Welcome to Part Three of our Sales Kickoff Series, a guide to keynote speakers who deliver real results for revenue teams. In Part One, Chad Foster showed us how resilience drives performance. In Part Two, Brittany Hodak inspired us to create superfans through remarkable customer experiences. Now, we shift to the tactical side of selling with one of the most respected minds in B2B sales: Brent Adamson.

If your organization is looking for an evidence-backed, practical framework to unlock stalled deals and guide customers to confident decisions, Brent Adamson is the speaker your sales kickoff needs. As the co-author of The Challenger Sale and The Challenger Customer, Adamson has spent two decades turning sales theory into actionable tactics. His work has transformed how companies close complex deals — and in today’s uncertain market, his insights are more vital than ever.

The Confidence Crisis: Why Customers Aren’t Buying

In his compelling keynote, “Creating Customer Confidence to Make the Sale,” Adamson addresses a challenge that has become increasingly urgent: your buyers don’t trust themselves.

Following years of disruption, customers today are paralyzed not by a lack of information, but by too much of it. They’re overwhelmed by internal stakeholders, contradictory advice, and uncertainty around outcomes. 

While many sellers work hard to instill confidence in their product or pitch, Adamson argues that the key to closing deals now lies in building customer self-confidence — helping buyers believe they can make the right decision on behalf of their organization.

Through original research and practical case studies, Adamson outlines four forces that erode customer confidence:

1. Decision Complexity – Too many voices at the table, too many competing agendas.
   
   
2. Information Overload – Buyers are inundated with high-quality, conflicting content.
   
   
3. Implementation Uncertainty – The fear of failure after the deal is signed slows decisions.
   
   
4. Value Opacity – If buyers can’t clearly see the value, they won’t move forward.
   
   

But Adamson doesn’t stop at diagnosing the problem — he offers clear strategies to overcome each roadblock. Sales teams leave his keynotes with tools to reframe customer uncertainty as an opportunity: to guide, to simplify, and ultimately, to empower.

Beyond Relationships: Challenging the Status Quo

Adamson is perhaps best known for co-authoring The Challenger Sale, a landmark book that flipped traditional sales thinking on its head. His research shows that top performers don’t just build relationships — they challenge their customers’ thinking.

In this keynote, Adamson introduces five sales rep profiles and zeroes in on the one that consistently drives performance: The Challenger. These sellers don’t just respond to demand — they create it. They tailor insights, push back when necessary, and deliver a distinctive, insight-led buying experience.

For sales leaders looking to replicate this approach, Adamson provides a replicable system to train, coach, and embed Challenger behaviors across teams.

From Talking to Mobilizing

In his follow-up research featured in The Challenger Customer, Adamson goes a step further — it’s not just how you sell, it’s who you sell to. Too often, sellers target the most responsive, friendly contacts. But the people who are easiest to work with rarely have the influence to drive change inside an organization.

Instead, he encourages teams to identify and engage “Mobilizers” — the rare customer stakeholders who have the credibility and determination to rally internal support and push big decisions through. These insights are a game-changer for sales organizations struggling to gain traction in large, complex deals.

Why Brent Adamson Belongs on Your Sales Kickoff Stage

Brent Adamson brings a rare combination of research, real-world experience, and dynamic delivery. For nearly 20 years, he has been a trusted advisor to sales leaders at global companies, a frequent contributor to Harvard Business Review, and a keynote speaker to tens of thousands of commercial professionals around the world.

With his signature blend of data, storytelling, and “productive disruption,” he challenges teams to think differently — and act decisively. Whether your goal is to shorten sales cycles, win more complex deals, or create lasting customer trust, Adamson arms your team with tools they can apply immediately.

Ready to turn hesitation into high performance? Brent Adamson is the sales kickoff speaker who will get your team moving forward with confidence. Contact Executive Speakers Bureau today to book Adamson for your 2026 Sales Kickoff Conference. 

Stay tuned for Part Four in our Sales Kickoff Series, where we’ll spotlight another sales expert helping organizations drive performance from the top down.