The Salecopy Method
Eight moves for negotiating a deal.
The Salecopy Method is a way to negotiate B2B deals in eight moves: Signal, Anchor, List, Evidence, Concessions, Options, Paper, Yes. Each move produces one thing that is written on the deal record in your CRM, so a manager can coach it, an AI assistant can check it, and the next person can pick the deal up. It was written by the team at Salecopy.io, who build the CRM and AI systems the method runs on.
The eight moves
S, A, L, E, C, O, P, Y.
In the order a deal runs. Pick a move to see what to do, a line you can say, what gets written down, and what an AI assistant does with it.
Move 1 of 8 · S
Signal: Know why now.
Before any negotiation, write down what changed for the buyer and when. A new leader, a contract ending, a missed target, a tool being retired. If nothing changed, there is no deadline, and a deal with no deadline is negotiated forever.
A line you can sayWhat happens on your side if this is still not solved by the end of the quarter?
Written on the deal record
Why now (text) and Buyer's deadline (date), required before the deal can leave discovery.
What AI does
Reads the notes and the call transcript and proposes the why-now in one sentence. The rep confirms or rewrites it.
The mistake it prevents
Negotiating price on a deal that has no reason to close this quarter.
Move 2 of 8 · A
Anchor: Set the first number, and make it the cost of doing nothing.
Work out, with the buyer and in their own figures, what the problem costs each month it continues. That number is the anchor. Your price is then compared with the cost of waiting, not with a competitor's price or with zero.
A line you can sayUsing your numbers, this costs you about this much a month. Is that roughly right, or am I missing something?
Written on the deal record
Cost of doing nothing (currency, per month) and Whose numbers (the buyer contact who confirmed it).
What AI does
Builds the calculation from the buyer's stated inputs and shows every input, so the rep can check it before it is said out loud.
The mistake it prevents
Quoting your price before the buyer has agreed what the problem costs.
Move 3 of 8 · L
List: List everyone who can say no.
Write down each person who can approve, block or delay the deal, what each one needs to see, and who on your side is talking to them. Deals are rarely lost to the person you are talking to. They are lost to someone you never met.
A line you can sayWho else will look at this before it is signed, and what will each of them want to know?
Written on the deal record
Buying roles on the deal: Decision maker, Budget holder, User, Legal or procurement, each with a contact attached and a last-contacted date.
What AI does
Compares the contacts on the deal with the roles and flags the empty ones, for example a deal in negotiation with no budget holder attached.
The mistake it prevents
Agreeing terms with a champion who cannot sign.
Move 4 of 8 · E
Evidence: Answer every objection with proof, and keep the list.
Log each objection the buyer raises, in their words, with the evidence that answers it: a number, a reference, a document, a test. An objection that was answered with enthusiasm instead of evidence comes back at the pricing stage.
A line you can sayThat is a fair concern. Here is what I can show you, and here is what I cannot.
Written on the deal record
Open objections (list on the deal): objection, raised by, evidence sent, status open or closed.
What AI does
Pulls objections out of call transcripts, matches each to the evidence you already have, and lists the ones still open before the next call.
The mistake it prevents
Treating an objection as handled because the buyer stopped mentioning it.
Move 5 of 8 · C
Concessions: Plan your trades. Every give has a get.
Before the negotiation, write two columns: what you can give, and what you want back for each. Longer term for a lower rate. Faster payment for a discount. A case study for an extra service. If the buyer asks for something, you answer with a trade from the list.
A line you can sayI can do that if we can agree this. Which matters more to you?
Written on the deal record
Give and get list (table on the deal): what we can give, what it costs us, what we ask for in return, approved by.
What AI does
Checks a proposed concession against the list and against the approval limits, and tells the rep which trade to offer and who must sign it off.
The mistake it prevents
Giving a discount to keep the conversation friendly and getting nothing back.
Move 6 of 8 · O
Options: Write your walk-away before the call.
Decide, in writing and before price is discussed, the point at which you say no, and what you will do instead: a smaller scope, a later start, or a polite exit. Then work out the buyer's options too. The side with a real alternative negotiates calmly.
A line you can sayAt that number I cannot do the full scope. Here are two versions I can do.
Written on the deal record
Walk-away (currency and terms), Our alternative (text) and Buyer's alternative (text), filled in before the deal enters negotiation.
What AI does
Refuses to call the deal ready for a pricing call until the walk-away is filled in, and drafts two smaller-scope versions from the price list.
The mistake it prevents
Finding your limit live on the call, under pressure.
Move 7 of 8 · P
Paper: Put the plan on paper, with dates and owners.
Agree a short shared plan with the buyer: each step between today and the start date, who owns it on each side, and the date. Legal review, security review, the signature, the kickoff. The paper is where silent problems show up while there is still time to fix them.
