I know your time is precious, and so I wouldn’t like to waste it.
But before we get to the popular “MEDDIC sales methodology,” let’s mull over a hypothetical situation (Don’t worry, I am not going off track).
You enter a store, and a lovely pair of shoes captures your attention. But unfortunately, your size isn’t available.
So, you decide to go for a smaller size, thinking you’ll manage. However, after a few days, the blisters and discomfort remind you of the mistake you’ve made by investing in a pair of shoes that don’t fit.
No matter how hard you try, sometimes you can’t force things that don’t fit.
The case is similar in sales; you can’t forcefully sell a product that is not a good fit for the prospect. If you still do, it will clog your sales pipeline as they don’t convert.
This is because most of them are bad leads. You’ll waste your time and effort no matter how hard you try.
65% of customers are lost because of indifference, not because of mistakes.
So, it is essential to qualify the leads to get fruitful results.
Well, how will you do that?
MEDDIC sales methodology can help you with it.
It is one of the most popular sales methodologies adapted by several sales professionals for lead qualification.
What is MEDDIC sales methodology?
Dick Dunkel and Jack Napoli of the PTC corporation introduced this effective sales methodology.
MEDDIC sales methodology strongly emphasizes the potential prospect, aiming to ensure a profitable return on the sales efforts.
This qualification framework saves you from chasing bad leads. It helps you in understanding and qualifying prospects.
You’ll know whether you are selling to the right people in the right way, increasing the possibilities of closing the deals.
Breakdown of the MEDDIC acronym
You must go through a six-part discovery process using the MEDDIC sales methodology. Let’s dig deeper into each piece of the MEDDIC acronym.
Metrics
Economic Buyer
Decision Criteria
Decision Process
Identify Pain
Champion
1. Metrics
Some businesses are looking for a solution that would help them boost efficiency, while a few others are just interested in increasing profit margins.
So, you need clarity about the quantifiable results that prospects expect from your solution.
It can be anything from cost saving to risk avoidance or boosting revenue.
Finding such metrics can help define your solution’s quantifiable benefits.
For instance;
Your potential buyer’s goal is to increase their revenue by 10% in the next month. So, you can explain to them how your solution will help in achieving their target.
Identifying the right metrics helps paint a clear picture of what you can offer.
All you need to do here is measure the prospect’s current and future state (after product implementation), then quantify the benefits.
2. Economic buyer
In a company, there are many people playing different roles. Your challenge here is to find the one who has the authority to approve the purchase.
An economic buyer is the one who has control over the funds and the power to take the final call for the deal.
So just connecting with someone from your target company wouldn’t help in closing the deal. The MEDDIC sales approach encourages you to invest your time and effort in discovering that one person who can accept or reject your offer.
If you manage to convince that one person, then your chances of winning the deal are higher.
Wondering how you would find that decision-maker? Well, here are a few questions that can help you in doing so:
Who is responsible for making the purchase decision in your organization?
Are you the sole owner of this project?
Who in your organization approves the fund for a purchase?
What’s your role in the decision-making process?
Who takes the final decision when it comes to choosing a vendor, supplier, or solution?
3. Decision criteria
You deliver a compelling pitch highlighting the strengths of your product. The prospect gets impressed and signs the contract.
I wish it was that easy.
Unfortunately, there are many factors that a prospect ponders over while making a buying decision.
MEDDIC sales methodology recognizes this and emphasizes gaining an in-depth understanding of a company’s technical, legal, and commercial buying decision criteria.
For instance;
They might want software that integrates with their current tech stack or might have set a fixed budget for buying a solution and aren’t willing to negotiate on it.
Discovering the factors a prospect considers while buying a new product will help you in determining whether you can meet them or not.
If not, then there is no point wasting your and the prospect’s precious time. Instead, you can utilize your precious hours on a more lucrative deal that might convert.
4. Decision process
Doesn’t it seem like a twin brother of Decision Criteria?
