Champion identification

A champion earns the label through what they do. Someone who likes the solution can still leave you carrying the deal. Test whether they can help you reach people with power, explain the purchase inside the organization, and move the buying group. Start with someone who has a reason to win, then watch what they do when the deal needs access, agreement, and internal selling.

The identification pass

1

Problem

2

Room

3

Motive

4

Influence

5

Next step

1. Problem
2. Room
3. Motive
4. Influence
5. Next step

Run these checks in the order the account demands. Establish a reason to act, then test influence, access, and follow through.

Stage	What you are trying to learn	Example question
Problem	Whether the person agrees the organization has a problem worth solving1	What problem is important enough for you to change?
Room	Who gets heard and whose questions shape the discussion2	Who do people follow when this topic comes up?
Motive	What the person has to gain or lose from the purchase and the current situation3	What changes for you if this gets approved?
Influence	Whether the person can introduce you to people with power4	Who else needs to be part of this?
Next step	Whether the person sets the next steps with you5	What should we do next, and who should join us?

Start with motive

Begin with motive. Look for a person who feels the problem and has a personal reason to help fix it.

Ask what drives the person and what they want to change. Understand the champion's own motives.⁶ Move on when they can state the problem in their own terms and connect it to an outcome they care about.

A person who wants the purchase can still lack the reach to move it. Keep asking until that personal stake connects to a responsibility, a risk, or an outcome they are willing to carry inside the organization.

Watch the room

Room behavior gives a cleaner signal than enthusiasm. Salespeople can identify a potential champion by observing who gets listened to when they speak.⁷ Listen to the questions that person asks, then ask who will set the next step at the end of the call and compare that answer with what you saw in the room.

Ask, "Where do they sit in the org?"⁸ Use the answer to understand the person's place in the account, then compare it with who listens to them. A person can know the problem well and still lack a path through the buying group.

Test influence

Influence shows up as access and movement. You need a contact who can help you reach people you cannot reach alone.

Ask, "Who do people look for to say, all right, if this person is bought in, I'm with it?"⁹ Test the answer against behavior. A champion is willing to involve multiple stakeholders in the deal.¹⁰

Political and technical clout matters too.¹¹ The person also needs the ability or knowledge to get a deal done.¹² Ask which stakeholder owns each concern and how the person plans to bring them in. Move on when the contact can name the route through the account and take responsibility for opening it.

Get internal agreement

Get the champion's buy in before involving the broader group because the champion is speaking on your behalf.¹³ If stakeholders are unsure and have many technical questions, slow the deal down until you have solution agreement with the champion.¹⁴ Ask how the person will position the purchase internally. The way the champion plans to sell it reveals what internal buyers and the ultimate decision maker care about.¹⁵

Use this question to bring the internal case into the open: "How are you positioning this internally to your org of like why you need this?"¹⁶ Follow with: "How can I help you justify this to other people in the org?"¹⁷ Help the champion define buying criteria, which can make the person look good inside the organization and encourage advocacy.¹⁸ Move on when they can explain the reason to buy, the criteria, and the people who will judge it.

Pressure test through work

Pressure test the label through work. Give the person a piece of the deal that requires preparation, access, or internal explanation, and see whether they carry it.

Use the champion to improve the outcome of the next parts of the sales cycle.¹⁹ Ask the champion to help you sell during the stakeholder call.²⁰ Prepare and debrief with the champion before and after meetings with additional stakeholders.²¹ Ask the champion to recap the problem and reasons for the purchase to newly involved stakeholders.²²

Request information you could not get from a public conversation. Ask whether the person is providing confidential behind the scenes information to validate the champion.²³ If they can explain what is happening between meetings, who is hesitant, and what must happen next, use that information to adjust your path.

Prepare the internal champion for the conversation, and keep your pitch in your own hands. You can prepare them, and they remain an internal contact who is not a sales professional.²⁴ Give them the problem statement, buying criteria, and role each person will play. The label is earned when internal stakeholders start pushing for you.²⁵

What not to do

A friendly contact may still need to prove they can do the work. Use these checks to keep the label tied to observable work.

• In every deal review, ask, "Who is the champion and why?"²⁶
• Address buying committee indecision by equipping the champion to overcome it.²⁷
• When new attendees join, have the champion bring them up to the stage already reached.²⁸
• Prepare the internal champion for the conversation. They are not a sales professional.²⁴