Sales Then Logistics
Sell the why before you explain the how, or your ask gets crickets.
- Difficulty
- Easy
- Time to result
- ~days to results
- Steps
- 4
- Confidence
- 95%
A sequencing rule for any request or proposal: most people jump straight to logistics (which doc, what format, by when) while their audience hasn't yet decided they even want to do the thing. Reverse the instinct — spend 1-2 minutes selling why it matters, then hand over the details only once buy-in exists.
Origin
Taught by Wes Kao, executive communication coach, co-founder of Maven and co-creator of the altMBA with Seth Godin.
Core principles
- 01A sales note and a logistics note are different things with different jobs
- 02Overestimating existing buy-in is the most common failure mode
- 03Going deeper into logistics does not create buy-in — it signals more work
- 04Even for people who already agreed, always sell a little because they've thought about a billion other things since
- 05Selling can be done concisely — a couple sentences, not a 15-minute pitch
How to run it
- 1
Diagnose the actual buy-in level
Before writing or presenting, ask whether the audience has genuinely decided they want the outcome, or whether you're assuming agreement you don't have.
Pro tip Crickets and tumbleweed on a Slack message is the classic signal you led with logistics.
- 2
Open by selling the why
Lead with why we're doing this, why it benefits the business, what problem it solves, and why now. Keep it to 1-2 minutes or a couple of sentences.
Pro tip Frame it around the recipient's benefit — e.g. 'this shines a light on your team members doing amazing work' — not 'this is a favor you're doing for me.'
- 3
State what you need from them upfront
Name the specific reaction you're after — feedback, a decision, sign-off — so they listen with the right lens.
Pro tip Example framing: 'What I'm looking for from you is feedback on the changes and if you agree.'
- 4
Only then transition to logistics
Once buy-in is established, move into the how: which document, what format, by when.
Watch out Switch the order and you'll likely get a slow response or no response at all.
In the wild
A head-of-operations client wanted her executive peers to submit weekly wins to share company-wide. She led with logistics — which doc, what time, what format — and got almost no response, because it read as one more checkbox task. Reframed, she could have opened by selling the why: this is a chance to shine a light on your team members' amazing work and motivate them.
→ Logistics-first got little response; leading with the motivating why would have been far more effective.
Common mistakes
Responding to silence with more logistics
When an ask gets no traction, operators instinctively add more detail about the how, believing clarity is the problem — when the real gap is that the audience never bought in.
Treating 'they already agreed' as license to skip selling
People forget context between the agreement and the execution; a 30-second reminder of why prevents the cold-start, two-steps-back dynamic.
Is it for you?
Best for
Operators and product leaders pitching cross-functional teams, executives, or peers on any new process or initiative.
Not ideal for
Pure status updates or fully pre-agreed tactical handoffs where the audience is already actively bought in and just needs the details.
From the transcript
“a common mistake that I see is overestimating the amount of buyin that you have from your audience”
“a sales note is different than a logistics note”
“start by selling the person and making sure that they know why we're doing this, why this matters to the company, why now, and then…”
“I'm not talking about spending 15 minutes out of a 30-minute meeting selling. I'm talking about 1 to 2 minutes”
From the episode
Become a better communicator: Specific frameworks to improve your clarity, influence, and impact
Wes Kao (coach, entrepreneur, advisor)