Revenue leak six

The deal that should have closed three weeks ago.

Strong discovery, good presentation, "this looks great" - and then nothing. Lingering deals die, and nobody ever asked for the business.

What it is

The prospect said all the right things and then the deal just sat there. Nobody asked for the business - or when they did, it was a soft "so... what are you thinking?", which isn’t a close, it’s an invitation to defer. This isn’t about being pushy. It’s about a structured approach to moving deals from interested to decided. Without one, deals linger - and lingering deals die.

84 days

is the average B2B sales cycle; deals 50% past it rarely close.

Source: Flowlu, 45 Best Sales Statistics 2026

<10%

close rate for deals sitting 30+ days in Proposal or Negotiation without activity.

Source: Ebsta & Pavilion, 2024 B2B Sales Benchmark Report

How to find it

Compare cycle length by rep - then run the 60-day test.

If your top rep closes in 60 days and average reps take 120 (or never close), that’s a closing-infrastructure gap, not a talent gap. Here’s the test that makes it real: pull every deal that was in Proposal or Negotiation exactly 60 days ago. How many are closed-won today? How many are still sitting there? How many quietly disappeared? That ratio is how much revenue your team lets die from inertia. Then listen to how reps end calls: top reps set the decision expectation early and make a direct ask. Average reps send the proposal and wait. That’s not closing. That’s hoping.

What it costs

It costs you twice.

First, direct revenue - deals that die from inertia while a competitor with a closing framework reached the decision point first. Second, capacity: if your cycle should run 60-90 days but averages 120-150, you’ve cut throughput in half. A rep who should work 40 opportunities a year works 20, each dragging on twice as long. For a four-person team, that’s the output of two. You’re paying for four, producing like two.

The fix

Trial closes, a named decision meeting, and a direct ask.

Closing is infrastructure, not charisma. Build the steps that carry a deal across the line on a schedule, instead of waiting for the prospect to volunteer.

Set the decision frame in discovery

Confirm decision criteria, the decision-maker, and the timeline early - so the close isn’t a surprise to anyone.

Trial-close through the presentation

Small, low-stakes checks ("does this solve the problem you described?") that surface objections while there’s still time to handle them.

III

Schedule a Decision Meeting

Book a specific, named meeting after the proposal - not "let me know your thoughts." A calendar event with a decision on the agenda.

Make the direct ask

In that meeting, ask for the business plainly. "Based on everything we’ve discussed, I’d like to move forward - does that work for you?"

You can prove this today

Do this Monday

Pull every deal currently in Proposal or Negotiation. For each, answer two questions: is there a next meeting on the calendar, and has the rep made a direct ask for the business? If the answer to either is no, that deal is drifting - and drifting deals don’t close. Have your reps schedule a Decision Meeting for every one of them this week.