NAMM YP I BY ANA DOBRIAN & ERIN KESSLER Using Good-Better-Best Beyond Sales
W e were recently talking about “Good, Better, Best” (GBB), the sales framework that gives customers a few levels to choose from, and somewhere in the middle of our conversation, we stopped talking about sales. We asked: What if GBB is also a way to solve problems? For Erin, GBB creates a shift from defense to collaboration. When she brings forward one recommendation, she feels pres- sure to prove it’s the right answer. But when she stopped treating a recommendation as something to defend and started treating it as something to explore, the whole conversation changed. Ana realized that the most suc- cessful outcomes didn’t come from finding the perfect answer, but from identifying practical options that created momentum. Instead of fall- ing into “yes or no” thinking, GBB shifts the focus to how progress could look among challenges and competing priorities. So many decisions are treated as binaries. Was the solution wrong? Or was it the only one offered? GBB creates room between doing every- thing and doing nothing. It provides a way to talk about what’s possible now, what would improve the out- come and what the most complete solution could eventually look like. THERE’S MORE THAN ONE ANSWER. When using GBB for problem- solving, you don’t need to invent three versions of the same idea. It
means asking what could meaningfully improve the situation at dif- ferent levels of time, investment or support. A good solution addresses the immediate need, but it may not solve every part of the problem. A better solution goes further. It may ad- dress the underlying issue more effectively or create greater long-term value. The best solution is the most complete version. It’s the strongest combination of resources, time and support.
The goal isn’t to make “good” look inadequate and pressure someone to choose “best.” Every option should be responsible, useful and honest about what it could accomplish. This shifts the conversation from “Are we doing this or not?” to “What can we do now, and what would change if we invested more?” Instead of defending a single answer, we can help decision-makers understand what changes from one level to the next, which tradeoffs they are willing to make, and what may need to wait. Presenting alternatives doesn’t mean withholding expertise. It shows why additional in- vestment may matter while leaving room for a responsible solution that falls somewhere between the three options. GBB doesn’t remove constraints but makes them part of the conversation, and a better-informed “good” is more useful than an uninformed “no.”
PLAN FOR MORE THAN ONE VERSION OF SUCCESS. Most projects begin with an ideal outcome and then build the plan around it. Those plans often depend on ideal circumstances and the absence of unexpected problems. When one thing falls short, it starts to feel like a choice between delivering the original vision and accepting failure. GBB helps distinguish be- tween the elements that define success and the elements that enhance it. “GOOD” CAN BE A BEGINNING, NOT AN ENDPOINT. GBB can represent stages of progress. We may want the “best” outcome but lack the resources to pursue it. A “good” solution creates the conditions for a stronger solution later. An important distinction is that “good” shouldn’t be designed to fail or require an upgrade. Choosing “good” now doesn’t mean abandoning “best.” So, the next time you feel stuck between everything and nothing, ask a different set of questions: What would still be good? What would make it better? What does best look like? MI Ana Dobrian is a key account manager at The Music People and a member of NAMM YP. Erin Kessler is the marketing director of Maple Leaf Strings and the president of NAMM YP.
“Instead of falling into ‘yes or no’ thinking, GBB shifts the focus to how progress could look among challenges and competing priorities.”
OCTOBER 2026 I MUSIC INC. I 27
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