Common sales frameworks and how to use them
Understanding and implementing effective sales frameworks is fundamental to achieving your goals. Here, we define sales frameworks, their importance, and how to integrate them into your meetings for greater consistency and success. We also cover three common types of sales frameworks and provide insights on choosing the best one for your unique needs. Ready to harness the power of sales frameworks and transform your sales strategy? Let’s dive in.
What is a sales framework?
A sales framework is a structured approach or methodology used by sales professionals to guide their processes and achieve their sales goals. It provides an objective method for identifying potential customers, qualifying leads, presenting solutions, addressing objections, and closing deals. Typically, sales frameworks consist of several stages or steps that a salesperson follows in a structured way.
3 Common types of sales frameworks
There are numerous sales frameworks and methodologies, a few common ones being BANT, MEDDPICC (or variations such as MEDDIC), and Challenger. These methodologies vary in approach and qualifications and are often used for different sales processes.
1. BANT
BANT is a sales qualification framework representing Budget, Authority, Need, and Timeline. This framework helps salespeople determine whether a potential customer fits their product or service well.
2. MEDDPICC
MEDDPICC is a sales framework commonly used for complex sales cycles with multiple stakeholders. The MEDDPICC methodology has eight criteria: Metrics, Economic Buyer, Decision criteria, Decision process, Identify Pain, Champion, and Competition.
3. Challenger
The Challenger Sale is a sales methodology that focuses on challenging the customer’s assumptions and helping them see their problems in a new way. The goal is to position the salesperson as a trusted advisor who can help customers solve their problems. The Challenger framework consists of five steps: Teach, Tailor, Take Control, Challenge, and Close.
Why should I implement a sales framework?
Sales frameworks provide a structured approach to the sales process and can help drive a more effective and efficient sales process.
- Consistency – Ensures a consistent approach to sales conversations, building trust and improving customer experience
- Efficiency – Helps prioritize leads, increase productivity, and close deals faster by quickly identifying unqualified leads
- Clarity – Provides clarity and structure, making it easier to identify the customer’s pain points, present solutions, and address objections
- Scalability – Easily taught and replicated across a sales team, ensuring everyone follows the same approach
- Continuous improvement – Identifies areas for improvement in the sales process and refines approaches over time to achieve better results
How do I determine which sales framework will work best?
Deciding which sales framework is best for your situation depends on various factors, including your product or service, target market, and sales goals.
Evaluate your product or service
Consider the features and benefits of your product or service and the pain points it addresses for your target market. Some sales frameworks, such as Solution Selling or Challenger, may be better suited for products or services that require a more consultative sales approach with a longer sales cycle.
Analyze your target market
Consider the characteristics of your target market, such as their level of sophistication, buying habits, and decision-making process. Sales frameworks like MEDDIC or BANT may be better suited for sales cycles with multiple stakeholders.
Set your sales goals
Consider your sales goals, such as the number of deals you want to close or the revenue you want to generate. Some sales frameworks, such as Challenger, may be better suited for generating fewer, higher-value deals. Others, such as BANT, may be better suited for fast qualification of leads and time prioritization.
Experiment with different frameworks
Ultimately, it’s important to try different sales frameworks and see which ones work best for your sales process and target market. A combination of framework steps may work best for your sales goals and product.
How to successfully implement sales frameworks into your meeting
There are three main themes when considering how to implement a sales framework into the meeting workflow.
Orient meeting plans around a framework
To drive consistency and integrate a framework into every meeting, create meeting plan templates customized for different stages of the deal. Your reps focus on the right outcomes for that stage, and the deal can progress smoothly.
Map out the major milestones of the sales cycle
Ask yourself: What types of meetings will there be, who will attend, and what is the purpose of each one? Now is an excellent opportunity to assess your sales cycle and identify missing steps or areas causing extra friction.
Collect sales framework qualifications
Qualifications are the underpinnings of a sales framework, and it’s essential to capture them in a CRM for sales efficiency analyses, accurate pipeline forecasting, and deal intelligence. Ensure your CRM is updated with every insight you need to fulfill sales framework qualifications.
Understand additional meeting context
Opportunity fields are important but don’t capture the meeting’s full story. Use templates to guide reps on how to structure their meeting notes, with formatting retained, for meeting detail that is organized and understandable.
Consider formatting the notes section based on meeting type when using meeting templates. Templated notes make it easy to read meeting note details and compare deal context like-for-like.
Use Meetingflow to implement your sales framework
Meetingflow is built to support any sales framework. Now that you’ve got the skinny on the basics of sales frameworks, try implementing them yourself! Easily find templates, add fields, and collaborate with colleagues in real-time, all with no downloads, no installations, and $0 to start.
