How to Tell If a Deal Is Real (Before It's Too Late)

Not every opportunity in your pipeline is a real opportunity.

In this episode of Improving Sales Performance, Matt Sunshine shares how top sales managers separate qualified deals from wishful thinking before inaccurate forecasts and stalled opportunities become costly surprises. Learn how to pressure test your pipeline, ask better coaching questions, and build forecasts based on evidence instead of optimism.

You'll learn how to:

• Confirm the prospect has a real business problem worth solving
• Verify you're connected to the people who can actually make a buying decision
• Recognize the signs of genuine buyer commitment versus one-sided momentum
• Identify concrete next steps that indicate a deal is truly moving forward
• Run risk-focused deal reviews that improve qualification and forecasting accuracy
• Build a culture where evidence, discipline, and objective coaching drive stronger pipeline decisions

If you want more accurate forecasts, higher-quality opportunities, and fewer end-of-quarter surprises, this episode offers practical strategies to help you determine whether a deal is truly real before it's too late.

Matt Sunshine

The Center for Sales Strategy