Sales Signals

Hosted by Cognism

Business Management

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Episodes

113

Latest episode

Jul 2026

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About the show

Sales Signals is a podcast for revenue leaders who don’t just look at data - they act on it. Each episode breaks down the signals shaping modern sales teams through a simple lens: Data. Insight. Action. From misleading metrics to high-impact indicators, we uncover the stories behind the numbers and what decision-makers should do next. If you’re responsible for revenue and want to move beyond dashboards into decisive execution, this show is for you.

Listen to episodes

60 recent

July 22, 202633 min

Thinking on your feet: How improv builds sales confidence, with Dr Alexander McWilliam

Dr Alexander McWilliam, founder of Improv4Business, joins Shiv in his final episode as host of Sales Signals to unpack why traditional sales presentation training falls flat, and what improv can teach sales teams about handling pressure. From reframing pitches around what the audience actually wants to building the skill of thinking on your feet like a muscle in the gym, this episode covers how sales professionals can stay authentic, adaptable and confident once the script runs out.

May 29, 202622 min

From false signals to real conversation with Naomi Wallis, Senior Business Development Manager at Conran Design Group

Naomi Wallis shares how modern business development blends signal-led selling with thoughtful human outreach. From engagement tracking and long sales cycles to false intent signals, AI workflows, and the psychology of consultative selling, this episode explores how to cut through noise and build genuine prospect relationships that convert over time.

May 12, 202625 min

The reply rate crisis with Phil Woolley, BDR Lead at G2

Philip from G2 joins us to unpack why reply rates are declining, how AI-generated "slop" is killing email as a channel, and what smart sellers should be doing instead - from cold calling to LinkedIn InMail.

April 29, 202630 min

Why sales coaching is broken and how to fix it with Kevin Beales, CEO and founder of MySalesCoach

Kevin Beales, CEO and founder of My Sales Coach, joins the Sales Signal podcast to unpack why sales coaching remains one of the most overlooked levers in sales performance. Despite clear data showing a 60% performance difference between frequently coached and uncoached reps, most managers spend less than 5% of their time on true coaching. Kevin shares what the data really shows, why experienced reps are often the most neglected, and the practical framework - coaching plans, cadence, and conversation discipline - that separates real coaching from pipeline reviews dressed up as one-to-ones. If you'd like to read the MySalesCoach report that Kevin mentions in the episode, you can find it here: https://www.mysalescoach.com/the-state-of-sales-coaching-in-2026-report

April 15, 202631 min

Why some Sales training might not change behaviour, with Mark Wills, CEO and Founder of Perception Selling.ai

Most sales teams invest in training, but see little change in results. In this episode, Mark Wills explains why performance is driven by behaviour, not knowledge. From discovery and client centricity to leadership and system-level thinking, this conversation unpacks how to turn sales methodology into real, repeatable performance. Find Mark and his team here: www.perceptionselling.ai

April 1, 202616 min

How job change signals unlock pipeline with Johnny Stiffell, Mid-Market AE at Cognism

When someone joins a company, they don’t just bring experience, they bring change. In this episode, Johnny breaks down how he uses job change signals to break into accounts, build relationships with new stakeholders, and create pipeline from day one. From SDR to AE, we unpack how identifying the right moment to reach out can be the difference between being ignored… and starting a deal.

March 18, 202624 min

When the data says jump with Darius Lohmann, Former Cognism and Hubspot AE

In this episode of Sales Signals, we sit down with Darius, former Cognism and HubSpot sales performer turned founder, to unpack the real signals behind modern selling. After closing deals, making mistakes, building a LinkedIn presence from scratch, and now launching his own outbound-as-a-service business, Darius shares the data, insights, and actions that shaped his journey.

March 4, 202639 min

The Sales Recession Signal with Kyle Hegarty, Managing Director of Leadership Nomad

What happens when buyers are 90% through the journey before sales even shows up? In this episode of Sales Signals, Kyle shares the data behind declining quota attainment, the collapse in formal sales training, and why today’s reps must evolve from sellers to coaches. The signal is clear: the old playbook is broken. The question is, what replaces it?

February 18, 202627 min

Your Product Isn’t the Problem, Your Prospecting Is. Gabe Lullo on Fixing GTM Failure

Many leaders will happily talk for 45 minutes about their product… and struggle to talk for two about their prospecting engine. In this episode of Why Did It Fail?, Gabe Lullo, CEO of Alleyoop, joins Shivan to unpack why that gap quietly kills startups and stalls growth in mid-market and enterprise sales teams. Gabe shares stories from decades in the trenches: SDRs who couldn’t make it past lunch, weeks of zeros on the whiteboard, clients who raised millions and still ran out of runway, and what changes when you treat prospecting with the same seriousness as product. He breaks down how Alleyoop makes over a million dials a month and how his team uses AI as a sparring partner to prepare reps for the only 9-10 objections that really matter. Gabe offers a clear challenge: if you obsess over building the product but take a casual approach to go-to-market, you’re betting the company on hope. He explains when it makes sense to outsource SDR, how to instrument your sales engine like an F1 car, and why the founders who win are the ones who own the front end of the funnel.

February 4, 202624 min

Staying Too Long: How Redundancy Reset Stuart Taylor’s Career

In this episode of Why Did It Fail?, Stuart Taylor, CRO at The Lennox Academy, opens up about a failure most people only talk about in whispers: staying at a company too long after an acquisition… and being made redundant as a result. He talks candidly about what it felt like in the moment, the shock, the hit to his identity and much more. Stuart and Shivan dig into the uncomfortable truth about loyalty, timing your exit, and recognising when a role or company has stopped serving your growth. Stuart shares the mindset and practical steps that helped him rebuild, and how that experience now shapes the way he leads, hires and coaches revenue teams.