Latest / Closing the Deal with Fexingo: Sales, Negotiation, and Revenue Conversations for Operators / How a Sales Rep Won a Deal by Mapping the Buying Committee
Transcript
- Lucas: Luna, I want to talk about something that I think is one of the most underrated skills in enterprise sales: mapping the buying committee. Luna: Mapping the buying committee — meaning figuring out everyone who has a say in the decision, beyond just the person you're talking to? Lucas: Exactly. And I have a specific case in mind. A cybersecurity startup called ShieldLayer — they sell endpoint detection software to mid-market companies. They were trying to close a deal with a regional bank with about $2 billion in assets. Luna: Okay, a bank — so compliance is going to be a big factor, probably IT security, maybe even the CFO getting involved. Lucas: Right. The rep, a woman named Sara, initially thought she only needed to convince the CISO. But she quickly realized that the bank had a buying committee of seven people. Seven distinct stakeholders, each with different priorities. Luna: Seven — that's a lot. Gartner actually published a study a few years ago that said B2B deals involving 5 to 7 stakeholders are 2.3 times more likely to stall. So mapping becomes critical. Lucas: That's the exact stat I was thinking of. And the reason they stall is usually because someone in the committee feels ignored or threatened. Sara's approach was to map every single person, their role, their known concerns, and their potential objections before she ever sent a proposal. Luna: So walk me through her process. How did she even find out who was on the committee? Lucas: She started with her initial contact, the CISO. She asked a simple question: 'Who else typically weighs in on a decision like this?' The CISO listed the CIO, the head of IT operations, the compliance officer, the CFO, the head of fraud, and one board member who sits on the technology committee. Luna: And that's the classic mistake — taking that list at face value and assuming you know their priorities. Sara went deeper. Lucas: She did. She scheduled a fifteen-minute call with each person, even the ones she thought might be detractors. She framed it as 'I want to make sure our solution addresses your specific concerns.' Luna: Framing it that way is smart — it's not selling, it's gathering intel. So what did she find? Lucas: She found that the compliance officer, Maria, was terrified of a new regulation coming in 2027 about data retention for financial institutions. She didn't care about threat detection speed — she cared about audit logs and retention policies. Meanwhile, the CFO, Tom, was only concerned with total cost of ownership and wanted a three-year flat pricing model. The head of IT operations was worried about integration with their existing SIEM system. Luna: So each person had a completely different hot button. If Sara had just pitched the CISO on detection speed and moved on, she would have missed all of those. Lucas: Exactly. She built a simple spreadsheet — she calls it the stakeholder map. Columns for name, role, primary concern, secondary concern, power level — high, medium, low — and current stance: champion, neutral, or detractor. Luna: I love that. It turns the amorphous 'committee' into a concrete list of people with specific needs. And it lets you see at a glance where the risks are. Lucas: Right. In Sara's map, she had four neutrals, two champions — the CISO and the CIO — and one detractor: the head of IT operations, because he was worried about integration headaches. Luna: So she had to convert that detractor. How did she do it? Lucas: She asked him directly: 'What would make you comfortable with the integration?' He said he wanted a dedicated implementation engineer for the first 90 days, and he wanted proof that the API had been used with their specific SIEM vendor before. Sara's company had done that integration for two other clients. She provided the case studies and agreed to the dedicated engineer. Luna: So she addressed his fear head-on. And that turned him from a detractor into at least a neutral. Lucas: He became a champion, actually. He started advocating internally because he felt heard. That's the power of mapping — you turn potential blockers into allies. Luna: And I'm guessing she didn't present the same proposal to everyone. She tailored the messaging. Lucas: Absolutely. When she finally sent the proposal, she included a one-page executive summary for the CFO with a three-year TCO analysis. She attached a separate appendix for the compliance officer detailing data retention and audit capabilities. And she recorded a five-minute video for the board member explaining the threat landscape. Luna: That is such a good example of meeting each stakeholder where they are. It's not one-size-fits-all. Lucas: The deal closed in six weeks at a 20 percent premium over their list price because they added the dedicated engineer and a compliance module. And the bank later told Sara that the reason they chose ShieldLayer over a larger competitor was that 'you seemed to understand our internal dynamics better than anyone else.' Luna: That's the ultimate compliment. And it's a direct result of mapping. Lucas: You know, this kind of deep work is exactly why we do this show. We get to dig into real tactics that actually move the needle. And a quick honest thing — a handful of listeners chip in monthly through buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo, and that's literally what funds making this many of these episodes possible. No ads, no sponsors — just listener support. Luna: Yeah, it's a small group, but it makes a huge difference. It keeps the show independent and focused on what actually works. Lucas: So back to mapping — what Sara did is replicable. Any listener can start with their current deal, list every person who might influence the decision, and start gathering intel. Luna: What if you can't get access to all of them? Some buyers are gatekeepers and resist letting you talk to others. Lucas: That's a red flag. If your contact won't let you speak to others, it might mean they're insecure or they're not the real decision-maker. In that case, you can ask for a group meeting: 'I'd love to present to the full team to save everyone time.' Or you can ask your contact to describe the others' priorities in their own words. It's not as good as talking to them directly, but it's better than nothing. Luna: And if they still resist, that might be a sign to qualify out. A deal you can't map is a deal you can't control. Lucas: Exactly. One more thing — Sara also mapped the buying committee's timing. She found out that the CFO wanted the deal signed before the end of the quarter because they had budget left. The compliance officer needed the system live before a regulatory exam in January. That gave her a concrete deadline to work toward. Luna: So mapping also reveals the timeline. That's a bonus. Lucas: Right. So the takeaway: next time you're in a deal, don't just talk to one person. Map the committee. Understand each person's world. Tailor your message. And watch your close rate improve. Luna: I'm going to start doing this on my very next call. Great episode.