How to Use BANT for Lead Qualification

Qualifying leads in a competitive sales landscape like today’s can be tricky, but it’s much easier using a simple framework like BANT. By using a structured methodology to prioritize leads based on straightforward criteria, sales teams can spend more time on the leads that are most likely to result in a sale.

In our thorough guide, we’ll explain everything you should know about the BANT framework, including how it compares to other methodologies, how you can apply it for your sales processes, its pros and cons, and, of course, how you can achieve at-scale implementation. 

What Is BANT?

BANT is a framework for sales qualification to find potential clients for sales opportunities. BANT is an acronym that includes criteria that salespeople can use to prioritize leads. By assessing how suitable a lead might be with these criteria, sales teams can hone in on the most likely folks to convert from leads to buyers. 

What does BANT stand for?

BANT is an acronym that stands for budget, authority, need, and timeline. The acronym helps sales reps assess leads for suitability by evaluating them against each of those four criteria. For example, a rep might consider: 

• Does the lead have a budget that allows for a purchase? What kinds of financial resources do they have? 
• Does the potential buyer have the authority to make purchase decisions?  
• Does the lead actually need the solution (service or product)? 
• Would the potential buyer be able to make a purchase within a realistic, reasonable timeframe? 

By using this criteria, salespeople who use BANT can better qualify leads and prospective buyers. 

BANT vs. SPIN selling

Although BANT and SPIN selling are similar in that they both can help qualify leads and prospects, they have some key differences worth noting. For starters, they’re two different acronyms that stand for different things (BANT for budget, authority, need, and timeline; and SPIN for situation, problem, implication, and need-payoff). While the framework highlights the best prospects based on budget, authority to make decisions, need for solutions, and willingness to buy, SPIN focuses on unearthing prospects’ pain points and framing the solution as their best fit.

Even though BANT is a great starting point for lead qualification, it might not show all the nuances of a potential buyer’s needs and pain points. SPIN selling, on the other hand, offers a more detailed framework for not just assessing lead needs, but also building rapport and relationships. That’s why many organizations often end up using a combination of the two methodologies.

How to Apply BANT for Sales Processes

One of the best parts about this methodology is that it’s simple and straightforward. Here’s how you can start applying BANT for sales processes.

1. Pinpoint your target market.

Your first step should be to identify who your target market is. Chances are, you already have an idea of your ideal customer profile (ICP). If not, assess aspects that would influence your target market, like demographic data, company size, the industry, and job positions.

Reps can do a little research on potential buyers to gather this information using social media like LinkedIn, online resources, and industry-specific publications, among other outlets.

2. Get an idea of the prospect’s budget. 

With BANT, the first criteria is budget, so getting familiar with a lead’s financial resources should be top of the list. However, it’s essential to keep in mind that their budget isn’t just a dollar amount — Nowadays, it’s much more dynamic than that.

For example, experts suggest asking about the prospect’s expected return on investment (ROI). Reps can make a more informed decision based on whether or not their solution aligns with a prospect’s expected ROI. However, if the prospect’s expected ROI doesn’t line up with your solution, there’s a huge discrepancy between the budget and ROI, or you can’t realistically accommodate their price point, it could be a sign to move on to other leads. 

3. Figure out who the key stakeholders are.

Authority (AKA, who holds the decision making power?) is the next criteria for BANT, and it’s not always as clear-cut as you’d hope. Many sales deals involve multiple stakeholders, which is why authority is such a critical component of BANT. For example, if your lead doesn’t hold any authority over purchasing decisions, you’re better off finding out who does. 

With key stakeholders, reps should know their respective: 

• Job roles and titles
• Contact information for reaching them
• Authority when it comes to purchase decisions
• Personal priorities 

4. Narrow down the pain points and needs.

How important are the prospect’s needs and pain points in comparison to the prospect? If they’re not very motivated to address their needs, then what? With BANT, understanding your prospect’s needs and priorities is critical. For example, perhaps your lead is motivated to solve their problem, but the person calling the shots isn’t. That’s information your reps should know.

