How do you know if the deal you’re working on will close, and when? How can you ensure the forecasted money will be available for your company to budget, hire new staff, and avoid liquidity issues, help your customer efficient and effective – and for you to make your commission?

Qualifying engagements is crucial for a salesperson. It respects the time of customers, colleagues, and oneself, ensuring the company can achieve healthy growth and a good ROI on invested resources.

A quick sidenote: My path to sales wasn’t straightforward. I always enjoyed presenting and pitching—first my own startup ideas, then various projects and initiatives—but I never considered sales as my dream job. I was more drawn to investment banking, asset management, or consulting due to my education. However, working in the fast-growing tech sector over the past years has profoundly changed my perspective on business, collaboration, and success.

A fundamental concept for answering the questions posed at the start is the MEDDIC framework. While there are many variations, they all share the same core principles. Some see MEDDIC as micromanagement, but it’s designed to make customer interactions meaningful and guide sellers through their processes. MEDDIC is not a process but a qualification method essential to the sales process, much like how GPS complements Google Maps: one shows direction, the other shows location, and together they provide greater value. As Stephen Covey’s “Seven Habits of Highly Successful People” suggests, the whole is greater than the sum of its parts. Let’s explore how qualification can benefit you.

This article is based on my experiences in Enterprise Sales and will be continuously updated. It draws from Andy Whyte’s book MEDDICC and other key literature on sales qualification, including Neil Rackham’s SPIN Selling, Matthew Dixon’s and Brent Adamson’s The Challenger Sale, and The New Power Base Selling by Jim Holden and Ryan Kubacki.

Why is qualification so important?

Qualification helps manage your time and that of your colleagues and customers more efficiently. Identifying early on that an opportunity isn’t worth pursuing frees up time to generate more pipeline and focus on deals that offer higher customer value, greater revenue, and a better chance of closing.

Following the mantra “bad news early is good news,” the sooner you recognize an unworthy opportunity, the better. To determine the value of an opportunity early, you need a well-structured sales process that ensures clear commitments and expectations. Additionally, you must know what information about the deal is needed at each stage. MEDDICC is invaluable here, as it provides a comprehensive picture of everything required for a deal to close.

What is MEDDICC?

MEDDIC is a deal qualification methodology developed at PTC (Parametric Technology Corporation) by Dick Dunkel, John McMahon, Anne Gary, Dale Monnin, and Jack Napoli. They created this framework to answer critical questions: “Why Do We Win?”, “Why Do We Lose?”, and “Why Do Deals Slip?” Through thorough analysis of past deals, they identified patterns that led to the creation of MEDDIC, which was later implemented globally at PTC. This framework, along with continuous salesforce training, helped PTC grow from $300 million to $1 billion in revenue.

Today, variations of MEDDIC, such as MEDDICC, MEDDPICC, and MEDDPICCR, are widely used. These methodologies, though slightly different, stem from the same core principles. The key takeaway is that all these frameworks aim to improve:

1. Efficient Resource Allocation
2. Forecast Accuracy

According to Andy Whyte and Jack Napoli, the latter is what differentiates a good seller from an elite one: the ability to close business within a predefined timeframe, aligned with customer expectations.

How does MEDDICC relate to the sales process

A sales process and a qualification framework serve different but complementary purposes in the sales cycle:

• Sales Process: This outlines the specific steps needed to move a customer from initial engagement to a signed contract. It varies across organizations but typically includes stages like prospecting, qualifying, presenting, handling objections, and closing. The sales process is tailored to align with the customer’s buying behavior, ensuring high customer satisfaction, a higher probability of renewal, and the potential for future business.
• Qualification Framework: This helps determine the quality of an opportunity throughout the sales process. It guides sellers in gathering critical information, identifying risks and assessing whether a deal is worth pursuing. Frameworks like MEDDIC ensure that customer interactions are meaningful and that resources are allocated efficiently. They help sellers understand if an opportunity meets certain criteria, such as having a clear decision-making process, strong reason to change and quantifiable metrics around business impact to back up the case.