A line you can sayLet us write down what has to happen between now and the start date, and who does each part.
Written on the deal record
Mutual plan (checklist on the deal): step, owner on our side, owner on their side, due date, done.
What AI does
Drafts the plan from the deal's stage and the buyer's stated process, and flags any step that is past its date.
The mistake it prevents
A verbal yes with no plan, and a signature that slips a quarter.
Move 8 of 8 · Y
Yes: A yes without a date is a maybe.
End every negotiation conversation with a dated next step that the buyer owns. Not a promise to get back to you. A named person, a specific action, a day. If the buyer will not put a date on anything, the deal goes back a stage, and the forecast says so.
A line you can sayGood. Who signs, and what day should I expect it?
Written on the deal record
Next step (text), Next step owner (buyer contact) and Next step date. A deal in negotiation with no dated next step drops out of the forecast.
What AI does
Writes the follow-up from the call, with the agreed next step and date at the top, for the rep to approve and send.
The mistake it prevents
Counting a friendly call as progress.
Four rules underneath it
If it is not on the record, it did not happen
Every move ends with something written on the deal. A negotiation that lives in one person's head cannot be coached, checked or handed over.
Trade, never give
Nothing leaves your side of the table without something coming back. The trades are planned before the call, not invented during it.
Price is the last thing you talk about, and the first thing you prepare
The walk-away number is written before the pricing conversation. The pricing conversation happens after the buyer has agreed what the problem costs them.
AI prepares and checks. A person decides and speaks
AI drafts the brief, plays the buyer in practice, and flags what is missing from the record. It does not send, promise or concede anything.
The method in your CRM
Each move is a field. Each field can be checked.
This is the part most sales methods leave out. If a move is not on the deal record, a manager cannot coach it and the next person cannot pick it up. We build these fields into HubSpot, Salesforce or whichever CRM you run.
| Move | Written on the deal record | What AI does |
|---|---|---|
| S Signal | Why now (text) and Buyer's deadline (date), required before the deal can leave discovery. | Reads the notes and the call transcript and proposes the why-now in one sentence. The rep confirms or rewrites it. |
| A Anchor | Cost of doing nothing (currency, per month) and Whose numbers (the buyer contact who confirmed it). | Builds the calculation from the buyer's stated inputs and shows every input, so the rep can check it before it is said out loud. |
| L List | Buying roles on the deal: Decision maker, Budget holder, User, Legal or procurement, each with a contact attached and a last-contacted date. | Compares the contacts on the deal with the roles and flags the empty ones, for example a deal in negotiation with no budget holder attached. |
| E Evidence | Open objections (list on the deal): objection, raised by, evidence sent, status open or closed. | Pulls objections out of call transcripts, matches each to the evidence you already have, and lists the ones still open before the next call. |
| C Concessions | Give and get list (table on the deal): what we can give, what it costs us, what we ask for in return, approved by. | Checks a proposed concession against the list and against the approval limits, and tells the rep which trade to offer and who must sign it off. |
| O Options | Walk-away (currency and terms), Our alternative (text) and Buyer's alternative (text), filled in before the deal enters negotiation. | Refuses to call the deal ready for a pricing call until the walk-away is filled in, and drafts two smaller-scope versions from the price list. |
| P Paper | Mutual plan (checklist on the deal): step, owner on our side, owner on their side, due date, done. | Drafts the plan from the deal's stage and the buyer's stated process, and flags any step that is past its date. |
| Y Yes | Next step (text), Next step owner (buyer contact) and Next step date. A deal in negotiation with no dated next step drops out of the forecast. | Writes the follow-up from the call, with the agreed next step and date at the top, for the rep to approve and send. |
AI prepares, practises and checks. A person decides, speaks and sends.
Why these moves
The research behind each one.
One published finding per move. They describe what was measured where it was measured; they are reasons, not promises.
- S Signal
In an audit of 2,241 U.S. companies published in 2011, Oldroyd, McElheran and Elkington found that 37% responded to a web-generated test lead within an hour, 24% took more than 24 hours and 23% never responded at all.
James B. Oldroyd, Kristina McElheran, and David Elkington (2011). The Short Life of Online Sales Leads. Harvard Business Review.
- A Anchor
Marn and Rosiello calculated in 1992 that, for a company with the average economics of 2,463 companies in the Compustat aggregate, a 1% improvement in price with no loss of volume raises operating profit by 11.1%, against 3.3% for a 1% rise in unit volume.
Michael V. Marn and Robert L. Rosiello (1992). Managing Price, Gaining Profit. Harvard Business Review.
