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6 min read

How to Make the Sales Process About the Buyer

How to make the sales process about the buyer - where excellent discovery converts to personalized demoing

Let’s face it.

In the past years, SaaS sales have shifted to a buyer’s market, where buyers are more informed and empowered than ever. The traditional sales process—one where the salesperson drives the conversation and focuses on pitching the product—just isn’t cutting it anymore. Buyers expect more. They want a tailored experience that speaks to their unique needs, pain points, and goals. They will not waste their time on anything considered irrelevant. And when sales teams fail to shift their approach to be buyer-centric, it can lead to disengagement, frustration, and ultimately, lower conversion rates.

To achieve better outcomes, sales teams need to design a process that places the buyer at the center of every interaction.

In this guide, we’ll walk through five key steps that will transform your sales process, from initial discovery to a personalized demo that converts.

Step 1: Enhance Discovery with Real-Time Playbook Guidance

Good discovery is the foundation of a successful sales process. If you don’t understand your buyer’s pain points, goals, and challenges, you’re just guessing at what solution might work for them. This is where many sales teams fall short. Instead of digging deep into buyer needs, they rush through discovery and go straight to the demo or pitch.

The key to better discovery is asking the right questions and, just as importantly, listening actively to what your prospect is saying. It’s all about uncovering their true needs, not just their surface-level objections.

Real-time playbook guidance can help ensure that reps don’t miss any critical questions during discovery. Tools like WINN.AI’s real-time assistant provide playbook coaching, live on the call, making sure reps cover every single step needed. This can improve playbook adoption by up to 30% and is 2x more effective in comparison to post-call feedback.

The better the discovery, the more you can tailor your solutions and set the stage for the right product demo.

Step 2: Data, Data, Data. It’s All in the CRM

Let’s face it: we all hate updating the CRM but if you’re not using your CRM to its full potential, you’re missing out on real opportunities. A well-maintained CRM allows sales teams to make smarter decisions, prioritize prospects based on their likelihood to buy, and track the effectiveness of their outreach.

Having the right information at your fingertips—like prospect pain points, previous touchpoints, and buying preferences—helps salespeople craft highly personalized and relevant messages and deliver an experience that is best fit for the customer, rather than the seller’s processes. It also improves collaboration within the team and making sure that the entire GTM force is aligned on the customer’s needs and expectations.

By ensuring that all the essential information from each buyer interaction is captured and updated in your CRM, you set up your team for success. And when you have the right data, you’re empowered to adjust your messaging, offerings, and sales approach accordingly.

Step 3: Demos Before the Demo

Modern buyers demand the ability to self-educate before interacting with a sales team. 

Offering them access to relevant product insights early in the process establishes credibility and aligns with their expectations. This can include videos, case studies, or quick, focused interactive product demos tailored to common challenges.

Providing micro-demos upfront allows buyers to explore the value of your solution without committing to a full sales conversation. These bite-sized demonstrations focus on addressing specific pain points, ensuring buyers feel understood while maintaining control of their journey.

Throughout your GTM motion, it’s essential to deliver relevant content to reinforce key takeaways and address any evolving concerns. 

By using an interactive demo platform like Walnut to integrate your product into every stage of the GTM strategy, you create a process that’s cohesive, seamless, and aligned with the buyer’s priorities. This product-centric approach promotes clarity, drives alignment across your team, and fosters trust, ultimately streamlining the buyer’s experience and improving outcomes.

Step 4: Personalization

No two buyers are the same, and your demos should reflect this reality. 

Using what you’ve learned during discovery—and leveraging the content you’ve already shared—craft a tailored demo experience that directly speaks to the buyer’s unique challenges and objectives.

Highlight the specific features or workflows that resonate with their needs. This isn’t about showing everything your product can do. Instead, it’s about curating a demo that feels custom-built for their goals. When your buyer sees their needs reflected in the solution, it reinforces their confidence in your offering.

Interactive demos can serve as a powerful follow-up tool, allowing buyers to revisit the product at their convenience or share it with key stakeholders. By ensuring each person involved in the decision-making process has access to the exact content they need, you foster alignment across their organization and strengthen your position.

This personalized, product-driven approach transforms your GTM motion into an experience that feels natural and customer-focused. It allows your product to take center stage, creating a smoother process that builds trust and accelerates deal cycles, all while setting your team up for sustained growth.

Step 5: Follow Up—Become a Project Manager and Reduce Friction

After the demo, your role shifts from seller to project manager. Your job is to understand the buyer’s problem deeply, help them define their goal, and then plan the process of getting there with your solution—and beyond. Be a consultative partner, actively involved in the planning and execution phases. This requires you to know their business, industry, and challenges, positioning yourself as a trusted expert.

In your sales meetings, focus on aligning your product with their goals. Map out clear steps, timelines, and responsibilities. Help them identify potential roadblocks and propose actionable solutions. By managing expectations and offering expert guidance, you’re ensuring a smoother, more confident buying journey.

The key to success is becoming part of their team—showing that you’re invested in their long-term success, not just the sale.

Recap: It’s Time to Put Your Customers First

At the end of the day, the most successful sales processes are the ones that put the buyer’s needs first. By enhancing discovery, leveraging data, providing educational content early on, personalizing demos, and reducing friction throughout the process, you create a buyer experience that feels tailored and responsive.

Sales leaders should prioritize adopting tools and methodologies that support a buyer-centric approach. With the right playbooks, CRM systems, and a focus on personalization, your team will see not just higher conversion rates, but stronger, longer-lasting customer relationships.

In short, a buyer-centric sales process isn’t just a nice-to-have—it’s a must-have for sustained success in today’s market. So take these steps, put the buyer first, and watch your sales numbers soar.

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This guide was created in collaboration by Walnut and WINN.

About WINN.AI

WINN.AI is the AI meeting assistant that top sales teams use to increase sales efficiency and alignment. WINN joins reps on their sales calls, automates their admin work, generates personalized follow-up emails, updates meeting data into the CRM, and provides real-time coaching for better playbook adoption and rep performance. Learn more

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