Hunter-Farmer Sales Team
Pair new-business pursuit with lifetime-customer cultivation
- Difficulty
- Moderate
- Time to result
- ~months to results
- Steps
- 5
- Confidence
- 98%
The model treats sales as two complementary modes rather than one universal personality. Hunters are energised by pursuing a new opportunity, winning it, and moving to the next target. Farmers want the initial win but are primarily motivated to make the buyer a customer for life. Build the team so both modes are represented, then design a clear handoff from acquisition to ongoing service. The farmer's stabilising influence protects the relationship after the hunter has opened it, and strong farmers may eventually move into regional, franchise, or customer-service leadership. Performance should therefore include both new business and relationship durability. The output is a sales system that can grow without sacrificing the customers it already earned.
Origin
Liniger presents the hunter-farmer distinction after more than five decades teaching sales and building RE/MAX's agent and franchise network.
Core principles
- 01Acquisition and retention require different orientations
- 02Hunters create new opportunities
- 03Farmers turn transactions into durable relationships
- 04A complete sales system needs both roles
How to run it
- 1
Split the sales work
Map which activities create new opportunities and which activities deepen or preserve existing relationships.
Pro tip Follow the customer's journey rather than relying on job titles.
- 2
Identify natural orientation
Assess who gains energy from independent pursuit and who prefers sustained customer development.
Pro tip Use observed behaviour and results, not personality labels alone.
Watch out Do not treat either orientation as superior.
- 3
Create the handoff
Define when and how a newly won customer moves from acquisition into long-term relationship ownership.
Pro tip Make the introduction collaborative so the customer does not feel passed off.
Watch out A missing handoff turns a new win into an orphaned account.
- 4
Balance the scorecard
Track new wins alongside retention, repeat business, and relationship longevity.
Watch out Compensating only acquisition can undermine lifetime value.
- 5
Develop service leaders
Give effective farmers a path into roles that sustain customer relationships across a wider region or portfolio.
Pro tip Promote only when they can teach the relationship discipline to others.
In the wild
A hunter opens a conversation with an ambitious franchise owner and closes the agreement. Before launch, a farmer joins the account, learns the owner's operating goals, and becomes the continuing point of contact. The team rewards the initial win but also tracks whether the franchise remains successful and engaged over subsequent years.
→ Acquisition momentum and long-term service reinforce each other.
Common mistakes
Hiring only hunters
The team wins transactions but leaves nobody accountable for making customers want to stay.
Forcing one person into both modes
Some sellers can span both, but assuming everyone will excel equally at pursuit and cultivation hides predictable gaps.
Is it for you?
Best for
It is best for businesses where winning new accounts and keeping them for years are both economically important.
Not ideal for
It is not ideal for very small teams that create rigid roles before there is enough work to specialise.
From the transcript
“there are two types of salese there are hunters and there's farmers”
“the farmer has the attitude is I want to go get it but I want him to be my lifelong friend and buy from me…”
“you have to have both”
From the episode
Episode 331: Dave Liniger: Lessons Learned From Achieving True Independence, Extreme Wealth & Huge Successes
Dave Liniger