{"id":424,"date":"2026-08-07T15:56:34","date_gmt":"2026-08-07T15:56:34","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getsalesman.ai\/blog\/?p=424"},"modified":"2026-08-07T15:57:04","modified_gmt":"2026-08-07T15:57:04","slug":"gap-selling","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/getsalesman.ai\/blog\/gap-selling\/","title":{"rendered":"Gap Selling: Diagnose the Problem Before You Pitch"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Most of the time your customer doesn\u2019t want a better pitch, they want a good enough reason to make the leap. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Yet most discovery calls do just the opposite. If during a call, you get an indication of a “surface level” problem (a problem the customer recognizes) you know where they are in terms of use cases and immediately begin your product pitch.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Immediately begin showing demos of features, discuss pricing, etc and the prospect will leave with some knowledge about your product but no sense of urgency to purchase it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It has nothing to do with how well you pitched the solution. It simply had nothing to do with understanding the customers’ problems. That\u2019s where Gap Selling comes into play.\u00a0<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Popularized through a book called \u201cGap Selling \u2013 Getting the Customer to YES\u201d by sales author and speaker Steve Keenan, Gap Selling gives you a method for keeping the focus on the customers\u2019 present state, what the customer wants as opposed to what he has currently as a tool or result, and the cost in dollars and cents of the gap between those two points.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What is Gap Selling?<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Gap Selling is an approach based on diagnosing the gap or distance between a buyer’s present (current) condition versus their ideal future condition. This creates for the buyer a “business case” for changing the current state.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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What is unique about this method is that it will transition the customer communication from a product first conversation. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Rather than beginning with how your product works, you are going to investigate the customer’s world, including their issues, root causes, the negative impact they feel those issues have on their business, what they hope to achieve by solving those issues, etc. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Only after both parties understand the reasons behind the need to change the status quo does the solution enter into play.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Current state, future state and the gap<\/strong> in gap selling<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Current State is much greater than the specific issue (problem) that has caused the buyer to engage with your company. The Current State encompasses all elements including; People, Tools, Process, Performance, Constraints and Consequences related to the problem. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For Example: “Our follow-up calls are inconsistent” represents only the symptoms of a larger issue. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

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An effective diagnosis will determine how sales representatives currently generate their follow-up calls, at which points do delays occur, which information is being lost during this process, who is impacted by these inefficiencies and ultimately the costs associated with these failures to the overall business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Future State<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Effective Future States describes both a desirable outcome measure, along with a desired timeframe, the capabilities required to deliver on the desired outcomes and also identifies which stakeholders will ultimately benefit from improved efficiencies.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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For example: “we require our reps to use AI generated follow-up call scripts” is describing one possible solution. “Each customer commitment shall be an owned action for each rep within one hour of the initial meeting” is describing a desired Future State.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gap<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While Pain alone may not be sufficient to drive action from a buyer, they will eventually become accustomed to tolerating inefficient processes. The buyer must see clearly the costs associated with maintaining status quo verses taking on the effort and risk of change.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Diagram<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The Problem Identification Chart explained<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The Problem Identification Chart, commonly called the PIC, is a diagnostic tool associated with the Gap Selling framework. Its purpose is to prevent the rep from stopping at a visible symptom. It connects a business problem with its root causes and measurable impacts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The official methodology contains its own structured approach. For day-to-day call preparation, an AE can use the following simplified worksheet without treating it as a replacement for the official PIC:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Area<\/strong><\/td>What the rep needs to learn<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Problem<\/td>What is not working today?<\/td><\/tr>
Root cause<\/td>Why is it happening?<\/td><\/tr>
Business impact<\/td>What is the operational or financial consequence?<\/td><\/tr>
Future state<\/td>What measurable outcome should improve?<\/td><\/tr>
Motivation<\/td>Why does the buyer need to change now?<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The important movement is from observation to explanation. \u201cReps send follow-ups late\u201d becomes valuable only when the seller understands why, how often it happens and what the business loses as a result.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"Seven-step<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Gap Selling discovery questions for real calls<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

The purpose of an effective discovery call is to provide the buyer an opportunity to express their thoughts without being asked a series of interrogative-type questions. The question list provided can be used as a starting point for the conversation but should not be read verbatim.<\/p>\n\n\n\n


Start with the response from the buyer (as well as to help clear up any ambiguous responses). Continue to ask clarifying questions to help track the conversation as long as there are still specifics related to the business issue.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Current State Questions:<\/strong>
1) How does your team currently process [issue\/process]?
2) In what ways does the current process fail\/what area(s) of breakdown occur?
3) How often does [specific failure\/breakdown] occur?
4) Who is impacted by [failure\/breakdown]?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

5) What steps have been taken previously to resolve the issue\/problem?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Root Cause Questions:<\/strong>
1) What is causing the delay\/inconsistency in processing [issue\/process]?
2) At what point did you realize the problem existed?
3) As far back as you know, why was your previous solution unsuccessful?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Friction Point Question:<\/strong>
1) Which portion of the process produces the greatest amount of friction\/has the biggest roadblock?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Business Impact Questions:<\/strong>
1) How many hours\/days\/months does your team lose due to [delay\/inconsistent processing of]?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2) What costs are associated with [problem\/failure] on a monthly\/quarterly basis?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3) If you do not make progress toward resolving this issue which performance measure will suffer?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4) How does [current problem] affect the following measures:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A) revenue
B) cost
C) productivity
D) retention<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Future State Questions:<\/strong>
1) What would success look like for your team regarding [processing\/resolving the issue)?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2) Which KPI needs to show improvement?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3) By when do you want to achieve the results needed to resolve the issue?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

4) Who else within your organization needs to agree upon what success looks like?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Urgency Question:<\/strong>
1) If your company continues using its current method for [process], what will be the negative consequences?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

2) Why solve this issue now instead of continuing to wait for 6 months before taking action?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

3) What is the cost of doing nothing for 6 months.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

DISCOVERY REMINDER<\/strong> Do not reward yourself for asking every question. The goal is to understand the buyer\u2019s situation well enough to explain the problem, impact and reason for change in the buyer\u2019s own language.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
\"Discovery<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A practical Gap Selling example<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Imagine a sales enablement leader tells an AE, \u201cOur reps are not following up consistently after customer calls.\u201d A product-first seller may immediately demonstrate automated email generation. A Gap Seller stays with the problem.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Layer<\/strong><\/td>What the AE uncovers<\/strong><\/td><\/tr>
Surface problem<\/td>Follow-ups are inconsistent.<\/td><\/tr>
Root cause<\/td>Reps manually reconstruct notes between back-to-back meetings.<\/td><\/tr>
Business impact<\/td>Important commitments are missed and next steps arrive late.<\/td><\/tr>
Current state<\/td>Managers and reps cannot reliably see which deals require action.<\/td><\/tr>
Future state<\/td>Every meeting produces an owned next step and timely follow-up.<\/td><\/tr>
Gap<\/td>Customer commitments are not becoming trackable deal actions.<\/td><\/tr>
Urgency<\/td>Active opportunities are losing momentum every week.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Only now should the seller connect the solution to the buyer\u2019s situation. The value is not \u201cAI writes emails.\u201d The value is closing the operational gap between what customers commit to during meetings and what the sales team executes afterward.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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That difference also creates a stronger response when negotiating price. If the business impact remains vague, the buyer naturally compares features and cost. When the gap is quantified, the investment can be evaluated against the cost of leaving the problem unresolved.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Common Gap Selling mistakes<\/strong><\/h2>\n\n\n\n