European Sales Trophy 2026 · The report

What the top sellers did differently

The best sellers win on what comes after the “no”: the objection, the budget question, the decision maker.

We went through every call and demo of the competition: the Cold Calls and Discovery Calls scored by Zell, the Semi-Final scorecards from our judges, and the Final on stage. At each stage we compared the top scorers with everyone else. Names appear only next to the best moments.

Stage 1 · Cold Call

Answer the objection, then stop talking.

The top quarter lost the fewest points when the buyer pushed back: 7.6 out of 10 against 5.4 for everyone else.

A cold call to Joshua, an AI-played CISO at a Swiss bank who guards his time, to book a meeting. Scored by Zell. The median call scored 81; the top quarter scored 85 or more.

Average Zell score per category, 0 to 10

Top quarter (85+)Everyone else

Handling Pushback
5.4 → 7.6
Opening and Permission
7.8 → 9.4
Reason for the Call
6.8 → 8.3
The Ask
7.0 → 8.2
Call Control and Brevity
6.7 → 7.5
Meeting Booked
9.7 → 10.0

What the best did

1
They opened honestly, then waited.
Name, company, “this is a cold call”, a request for 30 seconds, then silence until the buyer answered. Mario Assaf: “The good news is that unlike your pen tests, it only lasts 30 seconds.”
2
They led with his problem, not the product.
Milan Holler’s 96-point call: “With pen tests once or twice a year, the report can go stale while a small team is still sorting the findings. Does that sound familiar or is your setup different?”
3
They handled every objection in three moves.
Acknowledge it, answer the actual question in one line, end with a question. Zell on a 92-point call: “You agreed with Joshua without getting defensive, explained the difference in one line, and went straight back to discovery.” The typical miss was a general explanation that answered none of the objections he had raised.
4
They asked for a specific slot.
A length, a day, a time, and the buyer’s own concerns as the agenda.
5
They stopped selling after the yes.
The top calls took a median of 4 minutes 4 seconds, against 5 minutes 33 for the rest. Once Joshua agreed, they confirmed and hung up.

Stage 2 · Discovery Call

Find out how the bank buys.

The widest gap of the whole competition was the decision process: 7.9 out of 10 for the top quarter, 4.6 for everyone else. Most sellers found the pain. Few asked who signs, what budget exists and by when.

The follow-up meeting with Joshua, to understand his situation before any demo. Scored by Zell. The median call scored 68; the top quarter scored 77 or more.

Average Zell score per category, 0 to 10

Top quarter (77+)Everyone else

Decision Process
4.6 → 7.9
Opening and Agenda
6.4 → 8.6
Pain Discovery
6.6 → 8.8
Impact and Urgency
6.2 → 7.9
Listening and Question Quality
5.9 → 7.5
Relevant Positioning
5.1 → 6.5
Current Situation Mapping
6.2 → 7.4
Next Step Agreed
9.4 → 10.0

What the best did

1
They covered all four buying questions.
Who is involved, whether budget exists, the timeline, and what he needs to see to move forward. Zell on an 84-point call: “You got all four pieces in four short questions.” Most calls stopped at “the CFO signs off” and never asked about budget or timing.
2
They opened with a recap and an agreed agenda.
They replayed last week’s pains, checked they still held, confirmed the time and got a yes to the plan. Then they asked what would make the call worth his time.
3
They let the buyer rank his own pain, then went deeper.
A recent example, how often it happens, what he has already tried and why it failed.
4
They talked less and asked more.
The top quarter spoke 43% of the words on the call against 50% for the rest, and asked a question in 27 of their turns against 18. The calls ran about the same length, 14 minutes.
5
They played back his words, not their conclusion.
The common slips were stacked questions, leading questions, and summaries in the seller’s own labels that Joshua had to correct.

Stage 3 · Semi-Final

Get the decision maker into the next meeting.

Five of the top six got Teresa, the CIO who owns the budget, into the next meeting. Among everyone else, only 4 of 16 did.

A live demo to Joshua on Google Meet, with one judge playing the buyer and a second judge observing. Every semifinalist did two demos.

