The 11th Minute

The 11th Minute

Steadfast in Business Development | The Steadfast Business Series

The customer does not owe you an hour. You earn the next part of the conversation by making the current part useful.

The 11th Minute is a practical business development guide for business owners, salespeople and professionals who want to build confidence, earn attention and create more meaningful customer conversations.

Drawing on more than 40 years of real-world commercial experience, Chris Davies explores why successful selling begins with preparation, understanding and relevance — not pressure, scripts or sales theatre.

If you know your product but sometimes struggle to start a conversation, explain its value or decide what to ask next, this guide offers a clear approach to improving those conversations.

Five stages of a better customer conversation

1. Before You Enter

Understand the customer's business, their likely pressures and the people involved in making decisions. Prepare with purpose rather than assumptions.

2. The First Ninety Seconds

Create a confident, professional opening that respects the customer's time and gives them a genuine reason to listen.

3. Questions That Earn Time

Explore what's happening in the customer's business, why it matters and what needs to change.

4. Prove, Don't Pitch

Connect relevant evidence to the customer's priorities instead of relying on generic presentations, product features or unsupported claims.

5. The 11th Minute

Recognize genuine interest, honor your original commitment and agree the smallest useful next step.

The Ten-to-Ten Approach

The principle is straightforward.

Ask for ten minutes of the customer's time. Prepare properly, make those minutes worthwhile and keep your promise.

If the customer chooses to continue, you've earned minute eleven.

Throughout the book, Chris combines practical commercial insights, realistic business examples and opportunities for personal reflection to help readers understand and apply these principles in their own customer conversations.

The learning approach is simple:

Prepare → Practice → Act → Look Back → Improve → Repeat.

Whether you're beginning your sales career, developing existing customer relationships or running your own business, *The 11th Minute* encourages you to build confidence through better preparation, meaningful conversations and continuous improvement.

No pressure. No tricks. No sales theatre. Just earning the right to continue the conversation.

Part of The Steadfast Business Series

The 11th Minute is part of The Steadfast Business Series, a growing collection of practical business books exploring sales, business development, leadership and commercial performance.

Each title stands independently, combining original experience with straightforward guidance that readers can adapt to their own circumstances.

Steadfast in Purpose for Performance and Revenue.