Solution Selling: Selling outcomes, not products
Solution selling is a sales methodology focused on diagnosing the buyer's problem and selling the outcome, not the product itself.
What is Solution Selling?
Solution selling was created by Mike Bosworth in the 1980s and became the dominant enterprise sales methodology of the 1990s. Challenger Sale research showed that in commoditised modern markets, pure solution selling underperforms — but the diagnostic discipline remains essential.
Frequently Asked Questions
- Is solution selling still effective?
- Yes, for complex deals where the buyer hasn't yet diagnosed the problem. Less effective in commoditised markets where the buyer has already done research.