What does it take to win when buyers can't tell you apart from the competition—and just default to whomever's cheapest?

In this episode of The Emblazers: B2B Leaders Igniting Revenue, Tim Riesterer talks with Mike Rogers, National Sales Director at Nelnet Campus Commerce, to tackle one of the hardest problems in enterprise sales: breaking through in a commoditized market.

With over two decades in sales leadership, including time at Oracle, Mike has learned that speed isn't always your friend. He makes the case for slowing down the sales process to expose the gaps in buyer thinking that most reps rush right past.

They dig into why product-led conversations keep teams stuck, how to build a genuine point of view on your customer's business, and what it actually means to sell at multiple levels of an organization. Mike also shares how disciplined pipeline management keeps teams from bleeding time on deals they were never going to win—and why documenting customer value is just as important as delivering it.

If your team is fighting for deals in a price-sensitive market, this one's worth your time.

Tune in to learn:

How to compete in commoditized markets without relying on price
Why pausing improves sales conversations and reveals buyer blind spots
How to build a fact-based sales approach that strengthens pipeline quality

Episode highlights:

(00:00) Introduction

(01:30) Mike explains Nelnet's educational tech solutions

(05:20) Key lessons from Mike's Oracle experience

(06:26) The structure of Nelnet’s sales team

(10:03) RFPs and navigating informed buyers

(12:45) Mike’s approach: the pause and listen method

(14:40) Behavioral economics in sales

(21:01) Triple metric framework for sales kickoffs

(26:30) The importance of documenting success outcomes

(29:29) The impact on pipeline and customer relationships

(31:12) Mike’s maxims for sales leadership

Links and Resources:

Connect with Abby Kerr: https://www.linkedin.com/in/abbycathkerr/
Connect with Tim Riesterer: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tim-riesterer/
Connect with Mike Rogers: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mike-rogers-7767585/

Subscribe to The Emblazers for more conversations with leading B2B thinkers.

Explore the Emblaze revenue community and start a membership today.

Learn about Mike Rogers

As National Sales Director at Nelnet Campus Commerce, Mike Rogers leads national sales strategy and helps institutions modernize financial experiences in higher education. With over 20 years in enterprise sales and leadership roles at Oracle, he brings deep expertise in aligning complex solutions to executive priorities and long-term business outcomes. His approach focuses on disciplined selling, behavioral insights, and building value-driven customer relationships.

Learn about Tim Riesterer

As Chief Strategy Officer at Corporate Visions and Chief Research Officer at Emblaze revenue leaders’ community, Tim Riesterer is a pioneering force in developing customer conversations that break through the status quo and drive measurable business results. His innovative approach helps companies craft differentiated messages and deploy them through powerful self-service and sales-directed tools that consistently outperform traditional content strategies. A recognized expert in value creation and capture, Tim enables organizations to transform their customer conversations through proven methodologies that elevate their market position and drive sustainable growth.

Learn about Abby Kerr

As Director of Content & Community at Emblaze, Abby Kerr designs content experiences that spark conversations and strengthen the connective tissue between B2B revenue leaders. With a background spanning brand voice strategy, enterprise B2B content, and education, she brings a sharp eye for nuance and a deep understanding of how people learn and grow. A champion of insight-driven storytelling and peer-to-peer learning, Abby helps make Emblaze a place where leaders don’t just consume content—they contribute to it. She’s also a warm, un-shy introvert who reads fiction, asks big questions, and drinks her coffee black.

How to Sell When Price Is the Only Differentiator