Direct answer: A custom sales training program is built around your team's actual accounts, deals, and gaps. The Sandler Selling System is a proven, licensed methodology delivered by certified Sandler trainers. Neither is automatically better. The right one depends on whether your team needs a bespoke fix or a durable system installed company-wide.
Every company that calls me asking about training starts the conversation the same way: "We need better training." That's not specific enough to build anything useful. The real first question is whether the gap is specific to how your team sells, or whether the team needs an entire operating system for selling that doesn't exist yet.
What Custom Training Actually Builds
Custom training starts with how your team actually sells, then fixes what's breaking the number. It's built through the Sales Builder Method, drawn from real enterprise deals rather than a franchise curriculum, and covers prospecting, discovery, objection handling, and closing matched to your specific sales motion.
This fits teams with inconsistent pipeline, reps who can talk but can't close, or managers who need a shared language for coaching that reflects how deals actually move through their specific pipeline, not a generic textbook example.
What the Sandler Selling System Adds
Sandler is different by design. It's a structured methodology built around qualifying before pitching, removing pressure from the close, and reinforcing behavior change over time rather than treating training as a single event. It's been refined across decades and thousands of sales organizations, which is exactly the point: you're not building something from scratch, you're installing something proven.
For companies that want that specific system, I refer the engagement to Matt Nettleton, Managing Partner at Sandler DTB here in Indianapolis, and personally manage the implementation so it actually gets used instead of sitting in a binder after the kickoff session. Matt has coached more than 175 companies since 2003, and I've trained under the system myself before ever referring a client into it.
How to Decide Which One Fits
Ask three questions before choosing:
- Does your sales motion look like most B2B sales cycles, or is it specific enough that an off-the-shelf system won't map cleanly onto it?
- Does the team need a durable, repeatable methodology installed company-wide, or a fix to one or two specific breakdowns?
- Is the gap a skills gap, or a systems and accountability gap that needs an entire framework, not just better technique?
Reinforcement matters either way. Companies using structured reinforcement after training sustain the benefits roughly 120 days longer than those that treat training as a one-time event (Ascent Trainings). Whichever path you choose, the reinforcement plan is not optional.
The Indianapolis Training Ecosystem
Indianapolis has a genuinely strong local sales training community, and it's worth naming the people in it. I've run a Techpoint sales bootcamp alongside Matt Nettleton in the past, and if your team ends up talking to Sandler DTB directly instead of through me, you're still in good hands.
Tell me what's actually breaking, and I'll tell you which path fits before we talk about anything else.
Schedule A Free Training ConsultationFrequently Asked Questions
What is the Sandler Selling System?
The Sandler Selling System is a structured, proven sales methodology built around qualification before pitching, a no-pressure approach to closing, and consistent reinforcement. It's licensed and delivered through certified Sandler trainers rather than built custom per client.
What is custom sales training?
Custom training is built around a specific team's accounts, deals, buyer, and sales motion rather than a licensed framework. It fits teams whose sales process doesn't map cleanly onto an off-the-shelf system.
Who is Matt Nettleton?
Matt Nettleton is the Managing Partner of Sandler DTB, the Sandler Training franchise serving Indianapolis. He has coached sales teams for more than two decades and is the referral partner for companies that want the full Sandler Selling System implemented and managed.
How do I decide which one my team needs?
If the team needs a durable, repeatable system installed company-wide with an established methodology, Sandler is usually the better fit. If the gap is specific to your product, buyer, or sales motion, a custom program built around those specifics tends to move the number faster.