How Crisis Counseling can inform Win/Loss Interviews (Part 2)

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Team Ox is focused on (re)designing revenue engines to fuel growth at B2B companies. And we do this by working with the key dials of the SaaS business: win rate, velocity, and ASP. 

An ongoing win/loss program is an excellent way to impact the key dials of the business. It’s guaranteed to help you win more deals. (In fact, Gartner says companies with rigorous programs see a 15% to 30% increase in revenue and up to 50% improvement in win rates.)

So, while a formal program should use quantitative CRM data—what’s better than direct feedback and critical intel from your prospects? 

In my last post, I shared how crisis counseling skills can inform qualitative discovery interviews by specifically leveraging the OARS model (open-ended questions, affirmation, reflection, and summarizing). Bringing this skillset into win/loss interviews helps establish a level of trust and gather meaningful insights into the competitive dynamics of our clients’ deals. 

In our win/loss interviews, I also use The Structure of the Call, a model informed by my training on the crisis lines. 

The Structure of the Call within crisis counseling goes like this:

  1. Establish good contact

  2. Assess the crisis

  3. Explore & Focus their Story

  4. Collaboratively problem solve

  5. End the call

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Here’s how I’ve translated it for win/loss interviews:

1. Good contact

Establish good contact! Exchange names and create a connection. That could be as simple as asking the caller, where they are calling from. How is their day going? Has it been a busy week? 

I’ll always thank them in advance for providing their feedback—it’s a real gift and absolutely invaluable to my client!

2. Assessment

Ask a few open-ended questions for context and high-level comprehension of the opportunity. Then immediately assess the decision that they made:

  • What vendor did you choose and why? 

  • Why didn't you go with Vendor X?

3. Explore the Story and Focus the Call

This is the core of the conversation and the time to ask a range of open-ended questions (more on the questions to ask in a later post). You may find that you're speaking with a more technical person who has more feedback to share on the product. You might be talking to the economic buyer who has more to share on pricing/packaging. 

I recommend asking open-ended questions around the following areas: the decision-makingprocess, Marketing, Sales, Product, Pricing, and overall feedback. You'll notice that as you ask open-ended questions on these different topic areas, you'll uncover more than one reason why the prospect went with a particular vendor. 

Make sure to summarize back what you’ve heard! Here's an example:

It sounds like the sales team was very responsive and engaged, but the product demonstration could have been more tailored to your specific use case. And solving for your use case was the most important aspect of the decision. I also heard that the pricing and packaging of your chosen vendor made more sense for your business as it scales. Does this accurately summarize your feedback?"

Slowly, you’ll hone in on the primary and perhaps secondary reason for the decision. Sometimes the reason the caller stated for the win/loss at the beginning of the call is not the crux of the problem. Now is the time to clarify the real reasons for not moving forward with a particular vendor. 

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4. Problem Solving

It’s always an illuminating exercise to problem solve with the caller—in an alternate timeline, could Vendor X have influenced a different outcome?

  • “What could Vendor X have done differently to win this deal?”

  • What advice would you give Vendor X for working with others in the future?”

5. Ending the Call

Give the prospect a heads up that the call is coming to a close. You might find it useful to check in on how things are going with the chosen vendor. Was it a smooth implementation process? What did the post-sale experience feel like? Any gaps? Any bait and switch?

Encourage follow-up feedback if anything comes to mind (email is great for this). Whether they are still in the decision-making process or in the implementation of the new solution, they likely have a lot on their plate right now—thank the caller for their time and wish them the best of luck on the journey ahead!

Win/loss analysis is one of the most sought after market intelligence tools—and it's so surprising to me how few companies run a formal program. Stay tuned...I'm working on a high-level overview of everything you need to know about running a rigorous win-loss program.

Natasha Oxenburgh