The deal you should have walked away from
You closed the deal. Six months later, you wish you hadn't.
Bad-fit clients don't just fail to grow - they drain resources, demoralise staff, and distract you from clients who actually value what you do. The warning signs were there in the sales process. You just didn't want to see them.
The scenario:
You want to build a qualification framework that helps you walk away from deals that will hurt you later.
The prompt:
You're creating a prospect qualification scorecard.
Build a framework that evaluates:
- Budget reality (can they actually afford proper service?)
- Decision process (how many stakeholders, what's the timeline?)
- Technical environment (complexity vs. what they'll pay)
- Cultural fit (do they respect expertise or just want cheap?)
- Red flags (price shopping, badmouthing current provider, unrealistic expectations)
Include scoring criteria and a "walk away" threshold. Add 3 polite exit scripts for declining bad-fit opportunities.