Ask What Your Champion Risks Internally

Your contact may support a change while facing a real reputational cost if it fails. Understanding that risk makes your help more useful.

Read the signal

A champion may have to spend political capital, defend a budget request, or own implementation after purchase. More product enthusiasm does not remove those burdens. A seller who overlooks them asks for introductions and approvals too casually.

Make the next move

Ask what the champion would have to justify to colleagues and what could make the project difficult for them personally. Offer evidence and a realistic rollout plan rather than reassurance. Let them decide which conversations they are ready to start.

Language you can adapt

Illustrative wording:

If you recommend this internally, which concern will your colleagues press you on first? I can help assemble evidence, or we can pause if the case is not ready.

The wording is a starting point. Replace the problem, evidence, and request with details the buyer actually gave you. If those details are missing, ask a question before sending a polished message. Specificity makes it easier for the buyer to correct your understanding and easier for you to see whether the opportunity is moving.

Decide what happens next

If the risk is material, address it before pushing for an executive meeting. A slower, credible process is better than an unsupported recommendation.

Write the result in your deal notes as an observable fact: who responded, what they agreed to do, and when. A friendly reply is useful, but a decision, a named owner, or a scheduled review tells you more. If the next step remains vague, treat that as information about the deal rather than a reason to send the same follow-up again.

Use these examples responsibly. Describe your product, pricing, and customer results accurately, and adapt every suggestion to the buyer’s stated process.