# Modern Presales

> Frameworks, tools, and training for presales and sales engineering professionals, the companion platform for the book *Modern Presales* by Rob Steele. Content covers discovery, demos, proofs of value, business cases, SE careers, and the VERTEX presales methodology.

## The VERTEX Framework

- [Framework overview](https://modernpresales.com/framework): Six-element presales methodology guiding a deal from first meeting to technical win
- [Vision & Value](https://modernpresales.com/framework/vision-and-value): Establish the customer's vision and align every activity to measurable business value.
- [Environment & Evidence](https://modernpresales.com/framework/environment-and-evidence): Map the customer's current state and gather evidence that grounds your approach in reality.
- [Risk & Readiness](https://modernpresales.com/framework/risk-and-readiness): Identify and retire technical, organizational, and political risks before they derail the deal.
- [Trajectory & Transformation](https://modernpresales.com/framework/trajectory-and-transformation): Define the path from current state to desired future state with clear milestones.
- [Evaluation & Experiment](https://modernpresales.com/framework/evaluation-and-experiment): Structure evaluations and POCs that prove value, not just feasibility.
- [Execution & Expansion](https://modernpresales.com/framework/execution-and-expansion): Ensure successful implementation and lay the groundwork for expansion.

## Free Tools & Templates

- [VERTEX Quick Reference Card](https://modernpresales.com/tools/vertex-quick-reference): One-page visual summary of the VERTEX framework. Keep it on your desk or pin it to your wall: six elements, key questions, and outputs at a glance.
- [Discovery Sprint Question Bank](https://modernpresales.com/tools/discovery-question-bank): 50+ categorized discovery questions organized by stakeholder role and deal stage. Stop winging discovery calls and start uncovering what actually drives decisions.
- [POV Proposal Template](https://modernpresales.com/tools/pov-proposal-template): Fill-in-the-blank proof-of-value agreement structure. Define success criteria, timelines, and stakeholder commitments before a single line of config is touched.
- [Business Case Builder Worksheet](https://modernpresales.com/tools/business-case-builder): Simple ROI model with instruction notes. Translate technical outcomes into financial language that finance and operations teams will actually approve.
- [Demo Prep Checklist](https://modernpresales.com/tools/demo-prep-checklist): One-page pre-demo preparation guide. Cover environment readiness, audience mapping, narrative arc, and fallback plans so nothing is left to chance.
- [SE-AE Deal Alignment Template](https://modernpresales.com/tools/se-ae-deal-alignment): Framework for structuring the presales-sales partnership on every deal. Clarify who owns what, when to engage, and how to avoid the most common partnership breakdowns.
- [Customer Success Handoff Package](https://modernpresales.com/tools/customer-success-handoff): Template for structured post-sale transitions. Capture technical decisions, stakeholder context, and open items so nothing gets lost between presales and delivery.
- [Presales Career Roadmap](https://modernpresales.com/tools/presales-career-roadmap): Visual career ladder from individual contributor to VP with skill benchmarks at every level. Know exactly what to develop and when to make your next move.

## Career

- [Sales Engineer vs Solutions Consultant vs Solutions Architect: What's the Difference?](https://modernpresales.com/blog/sales-engineer-vs-solutions-consultant): Break down the real differences between sales engineer, solutions consultant, and solutions architect roles, including responsibilities, career paths, and how to decide which one fits you.
- [What Does a Sales Engineer Do? The Complete Guide to Presales Engineering](https://modernpresales.com/blog/what-does-a-sales-engineer-do): Discover what sales engineers actually do day to day, the skills that separate top performers, and how to build a career in presales engineering.
- [The Presales Career Ladder: From IC to Manager to VP of Solutions](https://modernpresales.com/blog/presales-career-ladder): Map out the presales career path from associate SE to VP of Solutions. Learn what skills, experience, and mindset shifts define each level, and how to make the jump.
- [Presales Salary Guide 2026: What Sales Engineers Actually Earn](https://modernpresales.com/blog/presales-salary-guide): Real compensation data for presales roles in 2026. Base salary, variable comp, total earnings by experience level, geography, and company size. No fluff, just numbers.
- [How to Become a Sales Engineer (No CS Degree Required)](https://modernpresales.com/blog/how-to-become-a-sales-engineer): You do not need a computer science degree to become a sales engineer. Learn the skills, experience, and strategies that actually matter for breaking into presales from any technical background.
- [AI in Presales: What's Actually Changing and What's Just Hype](https://modernpresales.com/blog/ai-in-presales): AI is transforming parts of presales while leaving others untouched. A practical guide to where AI creates real leverage for sales engineers and where the human skills still matter most.
- [Presales Interview Questions and How to Answer Them](https://modernpresales.com/blog/presales-interview-questions): Preparing for a sales engineer interview? Here are the most common presales interview questions across technical, behavioral, and situational categories, with frameworks for answering each one.
- [Transitioning to Sales Engineering: A Guide for Engineers, Consultants, and Support Professionals](https://modernpresales.com/blog/transitioning-to-sales-engineering): Thinking about moving into presales? Whether you're coming from software engineering, consulting, technical support, or another technical role, here's how to make the transition successfully.

