# How To Update Your Team’s BANT Sales Process | Capterra > Research suggests BANT is no longer cutting it for modern sales teams. We’ll show you how to adjust your approach while working around its limitations. Source: https://www.capterra.com/resources/bant-sales-process --- Customer Acquisition and RetentionSales & Business Development # 4 Tips To Update Your Team’s BANT Sales Process By Lauren Spiller Lauren Spiller Lauren Spiller is a senior content writer at Capterra, covering sales and CRM with a focus on retail and customer experience. After receiving an MA in rhetor... [See bio & all articles](https://www.capterra.com/resources/author/lspiller/) Published May 30, 2023 7 min read Table of Contents - [Tip #1: Discuss value before budget](#tip-1-discuss-value-before-budget) - [Tip #2: Don’t place too much importance on authority](#tip-2-dont-place-too-much-importance-on-authority) - [Tip #3: Read between the lines to uncover buyer needs](#tip-3-read-between-the-lines-to-uncover-buyer-needs) - [Tip #4: Keep a flexible timeline for your buyer](#tip-4-keep-a-flexible-timeline-for-your-buyer) ## BANT can be used for modern B2B sales teams, if you have the right approach. [BANT](http://capterra.com/resources/bant-framework) is a popular lead qualification method that’s been around since the 1950s. But recent research suggests it’s no longer cutting it for modern B2B sales teams. Gartner, for example, says the BANT methodology is inadequate because it doesn’t recognize emerging demand signals[\[1\]](#sources) and relegates the sales role to mere order fulfillment.[\[2\]](#sources) With these caveats in mind, we’ll show you how to adjust your existing BANT approach so you can train your B2B sales team accordingly. Our tips address each component of BANT—budget, authority, need, and timeline—so your team can benefit from BANT’s strengths while working around its limitations. ## Tip #1: Discuss value before budget IBM created the BANT sales method in the 1950s to screen leads who were interested in buying its computers. Budget was an especially important consideration back then because IBM’s products were prohibitively expensive. For example, it would have cost approximately $35,510 per month in today’s dollars to lease RAMAC 350, the first computer with a disk drive.[\[3\]](#sources) Today, being out of budget doesn’t necessarily mean you have to disqualify a prospect. It just means your sales representatives need to put in more effort to demonstrate the value of your product or service so the buyers can build a business case for funding.  Your sales reps’ task is to show buyers _why_ their business should make room in their budget for your product _before_ asking what they’re willing to spend. Here are a few ways to do this: - **Offer a free trial or sample.** A sample or trial shows the buyer exactly how your product or service will fit into their daily operations, and may even uncover needs they didn’t know they had (more on that in [Tip #3](#tip-3-read-between-the-lines-to-uncover-buyer-needs)). Just make sure to keep in contact with them throughout the trial period to ask how it’s going and whether they have any questions. - **Have social proof ready.** Sharing reviews and testimonials from existing customers who have benefited from your product or service is another way to help your buyer build a business case. This is something you can include in sales pitches, presentations, or email correspondence with the buyer. - **Be attentive.** This one might be a no-brainer, but making the buyer your top priority is extremely important at this stage of the sales process. In the time it takes you to return a phone call or email, they might start looking elsewhere. Be quick to respond, answer questions, and provide qualifying prospects with any information they need to build their case. ## Tip #2: Don’t place too much importance on authority When BANT was created in the 1950s, the authority to make a purchase decision was typically held by one person—meaning sales reps would focus their efforts on an individual and not a team of buyers as in modern B2B settings. Today, your reps will most likely speak to someone tasked with researching your offerings, with the goal of passing that information on to the buying team. If a buyer representative doesn’t have the authority to make a purchase decision but is enthusiastic about your product or service, it’s important that your reps work with them to get that message to someone who does have purchasing power. Once your sales reps are put in contact with the buying team, they can maintain good rapport with the buyer rep by: - **CC’ing them on emails to the buying team.** It’s both practical to keep the representative in the loop when it’s appropriate and nice to give credit where it’s due. - **Checking in with them even after the sale has been closed.** Even if a buyer rep isn’t the one to make the purchase decision, they could still use your product or service and be able to provide useful feedback. That connection could also benefit your organization if the rep’s organization ever wants to upgrade or try one of your other products. ## Tip #3: Read between the lines to uncover buyer needs In the 1950s, sales reps could count on being the only source of information for prospects. This made it a lot easier to convince a potential customer that they needed what you were selling. Today, buyers spend an average of six months exploring options before they’ll even meet with a seller, and that first meeting is typically a last-ditch attempt to find a solution to their problems.