Gap Selling

1. Gap Selling: Focus on the Customer's Problem, Not Your Product

No one gives a shit about you, your company, or your product.

Shift your mindset. Traditional selling focuses on pushing products and features. Gap selling flips this approach on its head, centering entirely on the customer's problems and desired outcomes. By understanding the gap between where a customer is now (current state) and where they want to be (future state), salespeople can position their solution as the bridge to close that gap.

Create value through change. Gap selling recognizes that all sales are fundamentally about change. Customers only buy when they're compelled to move from their current situation to a better one. Your job as a salesperson is to:

• Identify and articulate the customer's problem clearly
• Demonstrate the negative impact of maintaining the status quo
• Show how your solution enables the desired change
• Quantify the value of achieving the future state

2. Understand the Current State: Dive Deep into Customer Challenges

You aren't losing sales because you can't sell. You're losing them because you don't understand how to diagnose your customer problem(s) and how the problem(s) drive the sale.

Become an expert problem finder. To truly understand a customer's current state, you must go beyond surface-level issues. Conduct a thorough discovery process to uncover:

• The literal, physical facts about the customer's business
• The specific problems they're facing
• The impact those problems are having on the organization
• The root causes behind those problems
• The customer's emotional state regarding these challenges

Use a Problem Identification Chart. Before engaging with prospects, create a document listing:

• All potential problems your product/service can solve
• The various impacts these problems could have on a business
• The root causes of those problems

This preparation allows you to ask more targeted, insightful questions during discovery and positions you as an industry expert.

3. Envision the Future State: Paint a Compelling Picture of Success

Sales happen when the future state is a better state.

Make it tangible. Help your customer clearly articulate and visualize their ideal future state. Ask questions like:

• How would you like this system to work?
• How much time do you wish it would take?
• How many more leads would you like to generate?
• How much more revenue would this represent?

Quantify the impact. Push for specific, measurable outcomes. "Better efficiency" is too vague; "reducing turnaround by 20% and increasing production by 50%" provides a concrete vision to work towards.

Emotional resonance. Understand how achieving this future state will make the customer feel. Tapping into both logical and emotional drivers strengthens their motivation to change.

4. Quantify the Gap: Measure the Difference Between Current and Future States

Future State – Current State = The Gap

Make it concrete. Once you understand both the current and future states, calculate the tangible difference. For example:

• The customer wants 20% growth. They're at 10% growth. The gap is 10%.
• $110M in desired revenue – $100M current revenue = a $10M gap
• Desired close rate of 35% – Current close rate of 30% = a 5% gap

Assess value vs. cost. Determine if the gap is large enough to warrant the investment (financial and effort) required to achieve the future state. A $9.9M gap might easily justify a $100K solution, but a $900K gap might not be as clear-cut.

Widen the gap if needed. If the initial gap seems too small to motivate change, dig deeper in discovery to uncover additional impacts or problems that could increase the perceived value of change.

5. Uncover Intrinsic Motivation: Why Does the Customer Really Want to Change?

Your customers' emotions will have everything to do with whether you successfully close the deal or not.

Go beyond surface-level goals. Dig into the underlying reasons driving the desire for change. Ask: "Tell me a bit about what is driving this change." The answer provides crucial insight for customizing your approach.

Examples of intrinsic motivations:

• Beating the competition
• Meeting commitments to investors
• Personal career advancement
• Solving a long-standing frustration

Align with motivation. Once you understand the core driver, focus your entire sales approach on how achieving the future state fulfills that deeper need or desire.

6. Master Discovery: Ask Probing Questions to Reveal True Pain Points

The close happens at the beginning, not the end.

Types of questions:

• Probing: Open-ended questions that press for specific details
• Process: Open-ended questions that ask "How?"
• Provoking: Gently push customers to consider their current state from a new perspective
• Validating: Repeat information back to ensure correct understanding

Avoid open-ended answers. Push for specifics. "We're not growing fast enough" is insufficient. Follow up with: "Define that for me? What does 'fast enough' mean to you?"

Use command statement starters:

• "Tell me a little bit about..."
• "Help me understand..."
• "Please describe..."
• "Walk me through..."

These formulations create deeper discussions without feeling like interrogations.

7. Conduct Impactful Demos: Tailor Presentations to Customer Needs

No discovery, no demo.

Four elements of a kick-ass demo:

1. Never combine discovery and demo – schedule them separately
2. Eliminate "ifs" – you should know their problems, not guess
3. Stick to six features – focus on quality over quantity
4. Anchor your customer – use affirming questions to solidify the value proposition

Create a demo map. Use your Problem Identification Chart to organize the customer's issues from greatest to least impact. Only present features directly addressing their top problems.

Validate constantly. After each feature demo, ask affirming questions like:

• "Can you see how this feature will improve your churn rate?"
• "Do you see how this will shorten data input?"
• "Can you see how this will increase your conversions?"

8. Overcome Objections: Address Concerns by Refocusing on Desired Outcomes

Never defend your product or service. Use gap selling and what you learn in the process to make the buyer defend their objection.

Reframe the conversation. When faced with objections, especially around price, shift focus back to the desired outcome and value of achieving it. Use the phrase "I'm confused..." to gently challenge inconsistencies between stated goals and objections.

Examples:

• "I'm confused. You said reaching $50M by 2020 was critical. How is $80K too expensive for a solution that will get you there?"
• "I'm confused. If you don't move forward till next year's budget, you'll lose $50K a month for the next six months. Are you prepared to lose $300K?"

Make them justify. After presenting the value proposition, stay silent and let the buyer try to explain why achieving their stated goals isn't worth the investment.

9. Build a Healthy Pipeline: Ensure Accurate Forecasting and Predictability

Predictability is one of a B2B seller's biggest concerns.

Elements of a healthy pipeline:

• Accurate close dates (within 30 days)
• Accurate quarterly commits within 15% on either side
• Clear next steps (the next yes)
• Clear deal strategies
• Adequate pipeline coverage
• Evidence for all of the above

Conduct thorough pipeline reviews. As a sales manager, verify that your team truly understands:

• The customer's current state
• The desired future state
• The quantified gap
• The customer's intrinsic motivation
• The decision-making criteria
• The next concrete steps to move the deal forward

Focus on the next yes. Ensure salespeople always have a clear understanding of the next commitment they need from the customer to progress the sale.

10. Foster a Commit Culture: Hold Sales Teams Accountable for Accurate Projections

Surprise is the enemy of a sales leader.

Define commit culture. In a commit culture, salespeople take ownership of their numbers and are held accountable for accuracy, not just hitting targets. The goal is predictability within 15% of projections.

Benefits:

• Increased trust throughout the organization
• Better resource allocation and planning
• Early identification of potential shortfalls
• Reduced end-of-quarter scrambling and discounting

Keys to implementation:

• Let salespeople commit to their numbers, even if lower than quota
• Gently challenge commitments, but ultimately accept them
• Use gap selling principles to ensure commitments are based on data, not gut feelings
• Foster psychological safety so team members feel comfortable sharing realistic projections

Last updated: January 22, 2025