Did you know that 67% of lost sales occur because representatives fail to qualify leads properly? What if you could save time by pinpointing sales-ready leads with just a few questions?
In sales and marketing, it is crucial to define a good, qualified lead clearly. Most sales reps used to follow BANT (Budget, Authority, Need, and Timing) to qualify their sales leads. However, in modern B2B, sales and marketing teams have found that there are other factors to consider first to help determine a prospect’s sales readiness.
That’s where the CHAMP methodology comes in. Unlike traditional models like BANT, CHAMP focuses on a prospect’s Challenges, Authority, Money, and Priorities to deliver more qualified leads to your pipeline.
A Modern Approach to Lead Qualification
In sales, you must care about your prospects to build a long-lasting relationship with them. Empathy should come first—sales reps should avoid pushing for quotas without addressing a prospect’s concerns.
Needs, pain points, problems, and challenges are the first things to discuss with the prospect when qualifying a sales lead. Only then can you assess whether there’s an opportunity to offer a solution. This shift in mindset is what makes CHAMP in sales a more relevant, humanized approach.
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What is CHAMP?
CHAMP is a sales methodology designed to help sales reps prioritize leads who are truly ready to buy. It’s a buyer-focused approach that zeroes in on understanding the prospect’s problems, decision-making power, available budget, and urgency.
The difference between CHAMP and BANT lies in emphasizing the prospect’s challenges first, as this uncovers their core pain points and how urgently they need a solution.
Let’s break down each component of CHAMP—and see how you can apply it using specific qualifying lead questions.
Challenges: Identify What’s Holding Them Back
Transitioning from strategy to execution, the first area of focus in CHAMP is the prospect’s challenges. This is where real sales conversations begin. Before you even talk about features, pricing, or implementation, understand what’s stretching your prospect.
Ask questions like:
- “What challenges are you currently facing in your operations?”
- “What’s preventing your team from hitting key performance goals?”
- “How have these issues impacted revenue or customer satisfaction?”
By asking the right questions, you begin gathering the information that forms the foundation of effective lead qualifications. Overcome your challenges with these tips and tricks to increase your B2B sales leads.
Empathy plays a critical role here. Your goal is to listen first, then position your product as the solution—not just another tool.
Ultimately, understanding challenges is the gateway to value-based selling—and a powerful starting point for the CHAMP sales process.
Authority: Are You Speaking with the Right Decision-Maker?
Once you understand their pain points, the next step is to find out who has the authority to make decisions. Time is a limited resource, and qualifying the decision-making power of your contact early ensures you’re not wasting it.
However, unlike old-school tactics that push for the highest title, CHAMP encourages a collaborative approach. Even if your contact isn’t the final decision-maker, they can be a champion influencer—someone who can advocate for your solution internally.
Some useful sales qualifying questions (CHAMP methodology) aligned with authority include:
- “Can you walk me through how decisions like this are made in your organization?”
- “Is there a committee or just one key stakeholder who makes the call?”
- “What would your role be if we moved forward with this solution?”
Understanding the internal dynamics allows you to tailor your pitch and engage additional stakeholders as needed.
Related: Top Sales Qualification Questions to Convert Your Prospects
Money: Understanding the Budget Without Scaring Them Off
Now that you’ve uncovered pain points and identified decision-makers, it’s time to talk about money—but with tact. Unlike BANT, where budget is often the first filter, CHAMP encourages you to discuss budget only after building context.
A prospect is far more open to talking numbers after they’ve seen the value you bring. So instead of jumping in with “What’s your budget?”, try questions that make the conversation more natural:
- “Have you already allocated a budget for solving this problem?”
- “What kind of ROI are you looking to achieve with a solution like this?”
- “Who in your team usually approves budget allocation?”
When you introduce financial discussions this way, you position yourself as a problem solver, not just another vendor trying to close a deal.
This section of the CHAMP sales methodology helps you identify qualified opportunities without alienating potential buyers. Planning to outsource your lead generation, but with a tight budget? Check out the cost comparison when outsourcing a lead gen agency.
Priority: Understanding Urgency and Timeline
Having discussed their pain points, internal structure, and investment capacity, your next step is to explore timing. Even a significant lead can go cold if the priority isn’t right.
The final stage of CHAMP—Priority—helps you assess urgency and align your follow-up accordingly.
Great qualifying leads questions to ask here include:
- “How soon are you hoping to address these issues?”
- “Is this part of a larger initiative or a standalone need?”
- “Do you have any internal deadlines we should be aware of?”
It’s essential to be specific. For example, if they say “next year,” ask: “Would that be Q1 or Q2?” The closer the implementation timeline, the hotter the lead. And if the project isn’t prioritized, you now know to enter them into a lead nurturing sequence rather than an active pipeline.
CHAMP Sales in Practice
What sets CHAMP sales apart is its adaptability across various industries and sales cycles. Whether you’re in SaaS, manufacturing, or professional services, the framework helps you qualify with precision and empathy.
Reps often find that using CHAMP increases both lead-to-opportunity conversion rates and customer satisfaction. Why? Because the framework is rooted in understanding first, selling second.
Sales organizations that adopt CHAMP also benefit from clearer pipeline visibility. You know precisely why a lead is progressing—or why it’s on hold—because every stage is backed by insight gathered through strategic questioning.
How to Implement CHAMP in Your Sales Cadence
To maximize the benefits of the CHAMP model, it is essential to integrate it into your sales cadence. Here’s a quick example of how:
- Call 1 – Discovery: Focus on Challenges and Authority.
- Call 2 – Solution Mapping: Reiterate pain points, introduce relevant case studies, and confirm budget alignment.
- Email Follow-Up: Summarize key points, ask Priority-related questions, and offer a time-sensitive incentive or next step.
By integrating CHAMP into every touchpoint—from email to call scripts—you empower your team with a consistent framework for qualifying leads that matter.
Related: Examples of 5 Winning Sales Cadence
Closing Thoughts
We’re not saying that BANT is an outdated way of qualifying leads. However, using CHAMP is more relevant in qualifying your opportunities correctly. To truly close a sale, it is better to understand the buying process of your prospects. The answers to these questions will determine whether your prospect is a good match to your business.
