Hey Niepodam,

I used to get excited anytime a prospect said: “We’re doing some research right now…”

Sounded promising.

A little early maybe, but hey, at least they were interested.

Until I looked back at my closed-lost reasons 90 days later.

“Just looking for options.”
“No budget.”
“Went dark.”

Same story every time.

They weren’t buyers. They were browsers.

And I was giving them full-funnel energy.

That’s when I built a mental checkpoint.

Not BANT. Not MEDDICC. Just one question in my head:

“Are they REAL?”

It stands for the 4 things I now listen for in the first 15 minutes:

• Rationale – Did something trigger this? A shift, a miss, a pain. Or are they just fishing?
• Evaluation – Are they alone? Or part of a real buying group?
• Action – If we nailed it, what’s the next step? Do they even know?
• Leverage – What’s the cost of doing nothing?

If I don’t hear all 4? I adjust.

I switch from “let’s solve this” to “let’s educate and move on.”

Because if there’s no downside to waiting, there’s no real urgency.

And if they can’t tell me who else is involved, they’re not even holding the pen.

Here’s how that sounds live: “Just to level-set — is this something you're looking to solve this quarter? Or more of a long-term exploration?”

If they flinch, hesitate, or give a vague answer?

Cool. Now I know what I’m in.

I’ll give value. I’ll make it tight. But I won’t chase it like a deal.

Not every meeting is a sales call.

Some are just research interviews in disguise.

And the sooner you know the difference?

The more time you win back for the ones that actually close.

Protect your pipeline, protect your time, protect your sanity.

Don't be that rep asking yourself "I had 26 deals that where about to close, not sure what happened here?"

Wanna know what happened? You didn't disqualify them early on, and now you're stuck at 31% quota.

Let's go!

Alan "Modern Seller" Ruchtein.

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