Challenger negotiator: record closings
Posted: Sat Feb 22, 2025 8:13 am
In a negotiation, you need to be confident, firm, have control of the process and not give in to all of the prospect's objections.
It is also necessary to create a good relationship with the potential client and be careful to avoid any type of arrogant attitude.
The Challenger negotiator has all of these characteristics. He knows how to challenge his client and close a deal that is beneficial to both parties.
Do you want to be a Challenger negotiator? Then read the article!
The Challenger Sale
In November 2011, author Matthew Dixon published the book The Challenger Sale.
The book features research with 90 companies from various areas and more than 6,000 salespeople, and analyzes the main characteristics of high-performance sales professionals.
3 main points of the book:
1- Firstly, the book tells how the customer's purchasing experience Malaysia telegram data influences the purchase much more than the product itself (Customer Centric Selling);
2- In this research, they observe that there are 5 different sales profiles: Hard Workers, Lone Wolf, Relationship Builders, Problem Solver and Challenger;
(To learn more about the different seller profiles, click HERE .)
3 – Last but not least, the profile that stood out the most in this analysis was the Challenger. He takes control of the situation, educates the prospect and adapts his sales pitch according to the company’s market.
The Challenger Profile
According to research, the Challenger profile is the one with the highest performance among all other sales profiles.
He has the ability to control the negotiation and is not afraid to question the prospect.
Knows how to educate potential customers without being aggressive and personalize communication.
This is usually the type of salesperson who has a lot of knowledge and is always looking to learn more about the sector and segment in which they operate. They position themselves as an authority, as an expert. They present their point of view to managers and the team, bringing new information.
He has great communication skills and does not feel uncomfortable negotiating, talking about issues such as prices and deadlines.
It offers the prospect many points of view, challenging them to recognize the need to actually buy your product and solve their problem.
The Challenger Negotiator
Now that we know the Challenger salesperson, let's understand how they approach the negotiation process.
There are two aspects that differentiate Challenger trading from other professionals:
1- Trust
And first, the Challenger salesperson truly trusts the value he is delivering to his customer.
He trusts that the product he is offering will solve his prospect's pain and is able to demonstrate this confidence throughout the negotiation.
2- Conviction
The Challenger salesperson knows how to really convince their potential client. They know how to present different perspectives, working on the problem presented during the negotiation in such a way that the prospect is convinced that the solution to their pain lies in the product offered.
Furthermore, the challenging salesperson can show the difference between value and price. This way, it is possible to generate in the prospect a perception of value greater than price, so that the person becomes inhibited from asking for a discount.
In this way, it is possible to see that the challenger approach allows negotiations to be carried out with the fewest possible concessions.
Hacks from a Challenger Negotiator
1- Position yourself as an authority
Study the prospect's market and bring research, data and as much information as you can. This will create an image of authority and, when you position yourself in this way, the chance of bargaining is reduced.
Imagine that you went to see a very experienced and renowned doctor, for example. It is very likely that you will avoid objections if you accept the diagnosis he presents. So, even if it is difficult financially, you will buy the medicine he prescribed.
The same is true for a Challenger seller’s negotiations.
Because he positions himself as an authority on the subject, people believe him and tend to agree with him more, reducing objections, avoiding other obstacles and generating more value for the product.
2- Examples and social proofs
The Challenger salesperson is able to identify with the potential client by showing, through examples, companies with the same problem that did not invest in a solution and were harmed.
He also knows the right moment in the negotiation to use these strategies, activating the mental trigger of social proof.
3- Arrogance
The Challenger educates his client by making the shoe fit, that is, by making him conclude on his own that he has a problem and the seller has the solution.
Despite confronting and challenging the prospect, the Challenger salesperson is not arrogant or rude. Instead, they are attentive to their own words, tone of voice and pace of speech, adapting these elements to the customer, creating a comfortable environment even in challenging moments.
4- Pain x Pleasure
This mental trigger is activated through correct and incorrect examples. It's like a before and after of a makeup artist or weight loss product.
Through comparison, it is possible to show what companies achieved when purchasing a certain product, and what they failed to achieve as well.
This way, the perception of the product’s value will increase, as will the chances of closing.
Conclusion
Finally, it is important to make it clear that the challenger negotiator is not an aggressive professional, but one who is able to identify and show the potential client's real problem.
The Challenger negotiator makes the shoe fit through stories and examples. This way, the prospect can internalize everything that was said and identify, in the seller's product, the solution to their pain.
