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You're sitting on stalled deals. 70% probability. Your champion went dark.
They're "thinking it over." What they're really doing is deciding whether change is worth the risk.
And you're repeating the same discovery mistake on every deal.
Here's What's Actually Happening
Your forecast is broken—not because you can't identify problems, but because you're not quantifying them.
Research from ASG's 2024 buyer study found that 60% of sellers never uncover the real business problem during discovery. But that's not the worst part. The worst part is that even when you do identify the pain, 86% of B2B purchases stall because buyers haven't internalized what that pain actually costs.
You're losing $200K deals not because you lack a champion or don't have a solution. You're losing them because the buyer has never calculated that staying still is more expensive than moving forward.
67% of buyers rank discovery as the most critical part of the sales process. Yet most teams rush through it, miss the real issues, and jump to demos. Result: Deals die in "evaluation." No decision. Forecasts miss. Pipeline looks good until month-end—then reality hits.
The pattern repeats because nobody taught you what complete discovery actually looks like.
The Pain Quantification Hierarchy
This is the framework that separates reps who close $200K deals from reps who lose them to "we'll revisit next quarter."
It operates in three non-negotiable layers. Most reps only master the first.
Layer 1: Problem Identification (You Can Use This Today)
This is surface-level discovery. Most reps stay here.
Buyers volunteer complaints: "Our process is inefficient," "We're losing deals," "Churn is up"
You're asking "what keeps you up at night?"—platitude bait
Problem: You've mapped symptoms, not reality
Key question: "How often does [problem] happen, and who does it impact?"
Most reps think they've done discovery when they've done Layer 1. They haven't.
Layer 2: Cost Calculation (This Is Where It Gets Interesting)
Take the problem and attach a dollar sign to it.
The difference it makes: $200K deals become $2.1M transformations when buyers understand what inaction costs
Research shows that quantified pain improves win rates by 13-21%
Sales cycles shorten by 20-30% when cost is calculated
This is where you ask: "How many hours per week? How many people? What's the loaded cost per person?"
Then you do the math—with them. Not for them. With them.
When they say the number out loud, it becomes real.
Layer 3: Urgency Creation (This Is The Secret)
Most deals die here because urgency is manufactured, not real.
Your job: Connect the quantified pain to their business milestones, budget cycles, and personal consequences
Full breakdown in tomorrow's deep dive for active readers
"Why now?" is the question that determines whether they close or ghost.
Real Example: $180K Deal Becomes Closed-Won in 3 Weeks
VP at a mid-market SaaS company. Had been sitting on a $180K deal for 45 days. Champion said they wanted it but needed to "get buy-in."
Rep used Layer 2: Cost calculation.
In a follow-up call: "We've calculated this inefficiency costs you $2.3M annually. You've been sitting on a $2.3M problem while debating a $180K solution. Does that math feel right?"
Buyer said: "Actually, no. It doesn't. Let me escalate."
Deal closed in 3 weeks.
What changed? Not the product. Not the price. Not the champion.
The buyer finally understood what not solving it cost them.
Result: $180K deal closed. 45-day cycle compressed to 63 days total. Rep learned the framework and applied it across pipeline—closed $1.2M in Q1 using the same methodology.
Right Now, You Have 3-5 Deals Stuck in Your Pipeline
They're sitting at 70-90% probability. Your champion went dark. They're "thinking it over."
It's one of three patterns—and you're repeating it on every deal.
Find your exact deal killer. Get your personalized fix. See which layer you're stuck at.
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Read our guide to find out why growth marketers should make sure CTV is part of their 2026 media mix.
Want The Full 3-Layer Framework?
Tomorrow (Friday), I'm sending the complete breakdown to everyone who opened today's email:
The full Pain Quantification Hierarchy with 3 complete layers
Real case study: How a SaaS company scaled from $15M to $62M ARR using this framework
The exact discovery questions to ask at each layer
Advanced techniques: Pre-quantified pain prospecting, multi-stakeholder pain triangulation, compounding cost models
Implementation playbook: Week-by-week rollout plan with metrics to track
Research-backed principles: Why this works (backed by SPIN methodology research, Sandler pain funnel data, 30+ years of sales science)
It's 3,000+ words of the methodology only active readers see.
Dingo
P.S. Real example from a SaaS AE in Chicago: "I was losing 35% of qualified deals. Applied Layer 2 on 10 deals—suddenly I'm having conversations about ROI instead of features. Closed 3 of them. Win rate went from 22% to 31%. The framework works for SMB deals AND enterprise. Find your pattern: Take the diagnostic"