5 Takeaways from Carrie McIntyre’s “Mastering Sales for Revenue Growth” Session

While working for the Control System Integrators Association, I helped build the CSIA Industrial Automation Exchange, a directory of engineering firms and suppliers in the automation industry. My role focused on selling profile upgrades and advertising that helped fund the platform. I came into that position with the advantage of a twenty-year sales career that preceded my ten years in association management. Most association professionals do not have that kind of sales background, yet they are tasked with selling booths, advertising, upgraded profiles, and sponsorships that sustain their organization’s mission.

That is why Carrie McIntyre’s session at the Marketing + Sales Workshop 2025, “Mastering Sales for Revenue Growth,” was so valuable. Carrie, from her company "Navigate," delivered one of the most practical and immediately applicable talks I have heard on association sales. What follows are my top five takeaways from her presentation. If your organization needs to build its non-dues revenue capabilities, I strongly recommend engaging with Carrie. She understands how to help associations turn selling into a strategic, trust-based process that supports rather than distracts from the mission.

1. Stop Selling and Start Building Champions

Carrie opened with a counterintuitive statement: “In a sales environment, you should not be focused on selling.” When we fixate on making the sale, we inevitably attract both good-fit and bad-fit customers, and the bad ones consume far more time and energy than they are worth. They rarely take responsibility when things go wrong, and they share negative experiences widely.

Good-fit customers are the opposite. They see the association as a partner, not a vendor. They respect pricing, collaborate on solutions, and refer others. The goal, as Carrie put it, is not to close deals but to create champions. Her guiding question is one every association seller should adopt: If they become our customer, will we both have a great story to tell? If the answer is no, walk away.

2. Map and Manage the Entire Customer Journey

Most associations divide the customer journey among departments. Marketing creates awareness, sales handles engagement, and operations manages delivery or renewal. That division creates a disjointed experience for sponsors and exhibitors.

Carrie urged us to see the entire journey, from awareness through renewal, as a single, continuous relationship. She compared it to Amazon’s intentional experience design, where every step of the process reinforces trust and satisfaction.

For those selling upgraded profiles, sponsorships, or advertising within a directory or community, this holistic approach is critical. The sale is only the midpoint. Following through on delivery and helping sponsors see value in their investment is what turns a one-time transaction into a long-term partnership.

3. Define Your Ideal Customer Profile

Not every prospect deserves your time. Carrie emphasized the importance of identifying your Ideal Customer Profile, or ICP, which represents the companies that truly value your audience and understand how associations operate.

Good-fit partners align with your mission, already engage with associations, and have the internal resources to participate successfully. Poor-fit partners drain bandwidth and create friction.

Carrie also challenged the notion that big brands with big budgets make the best prospects. Often, midsize companies gain far more from your audience exposure and become your most loyal supporters. The key is to match your offerings to the companies that genuinely benefit from them.

4. Avoid the Curse of Knowledge

Carrie illustrated one of the biggest blind spots in association sales through her “tappers and listeners” experiment. Participants tapped out familiar songs while partners tried to guess the tune. Almost no one could. The lesson was simple: once we know something, we forget what it is like not to understand it.

In sales, we are the “tappers.” We send emails full of deadlines, pricing, and details, which returning sponsors understand but new prospects cannot decode.

Carrie’s advice was clear: stop sending the same messages to prospects and existing customers. New prospects need education and context before they need logistics and rates. Start with awareness and curiosity, not contracts and prices.

5. Be a Trusted Guide, Not a Closer

Carrie shared a story about a long-time sponsor whose investment dropped from $25,000 to $7,500 over three years, and no one from the association had called to ask why. When someone finally did, they learned that the company’s patent had expired, new competitors had entered the market, and its marketing priorities had shifted. That single conversation helped rebuild the partnership and recover much of the lost revenue.

Her point was simple: closing the deal is not success. Retaining trust is. Associations that act as trusted guides rather than transactional sellers earn renewals, referrals, and long-term advocates. Ask thoughtful questions, seek to understand, and detach from the outcome. When sponsors feel heard and valued, they return.

Final Reflection

Carrie McIntyre’s framework reframes sales as mission work. Selling sponsorships, advertising, or upgraded profiles is not about pressure. It is about creating partnerships that fund programs, advance your field, and deliver measurable ROI for your supporters.

Most associations lack trained sales professionals or formal sales processes, but they already have valuable assets to sell: booths, advertising, sponsorships, and directory upgrades. With intentional structure, clear qualification, and trust-driven communication, those assets can become one of your association’s most sustainable revenue engines.

If you understand that your organization needs to strengthen its non-dues revenue strategy, I would recommend that you contact Carrie McIntyre and the team at Navigate. She helps association professionals build sales programs rooted in trust, alignment, and value, which is exactly what our industry needs.