2. Cold Is Out, Context Is In: Outbound Needs a Glow-Up
No one’s replying to “Hi XYZ, I saw we have mutual interests...” anymore. Cold outreach today? It’s personal, multi-channel, and not annoying.
Real-world move: Gong.io reps use short videos, voice notes, and ultra-targeted insights. It feels human, not spammy — and they’ve scaled like wildfire.
Name to know: Devin Reed, ex-Head of Content Strategy at Gong, helped build outbound playbooks that actually land. His tip? “Lead with insight, not interest.”
2025 takeaway: Cold isn’t dead — but lazy cold is. Add value, or hit archive.
3. Sales + Marketing = Revenue Dream Team
Still fighting about MQLs and SQLs? Yikes. In 2025, marketing and sales are besties — not rivals.
Real-world move: Drift built their entire GTM model around tight sales-marketing alignment. Shared KPIs. Joint planning. One team, one pipeline.
Follow: Dave Gerhardt (ex-CMO at Drift) and Kyle Coleman (CMO at Clari) — both advocate for aligned revenue teams over siloed chaos.
2025 takeaway: When sales and marketing sit at the same table, revenue becomes a feast.
4. AI Isn’t a Threat — It’s a Sales Superpower
Real-world move: Salesforce’s Einstein AI helps reps prioritize leads, forecast more accurately, and even draft outreach emails. It’s like having a digital SDR in your pocket.
Trailblazer: Marc Benioff, Salesforce CEO, pushed early on AI in sales — and now it’s core to how their teams operate.
2025 takeaway: Let AI do the grunt work. You do the human stuff.
5. Stop Pushing, Start Advising: Consultative Selling Wins
Let’s be honest — nobody wants a “closer” anymore. They want a smart guide who understands their problems better than they do.
Real-world move: Chili Piper trains reps to act more like consultants than sellers. That means fewer slides, more questions. Fewer pitches, more conversations.
Leader vibes: Becc Holland, CEO at Flip the Script (ex-Gong, Chorus), is the queen of consultative selling. Her frameworks are changing how outbound is done.
2025 takeaway: If your reps are still reading from a deck — it’s time for an upgrade.
6. Frameworks Make You Scalable: Chaos ≠ Growth
Winging it worked when you had 3 reps. At scale? It’s a recipe for burnout. Frameworks like MEDDIC, SPIN, and BANT help you qualify, forecast, and grow with confidence.
Real-world move: Snowflake scaled enterprise sales by implementing MEDDIC across their team. It brought structure and focus — especially when selling to big fish.
Framework nerd? Check out John Barrows, sales trainer for LinkedIn, Zoom, and Salesforce. He teaches reps how to work smarter, not louder.
2025 takeaway: : Want repeatable success? Playbooks > personal hacks.
7.Enablement = Secret Weapon (If You Do It Right)
Sales enablement isn’t just onboarding checklists anymore. It’s live coaching. Battlecards. Playbooks. Real-time call feedback.
Real-world move: ZoomInfo invests heavily in enablement, with content and coaching tailored by deal stage. Reps feel prepped — not just trained.
Expert in the space: Melissa Madian, one of the OGs of sales enablement, has helped Fortune 1000s turn chaotic sales orgs into high-performing machines
2025 takeaway: If your team isn’t leveling up monthly, your competitors are.
Final Word: Don’t Just Sell — Evolve
Look, the sales world isn’t about dialing harder, spamming faster, or begging for demos anymore. It’s about depth over volume. Strategy over hustle. Real connection over canned lines.
The best sales teams in 2025?
They enable, not pressure.
They use AI, not guesswork.
They scale through systems, not burnout.
So whether you're running a lean startup team or a full-blown enterprise motion, these 7 shifts aren’t just trends — they’re your roadmap.
Now the only question is: are you evolving with the game, or getting left on read?