[\[4\]](#sources) In other words, today’s buyers are pretty set on doing their own research, and by the time they meet with a sales rep, they know exactly what they need. Or do they? The truth is, even the most stubborn prospect might not be aware of everything their business needs, especially if they’re stressed out or fixated on a particularly bothersome pain point. Your sales reps can uncover needs buyers didn’t know they had by: - **Asking open-ended questions.** Instead of asking BANT questions such as “Does our solution address your needs?”, ask, “How do you see our solution fitting into your average work day?” or “What are your goals for the next six months?” This will give your reps more information to work with and can help them come up with follow-up questions. - **Decoding the buyer’s words.** A B2B prospect typically wants one of four things: to save money, make money, save time or effort, or reduce risk. With this in mind, you should be on the lookout for signal phrases that fall into one of these categories, such as “cut back” or “reduce inefficiencies,” so you can have a solution ready. - **Researching ahead of time.** Before speaking to a buyer representative, spend time looking up their company’s size, revenue, open positions, or any news articles they’ve recently appeared in. These insights can provide a preview of what a business is dealing with and what sort of solutions they might be able to afford. ## Tip #4: Keep a flexible timeline for your buyer The timeline component was originally meant to separate buyers who are ready to purchase from those who need more time. But some argue that timeline isn’t a valid reason to disqualify a sales lead since it’s not usually set in stone.  Coach your sales team to view the lead qualification process as their best effort to get the ball rolling and to not put too much pressure on the timeline, which can have the adverse effect of driving away an otherwise qualified lead. This way, whenever leads _are_ ready to buy, your sales reps will have already formed a connection, and your brand will be top of mind.  Here are a few ways to keep in contact with a prospect who isn’t ready to buy just yet: - **Send tailored content.** Because you understand your prospect’s situation, they can trust that any articles, e-books, case studies, or whitepapers you send them are tailored to their specific pain points and needs. - **Check in.** Sending an email to ask how they’re doing or if there’s anything they need from you is a considerate way to keep in touch as long as you’re genuine and don’t contact them _too_ frequently. [Download these free email templates](#signup) to nurture leads in a way that sounds natural and personable. - **Schedule a follow-up call.** Ask your prospect when they might be ready to chat again, and get that appointment on the calendar. This way, you’ll have something to work toward. Support your BANT sales process with the right tech tools The right technology can make it easier for your sales team to use the BANT method. Below are a few tools that can aid your team in their lead qualification efforts: [**Lead management software**](https://www.capterra.com/lead-management-software/) helps capture and track leads throughout the sales lifecycle. It automatically adds leads to your sales funnel and tracks them until they are successfully converted or dropped.  [**Lead nurturing tools**](https://www.capterra.com/lead-nurturing-software/), a subset of lead management software, are specifically designed for building relationships with leads through every stage of the sales funnel. They allow sales professionals to set up a series of trigger-based communication modes via email, SMS, social media, or call reminders throughout the buyer’s journey.  [**Sales content management software**](https://www.capterra.com/sales-content-management-software/) provides a centralized location to create, store, and distribute material used during the sales cycle. Your sales representatives can access critical content when engaging with current and potential customers. [**Sales enablement software**](https://www.capterra.com/sales-enablement-software/) includes content and communication tools that can help your sales team show off product information to prospective customers, engage potential leads, and overall boost sales team performance. ## Capterra's 2026 Software Buying Trends Report ### Download our 2026 Software Buying Trends Report to see how successful software adopters avoid disappointment and how your business can, too. * * * Sources 1. [Quick Answer: How Do We Move Leads That Are Stalled Midfunnel?](https://www.gartner.com/document/4003416), Gartner 2. [Ignition Guide to Improving Your Lead Qualification Process](https://www.gartner.com/document/4144599), Gartner 3. [IBM Archives](https://www.ibm.com/ibm/history/reference/faq_0000000011.html), IBM 4. [Best Practices for a Successful First Sales Meeting](https://www.gartner.com/document/4013573), Gartner * * * ### Was this article helpful? * * * ## About the Author [### Lauren Spiller](https://www.capterra.com/resources/author/lspiller/) Lauren Spiller is a senior content writer at Capterra, covering sales and CRM with a focus on retail and customer experience. After receiving an MA in rhetoric and composition from Texas State University, Lauren has pursued a career that allows her to help others through writing. Lauren’s research and writing for Capterra is informed by nearly 300,000 authentic user reviews and more than 15,000 interactions between Capterra software advisors and CRM or sales software buyers. Lauren also... ### RELATED READING - [What’s Behind the Pricing Jump in Project Management Software Plans](https://www.capterra.com/resources/project-management-software-pricing/) - [What is a Job Requisition? 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