How to Qualify Whether a Deal Can Actually Close.
You have had a good discovery conversation, the buyer seems interested, and you need to know whether this is a real deal or a pleasant waste of time.
Interest is not the same as a deal. MEDDPICC exists because complex sales die in predictable places: no access to the economic buyer, a process nobody mapped, a paper step that takes three months, or a competitor that includes doing nothing. Qualifying is not a checklist you run at the end - it is a thread you pull throughout discovery so you never build a proposal for a deal that cannot close.
Where it goes wrong
You spend six weeks on a deal, write a proposal, and then hear 'we need to pause' - because the budget owner never knew it was happening, or legal has a six-week review nobody mentioned, or the buyer was always just benchmarking. That time is gone and the quarter is shorter.
What you'll be able to do
After this lesson you can ask the questions that surface the real buying path - who owns the budget, how decisions actually get made, what the paper process looks like, and whether your champion can sell for you when you are not in the room.
How to do it
Ask your champion to draw the process, not describe
Ask your champion to draw the process, not describe it. 'Walk me through every step from here to a signature, including anyone who needs to review or approve.' People omit steps when they describe; they rarely omit them when they map.
Separate the person who can say yes from the
Separate the person who can say yes from the people who can only say no. 'Who ultimately owns the budget for something like this?' If your champion hesitates or says 'it depends', you have not reached the economic buyer yet.
Surface the paper process early
Surface the paper process early. 'Is there a legal or procurement review, and roughly how long does that take?' Deals that stall in legal were not disqualified - they were just never qualified on this dimension.
Test your champion's internal reach
Test your champion's internal reach. 'If you decided today this was the right move, what would you need to do to get it approved?' A real champion can answer this specifically. A weak one says 'I would just send it up'.
Name the do-nothing option directly
Name the do-nothing option directly. 'One option you always have is to leave things as they are. What happens to the business if this does not get solved this year?' This makes the status quo a visible choice rather than a silent default.
See the difference
Rep: 'Great, so who else needs to be involved?' Buyer: 'Probably just my manager.' Rep: 'Perfect, I will send over the proposal.' - The rep has no idea who the economic buyer is, what the approval steps are, or whether the manager has budget authority.
Rep: 'Before I put together anything formal, can I ask a few process questions? Who ultimately owns the budget for a decision like this - is that you, or does it go above you?' Buyer: 'It would go to our CFO.' Rep: 'Good to know. What would she need to see to feel comfortable approving it? And is there a legal or procurement step we should build time for?' - Now the rep knows the real path.
After this lesson you can ask the questions that surface the real buying path - who owns the budget, how decisions actually get made, what the paper process loo
How you'll know it's working
You have got it when you can draw the buying process for every active deal - named economic buyer, decision steps, paper process, and your champion's ability to sell internally - before you write a proposal.
Questions people ask
How do you qualify whether a deal can actually close?
Interest is not the same as a deal. MEDDPICC exists because complex sales die in predictable places: no access to the economic buyer, a process nobody mapped, a paper step that takes three months, or a competitor that includes doing nothing. After this lesson you can ask the questions that surface the real buying path - who owns the budget, how decisions actually get made, what the paper process looks like, and whether
What is the most common mistake to avoid?
You spend six weeks on a deal, write a proposal, and then hear 'we need to pause' - because the budget owner never knew it was happening, or legal has a six-week review nobody mentioned, or the buyer was always just benchmarking. That time is gone and the quarter is shorter.
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