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Deals Don’t Die from “No.” They Die from This.

Guillaume Duvaux
Guillaume Duvaux |

Why Good Deals Stall (and How to Prevent It)

(Estimated reading time: 10-11 minutes.)

 

Let me ask you something:

Have you ever had a deal go cold after a great call?

You did the demo. They were excited. Maybe even said things like:

  • “This is exactly what we need.”

  • “I’ll loop in the team.”

  • “Let’s sync next week.”

And then, nothing.

No next meeting. No updates. No decision. Just you refreshing your inbox.

It doesn’t mean they said no. It means something worse:

The deal fell into limbo.

And it happens to almost every founder at some point. Not because your product is bad. Not because your pitch was weak.

But because you made one critical mistake: You carried the sales cycle alone.

Here’s what I tell the founders I coach: Great founders don’t just start conversations. They build momentum. And momentum is a team sport.

 

Why Most Founders Lose Deals After a Strong First Call

You nailed discovery. You delivered a great demo. You even got verbal interest.

But after that, things slowed down.

Why? Because the prospect didn’t have clear next steps. Because no one else on their team knew or cared about the deal. Because you didn’t create shared ownership.

Most deals don’t die from a hard "no." They die from:

  • No timeline

  • No internal urgency

  • No follow-through

So here’s how to fix it.

Step 1: Every Call Ends with a Micro-Commitment

If you walk out of a meeting without a mutual next step, you’ve already lost momentum.

Instead, treat every call like a handshake agreement. Before the call ends, clarify:

  • What you will do next

  • What they will do next

  • By when it will happen

This is what enterprise sellers call a mutual action plan. (MAPs are used to align buyer and seller responsibilities throughout the deal cycle.)

Example:

“I’ll send over the security docs and a pricing outline by Tuesday. You’ll review it internally and let me know what feedback comes up before our call next Thursday.”

This may sound simple. But it’s one of the most powerful tools in B2B sales.

Because it turns a passive buyer into an active participant. And that’s the first sign you’re dealing with a real opportunity.

If they won’t commit to small steps, they’re not ready to commit to a big one.

 

Step 2: Build and Empower Your Champion

A champion is not someone who just likes your product.

It’s someone with something to gain if your solution gets bought. And someone with enough internal credibility to push it forward.

Your job isn’t just to identify this person. It’s to equip them.

That means helping them:

  • Understand your product’s value clearly

  • Speak to how it aligns with internal goals

  • Handle objections from their team

Start by asking questions like:

  • “Who else usually weighs in on tools like this?”

  • “What’s the usual approval process look like?”

  • “What could slow this down?”

Use their answers to co-create the internal plan. Make them look good. Give them collateral. Offer to write the summary that they can forward to their boss.

If they succeed, your deal moves forward. If they stall, the deal stalls with them.

No champion, no deal, because they will sell internally with you to make the deal happen.

 

Step 3: Use Founder Touchpoints to Reduce Risk

Buyers don’t fear your product. They fear what could go wrong.

  • Will this break something important?

  • Will it create second-order work for my team?

  • Will I look stupid if it fails?

Your job isn’t to re-pitch them. It’s to de-risk the decision.

As a founder, your touchpoint means more than a salesperson’s.

Why? Because it shows you care. And that you’re accountable.

Use it to say things like:

“We’ve worked with similar companies and saw X.” “We’ve already built a path to address this concern.” “Here’s how we’d make this easy for your team.”

This is what great founders do: They show up to critical calls. They build trust beyond the pitch. They prove the buyer won’t be alone if things go sideways.

And yes, even in later stages of the deal, they stay close.

Step 4: Executive Alignment Closes Gaps

Sometimes, even your champion isn’t enough. Because deals get stuck in uncertainty:

  • Budget freezes

  • Legal reviews

  • Competing internal priorities

This is when executive alignment becomes your ace.

That means:

  • CEO to CEO outreach

  • Founder to Head of [Department] context-setting

  • Strategic support during risk moments

It doesn’t need to be a formal sales call. Sometimes it’s just an email. Or a quick intro during onboarding.

But what it says is:

“This matters to us. You have our attention.”

People buy from people. And execs trust other execs more than reps, especially in high-stakes or strategic deals, where internal risk perception is high.

So if the deal is strategic, make it personal.

What Happens When You Don’t Do This?

You end up:

  • Chasing ghosts

  • Losing visibility into decision paths

  • Wondering why deals die in the dark

Worse? You miss the chance to learn how your market actually buys.

Founders who treat the sales process like a black box never build a repeatable GTM engine.

But founders who get inside every deal? They learn:

  • What gets deals stuck

  • What messaging lands with stakeholders

  • What process creates velocity

And that insight compounds.

This Is the Real Reason Deals Close

It’s not the best pitch. It’s not the best product. It’s a process.

Not just any process, but one with:

  • Clear next steps

  • Aligned internal champions

  • Founder-led trust moments

  • Exec-to-exec confidence

And here’s what that creates:

Momentum.

The most underrated force in sales. The difference between a "maybe" that closes and a "maybe" that fades into the void.

Final Word: Sales Is a Team Sport. Build Your Team.

You don’t have to carry every deal yourself. But you do need to build the system that moves it forward.

That means:

  • Make buyers commit

  • Empower your champion

  • Show up at key moments

  • Align founder to founder

It sounds simple. But most deals die because founders skip this. They hope. They wait. They refresh.

Don’t be that founder. Be the one who builds momentum into every deal.

And remember: There are two kinds of startups:

  • The ones who spray and hope

  • The ones who commit and close

Which one are you?

Stay focused. Stay intentional.

— Guillaume

P.S. The 2 new slots I opened in June for my 1:1 coaching were taken. I might open one or two in July. Ping me if you want to discuss that. If you’re a B2B founder between €0–50K/MRR, and you want to grow to $100k, I can boost the process with you with my framework.  

Weekly strategy calls, async reviews, and real assets.

Just reply to this email to learn more or book a call.

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