Sharpening Your Sales Process: Lessons from Brandon Rush with Small Axe Sales

In this episode, I sit down with Brandon Rush, founder and CEO of Small Axe Sales, to talk about transforming traditional sales into authentic service-driven relationships. Brandon shares how Small Axe Sales helps businesses shift from transactional selling to building meaningful connections, enhancing long-term customer loyalty and sustainable growth.

We get into Brandon’s journey from high-pressure corporate sales environments to creating his own methodology that emphasizes empathy, active listening, and genuine problem-solving. He explains why sales should be seen as an act of service, and how adopting this mindset can significantly boost both employee satisfaction and bottom-line results.

Key takeaways:

• Sales becomes more effective when it prioritizes genuine service and customer wellbeing over short-term gains
  
  
• Empathy and active listening are crucial skills for building trust and long-lasting relationships with clients
  
  
• Traditional high-pressure sales tactics often lead to burnout, poor morale, and high turnover
  
  
• Training your sales team in consultative selling creates a more engaged, satisfied workforce
  
  
• Adopting a service-driven sales culture leads to sustainable business growth and higher client retention

Brandon also provides practical insights into training sales teams to become consultative partners rather than just revenue-generating machines, highlighting real-world examples from businesses he's transformed.

This week's challenge: Reflect on your current sales interactions and identify one area where you can shift your approach from transactional to service-oriented. Commit to actively listening to understand your client's deeper needs in your next sales conversation, rather than focusing solely on closing the deal.

Want to connect with Brandon and Small Axe Sales? Find him on LinkedIn and visit Small Axe Sales' website to explore how his approach can help revolutionize your sales strategy. 

• DM me on LinkedIn or Instagram!
• Join us for the next SAS LIVE Office Hours Event!
• Check out the LinkedIn Lead Generator to learn how to turn simple daily actions into real conversations with potential clients.
• Grab your free 5-Minute Sales Audit for a quick scan to show what’s working, what’s not—and one thing you can improve right away.

Tam Smith is a Sales Growth Strategist and founder of Studio Three 49, where she helps creative agencies and service pros ditch feast-or-famine cycles with sales systems that actually feel good to use.

With 15+ years in sales leadership, Tam’s work focuses on building genuine relationships, crafting smart outreach strategies, and creating consistent client pipelines—no pressure tactics required.

She also hosts live Sales as Service Office Hours, where she shows up as the perpetual student—sharing what she’s testing, learning, and uncovering, while answering real questions about sales and sustainable business growth.