Latest / Closing the Deal with Fexingo: Sales, Negotiation, and Revenue Conversations for Operators / How One Rep Won by Identifying the Hidden Decision-Maker
Transcript
- Luna: So Lucas, you've been wanting to talk about a deal you saw recently — the one where the rep kept losing even though every buyer said yes. Lucas: Right. This is one of those stories that drives me crazy because it's so common. A rep at a mid-market SaaS company — let's call the company CloudLogix — was selling a logistics analytics platform. She had a deal with a regional distributor, about $180,000 annual contract value. She got verbal yeses from the VP of Supply Chain, the Director of IT, and the Head of Procurement. All three told her, 'We're in, just need final sign-off.' Luna: So she thinks she's done. Champagne time. Lucas: Exactly. But then the deal stalls. Two weeks pass. Then three. She emails. They say, 'Still working through internal approvals.' Another week. She offers to jump on a call with whoever else needs to be involved. They say, 'No, it's fine, we'll handle it.' Finally, after five weeks, the VP of Supply Chain sends a polite rejection: 'We've decided to go in a different direction.' Luna: Oof. And she never found out why? Lucas: Not at first. But she had a good relationship with the Director of IT, so she asked for a candid debrief. And the Director told her, 'Look, I was all for it. But our VP of Operations — who wasn't on any of the calls — flagged that your platform would require us to restructure our warehouse data feeds. He said it would take six months and cost more than the tool itself. Once he said that, the CEO killed it.' Luna: So the real decision-maker was never in the room. That's brutal. But also — she never asked who else had a stake. Lucas: That's exactly the lesson. She assumed the title 'VP of Supply Chain' meant that person owned the decision. But in many organizations, procurement decisions have a hidden web of stakeholders. In this case, the VP of Operations had veto power over any system that touched warehouse processes. He wasn't opposed to the tool; he was opposed to the disruption. But nobody surfaced that for her because she never asked the question. Luna: What was the question she should have asked? Lucas: It's deceptively simple: 'Who else needs to sign off on this — formally or informally?' Not just who has to approve the budget, but who could block it. Who could raise a concern that would stop the train? She told me later that she started asking that question in every deal after that. And in one of those deals, the buyer said, 'Well, actually, our COO will want to weigh in, even though he's not on the procurement committee.' Luna: So she learned the hard way. But what did she do differently the next time she sold to a similar company? Lucas: She applied the lesson. About two months later, she was pursuing a deal with a different distributor — similar size, similar need. This time, during the second call with the VP of Supply Chain, she asked, 'Who else typically gets involved in decisions like this? I want to make sure I can answer any questions they might have upfront.' The VP said, 'Our VP of Ops, definitely. Also our CFO if it's over $100,000.' Luna: So she got the map early. Then what? Lucas: She asked for a brief introduction to each of them. Not a formal meeting, just a 15-minute chat to understand their priorities. The VP of Ops, it turned out, cared most about warehouse throughput time — how fast orders moved from receipt to shipment. He didn't care about cost savings as much as he cared about speed. So she reframed her demo around a specific metric: how the platform could reduce throughput time by 12 percent based on similar implementations. She used the VP of Ops's own language. That deal closed in two weeks. Luna: So she turned a blocker into an advocate by understanding his KPIs. I love that. But it makes me wonder — how many reps just assume the person they're talking to is the only gatekeeper? Lucas: A lot. Especially in enterprise sales. There's research from Gartner that says the average B2B buying decision involves 6 to 10 stakeholders. And many of those stakeholders are invisible to the seller. They're not in the email chain, they're not on the calls, but they have influence. The rep who doesn't proactively map that influence is basically gambling. Luna: And you've got a framework for this, right? What do you call it? Lucas: I call it the Influence Map — four categories. First, the 'Economic Buyer,' who controls the budget. Second, the 'User Champion,' who will actually use the product and stands to gain. Third, the 'Technical Evaluator,' who checks feasibility. And fourth — the one most reps miss — the 'Silent Veto,' the person who has no formal say but whose objection can kill the deal. The VP of Operations in the first story was a classic Silent Veto. Luna: So the fix is simple: find the Silent Veto before you present the final proposal. But how do you find them without sounding like you're prying? Lucas: You make it about being helpful. Say something like, 'I want to make sure I'm not missing anyone who might have questions or concerns later. Can you think of anyone else in the organization who might be affected by this decision?' That's non-threatening. It positions you as thorough, not nosy. Luna: I've also heard reps ask, 'Who would you want in the room if we were making this decision together?' That's a good one too. It's a bit more collaborative. Lucas: Yeah, I like that. It assumes you're on the same team. And sometimes the buyer will name someone you never would have thought of — like the head of a different department whose workflow is downstream from this tool. Luna: If today was actually useful to you, the way these stay ad-free is listener support. You can find us at buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. Lucas: Yeah, it's a small gesture that keeps these conversations going without any sponsors. And we genuinely appreciate it. Luna: Absolutely. So back to the map — once you identify the Silent Veto, what's the next move? Lucas: You don't just bypass them. You bring them into the process early. Ask for a brief conversation to understand their priorities. Then adjust your proposal to address those priorities — even if it means changing the scope. In the second deal, the rep didn't just add the VP of Ops to the email chain; she built a section of the proposal specifically around throughput time, with a case study from a similar client. That made the VP feel heard, and he became a champion. Luna: So the map isn't just about identifying blockers; it's about converting them into allies. What about the reverse? Have you seen a deal where a rep thought they had a Silent Veto but actually the buyer was just stalling? Lucas: Sure. Sometimes the 'Silent Veto' is a myth the rep creates to avoid facing the real issue: the buyer doesn't see enough value. But the framework still helps. If you ask who else needs to be involved and the buyer says, 'No one, just me,' and the deal still drags, then you know the problem is value, not authority. Luna: Right. So the question serves a dual purpose. It either uncovers a real blocker or reveals that the buyer themselves isn't convinced. Lucas: Exactly. It's a forcing function. And I'll add one more thing: don't just ask once. Ask again at each stage. Because as the deal progresses, new stakeholders might emerge. I've seen CFOs get pulled in at the eleventh hour because the contract value crossed a threshold. If you haven't prepped for that, you're dead. Luna: So you're saying reps should revisit the influence map at every milestone — discovery, demo, proposal, negotiation. Lucas: Yes. At the very least, before the proposal goes out. Say, 'Before I send this over, just want to double-check — has anyone else come into the picture since we last spoke?' That simple check saved a friend of mine a $400,000 deal last year. A new VP had been hired, and the buyer forgot to mention it. My friend got a meeting with the VP, tailored the proposal, and closed. Luna: That's a great habit. I think a lot of reps are afraid to ask because they don't want to sound like they're questioning the buyer's authority. But it's really about partnership. Lucas: Exactly. The best reps make it a collaborative process. They're not just selling; they're helping the buyer navigate their own internal approval process. And that's a value-add in itself. Luna: So to wrap up: the hidden decision-maker almost killed a deal. But a simple question — 'Who else needs to sign off?' — plus a framework for mapping influence, turned a loss into a win. And the key is to ask early, ask often, and tailor your message to each stakeholder's priorities. Lucas: Yeah. And remember, the Silent Veto isn't your enemy. They're just someone whose concerns haven't been addressed. Find them, understand them, and you turn a blocker into a champion. Luna: Thanks, Lucas. That's all for this episode of Closing the Deal with Fexingo. We'll see you next time.