Pipeline Compression: The Secret to Closing Deals 2X Faster (And Doubling Your Income in the Process)

By John Harvey

"The fastest closers don’t work harder, they remove friction, compress time, and make success inevitable." Your deals are taking too long and every extra day that passes isn’t just delaying a sale, it’s delaying your income.

The difference between top earners and struggling sales reps isn’t talent. It isn’t even effort. It’s the speed of which you close and the system that you put in place to execute your deals.

If you:

• Close deals in 60 days instead of 120, you get paid twice as fast.
• Turn 3-month deals into 30-day deals, you double your commissions.
• Eliminate delays, friction, and decision fatigue, you win more deals, faster.

Yet, most sales teams are wasting weeks (or months) on deals that should have closed yesterday. So, if your pipeline is moving slower than it should, you are leaving money on the table and the worst part? It’s happening so subtly that most salespeople don’t even realize how much potential income they’re sacrificing.

Bottleneck #1: "Waiting for Next Steps" Is Killing Your Deals

The Problem:

• "Let me get back to you next week."
• "I need to check with my team."
• "We’re still reviewing your proposal."

This is where deals go to die. Every time a prospect asks for more time to think, more time to discuss internally, or more time to review a proposal, the probability of closing the deal drops significantly. Time creates uncertainty. And uncertainty kills momentum.

The Fix:

• Instead of: "Let’s talk next week." Say: "Are you free in the next 24 hours? Let’s move fast." Why: The sooner you continue the conversation, the less time competitors have to swoop in, and the less likely the prospect is to cool off.
• Instead of: "Let me know what your boss says." Say: "Let’s get your decision-maker on a quick call together." Why: Your internal champion isn’t a salesperson. If they have to sell your solution internally, you’ve lost control of the sale.
• Instead of: "I’ll send over the proposal, let me know what you think." Say: "Let’s review the proposal together and lock in next steps." Why: Most proposals sent over email never get read, or worse, create new objections. Walking through it live eliminates confusion and speeds up the close.

Bottleneck #2: Overcomplicating the Sale

The Problem:

• Your sales cycle is too long.
• You’re forcing prospects to jump through hoops.
• The buying process has unnecessary steps.

Over time, companies add more steps to their sales process to minimize risk. But each extra step creates friction, and friction slows momentum. Buyers don’t want more information, more calls, or more approvals. They want clarity and confidence in their decision.

The Fix:

• Simplify your offer. Too many choices = no decision at all. Instead of offering multiple versions of your product, present the most relevant solution first.
• Cut unnecessary steps. Do they really need three approval meetings? If a deal takes too many meetings, urgency disappears.
• Make it easy to say yes. Instead of overwhelming them with endless details, guide them towards the next logical step.

Example: The most successful SaaS companies have eliminated drawn-out demos and proposals. They offer instant trials, one-call closes, and seamless onboarding to remove friction. If you’re still operating with a complex, multi-step process, you’re losing sales to companies that make buying effortless.

Bottleneck #3: Failing to Create Urgency

The Problem:

• Prospects feel no pressure to act now.
• No deadline = No decision.
• "Let’s wait until next quarter."

Most buyers will delay a decision as long as they can. Why? Because delaying feels safer than committing. Without urgency, your prospect will push your deal off indefinitely.

The Fix:

• Use scarcity. "We only have 3 spots left this quarter." Limiting availability makes action feel necessary.
• Use time-sensitive incentives. "Sign before Friday and get priority onboarding." A strong incentive increases perceived value.
• Show the cost of waiting. "Every month you delay, you’re losing [$X] in missed revenue." Make inaction feel like a financial mistake.

Urgency isn’t about manipulation. It’s about helping your prospect make a decision that benefits them sooner rather than later. The best closers don’t wait for buyers to feel ready. They create the conditions that make buying the obvious next step.

Fix These Bottlenecks, and Your Income Will Skyrocket

Bad salespeople wait. Good salespeople chase leads. Elite closers engineer velocity so money comes faster.

Ask yourself: Are you dragging out deals and delaying your paycheck? Or are you compressing your timeline and accelerating your income?

If you want to earn more, you need to sell faster. If you want to break out of your income bracket, you need to close deals in half the time.

More speed = More money. Period.

How to Implement This in the Next 7-Days

Day 1: Identify your biggest revenue bottleneck. Where are deals stalling?

Day 2: Map out your sales process and pinpoint inefficiencies.

Day 3: Eliminate or automate any friction points that slow deals down.

Day 4: Systematize your best sales strategies so they’re repeatable.

Day 5: Make decision-making faster by removing unnecessary approval steps.

Day 6: Focus your team on high-impact work by cutting distractions and redundant tasks.

Day 7: Test, measure, and refine your new process to optimize for speed and efficiency.

Let’s Keep the Conversation Going

?? Share this article with a sales manager who’s ready to take their team to the next level. And if you’re not already following me on LinkedIn, now’s the time to join the conversation.

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We are not just building businesses. We are building legacies. The question is, will your legacy be one of excellence or one of missed opportunities? The choice is yours.

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