METHODOLOGY
One shared, structured plan behind every deal and every account
A simple, evidence-based discipline for winning, growing and retaining business — now live inside Salesforce.
- Developed at Cranfield
- Built on value & relationships
- Live inside Salesforce
Close Plans
Account Plans
The thinking behind our software
The methodology is the thinking behind our software — a simple, evidence-based discipline for winning, growing and retaining business.
Developed at Cranfield by Dr John Heathcote and refined over decades with global sales teams, it distils world-class best practice into a short, focused set of questions per plan — simple enough for a whole team to run on every deal and every account.
It rests on two foundations: defining business value and relationships. Every judgement is backed by evidence that managers and peers can review — so rather than competing on product and features, your team moves toward value-based conversations that deliver true, mutual value to the client.
Simple
A short, focused set of questions. A discipline a whole team can actually run, deal after deal.
Evidence-based
Every status is supported by triangulated evidence that can be challenged on review.
Mutual value
Built on long-term sustainable mutual business value, with clear benefit to both sides.
Coach & review
A virtuous circle between rep and manager that turns the discipline into excellence over time.
Defining business value
Move beyond product, features and price. Articulate the quantifiable value you deliver and the value the account stands to gain, the foundation of credibility and of any close or growth plan.
Relationships
Map the formal and informal power in every account, set a relationship plan from supplier to trusted advisor, and build the network through which you demonstrate value and drive decisions.
✳
This page is a teaser — the full framework, coaching prompts and worked examples live inside the SalesMethods apps.
The framework
Sixteen questions. Two disciplines.
The same evidence-led method applies to a single deal and to a long-term account plan. Choose a discipline to see the areas it works through.
Work the deals you can and should win, and qualify out sooner. The biggest waste of a salesperson’s time is the deal that they never win.
Is there a real opportunity?
Qualify the tangible business pressures behind the deal, the prospect’s commitment to act, the budget and buying process, and the compelling reason to buy by a set time — so you invest only where a genuine opportunity exists.
Is it worth pursuing?
Weigh whether the deal justifies your time and resource — the client’s ability to deliver, the short-term revenue, your capacity to respond, and the longer-term strategic value of winning.
Can you win it?
Understand how the prospect will choose between suppliers, how well you fit, where you genuinely differentiate, and the sales strategy that gives you the best chance to win.
Are you positioned to win?
Map your visibility and credibility with each key player, the personal and political influences at work, and how well your team is positioned across the decision to steer it in your favour.
A two-to-three-year strategic plan toward trusted-advisor status, built around your key accounts using best-practice methodology, or your own.
What credibility do you bring?
Establish the credibility you carry into the account — the value you have delivered, what past wins and losses have taught you, your service history, and where your relationships stand today.
Do you understand their business?
Build a clear picture of the account’s business environment — its strategic intent, the external and internal drivers acting on it, its planned responses, and the hierarchy of its critical needs.
Where can the relationship go?
Define how and why you become a strategic partner — the mutual business value, the relationship plan, the vital few goals and the fiscal objectives that guide your progress.
Can you make it happen?
Secure what it takes to deliver — the products, people, support and executive permission your plan depends on.
Evidence first, then a status everyone can read
For each question you document the evidence, whether triangulated opinions, witnessed behaviour or written comment, then judge honestly whether it proves the criteria. The result is a single status that gives managers one consistent standard across every deal and account.
- GreyActions not yet determined.
- AmberTasks defined, criteria not yet met.
- GreenCriteria satisfied.
- RedA block or shortfall to address.
- VioletStatus challenged on review.
Your process, or best-practice methodology
The methodology comes built into the software out of the box, but it’s fully configurable. Much of the learning and discipline is embedded in the tools, with classroom-style training reduced to a light blend where it’s needed. If your organisation already runs its own sales process, we shape the tools around it, so the method you trust becomes live and measurable inside Salesforce.
See the methodology in action
Book a personalised demo and see the methodology live in Salesforce.