A signed contract is a milestone, not the finish line. If a deal closes and then fails to launch — scope disputes, a rocky kickoff, a customer who feels oversold — it doesn't fully count, and it quietly becomes a churn and reputation risk. Closing the deal is the AE's job, and part of closing is making sure it lands: confirm it, hand it off, and launch it well.
Confirm it in writing
The moment a deal closes, put the scope, terms, price, and start date in writing and send it to the buyer. This isn't bureaucracy — it's protection. A clear written record prevents the "I thought it included X" surprises that poison a fresh relationship and come back as late-stage problems.
Hand off cleanly
Hand the customer to onboarding and customer success with context, not silence. Your discovery is gold here — the problem they needed solved, the outcomes they cared about, the champion who bought in. A clean handoff means the launch is built around why they bought, not a generic kickoff. Customers who launch well stay, renew, and refer.
Kick off well, then seed the next deal
Make the first weeks smooth — that's what protects the booking and the relationship. And while the relationship is warmest, plant the seed for the next deal: what else could this product solve for them, and who else in the org could use it? The easiest expansion deal is the one with a customer who just said yes. Renewal and expansion start the day you close, not the day they expire.
Log the win
Finally, write down what won it — the value that landed, the objections you cleared, the stakeholders who mattered. That's your playbook for the next deal, and it feeds directly into the forecast and pipeline discipline that keeps your quota predictable.
Start here
That closes Module 4 — the negotiation and the close that make the AE the closer. The next module is where all of this becomes a business you can run, starting with managing your territory and your book.