Well, the above point focuses on the criteria a prospect considers while buying.
While this phase of the MEDDIC sales methodology tells you how the buying decision was made.
It is basically a route taken by the organization to reach a purchasing decision. So, you need to find a company’s process to purchase a product.
This will help you track how far they are on the way to reaching a deal closure.
Here are a few questions that you can ask the prospect to understand their decision process.
Which are the steps usually taken to reach a buying decision?
On which timeline is it based?
Can you describe what the approval process looks like and who is involved in it?
5. Identify the pain
Most companies don’t try something new until it’s necessary. Only when they face some major problem will they look for a solution.
70% of purchase decisions are made to solve problems.
Such businesses look forward to dealing with companies who understand their pain and can help them in overcoming the issues.
So, if you want to convert your potential prospects into paying customers, you need to identify these pain points and offer a powerful solution.
For that, it is necessary to collect all information surrounding their pain.
You must be as specific as possible while discovering the prospect’s pain.
For instance;
Saying that the company is losing a lot of money is a very vague statement. Find out how much the company is losing and what’s the cause.
Like the company is losing around $30,000 due to slow production. Knowing their weak areas will put you in a strong position.
You’ll be able to explain why they should think about your product and highlight the potential risks of not addressing the problem.
6. Champion
Wouldn’t you show interest in a solution if it makes your work easier and helps in perform better?
Well, I surely would. The simpler our work gets, the better results we can deliver to the company.
This phase of the MEDDIC sales methodology focuses on finding that Champion – an influential person who will benefit if the pain is mitigated.
Such Champions often act as a helping hand in getting the product implemented.
If you gain their trust, they will support you as they want to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
So, you need to find the ideal candidate who is affected the most by the pain and who can influence a buying decision.
Having an insider of the company at your side increases the chances of closing a deal.
Wrapping up
MEDDIC methodology is one of the most effective sales methodologies that can help you achieve your sales targets.
It gives you the information you need to target the right prospects. With the help of MEDDIC, you can fill your pipeline with quality leads.
Once you have the right leads, you can use the best CRM software to manage and convert them quickly.
Salesmate is a CRM trusted by sales teams of different sizes to fulfill their sales goals. This feature-rich system helps in faster closure with its advanced capabilities.
Coreen Menezes
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I know your time is precious, and so I wouldn’t like to waste it.
But before we get to the popular “MEDDIC sales methodology,” let’s mull over a hypothetical situation (Don’t worry, I am not going off track).
You enter a store, and a lovely pair of shoes captures your attention. But unfortunately, your size isn’t available.
So, you decide to go for a smaller size, thinking you’ll manage. However, after a few days, the blisters and discomfort remind you of the mistake you’ve made by investing in a pair of shoes that don’t fit.
No matter how hard you try, sometimes you can’t force things that don’t fit.
The case is similar in sales; you can’t forcefully sell a product that is not a good fit for the prospect. If you still do, it will clog your sales pipeline as they don’t convert.
This is because most of them are bad leads. You’ll waste your time and effort no matter how hard you try.
So, it is essential to qualify the leads to get fruitful results.
Well, how will you do that?
MEDDIC sales methodology can help you with it.
It is one of the most popular sales methodologies adapted by several sales professionals for lead qualification.
What is MEDDIC sales methodology?
Dick Dunkel and Jack Napoli of the PTC corporation introduced this effective sales methodology.
MEDDIC sales methodology strongly emphasizes the potential prospect, aiming to ensure a profitable return on the sales efforts.
This qualification framework saves you from chasing bad leads. It helps you in understanding and qualifying prospects.
You’ll know whether you are selling to the right people in the right way, increasing the possibilities of closing the deals.
Breakdown of the MEDDIC acronym
You must go through a six-part discovery process using the MEDDIC sales methodology. Let’s dig deeper into each piece of the MEDDIC acronym.
1. Metrics
Some businesses are looking for a solution that would help them boost efficiency, while a few others are just interested in increasing profit margins.
