Don't Go Wider. Go Deeper.

I was talking with a client this week about what they're seeing in their market.

Customers who never used to make price their number one priority are suddenly beating them up over it. People they've done business with for years are shopping around, pushing back, asking for discounts they never would have asked for before.

And as they look into 2026, they don't see it reversing. They think this is the new normal.

Their instinct?

“We need more customers. More pipeline. More at-bats.”

I get it. When margins compress, volume feels like the answer.

But I've been thinking about this conversation all week, and I don't think more pipeline is the answer.

Not because prospecting doesn't matter (it always does), but because chasing more of the wrong customers doesn't fix the problem. It just spreads you thinner.

My advice to this client was simple: don't go wider. Go deeper.

Double down on what you bring to the market that sets you apart from your competitors.

Get specific about it. Not "relationships" or "trust" or "we actually care." Everyone says that. What do you really do differently, and why does it matter?

Then validate it.

Go to your best customers (the ones who aren't beating you up on price) and ask them why they work with you. Not a survey. A real conversation.

Use that clarity to find more customers like them.

That's the short version. But there's a lot more to unpack here.

As we get into 2026 (I’m taking next week off), I'm going to dig a lot further into this, because there’s a lot of important work to be done, and it’s the stuff most teams overlook.

I'll cover:

• The internal work most companies skip (and why surface-level answers aren't good enough)

• How to validate your assumptions with your best customers

• The real cost of chasing bad-fit business

• Why your network is more valuable than your prospecting list

I’m going to show you how to do this yourself, and I’m also here to lend a hand if you want one.

Something Gitomer said years ago sticks with me. I used to have it printed on my bulletin board above my desk.

"Most salespeople aren’t willing to do the hard work up front to make the selling part easier."

That's still true, and in a market where price pressure is the new normal, the companies that do the work will have a serious advantage over those that don't.

#ThankfulThursday

A few weeks ago, I started a weekly series on LinkedIn that highlights some of the people in my network I’m grateful for. I’m delinquent in sharing them here, but there’s never been a better time than right now to remedy that.

I’ll be skipping this coming week, but plan to continue well into the future.

These posts are really rewarding to write, and it’s fun to surprise people with them.

Here are my posts for Dejuan Brown, Mike Simmons, and Samantha McKenna.

From my family to yours

Thank you for being here. I’m grateful for each of you.

Regardless of what you celebrate, I hope this holiday season is full of joy, gratitude, and humility as we look forward to a big 2026.

Cheers,
JB