- L List
Vendor data: Gong, a sales software company, reported from its own analysis of 1.8 million opportunities closed in 2024 that 77% of deals were multi-threaded and that won deals had twice as many buyer contacts as lost ones. This is a correlation in one vendor's data, and the post does not describe the method in detail.
Dan Morgese, Gong (2025). Data shows top reps don't just sell — they orchestrate (with AI). Gong.
- E Evidence
In a Harvard Business Review article published in June 2022, Matthew Dixon and Ted McKenna reported that their own study of more than 2.5 million recorded sales conversations found between 40% and 60% of deals were lost to customers who said they intended to buy but did not act. The authors are partners in a sales consultancy, and the article does not state the study dates or how the range was calculated.
Matthew Dixon and Ted McKenna (2022). Stop Losing Sales to Customer Indecision. Harvard Business Review.
- C Concessions
Marn and Rosiello calculated in 1992 that, for a company with the average economics of 2,463 companies in the Compustat aggregate, a 1% improvement in price with no loss of volume raises operating profit by 11.1%, against 3.3% for a 1% rise in unit volume.
Michael V. Marn and Robert L. Rosiello (1992). Managing Price, Gaining Profit. Harvard Business Review.
- O Options
In a Harvard Business Review article published in June 2022, Matthew Dixon and Ted McKenna reported that their own study of more than 2.5 million recorded sales conversations found between 40% and 60% of deals were lost to customers who said they intended to buy but did not act. The authors are partners in a sales consultancy, and the article does not state the study dates or how the range was calculated.
Matthew Dixon and Ted McKenna (2022). Stop Losing Sales to Customer Indecision. Harvard Business Review.
- P Paper
Salesforce's State of Sales report, fifth edition (2022), a survey with 7,775 responses from sales professionals, found that reps spend 28% of their week actually selling. This is a vendor-run survey of self-reported time use.
Salesforce (2022). New Research Reveals Sales Reps Need a Productivity Overhaul – Spend Less than 30% Of Their Time Actually Selling. Salesforce.
- Y Yes
In an audit of 2,241 U.S. companies published in 2011, Oldroyd, McElheran and Elkington found that 37% responded to a web-generated test lead within an hour, 24% took more than 24 hours and 23% never responded at all.
James B. Oldroyd, Kristina McElheran, and David Elkington (2011). The Short Life of Online Sales Leads. Harvard Business Review.
Training, by sector
The same eight moves, taught with your sector's deals, objections and paperwork. Four weeks, with AI practice drills between sessions. Finish with Salecopy Certification if you want it on paper.
Four-week program
Tech
A four-week program that teaches software and tech sales teams to negotiate in eight written moves, with AI practice drills and the CRM fields to match.
See the programFour-week program
Logistics
A four-week program that teaches freight and logistics sales teams to negotiate on more than rate, using The Salecopy Method and AI practice.
See the programFour-week program
Recruitment
A four-week program for agency, search and RPO teams: hold the fee, trade for exclusivity and commitment, and keep every term on the CRM record.
See the programFour-week program
Professional services
A four-week program that teaches owners and practitioners to negotiate scope, price and terms using the eight moves of The Salecopy Method.
See the programFour-week program
Manufacturing and distribution
A four-week program for account managers and inside sales: price reviews, volume tiers, payment terms and the buyer who says a competitor is cheaper.
See the programFour-week program
RevOps
A four-week program for the people who own the CRM: turn the eight moves into fields, stage rules, a forecast rule and AI checks a person reviews.
See the programGo deeper on each move
21 posts on the method, the CRM behind it and where AI helps.
The Salecopy Method · 5 min read
The Salecopy Method: eight moves for negotiating a deal
The eight moves of The Salecopy Method in one line each, why each one is written on the deal record, and how to start this week.
Read itThe Salecopy Method · 5 min read
A yes without a date is a maybe
How to end every negotiation call with a dated next step the buyer owns, what to do when they will not commit, and what it does to your forecast.
Read itThe Salecopy Method · 5 min read
Anchor on the cost of doing nothing
How to build the cost-of-waiting number with the buyer, in their own figures, with a worked example and the mistakes to avoid.
Read itThe Salecopy Method · 5 min read
Answer every sales objection with evidence, and keep the list
Log each objection in the buyer's words, match it to proof, say what you cannot show, and close the list before the pricing call.
Read itThe Salecopy Method · 5 min read
List everyone who can say no before you negotiate
How to map the people who can approve, block or delay a B2B deal, what each needs to see, and how to ask for the list without upsetting your champion.
Read itThe Salecopy Method · 5 min read
Never concede, trade: the give and get list
How to build a two-column give and get list before a negotiation, with example trades, approval limits and the words to use.
Read it