Episode #180: What Can You Do In A Crisis When You Can't Sell

Why are sales teams struggling to reach clients during remote work?

When clients shift to working from home, traditional contact routes—office numbers and business emails—stop working smoothly. Decision makers often become unreachable, because calls go to empty offices or to staff who can’t share personal mobile details. Even if you know the client well, the usual pathways to connection break down.

Mini-summary: Remote work makes decision makers harder to access, and the usual “office network” no longer supports sales conversations.

When you can’t reach clients quickly, deals stall. Projects slow down, and salespeople fall back on email, which is harder to convert into real business in a crisis environment. At the same time, many companies are reducing spending, laying off staff, or shrinking capacity, meaning even reachable clients may not be ready to buy.

Mini-summary: Lack of access plus reduced client capacity creates a double hit—conversations slow, and conversions drop.

Cold calling can still work, but home-based decision makers are significantly tougher to reach. In Japan, even “soft” government guidance (柔らかい政府の指導 yawarakai seifu no shidō / “soft government guidance”) can lead to strong compliance, so offices empty quickly. That raises the barrier for getting through to senior leaders.

Mini-summary: Japan’s high compliance culture amplifies remote-work barriers, making cold outreach much harder.

If client access and buying intent fall, the best use of time is to strengthen your sales foundation. This moment is an opportunity to upgrade skills so you’re ready when the market stabilizes. Instead of passive learning, focus on structured, “hard-core” study that builds real selling advantage.

Mini-summary: When sales activity drops, skill-building becomes your most valuable “pipeline.”

Start by sharpening what you sell and who you sell to. Deepen your industry knowledge and master your full product lineup—especially areas where your confidence is shaky. This is where skill gaps usually hide, and where future revenue often lives.

A practical tool is the training grid:

• Customers on one axis

• Products/services on the other axis

• Each intersection shows what you’ve sold (or haven’t sold)

Most grids reveal far fewer intersections than expected, showing how often buyers pigeonhole suppliers into narrow roles.

Mini-summary: Use downtime to master product breadth and uncover cross-sell gaps through a customer-product grid.

How do you improve sales skills while working alone at home?

Skill growth doesn’t require fancy tools. Record your voice or video on your phone, replay it, and refine your delivery. Many salespeople fall into repetitive “one-note” pitching, using the same spiel regardless of context. Practice helps you customize your message for different client needs and scenarios.

Mini-summary: Self-recording and review is a simple, powerful way to upgrade pitch precision and flexibility.

What separates high-performing salespeople in a downturn?

Free resources are everywhere, but results come from disciplined study—not casual scrolling. In a downturn, some salespeople drift into distraction, while others turn the lull into a competitive advantage. The second group emerges sharper, more credible, and more ready to serve clients at a higher level.

Mini-summary: The winners are the ones who treat a lull as a training camp, not a vacation.

Dale Carnegie Tokyo supports 日本企業 (nihon kigyō / Japanese companies) and 外資系企業 (gaishikei kigyō / multinational companies) across 東京 (Tōkyō / Tokyo) with programs including:

• リーダーシップ研修 (rīdāshippu kenshū / leadership training)

• 営業研修 (eigyou kenshū / sales training)

• プレゼンテーション研修 (purezenteeshon kenshū / presentation training)

• エグゼクティブ・コーチング (eguzekutibu kōchingu / executive coaching)

• DEI研修 (DEI kenshū / diversity, equity & inclusion training)

With 100+ years of global expertise and 60+ years in Tokyo, we help sales professionals stay effective through disruption and lead confidently in new business realities.

Mini-summary: Dale Carnegie Tokyo blends global selling excellence with deep Japan-market understanding.

• Remote work makes reaching decision makers harder and slows deal flow.

• Japan’s workplace compliance culture increases the impact of sudden shifts to home-based work.

• Use downturn time to expand product knowledge and cross-sell readiness.

• Practice delivery and message customization to avoid “one-note” selling.

Founded in the U.S. in 1912, Dale Carnegie Training has supported individuals and companies worldwide for over a century in leadership, sales, presentation, executive coaching, and DEI. Our Tokyo office, established in 1963, has been empowering both Japanese and multinational corporate clients ever since.