15 Enterprise B2b Deal Hunter

# Skill: Enterprise B2B Deal Hunter

## What This Skill Does
Builds a complete strategy for landing large B2B enterprise deals — identifying the right targets, mapping the buying committee, designing the account approach, and building the multi-threaded relationship network needed to close high-value, complex deals. Designed for deals above $100K where 3+ stakeholders are involved and sales cycles run 3–12 months.

## When to Use
- You're going upmarket and want to land your first or next enterprise account
- You've been stuck at SMB/mid-market and want to understand how enterprise selling is different
- A large company has shown interest and you need a plan to work the account
- You want to build an enterprise pipeline from scratch in a defined target account list
- Your deal is complex, multi-stakeholder, and you need to orchestrate the process

## Inputs Required
Before running this skill, ask the user for:
1. **Target company** (or type of target company) — name, industry, size, known contacts
2. **Your solution** — what you sell and why enterprise companies need it
3. **Ideal deal size** — what does a successful enterprise deal look like for you?
4. **Current status** — prospecting stage, or already in conversation?
5. **What you know about the account** — any contacts, history, or intel already gathered?

## Step-by-Step Instructions

### Step 1 — Enterprise Account Selection
Not every large company is a good enterprise target. Score target accounts on:

**Enterprise Account Scoring Rubric:**
```
| Criteria                              | Score (1–3) |
|---------------------------------------|------------|
| Fits ICP (industry, size, model)      |            |
| Evidence of the problem you solve     |            |
| Budget signals (funded, growing)      |            |
| Inbound signals (visited site, etc.)  |            |
| Warm path in (connection, referral)   |            |
| Competitive landscape favorable       |            |
| Geographic fit                        |            |
| Strategic value (logo, reference)     |            |
```
Score 18–24 = Tier 1 — invest heavily
Score 12–17 = Tier 2 — develop and track
Below 12 = Deprioritize

### Step 2 — Map the Buying Committee
Enterprise deals involve multiple stakeholders. Identify and map each role:

**The 6 Buying Committee Roles:**
```
1. CHAMPION — Your internal advocate who sells for you
   Goal: Enable them with everything they need to advocate
   Risk: They're not senior enough or influential enough alone

2. ECONOMIC BUYER — Controls the budget and signs the check
   Goal: Get direct access early. Quantify ROI in their language.
   Risk: Never meeting them until end = deals die in procurement

3. END USER — Uses your product day-to-day
   Goal: Create enthusiasm and desire. They influence the champion.
   Risk: If users don't want it, nothing else matters

4. TECHNICAL EVALUATOR — Assesses security, integration, infrastructure
   Goal: Pass their evaluation cleanly and early
   Risk: Late-stage technical blockers that kill momentum

5. PROCUREMENT / LEGAL — Controls the contract process
   Goal: Understand their process before you get there
   Risk: Surprise requirements that delay or kill signed deals

6. EXECUTIVE SPONSOR / BOARD — May have a stake in strategic decisions
   Goal: Awareness and indirect influence
   Risk: Not relevant in all deals — use judgment
```

**Account Map Template:**
```
| Role              | Name    | Title | Sentiment | Engaged? | Priority Action |
|-------------------|---------|-------|-----------|----------|----------------|
| Champion          |         |       | +/=/−     | Y/N      |                |
| Economic Buyer    |         |       | +/=/−     | Y/N      |                |
| End User Lead     |         |       | +/=/−     | Y/N      |                |
| Technical Eval    |         |       | +/=/−     | Y/N      |                |
| Procurement       |         |       | +/=/−     | Y/N      |                |
```

### Step 3 — Design the Multi-Thread Account Strategy
Never rely on one relationship in an enterprise deal. Build multiple:

**Multi-Threading Rules:**
- Aim for 3+ engaged stakeholders before progressing to proposal stage
- Executive-to-executive connection neutralizes junior-level blockers
- If your champion leaves, you need another thread or the deal is dead
- Connect directly with the Economic Buyer at least once before proposal

**How to Open New Threads:**
```
Ask your champion: "As we get further in this process, who else is typically involved in decisions like this? I'd like to make sure their questions are answered early."
```

```
Direct outreach to Economic Buyer (once champion is warm):
"Hi [Name], I've been working with [Champion Name] on a potential partnership and they thought it would be valuable for us to connect briefly. I'd love 15 minutes to share the business case from my side — [Champion] speaks highly of how you think about [relevant strategic priority]."
```

