail at Discovery and What Sales Leaders MUST Do to Fix It - The Answer BEHIND the Answer

Most salespeople never get the real information they need to close deals—and it's not their fault. In this episode, Kelly breaks down how poor discovery training sabotages your team and what to do instead.

Discovery is the most important phase of the sales process—and the one most salespeople get totally wrong. In this episode of Sales [UN]Training, Kelly explains why most reps don’t get the depth of information they need to win deals and how sales leaders are unintentionally setting them up to fail.

Kelly explains how typical sales training programs overwhelm reps with product knowledge but never teach them how to have meaningful conversations. The result? Salespeople lead with product, fire off a list of generic questions, and turn discovery calls into interrogations. The prospect feels like a target, not a partner—and the deal dies right there.

You’ll hear why the answer behind the answer is the real key to closing deals, how curiosity and emotional intelligence drive effective discovery, and why most reps struggle to ask deeper follow-ups. Kelly also shares a practical example of how to turn a basic “we’re having a challenge with X” response into a full, trust-building dialogue.

If you’re a VP or manager responsible for a team, this episode is a masterclass in rewiring your sales training approach. Learn how to equip your reps to create real conversations, uncover personal and professional motivators, and win in competitive markets.

Follow the audio podcast and watch OR listen wherever you are: https://linktr.ee/salesuntraining   Kelly Riggs is an author, speaker, and business consultant for executives and companies throughout the United States and Canada. He has written two books: 1-on-1 Management: What Every Great Manager Knows That You Don’t and Quit Whining and Start SELLING! A Step-by-Step Guide to a Hall of Fame Career in Sales. 

Get more Kelly: www.BizLockerRoom.com. 

Widely recognized as a powerful speaker and performance coach in the areas of sales, management leadership, and strategic planning, Kelly is a former sales executive, a two-time national Salesperson-of-the-Year, a business owner, and a member of the Forbes’ Coaches Council since 2019. 

Music and Editing by Pod About It Productions @dougbranson