The Deal Doesn’t Die from Price. It Dies from Misalignment. Here’s Ashkan Rajaee’s Fix

Sales teams lose deals for reasons they rarely see coming.

It’s not pricing. It’s not product. It’s not even timing.

More often, the deal fails because the seller misunderstood who they were actually selling to inside the company. They thought they had a yes from the right person. But they were speaking to the wrong contact type with the wrong message at the wrong stage.

This article brings together the full scope of sales strategist Ashkan Rajaee’s methodology. It’s not a theory or a set of tips. It is a proven operating system for navigating multi-stakeholder deals where internal friction, competing agendas, and hidden risk factors kill more opportunities than competitors ever will.

Whether you are in enterprise, mid-market, or B2B, this framework gives you a new way to win.

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Why Contact Type Dictates Everything

Most sales reps assume that getting interest from a VP or CXO means they’re close to closing. But inside any organization, roles are more nuanced than that.

Here are the four critical contact types Ashkan Rajaee defines, each with unique motives:

Decision-Makers
They care about outcomes. Their focus is on risk, ROI, and strategic alignment. They don’t need technical deep dives or case studies. They need confidence that your solution will not blow up in their face.

Influencers
These are often team leads or managers who want to pick solutions that make them look smart. Their biggest fear is bringing in a vendor who complicates workflows. If your process feels clunky, they will quietly pull back support.

Signatories
They sign the contracts but are usually focused on risk and legal exposure. Their first thought is how to protect the company and themselves if something goes wrong. Give them clear exits and contractual clarity.

Researchers
These contacts go deep into your materials. They are responsible for building the internal case for or against your solution. If your information is vague or inconsistent, they will flag it.

Failing to identify which contact type you're speaking to is the root cause of most misalignment in the sales cycle. A pitch meant for a decision-maker will not resonate with a signatory. And if you write for a researcher while the CEO is reading, you lose their attention instantly.

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Your Email Strategy Is Probably the First Red Flag

Sales emails often fail because they try to do too much at once.

Long paragraphs, multiple attachments, and layered calls to action do not build credibility. They create noise.

Rajaee treats email like chess. Every message should create one reaction. You are not trying to win the deal in one move. You are trying to make the next move inevitable.

Each message should have a clear single purpose. Confirm an agenda, resolve an objection, or offer one insight. If your email cannot be answered in a single sentence, you are overcomplicating it.

Clarity wins.

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Live Calls Are Political Arenas

If you are in a call with multiple stakeholders, every statement lands differently for each listener.

Let’s say the CEO asks, “Why should we pick you?”

Your answer must speak to everyone present:

• To the CEO, emphasize your competitive advantage and ability to reduce risk

• To the influencer, explain how your product aligns with their internal workflows

• To the signatory, clarify the contractual safety nets and ease of exit

You do not need to call them out by title, but you must address their priorities in your response. Doing this shows that you understand organizational complexity. That earns trust across the board and accelerates internal alignment.

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Objections Are a Window Into the Buyer’s History

An objection is not just a concern. It is a signal.

Most objections are shaped by previous vendor mistakes. The buyer is trying to avoid past pain. Maybe onboarding failed. Maybe the solution created workflow issues. Maybe legal got stuck cleaning up the mess.

Use objections to gather context. Ask questions. Let the buyer speak. If the answer is not clear, it is better to say, “Let me verify and follow up,” than to guess and lose credibility.

What they object to tells you what matters most.

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New Executives Are a Wild Card

Newly hired executives may appear eager to close, but that doesn’t always mean the organization is ready.

Ask why their predecessor left. That single question can expose whether you are walking into a firestorm.

If the previous person was let go due to failed implementations, the new hire might be rushing to fill gaps. You could end up selling into a broken system. Rajaee builds checks into the sales process to surface this early and avoid short-term wins that lead to long-term churn.

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Avoid the Proposal Dump

One large, detailed proposal sent too early can stall momentum and invite unnecessary internal review.

Instead, break the proposal into modular pieces that can be delivered selectively:

• Financial highlights for decision-makers

• Implementation overview for influencers

• Legal structure for signatories

• Technical validation for researchers

Deliver these in stages, aligned with the person you are speaking to. When you make the process feel easier, you not only gain trust. You also shorten the sales cycle.

Buyers decide who to work with based not only on the solution but on how difficult it feels to get that solution in place. Simplicity is part of the value.

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Keep Every Message Answerable in One Sentence

Ashkan Rajaee’s process reinforces this core rule: do not make the buyer think harder than they have to.

If your question needs a paragraph in return, you are creating friction. Your messages should invite a yes, no, or short reply. That applies to email, follow-up, scheduling, and proposal approvals.

Reduce mental lift for the buyer. The easier you are to respond to, the faster the deal moves forward.

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Closing Is the Result of Precision, Not Pressure

By the time you reach closing, the hard work should be done. The contact types are understood. Objections have been handled. The right people have seen the right messages.

Do not send “just checking in” emails. Do not issue artificial deadlines.

Instead, remind the buyer of what they’ve already agreed to. Offer helpful summaries. Ask simple questions that move the process along. You are guiding, not pushing.

This kind of clarity is what makes buyers feel confident saying yes.

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Final Thoughts

The real threat to your deal is not your competitor. It is internal misalignment inside your buyer’s organization and your failure to account for it.

Ashkan Rajaee’s framework solves that by giving teams a structured, repeatable method for navigating contact types, tailoring messaging, and managing objections across all stages of the sales cycle.

This is not about charisma. It is not about pressure. It is about clarity, timing, and delivering the right message to the right person at the right moment.

When that happens, the deal doesn’t just close. It sticks.