5. Set up a realistic timeline. 

The final component of BANT before officially prioritizing prospects is the timeline. How quickly does the lead need to make a decision? And is that realistic for your team? In some cases, it might be an easy “one and done” deal. However, in other more complex cases, the timeline could be affected by months’ worth of approvals and back-and-forth. This final aspect can really paint a clearer picture for prioritization. 

6. Prioritize leads based on BANT.  

Once reps understand each component of BANT with relation to their lead, they can begin to prioritize. Evaluate all your potential buyers based on the BANT framework and pivot your focus to leads that are most likely going to lead to a sale. 

After prioritization and based on the information you unearthed through this methodology, you can then personalize your sales pitch to that specific prospect to ensure the value proposition aligns with the buyer’s criteria for decision making. 

How to Use Yoodli for BANT

Although BANT is a straightforward framework, it’s not always easy to implement, especially when it comes to at-scale implementation. An easy, at-scale solution for BANT training is Yoodli. 

The AI-based sales coach, Yoodli, provides sales leaders with a platform teams can use to practice using BANT in a completely safe space. Instead of taking a risk and practicing BANT in real scenarios with real leads, reps can dip their toes in with simulated sales roleplays. This can revolutionize the implementation and training process as it allows reps to safely hone their skills in a realistic setting without risking lost deals.

Reps can practice the BANT framework in specific simulations, such as inbound or outbound discovery, and get real-time sales coaching feedback they can then implement for improvement. Top brands like Dale Carnegie and Korn Ferry already use Yoodli to decrease ramp and boost seller attainment. 

Google Cloud was recently facing a large task: Getting more than 15,000 reps up to speed and on the same page. Leaders at Google used Yoodli for this program and it was so successful that Google Cloud now uses Yoodli for other sales enablement purposes. The results of the case study speak for themselves. 

Check out how to practice and implement BANT (or any other sales methodology) across your sales teams at https://yoodli.ai/. 

Pros + Cons of Using BANT

It shouldn’t be a surprise that all sales frameworks come with advantages and disadvantages, and BANT is no exception. Here are the pros and cons of using the BANT framework for lead qualification.

Pros of using BANT

Arguably one of the best advantages to using BANT for lead qualification is that it’s an efficient methodology. By using BANT criteria, reps can easily prioritize potential buyers and pivot to hone in on the most promising leads. This prioritization can save a lot of time in the long run and can lead to more closed deals.

Another significant pro to using this framework is just how clear and structured it is. It’s a simple methodology that’s easy to understand at the surface. Its structure allows sales teams to make sure they have all the essential information about leads before they actually go for a sale.

Using BANT can also help other teams, especially when it comes to GMT alignment. That’s because this method can help create alignment across teams through sales goals, which can help achieve company-wide goals.

Cons of using BANT

Of course, there are also a few cons of using the BANT framework. One of the biggest drawbacks could also be considered one of its strengths: its simplicity. Some sales leaders consider BANT to be too “oversimplified.” As alluded to earlier, this methodology doesn’t always get the full picture when it comes to complex prospect needs. It was designed mainly for initial qualification as opposed to capturing all the nuances that go into a prospect’s needs and pain points. 

Even though it’s pretty simple, BANT can also be time-consuming, which is a major turn off for some sales reps. For simpler cycles, this methodology doesn’t eat up a lot of time, but when you’re facing complex sales cycles, applying BANT can take more time. 

Lastly, because budget is a huge component of BANT, it can lead reps to overlook other essential aspects, leading them to be too concerned with financial resources. Although budget is hugely important, it’s not always the “end all, be all” for lead qualification. 

The Bottom Line

BANT is a great framework for initial lead qualification. Although it’s not a perfect framework, there’s not a sales methodology that is. Just keep in mind that it might not show the full picture when it comes to the complexities of prospect needs and pain points. 

Regardless, when considering at-scale implementation and training, using a tool like Yoodli will make a world of difference. 

Sources

• HubSpot: “How to Use BANT to Qualify Prospects in 2024 [Expert Tips].”
• Scratchpad: “What Is BANT? 4 Key Elements + Alternatives.”
• New Breed: “What Is BANT And How Can It Enable Your Sales Team?”