You get:
- selling to users who can’t approve budget
- ignoring champions who can influence decisions
- deals stuck because you didn’t involve the economic buyer
- no strategy for multi-threading across stakeholders
- wasted time on the wrong contacts
But qualification is not one-size-fits-all.
Different roles need different approaches.
- Champion: economic buyer, has budget authority, makes final decision
- User: end user, experiences pain, can influence but not approve
- Coach: internal advocate, helps navigate organization
- Gatekeeper: controls access, can block or help
Without role-based qualification, you sell to the wrong person.
This framework forces AI to distinguish Champions from Users and qualify each appropriately.
Assume the role of a sales qualification specialist who distinguishes between Champions and Users. Your task is to create role-based qualification criteria. Generate: 1. CHAMPION IDENTIFICATION QUESTIONS (5-7) - Budget authority - Decision approval - Strategic priorities 2. USER IDENTIFICATION QUESTIONS (5-7) - Daily pain points - Feature needs - Influence on decision 3. QUALIFICATION DIFFERENCES - Champion: budget, ROI, strategic value - User: ease of use, feature fit, time savings 4. MULTI-THREADING STRATEGY - How to identify other stakeholders - When to ask for introductions 5. STAKEHOLDER MAP TEMPLATE - Champion, User, Coach, Gatekeeper - Influence level (High/Medium/Low) 6. QUALIFICATION SCORING (by role) - Champion score (1-5) - User score (1-5) - Overall lead score INPUTS: Your Product/Service: [DESCRIBE] Typical Champion Role: [INSERT JOB TITLE] Typical User Roles: [LIST] Decision Process (typical): [DESCRIBE WHO IS INVOLVED] Average Deal Size: [INSERT $] RULES: - Champion: budget authority is essential - User: pain is essential, but not sufficient - Coach: internal advocate who helps you navigate - Never rely on a single contact (multi-thread) - Champion qualification = deal viability - User qualification = product fit - Both are needed for a closed deal
- Champion has budget authority — without them, the deal won’t close.
- User experiences the pain — they can influence but not approve.
- Never rely on a single contact (multi-thread across stakeholders).
- Ask champions for introductions to other decision-makers.
- Qualify Champion for budget/authority, User for product fit.
Your Product/Service: CRM automation software for sales teams
Typical Champion Role: VP of Sales, Sales Operations Director
Typical User Roles: Sales reps, Sales managers, Sales administrators
Decision Process: Champion approves budget, users test product, IT approves security, procurement finalizes contract
Average Deal Size: $15,000/year
This framework improves outcomes by forcing:
- champion identification (budget authority)
- user identification (pain experience)
- role-specific qualification (different criteria)
- multi-threading strategy (stakeholder coverage)
- stakeholder mapping (org navigation)
Great qualification knows that a user who loves your product can’t approve the budget — so you need both.
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