Furthermore, the Challenger works throughout the negotiation to increase his perception of value, resulting in high professional performance.
It is also necessary to create a good relationship with the potential client and be careful to avoid any type of arrogant attitude.
The Challenger negotiator has all of these characteristics. He knows how to challenge his client and close a deal that is beneficial to both parties.
Do you want to be a Challenger negotiator? Then read the article!
The Challenger Sale
In November 2011, author Matthew Dixon published the book The Challenger Sale.
The book features research with 90 companies from various areas and more than 6,000 salespeople, and analyzes the main characteristics of high-performance sales professionals.
3 main points of the book:
1- Firstly, the book tells how the customer's purchasing experience Malaysia telegram data influences the purchase much more than the product itself (Customer Centric Selling);
2- In this research, they observe that there are 5 different sales profiles: Hard Workers, Lone Wolf, Relationship Builders, Problem Solver and Challenger;
(To learn more about the different seller profiles, click HERE .)
3 – Last but not least, the profile that stood out the most in this analysis was the Challenger. He takes control of the situation, educates the prospect and adapts his sales pitch according to the company’s market.
The Challenger Profile
According to research, the Challenger profile is the one with the highest performance among all other sales profiles.
He has the ability to control the negotiation and is not afraid to question the prospect.
Knows how to educate potential customers without being aggressive and personalize communication.
This is usually the type of salesperson who has a lot of knowledge and is always looking to learn more about the sector and segment in which they operate. They position themselves as an authority, as an expert. They present their point of view to managers and the team, bringing new information.
He has great communication skills and does not feel uncomfortable negotiating, talking about issues such as prices and deadlines.
It offers the prospect many points of view, challenging them to recognize the need to actually buy your product and solve their problem.
The Challenger Negotiator
Now that we know the Challenger salesperson, let's understand how they approach the negotiation process.
There are two aspects that differentiate Challenger trading from other professionals:
1- Trust
And first, the Challenger salesperson truly trusts the value he is delivering to his customer.
He trusts that the product he is offering will solve his prospect's pain and is able to demonstrate this confidence throughout the negotiation.
2- Conviction
The Challenger salesperson knows how to really convince their potential client. They know how to present different perspectives, working on the problem presented during the negotiation in such a way that the prospect is convinced that the solution to their pain lies in the product offered.
Furthermore, the challenging salesperson can show the difference between value and price. This way, it is possible to generate in the prospect a perception of value greater than price, so that the person becomes inhibited from asking for a discount.
In this way, it is possible to see that the challenger approach allows negotiations to be carried out with the fewest possible concessions.
Hacks from a Challenger Negotiator
1- Position yourself as an authority
Study the prospect's market and bring research, data and as much information as you can. This will create an image of authority and, when you position yourself in this way, the chance of bargaining is reduced.
Imagine that you went to see a very experienced and renowned doctor, for example. It is very likely that you will avoid objections if you accept the diagnosis he presents. So, even if it is difficult financially, you will buy the medicine he prescribed.
The same is true for a Challenger seller’s negotiations.
Because he positions himself as an authority on the subject, people believe him and tend to agree with him more, reducing objections, avoiding other obstacles and generating more value for the product.
2- Examples and social proofs
The Challenger salesperson is able to identify with the potential client by showing, through examples, companies with the same problem that did not invest in a solution and were harmed.
He also knows the right moment in the negotiation to use these strategies, activating the mental trigger of social proof.
3- Arrogance
The Challenger educates his client by making the shoe fit, that is, by making him conclude on his own that he has a problem and the seller has the solution.
Despite confronting and challenging the prospect, the Challenger salesperson is not arrogant or rude. Instead, they are attentive to their own words, tone of voice and pace of speech, adapting these elements to the customer, creating a comfortable environment even in challenging moments.
4- Pain x Pleasure
This mental trigger is activated through correct and incorrect examples. It's like a before and after of a makeup artist or weight loss product.
Through comparison, it is possible to show what companies achieved when purchasing a certain product, and what they failed to achieve as well.
This way, the perception of the product’s value will increase, as will the chances of closing.
Conclusion
Finally, it is important to make it clear that the challenger negotiator is not an aggressive professional, but one who is able to identify and show the potential client's real problem.
The Challenger negotiator makes the shoe fit through stories and examples. This way, the prospect can internalize everything that was said and identify, in the seller's product, the solution to their pain.
Furthermore, the Challenger works throughout the negotiation to increase his perception of value, resulting in high professional performance.