## Demos

- [Strategic Demos: How to Prove Value Instead of Showing Features](https://modernpresales.com/blog/strategic-demos): Stop giving feature tours. Learn how top presales engineers structure demos that tell stories, prove business value, and move deals to close.
- [Remote Demo Best Practices for Sales Engineers](https://modernpresales.com/blog/remote-demo-best-practices): Remote demos are harder than in person ones. Learn the specific techniques top SEs use to keep remote audiences engaged, handle technical issues, and close deals without being in the room.

## VERTEX

- [The VERTEX Framework: A Complete Presales Methodology for Enterprise Deals](https://modernpresales.com/blog/vertex-framework): Learn the six element VERTEX framework that gives presales teams a repeatable, structured approach to winning complex enterprise deals, from first discovery call to post sale expansion.
- [Vision and Value: Why Business Outcomes Must Come Before Features](https://modernpresales.com/blog/vision-and-value): The first element of the VERTEX framework. Learn why top performing SEs start every deal by mapping the customer's vision to measurable business value, and how to build a value map that anchors every interaction.
- [Environment and Evidence: Mapping Technical Reality Before Proposing Solutions](https://modernpresales.com/blog/environment-and-evidence): The second element of the VERTEX framework. Learn how to map the customer's current state architecture, stakeholder landscape, and operational reality so every recommendation is grounded in evidence.
- [Risk and Readiness: Assessing Whether the Customer Can Actually Succeed](https://modernpresales.com/blog/risk-and-readiness): The third element of the VERTEX framework. Learn how to identify and retire technical, organizational, and political risks before they derail the deal or the implementation.
- [Trajectory and Transformation: Building Roadmaps That Enable Decisions](https://modernpresales.com/blog/trajectory-and-transformation): The fourth element of the VERTEX framework. Learn how to build transformation roadmaps that show customers a credible path from current state to desired future state, turning evaluators into implementers.
- [Evaluation and Experiment: Designing Proofs That Test What Matters](https://modernpresales.com/blog/evaluation-and-experiment): The fifth element of the VERTEX framework. Learn how to structure evaluations and POVs as mutual commitments with defined success criteria, so every proof of concept leads to a decision.
- [Execution and Expansion: Turning One Win Into a Franchise](https://modernpresales.com/blog/execution-and-expansion): The sixth and final element of the VERTEX framework. Learn how to structure the presales to post sale handoff and plant the seeds for expansion revenue that grows the account.

## Partnerships

- [How to Partner With Your AE: The SE AE Relationship That Wins Deals](https://modernpresales.com/blog/how-to-partner-with-your-ae): The SE AE partnership is the most important relationship in B2B sales. Learn how top presales engineers build trust, align on strategy, and avoid the most common partnership breakdowns.
- [Champion Enablement: Equipping Your Internal Advocate to Sell for You](https://modernpresales.com/blog/champion-enablement): Your champion sells for you in every room you're not in. Learn how presales engineers can equip internal advocates with the materials, language, and confidence to drive deals forward.
- [Working With System Integrators in Complex Enterprise Deals](https://modernpresales.com/blog/working-with-system-integrators): System integrators can make or break large enterprise deals. Learn how presales engineers navigate SI partnerships, align incentives, and turn channel complexity into competitive advantage.
- [The Customer Success Handoff: How to Protect the Relationship You Built](https://modernpresales.com/blog/customer-success-handoff): The presales to post sale handoff is the highest risk moment in the customer lifecycle. Learn how to structure the transition so nothing gets lost and the customer experience stays seamless.

## Discovery

- [50+ Technical Discovery Questions That Actually Uncover What Matters](https://modernpresales.com/blog/technical-discovery-questions): A comprehensive guide to technical discovery questions for presales engineers, organized by stakeholder role and deal stage to transform your discovery calls.
- [Discovery Sprints: How to Compress Discovery Into a Structured Process](https://modernpresales.com/blog/discovery-sprints): Stop running open ended discovery calls that drift. Learn how to structure discovery sprints, focused, time boxed sessions that uncover what matters in half the time.

## POV / POC

- [Proof of Value vs Proof of Concept: Why the Difference Matters in Presales](https://modernpresales.com/blog/proof-of-value-vs-proof-of-concept): Learn the critical differences between POV and POC in presales, when to use each approach, and how to structure evaluations that actually close deals.

## Value Engineering

- [Value Engineering for SEs Who Aren't Finance Majors](https://modernpresales.com/blog/value-engineering-for-ses): You don't need an MBA to build a business case. Learn the practical value engineering skills that help presales engineers translate technical outcomes into financial language buyers actually approve.

## About

- [The book](https://modernpresales.com/book): Modern Presales, a practical playbook for presales and sales engineering leaders
- [About Rob Steele](https://modernpresales.com/about): Author and site background
- [RSS feed](https://modernpresales.com/blog/rss.xml): Latest articles