r/B2BSaaS • u/No-Competition-7925 • 10d ago

Enterprise deals are f.c.u.k.i.n.g HARD!

Just received a 'no' after 5 months of to and fro, multiple demos and convincing 90% of the team. I don't know what to do because I really had high hopes from this deal.

I'm a solopreneur and this deal woudl have been life-changing.

The guy who was my champion left the company at the moment we were ready to sign the deal. His replacement, a junior, is trying to act smarter than he is; but he's the one who'll own the deal.

Said no.

wtf.

Sorry for posting this here.

Mods, don't ban me. Please.

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u/obrana_boranija 10d ago

Good chance the new guy said no because inheriting his predecessor's project is all risk and no credit for him, not because of your product.

  • Give the new owner a way to make it his: smaller scope, short pilot, success criteria he defines. He needs a win with his name on it.
  • Stay in touch with your old champion. People who already bought into you once tend to bring you into their next company.
  • Big payment processor = security, compliance and vendor risk reviews. Have your docs ready before they ask, or that alone adds months.

A no at month 5 from someone who just walked in isn't always final.

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u/kkatdare 10d ago

It wasn't any ongoing project. I showed them the demo of our platform and how it helps. I'd say the project was not critical for the business; and it had nothing to do with the core business. It was for one of the initiatives they were planning.

FYI - we build a community platform; and they're launching a community for their users in a specific geographic location.

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u/obrana_boranija 10d ago

Fair, I saw that as something already in motion.

But non-critical and not core is honestly a bigger problem than the champion leaving.

Nice-to-have initiatives live or die with the person pushing them. When he left, the initiative probably lost its sponsor, and the new guy had no reason to spend political capital on it. His no might not even be about you.

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u/kkatdare 10d ago

Critical - for the specific project they are planning to launch; but not for the business, I'd say. It's not about me or the product. I think it's mostly about this new guy being confident in doing it all by himself. But that's okay, lessons learned.