No Smoke and Mirrors330-413-8552markroberts@nosmokeandmirrors.comStart Your Sales CheckupGet Your Assessment
Blog

The First Half of 2025 Is Over — What Should You Be Tracking Now to Finish Strong and Start 2026 With Momentum?

Photo by Breezy Hanson on Unsplash

 

As we cross the halfway point of 2025, it’s time to pause, assess, and make strategic decisions. This reminds me of when I played football. At halftime, we would go into the locker room, review what was working and what wasn’t, and discuss how we would adapt for the second half to win the game. What did we learn in the first half? What new plays will our offense and defense execute based on what we learned in the first half? Are there any gaps in our first-team lineup, and do we need to bench some players, provide coaching, and bring in new trained team members?

The second half of the year isn’t just about hitting your annual goals — it’s also about setting the stage for a strong start to 2026.

We must hit our goals and objectives; the shareholders are counting on us to achieve.

That means doing more than checking the scoreboard. It means examining what’s working, what’s stalled, and where you need to pivot to finish strong and build a pipeline for Q1 2026.

Ok, Mark, I agree with you, and I played football too, but football was much easier than running a business. We only had a few things to measure and review.

What should we be measuring and tracking as we prepare to end this year strong, while also filling our sales pipeline for next year?

Here’s what I recommend you should be tracking — and what to look for — as you prepare to close out 2025 with purpose.

What You Should Be Tracking Right Now

  1. Sales Pipeline Health
  • What’s your current pipeline-to-quota ratio?
  • How many late-stage deals are truly winnable in Q3 and Q4?
  • Do you have enough early-stage opportunities to carry into 2026?
  • Do you have a lot of quotes but too few closings?
  • Do you have a high close rate, greater than 70% but you don’t have enough opportunities at the top of the sales funnel?
  • As you review the larger deals, were they properly qualified, or does your sales team have an unhealthy optimism that these deals will close?

Tip: You want at least 3x coverage in the early-stage pipeline to start the new year strong.

  1. Close Rates by Stage and Segment
  • Are certain buyer types or industries closing deals more quickly than others?
  • Where are deals stalling — and why?
  • If we win, why did we win?
  • If we lost a sale, what was the reason?
  • Is there a stage of our formal sales process where deals go to die?
  • Where is the most friction slowing deals from progressing to the next stage, and why?

Look for patterns in deals that close vs. those that don’t. You may need to refine your qualifications or adjust your messaging.

  1. Average Sales Cycle
  • Is your sales cycle lengthening?
  • Are reps spending too much time on low-probability deals?
  • If you assessed the skills of your salespeople, which of the eleven sales indicators needed to improve to shorten your sales cycle

Consider retraining on discovery and qualification skills, or refining your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP).

  1. Top-of-Funnel Activity
  • Are your reps consistently prospecting and generating new leads?
  • Are you relying too heavily on marketing for lead flow?
  • Do marketing and sales have a common understanding of what a lead is?
  • Does your team know who their ideal customers are and why?

The seeds you plant now will become your Q1 harvest. Don’t stop prospecting just because you’re chasing Q4 quota.

  1. Lost Deal Analysis
  • Why are you losing?
  • To competitors? To indecision? To price?
  • How many deals went dark with no understanding of status?
  • How many sales orders were lost to no decision?

A simple win/loss review can uncover valuable insights for a mid-year course correction.

  1. Customer Retention and Account Expansion
  • Are existing customers buying more, or going quiet?
  • Which customers are ripe for expansion or upsell?
  • What is your share of wallet with your larger customers?
  • What is your customer satisfaction score?
  • What is your customer satisfaction score with large and new clients?

Remember: Growth often comes faster from current customers than cold prospects.

What to Look for to Make a Strategic Pivot.

Stalled Pipeline?

You may need to:

  • Re-segment and reprioritize opportunities
  • Focus on faster-moving industries or use cases
  • Rebuild value messaging for economic buyers

Falling Close Rates?

It may be time to:

  • Revisit your discovery and qualification approach
  • Re-train on objection handling and negotiation
  • Align marketing and sales messaging to current buyer concerns
  • Conduct a value proposition audit

 Pipeline Gaps for 2026?

Make Q3 the time to:

  • Launch outbound campaigns targeting 2026 projects
  • Host webinars, events, or campaigns focused on 2026 planning
  • Engage existing customers now about next-year initiatives
  • Understand current market trends and challenges for your customers

Strategic Moves to End 2025 Strong and Start 2026 Running, not Scrabbling…

 Requalify Your Pipeline Now

Get real about what’s going to close — and what isn’t. Move slow or low likelihood deals out, so you can focus on what matters most.

Double Down on Sales Coaching

Ensure salespeople are sharp on fundamentals:

  • Calling on ideal customers
  • Discovery
  • Qualification
  • Objection handling
  • Follow-up and close

Your Q4 performance hinges on your Q3 preparation.

Run Account Reviews and White Space Analysis

Identify expansion opportunities within your current base and assign representatives to strategic account plans, focusing on Q3–Q4 initiatives.

Collaborate With Marketing

Align on messaging and campaigns that generate qualified opportunities for late 2025 and early 2026.

Ensure the messages are gathered from customer interviews and resonate with current and prospective customers today.

 Add Pipeline-Building KPIs to Q3 Goals

Don’t just chase Q4 deals. Establish accountability for new pipeline creation to prevent a slow start to Q1.

 

One more thought…

Yes — 2025 is half over. But there’s still time to exceed your sales targets and lay the groundwork for a winning 2026.

Track what matters. Make bold pivots. Push your team to finish strong, and build a sales engine that doesn’t stall on January 1st.

Let’s schedule a call to discuss ending 2025 strong and having sales momentum for 2026.

If you would like a copy of our new CRO or Sales Manager sales effectiveness checklists, please request them on our website at www.nosmokeandmirrors.com.

Back To Top