Part of The B2B Sales Process
BANT
The OG. Too basic/inappropriate for most B2B sales these days though.
It has been around for decades and its origins are unclear. It might have originated at IBM in the 1970s, or it might have been developed at Xerox in the 1980s.
This methodology is used to qualify leads based on their budget, decision-making authority, specific needs, and timeline for making a purchase.
BANT stands for:
Budget
The prospect's financial resources and whether they have the budget to purchase the product or service being offered.
Authority
The decision-making power the prospect has within their organization, or whether they have the ability to influence the decision to purchase.
Need
The specific problem or pain point that the prospect is trying to solve with the product or service being offered.
Timeline
The prospect's timeframe for making a purchase or implementing a solution to their problem.
pros & cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Quick. | May not take into account the complexity of some buying decisions. |
| Provides a structured approach to qualifying leads. | May not be effective for selling complex products or services. |
| Can help salespeople prioritize their time and resources. | Doesn't consider other factors that may influence a prospect's decision to buy, such as their goals, plans, and challenges. |
MEDDIC (aka MEDDICC or MEDDPICC)
Developed in the 1990s by Jack Napoli, a Sales executive at PTC (software company).
Big focus here is on having a champion within the organization who can help push the sale forward.
It's a good framework, though I dislike its emphasis on disqualifying if no tested Champion. Real-world is less black & white. One should do what it takes to get a champion, but deals have been won without one - especially in companies with a culture of keeping their cards closed to their chest (eg for compliance reasons).
Metrics
The specific goals or performance metrics that the prospect is trying to achieve or improve by purchasing the product or service being offered.
Economic Buyer
The person or group within the prospect's organization who has the authority to approve the purchase and allocate the necessary budget.
Decision Criteria
The specific factors or features that the prospect is looking for in a product or service, and the criteria they will use to evaluate potential solutions.
Decision Process
The steps or stages that the prospect's organization goes through when making a purchasing decision, including who is involved and what criteria they use to evaluate potential solutions.
I don't think a good Sales qualification methodology can miss that - except if forecasting is not a company priority (eg privately owned, with no external investors who expect results to be hit monthly/quarterly/annually).
Understand and influence the decision-making process
Paper Process
The specific requirements or steps that the prospect's organisation has in place for making a purchase, such as obtaining security, compliance, legal or procurement approval.
Identify Pain
The specific problem or pain point that the prospect is trying to solve with the product or service being offered.
Also important to IMPACT pain, ie ensure prospect feels the pain, and not just identify it.
Champion
A person within the prospect's organization who is an advocate for the product or service being offered and can help move the sale forward.
Competition
The other products, services, or solutions that the prospect is considering or currently using, and how the product or service being offered compares to them.
pros & cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Identify the most promising prospects & prioritize time/resources. | Can be time-consuming to implement. |
| Focuses on the customer's needs and decision-making process. | May not work well for selling low-cost products or services. |
| Encourages to build relationships with champions within the organization. | May not be effective for selling to small businesses or individual consumers. |
CHAMP
Challenges
The specific obstacles or difficulties that the prospect is facing that the product or service being offered can help address.
Authority
The decision-making power the prospect has within their organization, or whether they have the ability to influence the decision to purchase.
Money
The prospect's financial resources and whether they have the budget to purchase the product or service being offered.
Prioritization
The prospect's sense of urgency or importance in addressing their challenges.
pros & cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Provides a simple framework for salespeople to use when qualifying leads. | May not work well for selling complex or high-cost products or services. |
| Helps salespeople identify key decision-makers within an organization. | Doesn't consider other factors that may influence a prospect's decision to buy, such as their goals and plans. |
| Can be effective for selling to small and mid-sized businesses. | May not be effective for selling to larger organizations. |
ANUM
Developed by Jill Konrath, a sales expert and author. A slight tweak on the old BANT.
Authority
The decision-making power the prospect has within their organization, or whether they have the ability to influence the decision to purchase.
Need
The specific problem or pain point that the prospect is trying to solve with the product or service being offered.
Urgency
The prospect's timeframe for making a purchase or implementing a solution to their problem.
Money
The prospect's financial resources and whether they have the budget to purchase the product or service being offered.
pros & cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Simple and straightforward framework for qualifying leads. | May not be effective for selling complex or high-cost products or services. |
| Effective for selling low-cost products or services. | Doesn't consider other factors that may influence a prospect's decision to buy, such as their goals and plans. |
GPCTBA/C&I
The GPCTBA/C&I methodology was developed by HubSpot.
This methodology adds an important, and overlooked aspect: the consequences and implications of not taking action (also called "Cost Of Inaction", which can be more powerful than the usual ROI Cost Of Inaction (COI)).
Goals
The prospect's business objectives and how the product or service being offered can help achieve them.
Plans
The specific strategies or initiatives the prospect has in place to achieve their goals and how the product or service being offered can fit into those plans.
Challenges
The obstacles or difficulties the prospect is facing that the product or service being offered can help address.
Timeline
The prospect's timeframe for making a purchase or implementing a solution to their problem.
Budget
The prospect's financial resources and whether they have the budget to purchase the product or service being offered.
Authority
The decision-making power the prospect has within their organization, or whether they have the ability to influence the decision to purchase.
Consequences
The potential impact or consequences of not addressing the prospect's challenges and how the product or service being offered can help mitigate those consequences.
Implications
The broader implications of the prospect's challenges on their business or industry and how the product or service being offered can help address those implications.
pros & cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| Comprehensive approach to qualifying leads. | Can be time-consuming to implement. |
| Helps with prioritisation. | Not for selling low-cost products or services. |
| Good for for selling complex products or services. | Not adequate/efficient for selling to SMBs. |
Which one is the best?
First: any is better than none.
Second: it depends on your product, your market, and your sales process.
My personal view: they all bring something to the table, and the best is a custom one.
✅ I personally like:
- the COI (Cost Of Inaction) Cost Of Inaction (COI) angle in the GPCTBA/C&I methodology.
- the Paper Process in the MEDDPIC methodology (especially for forecasting accuracy purposes, ie not if but when a deal will close).
❌ I personally dislike:
- methodologies relying on "is budget available" as a qualifier. I have won many deals where the budget was not available from the get go. A good Sale of a good solution will make budget available.
- hard disqualifiers based on "great to have but can be done without" (eg a tested Champion in MEDDICC or exisiting need in BANT)*.
- "urgency" criteria, limiting to short-term sales & forecasting. I worked on long sales cycle deals, sometimes closing the largest deals in the company's history. Those take time, especially when you're creating the need. Assessing timeline yes, disqualifying based on lack of current urgency, no.
* I'm a fierce disqualifier, but not for those reasons.
What the ideal framework looks like for me
TODO: flesh out my ideal framework.
A mix of the above:
- Metrics
- Decision Criteria
- Decision Process
- Paper Process
- Challenges
- Authority
- Money (can it be unlocked, not is budget available)
- Prioritisation
- Goals
- Timeline
- COI
- Competition