Recognizing the motivating factors that will influence the customer’s decision helps you determine their decision-making process and who will make the decision.
The dynamics of your customer’s decision-making process involves several factors.
Have you been discussing their needs and challenges with just one person or several? If you have been working with a customer’s team, who has been driving the discussion? To whom does the team defer? How well do the folks around the table get along?
The decision-maker may not be the person with the highest title but rather be the one who is most engaged.
When several people are involved in the discussion about your proposed solution, then their decision will likely be based more on the value you are promising to produce than on your price. On the other hand, negotiations conducted with a single person often indicate that price will be the primary decision driver.
The 3 typical motivators that drive the customer’s decision are:
- Does your solution help them achieve a corporate goal like being first in their market?
- Does it support attainment of a departmental goal such as improving productivity by x%?
- Is there a personal motivation? Is it most important that the results of this decision help the decision-maker realize success or career advancement?
Recognizing decision makers and their motivations significantly improves your potential of earning the customer’s business.
How does your sales team manage the dynamics of your customers’ decision-making process?
How do they determine the key motivating factors that will influence the customer’s decision?