### Step 4 — Build the Enterprise Sales Process
Enterprise deals require a structured, predictable process from first contact to close:

**Stage-by-Stage Enterprise Playbook:**

**Stage 1 — Account Entry (Weeks 1–4)**
- Identify 3+ potential contacts in account
- Research trigger events, strategic priorities, pain signals
- Secure first meeting through warm intro, cold outreach, or event
- Meeting goal: Get champion to describe the problem in their words

**Stage 2 — Discovery & Qualification (Weeks 4–8)**
- Run structured discovery across 3+ stakeholders
- Map the buying committee (Step 2 above)
- Confirm budget range is realistic for your solution
- Identify compelling event (why now vs. never?)
- Deliverable: Internal champion brief + verbal green light to proceed

**Stage 3 — Solution & Evaluation (Weeks 8–16)**
- Deliver a tailored business case (quantified ROI, not features)
- Complete technical evaluation (security review, integration assessment)
- Run a pilot or POC if required — with success criteria agreed upfront
- Engage Economic Buyer at least once in this phase

**Stage 4 — Proposal & Commercial (Weeks 12–20)**
- Present proposal in a live meeting — never send without a walkthrough
- Build mutual close plan with named owners and dates
- Navigate procurement with transparency (give them your standard docs early)
- Finalize legal with redline strategy ready

**Stage 5 — Close (Variable)**
- Champion confirms verbal commitment
- Economic Buyer signs off on business case
- Procurement / Legal finalizes terms
- Contract execution

### Step 5 — Build the Enterprise Business Case
The Economic Buyer doesn't care about features — they care about ROI. Build it for them:

**Business Case Formula:**
```
CURRENT STATE COST:
[Quantify the cost of the problem they're experiencing]
Example: 50 hours/week wasted × $80/hour × 52 weeks = $208,000/year in lost productivity

RISK OF DOING NOTHING:
[What happens in 12 months if they don't solve this?]
Example: "At current growth rate, this problem scales to $500K+ in year 2"

INVESTMENT:
[Your pricing, clearly stated]

EXPECTED RETURN:
[Quantified outcome — conservative estimate]
Example: 40% reduction in wasted time = $83,200/year recovered

PAYBACK PERIOD:
[Time to break even]
Example: "You'll recoup the full investment within [X months]"

3-YEAR ROI:
[Total value delivered over 3 years vs. total cost]
Example: "$830,000 in recovered value vs. $[price] invested = [X]x ROI"
```

### Step 6 — Enterprise Deal Velocity Accelerators
Tactics that specifically speed up slow enterprise deals:

- **Exec-to-exec meeting:** Have your CEO/CRO meet their executive sponsor — deals move faster at peer-to-peer levels
- **Reference call:** Connect them with a current customer who had the same concern — one peer testimonial outperforms all your materials
- **Pilot with success criteria:** Agree upfront what success looks like in a pilot — a passed pilot becomes the de facto purchase justification
- **Mutual close plan:** Put all remaining steps, owners, and dates in writing — deals without a written plan are 2x more likely to slip
- **Compelling event tie-in:** Connect the deal to their strategic calendar (budget cycle, board review, product launch)

## Output Format
Deliver:
1. Enterprise Account Score (for target account)
2. Buying Committee Map (all 6 roles with names/status)
3. Multi-Threading Strategy (how to build 3+ relationships)
4. Stage-by-Stage Enterprise Sales Plan
5. Quantified Business Case (ready for Economic Buyer)
6. Top 3 Deal Velocity Accelerators for this specific deal

## Pro Tips
- In enterprise sales, speed is your enemy — slow is smooth, smooth is fast. Rushing creates mistakes that blow up deals.
- The champion is only as powerful as their political capital internally. Assess their influence before betting the deal on them.
- Never present a proposal that surprises anyone — the best proposal meetings are reviews, not reveals
- Enterprise deals die in the handoff between champion and economic buyer more than anywhere else — own that transition
- If you've been in "evaluation" for more than 3 months with no defined next step, you don't have a deal — you have a conversation