The ONE Question That Uncovers Real Urgency (With The Blender Story)
Leah Borges ??
Helping B2B Sellers and Teams Transform into Top 10% Performers | From Good to Great: Hit Targets Consistently I Gap Selling Certified I SalesDoneRight.co
Most deals don’t die because of price. Most deals don’t die because of competition. Most deals die because there’s no real urgency.
And here’s the hard truth: If you don’t uncover urgency the right way, your deal is either going to stall, you'll get ghosted, or the deal will get pushed month after month until it’s dead.
So how do you actually uncover urgency? How do you make sure your buyer feels the weight of staying the same?
It comes down to one powerful question:
'What happens if…?'
This one question exposes the true cost of inaction (COI). Not some made-up pain. Not a fake discount-driven deadline (FAKE Urgency). But the actual business consequence of doing nothing.
Let me show you what I mean - with a blender story.
The Blender Story: Why 'What Happens If?' Works Everywhere, Everytime
A few weeks ago, my blender broke. I love Oster blenders. Had them for years. So naturally, I decided to buy a new one.
I told my husband, 'We need a new blender.' He agreed. HE ordered it. Done deal.
Or so I thought.
What I didn’t know was that my husband went behind my back, found a repair kit, and ordered replacement parts.
Now? The blender is getting fixed, and we’re sending the new one back.
If he had just asked me: 'What happens if we don’t get a new blender?' I would’ve said: 'I want a better one with more power and features.' I would’ve had my new blender.
But I didn’t make my real need clear. And he didn’t ask the right question.
Why This Matters To You As an AE
Your buyers do the exact same thing.
They say they want to change. They say they’re ready to switch. They probably give you every reason in the book. But if the cost of inaction isn’t bigger than the effort to switch, they’re staying put.
That’s why you need to ask:
? 'What happens if you don’t solve this?'
? 'What happens if your current vendor fixes the issue?'
? 'What happens if you wait six months? What about a year?'
This forces them to confront real consequences. Not hypothetical ROI (and I know you've been told to use this - DON'T). Not 'we hope things will get better.' But what’s breaking their business today.
Your Urgency Test: COI vs. Price
Here’s how you know if urgency is real:
This is why most AEs struggle with closing. They don’t quantify COI.
The Mistake Most AEs Make
I recently coached an AE who was losing deals to the status quo.
His buyer wanted to leave their current vendor because of customer service issues. But when we ran the numbers, COI was too low.
Switching platforms meant: ? Rebuilding workflows ? Retraining their team ? Reworking integrations
And the actual $ cost of staying? Not that bad (smaller than 2x).
We went back, asked, 'What happens if they fix the issue?' Silence. No urgency. That deal was never real.
How to Take Control of Your Deals Today
What To Do Now:
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Founder of The Go2Market Lab; Improve your Go To Market efficiency and effectiveness; creating a more calm and stable go to market process in tech and emerging market companies;( see my "About" section for more )
3 天前It's a good example and a good story. I kind of think not buying the new blender for you was a high risk maneuver though. He's lucky you accepted the decision as you did and didn't seek retribution by blending his favorite t-shirt
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4 天前Love the blender story. Such a great example.