FOUR ACTIONABLE TAKEAWAYS

If you feel like you have leverage in a deal, but haven't gotten in front of the right stakeholders to progress the deal, use that as a non-negotiable to begin negotiations
Sit down and write down your own "Gives" and "Gets" that you can trade with your buyer during a sales cycle
Someone liking your offering does not make them an effective champion, ask questions like "Is {title} aware of these conversations?" to test them
When trying to get access to power use labelling statements like "I often hear {title} likes to weigh in, is that the same for you?"