Access — reaching the person who can actually sign

Beat One · The Mark

Never spend your best work on someone who can only say no.

I’ve watched great sellers lose deals not to a no, but to months of wonderful meetings with someone who could never say yes. That’s why hunters start at the finish line. Before I build a deck, a demo, or a business case, I want to know one thing: Whose signature closes this deal? Every deal has that person. Most of the people you meet on the way to that person can’t say yes, but any one of them can say no, and a no can stop the conversation before it ever reaches the signer. Access is knowing who you’re really talking to and never mistaking activity for progress.

Beat Two · The Hunt Story

Here’s the deal that got away. A seller I know spent an entire quarter chasing a mid-six-figure consulting engagement. Her contact was a director who took every call, asked great questions, and forwarded every deck. By every visible measure, he was her champion.

The work went to another firm, whose team had never met the director. That team had met the partner who owned the budget — once, for twenty minutes. And here’s the part that stings: in the very first meeting, the director told her he couldn’t sign anything. She heard modesty. He was telling her the truth.

Beat Three · The Turn

Six months later, the same seller was chasing a similar engagement with another friendly director. This time, on the second call, she asked the question she had skipped before: “When this gets approved, whose name goes on it, and what will they need to see?” Without missing a beat, he named the partner who owned the budget.

She didn’t drop him. She kept him close and made sure he looked great at every step. But she stopped reading his enthusiasm as the temperature of the deal. She wrote every piece for the partner, each on one page the partner could absorb in five minutes. So when the partner finally joined a call, nothing needed translating. The deal closed in the same quarter it started.

The difference? The first time, the champion was her destination. The second time, the champion was her bridge.

Beat Four · The Field Guide

These moves are so obvious they’re not obvious. Here’s exactly how to run them.

1. Ask the signature question by call two: “When this gets approved, whose name goes on it, and what will they need to see?” Ask it warmly and plainly. Your contact almost always knows the answer and is usually glad to share it.
2. Make the introduction a win for your champion: “Would you introduce me to [name]? I’ll make sure you look great in front of them.” Never outshine the person opening the door.
3. Hand your champion a forward-ready note: a subject line, the business outcome in one sentence, one proof point, and one ask. If they can forward it without editing, they usually will.
4. Once your champion has made the introduction, copy the signer’s executive assistant (EA) on your follow-up and make the EA’s job easy: “I know [name]’s calendar is brutal. Would a fifteen-minute hold with a one-pager attached help them decide whether it’s worth the time?” EAs guard the calendar. Respect that, and they’ll often help you.
5. Show follow-up, not desperation. Treat the pursuit a little like dating: stay present, stay useful, never beg. A crisp note with something of value beats a third “just checking in.”
6. If you can’t name the signer by your third conversation, say so out loud — to yourself and to your manager. Not knowing who signs usually means the deal isn’t real yet.

Beat Five · The Tell

Write this one down where you’ll see it before your next discovery call, and say it out loud once. It sticks.

Beat Six · Know When to Hold Fire

Sometimes you can’t go straight to the signer, and you shouldn’t try. When the buyer is regulated or procurement-led, a gatekeeper’s no is final, and their yes is your ticket into the room, so win the gatekeeper first. In a big, political enterprise deal, going over your champion’s head can freeze you out. So hold fire. Arm your champion to sell for you internally. Then reach the signer with your champion, not around them, and save your best work for the meeting with the signer. This was never about ignoring anyone. Everyone in that building matters. Just don’t count on anyone but the signer to close it.

Beat Seven · Back to the Pack

Got a deal where you’re not sure who signs? Write down the role of the person you’re talking to, what you’ve heard about the approval, and what your gut is saying. That’s exactly the kind of deal this community is being built to work on together. Let’s go!