News Roundup

16th July 2026 |   Journal Of Sales Transformation

Journal’s come home

The International Journal of Sales Transformation has reverted to its original ownership, following a year under the auspices of the Institute of Sales Professionals. Founding editor Nick de Cent says: “I’d like to thank the ISP for their input to the Journal and offering us a home for a year. We are excited now to be going forward as an independent publication again, dedicated to high-quality research-led writing about excellence in B2B sales.”

With 12 years of fully searchable content online, covering all aspects of B2B sales and beyond, the Journal is a unique resource for sales leaders and their teams, academics, consultants and students. He adds: “A unique aspect of our content is the original research from senior sales leaders, respected academics and leading consultants presented in an engaging and authoritative style.”

Nick de Cent, Editor-in-chief of The International Journal of Sales Transformation
“The Journal is a unique resource for sales leaders.”

2026 – the year evidence supersedes AI hype

Buyers are increasingly seeking validation from product experts over AI-generated insights. Deep human interactions remain crucial for complex decision-making and post-sale trust. Accordingly, companies are advised to upskill their teams to provide meaningful expert insights early in the buying process. These are just some of the insights in Forrester’s 2026 Predictions: B2B Marketing, Sales & Product.

With change unfolding so quickly, Forrester recommends prioritising building trust and helping buyers realise value. Companies are also recommended to invest in Al governance, elevate expert insight, and prepare teams to compete in a market where buyers demand hard proof. In 2026 – a year defined by volatility – clarity and accountability will be a company’s greatest assets, the research and advisory firm suggests.

Unify tech around a single view of the buyer

In today’s tech world, when it comes to prospecting, the strongest performers unify channels, workflows, and reporting around a single view of the buyer.

However, fragmentation and lack of integration is holding sales teams back, according to a whitepaper from B2B outreach specialists Sopro. The Brighton-based lead-gen company argues that, while sales and marketing organisations now use a growing mix of AI tools, CRM platforms, analytics dashboards, and automation software, few of these systems connect cleanly. The result is a patchwork of tools, teams, and data in which “campaigns run in parallel rather than in sync”, and “insights from one channel never reach another”.

Moreover, while automation can start conversations, humans close them, the authors of The State of Prospecting 2026 argue. “Credibility, proof, and real responses now separate meaningful engagement from ignored noise.”

The whitepaper suggests that top performers share certain common characteristics:

  • They know exactly who they need to reach and keep that audience clean, complete, and current.
  • They stay visible consistently, not just when pipeline dips.
  • They make every touch feel relevant, credible, and worth replying to.

“Everything else – channels, copy style, AI tools, timing – only works once those foundations are in place,” the authors emphasise.

2026 DMA awards open

The 2026 DMA Awards opened for entries on 7 July. The Data & Marketing Association (DMA) is inviting brands, agencies, charities, marketing and technology partners to submit the campaigns, programmes and innovations that have defined the past year.

Now in its 46th year, the DMA Awards is among the UK’s longestrunning marketing awards, recognising work that combines strategic thinking, outstanding creativity and proven commercial results.