The Enterprise Deal Mistake Nobody Admits: Generic Requirements
Most enterprise deals don’t die at procurement. They die weeks earlier when discovery turns into a long list of generic requirements every competitor can satisfy.
When your notes are generic, your proposal becomes generic, your differentiation disappears, and price pressure gets worse.
The 3 requirement buckets that matter
- Generic requirements — table stakes (everyone can check the box)
- Differentiated requirements — your approach is materially stronger
- Critical requirements — failure here blocks approval/progression
Example
Generic: “Must integrate with CRM.”
Differentiated: “Integration must support role-based governance without admin overhead.”
Critical: “Security review must pass SOC2 + SSO controls before procurement.”
How reps accidentally stay generic
- They stop at feature-level questions.
- They don’t connect requirements to business risk.
- They delay technical and security proof until late stage.
A simple operating method
- Capture all requirements from discovery.
- Force-tag each one: Generic / Differentiated / Critical.
- Add owner, proof needed, and due date for every Differentiated/Critical item.
- Review weekly and remove vague language.
Enterprise reps win fewer deals by “doing more discovery” and more deals by isolating the requirements that actually decide the deal.