Together, these elements work to enhance the sales effort:

• The sales process provides a roadmap of actions needed to progress a deal.
• The qualification framework acts as a checkpoint system within this process, ensuring that the opportunity is viable and worth investing time and resources into.

By integrating a well-structured sales process with a robust qualification framework, sellers can efficiently manage their time, improve forecast accuracy, and ultimately increase the likelihood of closing deals successfully.

Taking such an approach has proven to be successful over and over again, below you can find an overview of organizations that have successfully used MEDDICC as part of their go-to market. Most of these companies have outperformed the market and their peer group – PTC the birthplace of MEDDICC has provided exceptional returns for their investors.

Below you can find a short description of the individual components and why they matter, as well as a link to a detailed article with more in – depth description and examples. 

Note that thee most relevant aspects of a deal are:

1. Pain: Without identifying a significant pain point, there’s no compelling reason for the customer to change. Understanding the pain is crucial to demonstrate the value of your solution.
2. Champion: A champion is essential to drive the process forward from within the customer’s organization. Without a champion advocating for your solution, it’s challenging to gain traction and move the deal forward.
3. Economic Buyer: Access to the Economic Buyer is critical to avoid last-minute deal stoppers. The EB has the authority to make purchasing decisions and allocate budget. Ensuring their support and having a clearly aligned go-live plan acts as an insurance for the success of the deal.

Metrics

The impact of the customer’s pain should be expressed in a KPI that the customer organization cares about. Metrics are essentially quantified pain.

Examples of Metrics:

• Revenue Loss: How much revenue is being lost due to the pain point.
• Cost Overruns: Extra costs incurred because of inefficiencies or issues.
• Time Delays: How much time is wasted due to the problem, what activities could not be done as a result, and what is the $-Impact?
• Customer Satisfaction: Impact on customer satisfaction and retention and resulting $-Impact?

Learn more about metrics

Economic Buyer

The Economic Buyer (EB) is the person within the customer organization who has discretionary access to funds and the ultimate authority to say yes or no to a deal. By effectively identifying and engaging the EB, you can ensure that your deal has the necessary executive support to move forward and close successfully.

1. Identification: Identifying the EB early in the sales process is crucial. This person has the power to approve or reject the purchase, so knowing who they are helps you tailor your strategy and communications to meet their expectations and address their concerns.
2. Access Plan: Developing a plan to gain access to the EB later in the sales process is essential. Direct interaction with the EB increases the likelihood of securing their buy-in and support, providing an “insurance policy” against potential deal blockers. It also helps in aligning the solution with the EB’s strategic goals and budget priorities.

Learn more about Economic Buyer

Decision Criteria

The decision criteria form the foundation for the customer to make a decision. These criteria outline what needs to be fulfilled for the customer to consider changing the status quo.

• Business Targets: These are the goals the customer aims to achieve, such as increased revenue, cost savings, improved efficiency, or enhanced customer satisfaction. These targets provide the business justification for the purchase.
• Technical Capabilities: These are the technical features and functionalities that a solution must have to support the business targets. They ensure the solution can be integrated into the existing infrastructure and meet performance expectations.

Clearly defined decision criteria help both the seller and the customer understand what is required to justify a change. It ensures that all stakeholders are aligned on the objectives and expectations, facilitating a smoother decision-making process. It also allows you to better tailor your proposal to meet the customer’s needs and demonstrate how your solution uniquely satisfies their requirements.

Learn more about Decision Criteria

Decision Process

The decision process outlines how the purchasing decision is made within the customer organization. This includes identifying the key people involved, the format of their involvement, and the documentation required for the decision.

1. Key People Involved:
   1. Who They Are: This typically includes stakeholders from various departments such as finance, operations, IT, and executive leadership. Understanding who these decision-makers and influencers are is crucial.
   2. Roles and Responsibilities: Define the role each person plays in the decision-making process. For example, who evaluates the technical aspects, who approves the budget, and who provides final approval.
2. Format of Involvement:
   1. Meetings and Presentations: Outline the types of meetings (e.g., technical reviews, budget discussions, executive briefings) that will take place and how information will be presented.
   2. Decision-Making Forums: Identify the specific forums or committees where decisions will be made, such as board meetings or project review sessions.
3. Documentation:
   1. Required Documents: List the documents that need to be created and reviewed, such as business cases, technical evaluations, ROI analyses, and executive summaries.
   2. Approval Process: Describe the steps for getting these documents approved, including who needs to sign off at each stage and any formal approval gates that must be passed.