So, you need clarity about the quantifiable results that prospects expect from your solution.
It can be anything from cost saving to risk avoidance or boosting revenue.
Finding such metrics can help define your solution’s quantifiable benefits.
For instance;
Your potential buyer’s goal is to increase their revenue by 10% in the next month. So, you can explain to them how your solution will help in achieving their target.
Identifying the right metrics helps paint a clear picture of what you can offer.
All you need to do here is measure the prospect’s current and future state (after product implementation), then quantify the benefits.
2. Economic buyer
In a company, there are many people playing different roles. Your challenge here is to find the one who has the authority to approve the purchase.
An economic buyer is the one who has control over the funds and the power to take the final call for the deal.
So just connecting with someone from your target company wouldn’t help in closing the deal. The MEDDIC sales approach encourages you to invest your time and effort in discovering that one person who can accept or reject your offer.
If you manage to convince that one person, then your chances of winning the deal are higher.
Wondering how you would find that decision-maker? Well, here are a few questions that can help you in doing so:
3. Decision criteria
You deliver a compelling pitch highlighting the strengths of your product. The prospect gets impressed and signs the contract.
I wish it was that easy.
Unfortunately, there are many factors that a prospect ponders over while making a buying decision.
MEDDIC sales methodology recognizes this and emphasizes gaining an in-depth understanding of a company’s technical, legal, and commercial buying decision criteria.
For instance;
They might want software that integrates with their current tech stack or might have set a fixed budget for buying a solution and aren’t willing to negotiate on it.
Discovering the factors a prospect considers while buying a new product will help you in determining whether you can meet them or not.
If not, then there is no point wasting your and the prospect’s precious time. Instead, you can utilize your precious hours on a more lucrative deal that might convert.
4. Decision process
Doesn’t it seem like a twin brother of Decision Criteria?
Well, the above point focuses on the criteria a prospect considers while buying.
While this phase of the MEDDIC sales methodology tells you how the buying decision was made.
It is basically a route taken by the organization to reach a purchasing decision. So, you need to find a company’s process to purchase a product.
This will help you track how far they are on the way to reaching a deal closure.
Here are a few questions that you can ask the prospect to understand their decision process.
5. Identify the pain
Most companies don’t try something new until it’s necessary. Only when they face some major problem will they look for a solution.
Such businesses look forward to dealing with companies who understand their pain and can help them in overcoming the issues.
So, if you want to convert your potential prospects into paying customers, you need to identify these pain points and offer a powerful solution.
For that, it is necessary to collect all information surrounding their pain.
You must be as specific as possible while discovering the prospect’s pain.
For instance;
Saying that the company is losing a lot of money is a very vague statement. Find out how much the company is losing and what’s the cause.
Like the company is losing around $30,000 due to slow production. Knowing their weak areas will put you in a strong position.
You’ll be able to explain why they should think about your product and highlight the potential risks of not addressing the problem.
6. Champion
Wouldn’t you show interest in a solution if it makes your work easier and helps in perform better?
Well, I surely would. The simpler our work gets, the better results we can deliver to the company.
This phase of the MEDDIC sales methodology focuses on finding that Champion – an influential person who will benefit if the pain is mitigated.
Such Champions often act as a helping hand in getting the product implemented.
If you gain their trust, they will support you as they want to resolve the issue as soon as possible.
So, you need to find the ideal candidate who is affected the most by the pain and who can influence a buying decision.
Having an insider of the company at your side increases the chances of closing a deal.
Wrapping up
MEDDIC methodology is one of the most effective sales methodologies that can help you achieve your sales targets.
It gives you the information you need to target the right prospects. With the help of MEDDIC, you can fill your pipeline with quality leads.
Once you have the right leads, you can use the best CRM software to manage and convert them quickly.
Salesmate is a CRM trusted by sales teams of different sizes to fulfill their sales goals. This feature-rich system helps in faster closure with its advanced capabilities.
Coreen Menezes