Stephen Woessner

They describe a three-conversation process in which agencies teach while they sell.

• In a separate post, they say unclear beliefs about an agency can prevent trust from taking root.
• The posts also introduce guests’ perspectives on trust and brand connection.

In a post about a conversation with Marcel Petitpas, Woessner says new-business conversations start at “negative six” trust and presents The Trust Architecture as a way to build trust through three conversations. In another post, they introduce Mark Bubula’s view that shared belief supports connection with right-fit prospects.

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They apply this to agency credentials and proof, arguing that showing every trust indicator at once can leave a prospect with too much due diligence to do. How proof is assembled matters as much as having it.

Woessner recalls baking in their mother’s bakery, where ingredient substitutions and mixing order could spoil the result.

• They use that experience to explain their Trust Bridge idea: sequence an agency’s proof to help a prospect move from authority toward demand.
• They point to an episode featuring Erik Jensen on how proof activates demand.

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When prospects go quiet during a long decision process, they favor adding value and staying present over sending empty check-ins or giving up.

Discussing the SparkToro agency report, Woessner cites figures on pipeline health and longer sales cycles, including a 7-to-12-week period in which leads increasingly take longer to close. They contrast “just checking in” messages with value-adding follow-up and quote Clate Mask’s line, “Fortune is in the follow-up.”

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In a related post, they present authenticity as a route from trust to reputation, attributing the point to guest Greg Star. Together, the posts show that their trust theme extends beyond the sales meeting to what an agency communicates publicly.

Woessner says a stalled pipeline is not always an offer problem: prospects need to believe something about an agency before they follow or start a conversation. In a post about an episode with Greg Star, they describe Star’s view that authenticity expressed with purpose and perspective can build reputation, particularly through LinkedIn thought leadership.

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The post gives newcomers the numbers, the cause, and Woessner's proposed response, making it a useful first sample of how they argue.

Woessner walks through the "State of Digital Agencies" report from Rand Fishkin and Paddy Moogan at SparkToro, which surveyed hundreds of agency owners and summed up the mood as "still hard but slowly getting better."

• The numbers he pulls out: only 14% of agencies call their sales pipeline healthy, 32% say it is not good, and 29% say leads take significantly longer to close, with the biggest slowdown in the 7-to-12-week range.
• He then describes the pattern behind those numbers — agencies built on referrals and word of mouth hit a revenue gap when a client leaves, and the people who should be selling are the same ones running client work.
• In the long gap between first contact and decision, prospects go quiet, and agencies fall back on "just checking in" messages or stop altogether.
• Woessner quotes Clate Mask, described as CEO of PHX FWD and a former co-founder of Keap, with the line "Fortune is in the follow-up," and argues that adding value during a long sales cycle beats asking for a decision.

For brands planning a campaign

Useful framing for a workshop on pipeline health: the 14%/32%/29% figures and the 7-to-12-week window make a concrete case for improving follow-up systems rather than pitch technique.

It clearly states Woessner's central argument and names a framework referenced elsewhere.

Woessner argues that a first new-business conversation does not start at zero trust but at "negative six": prospects arrive skeptical and worried about over-promising and under-delivering.

• They cite the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer, which found that nearly 65% of business decision-makers deeply distrust prospective vendor partners, to challenge the idea that a dry pipeline is the agency's own fault.
• The rest of the post describes a conversation with Marcel Petitpas of Parakeeto on the Agency Profit Podcast.
• They discuss what they call The Trust Architecture: a sales process that builds trust at each stage and sets up the three conversations within the sales process, so selling and teaching happen at the same time.

For brands planning a campaign

A natural anchor for a trust-architecture session: the "negative six" reframe and three-conversation structure give a workshop an opening argument and a sequence to practice.

The bakery analogy puts the sequencing idea in plain language, making it an accessible entry point.

Woessner recalls baking pies and cheesecakes as a teenager in their mother's bakery in North Canton, Ohio, and draws two lessons: substituting ingredients with similar names fails (baking soda against baking powder), and the order and speed of mixing matter.

• They apply both lessons to agency business development.
• Strong client work, content, and passive referral-waiting are no longer enough; agencies sit on latent demand they cannot quantify or activate; and agencies with a niche, lists, and content still ask why their pipeline is unhealthy.
• Woessner's answer is sequencing: presenting trust indicators all at once gives prospects a pile of due diligence, while assembling them in order across what they call a Trust Bridge makes the agency an easy yes.
• They point to an episode of the In-Demand Agency Podcast with Erik Jensen, described as President and COO of Predictive ROI, on how proof activates demand.

For brands planning a campaign

Useful for opening a client-facing session before introducing the formal model. It also underscores a workshop-design point: the order in which proof is presented matters as much as which proof exists.

This is the shortest and most conceptual post in the set, useful for readers seeking the underlying idea rather than tactics.

