The Qualified Sales Leader: Proven Lessons from a Five Time CRO

“As you’ve told us, attach to the pain above the noise and build a powerful cost justification with a high-level Champion. We worked on a business issue that affected a critical corporate measure.”

What is the timeframe for each step of the process? What is the name of the Legal contact? Have our documents been redlined by their Legal? Have you spoken to the contact in the Procurement Department?

These questions help you understand where the rep is in the Negotiate and Close stage: Does your Champion know the approval process? Has your Champion been involved in purchasing a product larger than $X? Walk me through the steps in the approval process. Who are the stakeholders involved in each of these steps?

Qualifying Reps on the Competition Several questions can help you understand your rep’s knowledge of the competition and control of the account: Who is the competition? When did they enter the account? Were they in the account before us? Who is their Champion?

Did you gain agreement on a follow-up EB meeting if the results from the validation event materially changed your cost justification? What questions did the Economic Buyer ask you? What did your Champion say after the meeting?

Did the EB agree that all vendors must test to the same validation criteria? Can we call the EB if someone tries to change the agreed-upon validation criteria? Does the Economic Buyer have authority to make a purchase of this size? Did you review the preliminary cost justification with the Economic Buyer? Can we meet with the EB if our test results

Qualifying Reps on Meeting the Economic Buyer These are questions to ask of your reps who have met the Economic Buyer: Did you confirm your Discovery and Scoping findings? Did you confirm the Three WHYs? Did you confirm the before and after scenarios? What is the Economic Buyer’s desired business outcome? Which Economic Buyer measure is most impact

Has the decision process changed since it was first created? Who changed it? Were you or your Champion involved? Is your Champion helping you control the process? If not, which competitor’s Champion is controlling the process? What is the title of the competition’s Champion? Does the POV have defined start and end dates? Which competitors are invol

Qualifying Reps on Decision Process Here are some examples of qualifying decision process questions: What are the specific events the company will use to evaluate a solution? Besides your Champion, who else will be involved in each event of the decision process? Of those people involved in the process, who have you met with one on one? Have any new