From Interest to Impact: MEDDICC Marketing for Buyer Intent

KEY TAKEAWAYS:

• Intent data shows who’s looking, but MEDDICC reveals why and how to act—focus on pain, metrics, and decision criteria to drive urgency.

• Target Economic Buyers, not just engaged users, and equip Champions with tools to sell internally—no Champion, no deal.

• Combat apathy and status quo by educating prospects on your value, simplifying the buying process, and using remarketing to reignite interest.

Marketers love intent data. Website visits, content downloads and every spike in engagement turns us into detectives trying to solve the case of “The missing revenue”. Sales get excited, they start talking about pipeline, sharpen their outreach and the marketing team updates the metrics.

And then……silence.

No reply, no deal, just a tumbleweed rolling through the CRM.

The truth is, buyer intent tells us who’s looking but not why, or how to make them do something about it. This is where MEDDICC comes in. Let’s break it down.

Metrics: Is their interest tied to a business outcome?

Just because someone downloaded an ebook doesn’t mean they’re ready to buy. Maybe they’re researching or maybe they’re killing time between meetings.

The key is quantifying their pain. If they can’t tie their problem to lost revenue, wasted time or inefficiency, they’ll happily keep scrolling LinkedIn whilst you wonder why your intent data isn’t converting.

Marketer tip: Make it impossible for them to ignore the business impact. Case studies, ROI calculators and pain-point driven content.

Economic Buyer: Are you speaking to the person who can buy?

We all love engagement, but if your high-intent prospect is an intern who started last week, chances are they’re not signing off on that enterprise level deal.

Marketer tip: Make sure you’re targeting decision makers, not just the people who like your content.

Decision Criteria: Are You Even on Their Shortlist?

Intent means they’re researching - but researching what, exactly? If they’re looking for a budget-friendly solution and you’re positioned as the premium, enterprise-grade option, you might as well be trying to sell a Porsche to someone shopping for a bike.

Marketer Tip: Steer the conversation early by educating prospects on why your differentiators matter. Competitor comparisons, side-by-side feature breakdowns, and content that frames your strengths as must-haves can go a long way.

Decision Process: Are They Stuck in a Buying Black Hole?

Just because a buyer is interested doesn’t mean they know how to buy. Corporate procurement processes make waiting for a bench on a Monday night at the gym look fast and efficient.

If your “high-intent” lead has no idea what hoops they have to jump through to get this deal signed, congratulations! You’ve just entered the bureaucratic abyss, where deals go to die.

Marketer Tip: Help them navigate the chaos. Give them resources like “How to Buy [Your Product] in 3 Simple Steps” or “What to Expect When You’re Expecting…a SaaS Purchase.” Make it idiot-proof.

Identify Pain: Intent Without Pain is Just Window Shopping

People browse fancy vacation destinations all the time, but that doesn’t mean they’re booking a flight to the Maldives. Just because someone is looking at your product doesn’t mean they need it.

If they’re not actively suffering, they won’t act. Pain drives urgency, and urgency drives decisions. If they don’t feel the pain, they’ll keep doing what they’ve always done.

Marketer Tip: Make the pain impossible to ignore. Run ad campaigns that showcase the cost of inaction, tell horror stories of those who waited too long, and generally make them realise what can be gained.

Champion: Who Inside Their Company is Selling for You?

No champion? No deal. It’s that simple.

Even the most enthusiastic prospect will get steamrolled in an internal meeting if no one else is backing them. If you don’t have an internal advocate pushing your solution, you might as well be whispering into the void.

Marketer Tip: Equip your Champions with the tools to fight for you. Give them sales enablement materials, cheat sheets, and pre-written emails they can forward to decision-makers. Make them look like geniuses for bringing you in.

Competition: Are You Fighting an Actual Competitor…or Just the Status Quo?

Sometimes you’re in a head-to-head battle with a competitor. Other times, you’re fighting an even bigger enemy: apathy.

Many high-intent leads don’t end up choosing a competitor - they choose nothing. Because, honestly? Doing nothing is so much easier than making a big change.

Marketer Tip: If leads are ghosting you, it’s time to hit them with strategic remarketing:

• Remind them why they were interested in the first place.

• Highlight their pain (subtly, not in a “DOOM AWAITS” kind of way).

• Show them the cost of doing nothing.

So, What’s the Takeaway?

Buyer intent is like a gym membership in January -  a strong start, full of enthusiasm, but without continuous action it’s just wishful thinking. Marketers who rely solely on intent data assume that interest equals action. It doesn’t.

If you want to turn that intent into revenue, ask yourself:

• Do they have real, measurable pain?

• Are we talking to the right person?

• Are we shaping the decision criteria in our favour?

• Do they have a Champion selling for us?

If not, intent alone won’t save you. But with MEDDICC? You’re not just tracking engagement - you’re putting the reps in to close the deal.

Now, go forth and turn that potential into performance.