Woessner opens by saying a sticky pipeline—prospects stalling, second-guessing, ghosting—is not always about the offer; often, belief is what is missing.

• Prospects have to believe something about the agency before they follow or agree to talk.
• When that belief is unclear, trust cannot take root.
• Woessner introduces the Sell With Authority episode featuring Mark Bubula, described as Co-founder, President, and Chief Strategy Officer at Friends & Neighbors and creator of Brand Anthropology.
• They describe the conversation as an exploration of the why behind real brand connection and how shared belief becomes the foundation for a pipeline of right-fit prospects.

For brands planning a campaign

Points a workshop or positioning engagement toward belief and shared values before offer, pricing, or outreach mechanics—relevant to consultancy clients whose pipelines stall after good first meetings.

It states the trust thesis compactly and adds an outside perspective on reputation and social platforms.

The post states the thesis plainly: trust is not a soft skill in sales but the architecture; when trust is present, the pipeline flows, and when it is missing, momentum stalls.

• Woessner says the episode is part of ongoing research for The Trust Architecture and features Greg Star, described as founder of Driven Authentic Branding Solutions and co-founder of Carvertise.
• The guest discusses authenticity expressed with purpose and perspective as a route from trust to reputation, emphasizing LinkedIn as an open thought-leadership opportunity.
• The payoff: better-prepared prospects and a pipeline that flows.

For brands planning a campaign

Supports a workshop segment on turning expertise into visible content that pre-sells prospects. It also shows Woessner crediting and platforming other practitioners.

They argue that agencies are built on referrals and word of mouth, so a single client departure opens a revenue gap that relationships alone cannot fill. The people who should be building pipeline are also running client work, managing proposals and wearing several hats.

Uses a named industry survey and quotes its summary line ("still hard but slowly getting better") to frame the argument.

For brands planning a campaign

A strong opening hook for content or a workshop aimed at agency owners who already suspect referrals are unreliable: named third-party numbers make the problem concrete before any pitch for a fix.

Examples: Source 1

They cite the 2025 Edelman Trust Barometer finding that nearly 65% of business decision-makers deeply distrust prospective vendor partners, and conclude that stale business-development habits — relying on chemistry, pitching too early, hoping for the best — erode trust at the point of decision. Their fix is a staged sales process that builds trust through three conversations, so by the third the agency is an easy yes.

Developed in conversation with named practitioner Marcel Petitpas of Parakeeto and packaged under the coined framework The Trust Architecture.

For brands planning a campaign

Gives a consultancy a ready-made structure for a sales-process workshop: three named conversations, each with a trust-building job, rather than generic "build rapport" advice.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

They contrast the common pattern of desperate "just checking in" emails or giving up with adding value during the wait, and credit Clate Mask with the line "fortune is in the follow-up." In a market where most competitors have unhealthy pipelines, they argue, the agency that follows up without being a pest becomes the one prospects remember.

For brands planning a campaign

Direct support for a workshop module or content series on follow-up cadence and value-adding touches during a 7-to-12-week cycle; the topic is narrow enough to build a practical template around.

Examples: Source 1

They say presenting every trust indicator at once hands the prospect a heavy due-diligence load and makes the agency harder to choose, while a deliberate sequence moves a prospect from authority to demand.

Built from a personal story about the family bakery and a guest interview with Erik Jensen, presented as the Trust Bridge.

For brands planning a campaign

Makes the case for auditing and reordering an agency's existing credentials and case studies before adding anything new — a low-cost deliverable for a consultancy to package.

Examples: Source 1

A related post frames authenticity, expressed with purpose and perspective, as how trust becomes reputation, and calls LinkedIn an underused space for that kind of thought leadership.

Interview-led: guest practitioners Mark Bubula on brand anthropology and Greg Star on authenticity and reputation carry the argument, rather than first-person assertion alone.

For brands planning a campaign

Useful for clients whose offer is fine but whose positioning is vague; it reframes the need from "more leads" to "a clearer belief for a narrower set of buyers."

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

Frameworks get branded names, and posts close with a consistent sign-off and campaign hashtags rather than a hard sell.

The baking post is the one item that leads with a personal story and carries no guest, making it the clearest example of a first-person essay within an otherwise interview-led body of work.

For brands planning a campaign

Sponsorship or co-created episode placements fit the existing format more naturally than display or standalone posts; a brand can supply the research hook or the guest rather than ask for a scripted endorsement.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2 · Source 3 · Source 4 · Source 5

They also report that Predictive ROI president and COO Erik Jensen joined them on the In-Demand Agency Podcast. Ask about Stephen’s formal role at Predictive ROI.

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Ask whether Stephen owns or is employed by the show.

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Ask about Stephen’s formal relationship to the podcast.

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The post identifies the podcast and Parakeeto. Ask whether there is a continuing commercial agreement.

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The post cites the research without describing a commercial relationship.