Average judge score per criterion, 1 to 10

Top six semifinalistsEveryone else

Pushback
5.4 → 8.5
Budget and authority
4.7 → 7.6
Close
6.3 → 9.2
Tailored demo
6.4 → 8.6
Opening
6.9 → 8.5
Pain focus
6.8 → 8.0

What the best did

1
They had the buyer rank the pains, then demoed in that order.
Only what mattered to him. A judge’s note to a weaker demo: “Qualify the pain points and then tailor your approach to address them, otherwise it’s just a feature show.”
2
They raised money and authority themselves, early.
Budget and authority was the weakest criterion overall: 7.6 for the top six, 4.7 for everyone else. Waiting for the buyer to bring up price turned it into an objection.
3
They treated pushback as a question to explore.
8.5 against 5.4, the widest gap at this stage.
4
They closed on a next step with the decision maker in it.
Every one of the top six booked the follow-up. The best pitched the meeting as help for Joshua to sell it internally, not as going over his head. One judge: “Don’t beg for getting the boss in. Show the value from Joshua’s side.”
5
They stayed calm and personal.
Judges on Ivan Caban: “What an opening: personal, super calm.” On Sofia Petrillo, who scored 60 out of 60 in one demo: “Asked so many great questions.”

Stage 4 · The Final

Defend the price. Trade every discount.

Ivan Caban is the European Sales Champion 2026, ahead of Peter Kempin and Sofia Petrillo. He was the only finalist to close above the bank’s CHF 120,000 budget: CHF 135,000 a year on a three-year contract, with every step down on price paid for with a longer commitment.

Each finalist had 6 minutes on stage at Startup Nights in Winterthur with Teresa, the CIO of a Swiss bank, played by Theresa Engl. They opened with a one-slide offer, then negotiated against the clock. The bank pays CHF 120,000 a year for two pentests today; the full package lists at CHF 169,000 and can replace both. The jury scored the quality of the negotiation, not whether a deal was signed.

The offer

Strong: One package, one price, a business case against the CHF 120,000 she pays for pentests today.

Weak: A list of features, no number, no reason for this package.

“What can you do on the price?”

Strong: Value first: the ROI, replacing both pentests, FINMA compliance. Then ask what is behind the question.

Weak: An immediate discount, or more features.

The lowball

Strong: Something back for any discount (a longer term, prepayment, a reference, a start date), or the price held with good arguments.

Weak: Yes to CHF 120,000 with nothing in return.

The close

Strong: Agreement before the gong, or a precise next step, with the terms said back out loud.

Weak: Time runs out, no summary, no clear outcome.

What the jury said on stage

1
Re-check the pains with the new person in the room.
The strongest opening replayed the challenges from earlier meetings and asked Teresa whether they were hers too. Patrick Trümpi: “You need to understand whether this covers also her challenges.”
2
Agree on the value before you talk price.
Answering “what can you do on the price?” with “why are you asking?” makes buyers resist. Patrick Trümpi’s advice: first confirm she agrees with the value and the ROI, then discuss terms.
3
Make the offer a conversation, not a presentation.
One finalist spent three of the six minutes pitching. Moritz Aemisegger: “It felt more like a presentation.” When you pause, ask a question, for example whether this is in line with what she had in mind, “like a tennis ball back and forward.”
4
Trade, don't discount.
The jury praised the finalist who reached for commercial levers instead of a discount, a quarterly payment and a two-year contract, and pitched them as an advantage for Teresa because they lock in the price.
5
Move the conversation from price to budget.
The biggest improvement point of the night: ask what happens if she stays at CHF 120,000. Gaps, risk, no alternative. In the jury’s words, change the conversation “from what’s the best price to how can we ensure we increase the budget.”
6
Stay calm on the clock.
Moritz Aemisegger on Ivan Caban: “One of the most calm salespeople I have met yet in my career.” Six minutes on stage, and he never rushed.

The cheat sheet

Seven habits, every stage.

01
Earn the next minute.
Say who you are and why you are calling, ask permission, then wait for the answer.
02
Start from their problem, in their words.
Let the buyer rank their pains and work on the top one.
03
Meet every objection the same way.
Acknowledge it, answer the real question in one line, end with a question.
04
Ask the money questions yourself.
Who decides, what budget exists, by when, and what they need to see.
05
Never give without getting.
Every discount buys something: a longer term, prepayment, a reference or a start date.
06
Close on something specific.
A day, a time, the people in the room, and the terms said back out loud.
07
Talk less.
On Discovery Calls the best spoke 43% of the words. On Cold Calls they stopped once they had the yes.

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