A deal can look healthy on a dashboard and still quietly die. Often, the lead did not lose interest. The person carrying the case internally simply left.
Sales followed up. The proposal was shared. There was a good meeting. Then replies slow down, calendars become difficult and the opportunity moves to “next quarter.” Teams often call this poor lead quality. That is an easy diagnosis, but it is often wrong.
In many B2B deals, one person has been doing invisible work: explaining the problem internally, building confidence, carrying your proposal to finance and helping colleagues understand why change is worth the effort. That person is your champion.
When they change jobs, go on leave or lose influence, the deal does not automatically reset. It loses internal momentum.
The mistake: treating a committee deal like a one-person relationship
Most funnels record a company name, a contact and a stage. That is useful administration. It is not a buying map.
Complex purchases usually involve the person who feels the problem, the person who will use the solution, the person who controls the budget and the person who protects process or risk. Your original contact may represent only one of them.
If every message, demo, case study and follow-up was built around that one individual, their exit leaves the rest of the account with no reason to continue.
Build committee coverage before you need it
The objective is not to bypass the champion. It is to make the case strong enough to survive without them.
- 01
Map the rolesKnow who champions, uses, approves, blocks and pays. Names change. Roles remain. - 02
Create more than one relationshipBefore the final stage, build useful contact with two or three people inside the account. - 03
Give each role its own reason to careUsers need ease. Finance needs a commercial case. Procurement needs clarity and confidence. - 04
Keep the account informedUse relevant proof, implementation detail and category insight so value does not live in one person’s memory.
Marketing has a job after the lead is handed over
This is where marketing and sales often separate too early. Marketing counts the MQL. Sales owns the opportunity. Nobody owns the internal story once the champion begins circulating it.
That is the gap. Marketing should equip the buying group with material that travels inside the account: a concise business case, proof for a skeptical leader, implementation answers for the user and a clear view of risk for procurement.
The goal is not more touches. It is more people inside the account who can explain why the purchase matters.
One action for this week
Open the ten largest opportunities in your pipeline. For each one, ask: if the main contact left tomorrow, who else inside the account would still be able to explain why this purchase matters?
If the answer is nobody, the opportunity is not as qualified as it looks.
A QUESTION WORTH ASKING
Where in your pipeline is one person carrying too much of the deal?
That answer will tell you which opportunities are truly moving and which are only being held together by a single relationship.
Talk to Vikash ↗