Understanding the decision process helps ensure that you provide the right information to the right people at the right time. It helps in aligning your sales strategy with the customer’s internal processes, reducing delays and increasing the likelihood of a successful outcome.

Learn more about Decision Process

Identified, Indicated and Implicated Pain

In the MEDDICC framework, Pain is a crucial element, representing the “I” in MEDDICC. It is divided into three levels:

1. Identified Pain:
   1. Definition: Recognizing that something is broken or not working as it should within the customer’s organization.
   2. Importance: This is the first step in understanding the customer’s challenges. It sets the stage for deeper investigation and analysis.
2. Indicated Pain:
   1. Definition: Understanding how the identified pain is impacting the customer.
   2. Importance: This level involves linking the pain to specific issues within the customer’s operations, such as inefficiencies, increased costs, or lost revenue. It shows the direct effects of the problem.
3. Implicated Pain:
   1. Definition: Grasping the full extent of the negative impact on the customer and helping them realize how it affects their business. And showcasing the additional positive value that can be realized by overcoming their current challenges.
   2. Importance: This is the most critical level. It involves quantifying the pain in terms of metrics or KPIs that the customer cares about, making the pain tangible and urgent. This helps in motivating the customer to take action.

Pain drives the need for change. By identifying, indicating, and implicating pain, you can demonstrate the value of your solution in addressing these issues. It helps build a compelling case for why the customer should invest in your solution and prioritize resolving the pain points.

Learn more about Pain

Champion

A Champion is a crucial figure in the sales process within the MEDDICC framework. They play a vital role in driving the deal forward and ensuring its success. A Champion is a person with power and influence in the customer organization who has a direct connection to the pain you are addressing. They are invested in resolving the problem and have the ability to influence the Economic Buyer (EB).

Characteristics:

• Power and Influence: They possess significant sway within the organization and can impact decision-making processes.
• Pain Ownership: They own the pain point you are addressing, meaning they are directly affected by it and motivated to find a solution.
• Advocate: Over time, as the relationship matures, a Champion becomes an advocate for your solution. They want you to win and actively promote your solution even when you are not present.

Role in the Sales Process:

• Driving the Process: Champions help navigate the internal processes of their organization, ensuring that the deal progresses smoothly.
• Building Consensus: They help build consensus among other stakeholders and address any objections that may arise.
• Influencing the EB: Champions have the ability to influence the Economic Buyer, making it more likely that the deal will receive the necessary approval and funding.

Without a Champion, it’s challenging to gain traction within the customer organization. They are essential for overcoming internal hurdles and ensuring that the deal receives the necessary support. A strong Champion can significantly increase the likelihood of closing a deal by advocating for your solution and aligning it with the organization’s needs and priorities.

Learn more about Champion

Competition

Competition refers to other companies or solutions that are also attempting to solve the same problem for your customer. This can include direct competitors offering similar products or services, as well as indirect competitors offering alternative solutions.

Knowing who your competitors are and what they offer allows you to highlight the unique strengths and advantages of your solution. This differentiation is key to convincing the customer that your solution is the best fit. These are the key actions to take throughout the sales process:

• Identify Competitors: Research and identify which other companies are working with your customer to solve their problem.
• Understand Their Offerings: Analyze the strengths and weaknesses of your competitors’ solutions.
• Trap Setting: Set traps by highlighting scenarios or features where your competitors fall short, thus steering the customer towards your solution.
• Locking Decision Criteria: Work with your Champion to influence the decision criteria in a way that favors your strengths and makes it difficult for competitors to meet all the requirements.

Being aware of the competition and strategically positioning your solution is foundational for success. It helps you to effectively address the customer’s needs while showcasing the unique value of your offering. By understanding the competitive landscape, you can better navigate the sales process and increase your chances of winning the deal.

Learn more about Competition