Think your sales message is working? If it’s not focused on solving pain, it’s probably falling flat.

In this episode of The Sales Machine Podcast, I sit down with Ben Kniffen, co-founder of LinkedSelling and an expert in lead generation and sales development. Ben shares his journey from working with diverse industries to becoming a leader in B2B marketing and omnichannel strategies. Together, we uncover why most sales messages fail to connect and what it takes to build campaigns that resonate.

We talk about:

✅ Why pain-based messaging is your most powerful tool.

✅ The shift from process-driven to message-driven strategies in lead generation.

✅ How to name the pain points that make prospects stop and listen.

✅ Why aligning sales and marketing teams is the secret to impactful campaigns.

✅ The importance of storytelling in creating cohesive, omnichannel strategies.

If you’re tired of your sales message being ignored, this conversation is your wake-up call. It’s time to shift the focus from what you sell to the pain you solve.

Let’s get into it! 

Episode Highlights

"If you're not top of mind, you’re never going to be top of the funnel." - John Rankins

"Pain-based messaging is the most effective way to connect with prospects and drive engagement." - Ben Kniffen

"Pain motivates more than pleasure. If you can name the pain, they’ll listen." - John Rankins

"LinkedIn ads are powerful because you can target specific decision-makers within your account-based marketing strategy."  - Ben Kniffen

"A lot of companies are still using outdated tools like Excel. It’s costing them opportunities in real time." - John Rankins

"The biggest mistake companies make in omnichannel marketing is failing to tell the same story across all channels." - Ben Kniffen

Chapters

(17:54) - The Evolution of LinkedIn and Lead Generation Strategies

(24:20) - Understanding Pain and Pleasure in Marketing

(29:21) - The Discovery Process in Sales

(31:20) - Aligning Sales and Marketing Teams

(40:52) - The Name That Pain Game

(46:36) - Lead Generation Strategies

(56:36) - The Power of Omni-Channel Marketing

(01:03:12) - The Role of Sales in Identifying Pain Points

(01:05:54) - Creating Effective Marketing Campaigns

Connect with Ben Kniffen

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benkniffen/ 

Twitter/X: https://x.com/benkniffen 

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_linkedselling_/ 

Website: https://linkedselling.com/ 

Connect with John Rankins

Website: https://thesalesmachine.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheSalesMachineOfficial

Instagram:https://www.instagram.com/thesalesmachine_official/

LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/company/thesalesmachineofficial/

YouTube:https://www.youtube.com/@JohnRankinsOfficial