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Hall applies the approach to influencer campaign reporting and approval workflows; Woessner applies it to pipeline and trust.

Hall focuses on the delivery side of agency work—campaign reporting, creator approvals and client communication—while Woessner focuses on new business: pipeline health, trust-building conversations and follow-up during long sales cycles.

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Mok’s post on Gartner’s B2B buying data and Woessner’s use of the Edelman Trust Barometer and SparkToro report reflect the same evidence-backed approach.

Mok writes from inside a B2B SaaS company about product experience, buying friction and marketing leadership. Woessner writes as an agency sales adviser about trust architecture, proof sequencing and referral-dependent agency growth.

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They use concrete numbers and real client or prospect stories to make the case.

Munawar focuses on consultants’ positioning and outbound message quality, including the math of reaching 40 targeted prospects instead of 1,000. Woessner focuses on agency new-business conversations, sequencing proof and what to do when a live sales cycle goes silent.

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His material targets independent consultants who have tried volume outreach and lost money or months to it: the consultant who paid for a year of LinkedIn outbound, got 60 booked meetings, and found that the people on the calls did not know why they were there; and the workshop intake line about wanting to land clients without messaging hundreds of people for one yes.

• If your clients are consultants rather than agencies, his positioning-first argument — who you serve, what problem you solve, how you are different — addresses the same stalled-pipeline symptom from the demand side and gives a workshop a sharper diagnostic than trust sequencing does.
• For a workshop about trust and follow-up systems, he is the better pick when the buyer wants the case for stopping outbound, backed by the arithmetic of reaching 40 to 50 targeted prospects instead of 1,000 untargeted ones.

What you give up is the sales-conversation sequence.

• Munawar's posts explain why cold outreach fails consultants and what has to be true before any cold tactic can land, but they do not supply a staged process for the weeks after a prospect engages or a cadence for a decision that has stalled between week seven and week twelve.
• Woessner's posts contribute the three-conversation structure, the proof-ordering exercise and the follow-up principle they credit to Clate Mask; Munawar's episodes have no counterpart to those.
• There is also less to build a workshop from.
• Woessner's posts are five full posts with detailed market figures and a taught analogy, while Munawar's material is two episode summaries that describe the argument without the full episode content, leaving a programme built from them with thinner detail.
• A third difference is audience reach: Woessner speaks specifically to agency owners and agency teams, the right room for a workshop on trust and follow-up systems for agencies, while Munawar's material is written for consultants selling their own services.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

Hall's posts handle two jobs Woessner's material does not: making influencer campaign value legible to the person who signs the next contract, and fixing creator approval loops where agency hours disappear.

• His reporting argument is specific and usable: demote impressions and follower reach to an appendix, put the metrics that map to the client's funnel on page one, pick three or four and commit to them, set the attribution expectation at kickoff rather than at wrap-up, benchmark engagement against the client's own past campaigns or category norms, and include a 'what we'd do differently' slide.
• The approval post applies the same level of detail to process: it traces a reel from creator submission through a misdirected email thread, a verbal approval on a call, an email confirmation and a creator asking again, then names the resulting cycle for what it is.
• A consultancy whose clients are losing renewals despite delivering results is better served by a workshop built on that material.

The tradeoff is subject and buyer stage.

• Hall's posts work on campaigns already running and on the relationship after delivery; they do not cover how a new-business conversation starts, how trust is built through a sales process, or what to do during a long close.
• Woessner's material starts from the prospect's low trust and a market where only 14% of agencies call their pipeline healthy, which is the premise a workshop on trust and follow-up systems for agencies needs.
• Adopt Hall instead and you would have to build the pipeline diagnostic yourself, because Hall's posts contain no sales-cycle framework and no pipeline data.
• Hall's posts also say nothing about audience reach, so reach cannot be planned from them.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2

Mok argues that buyers now expect answers before they talk to sales, citing that 67% of B2B buyers prefer a rep-free experience and that roughly half used AI in a recent purchase.

• They draw the consequence for the website: static pages, gated PDFs and high-friction demo requests no longer carry pipeline, and the companies winning are turning their sites into places where buyers can experience the product earlier.
• If the need is to help clients sell to buyers who will not take a call, that is the argument to teach, backed by a marketing leader's view of how a B2B software company applies it, including the funnel effects Mok predicts: stronger pipeline, shorter cycles, better GTM alignment.

Mok's material makes the case for product experience as a growth lever but does not walk through a conversation, a proof sequence or a follow-up cadence, so the practical exercises a workshop on trust and follow-up systems for agencies needs would have to come from elsewhere.

• It targets B2B software marketing rather than agencies selling services, changing both the examples and the audience in the room.
• Mok's material offers little to build a programme from: two posts, one mostly a role and hiring announcement.
• A workshop built on them would have much less teaching detail than one built on Woessner's posts, which set out the market figures, staged sales process and follow-up principle.

Examples: Source 1 · Source 2