B2B Selling is Not All About Logical Decisions
"The Feeling"
The TV programme 'Location, Location, Location' is one of my go-to happy places. My husband and I like snuggling up on the sofa to watch it as our guaranteed chill-out. We know what we’re going to get and it entertains us both equally, without the endless debate about what to watch - what we each want to really watch, rather than what we think will be acceptable to the other one! I’m talking about the UK version, of course - the one with Kirsty and Phil… their dynamic of friendly-competitive banter is pure TV gold!
If you’ve never seen an episode, they help a pair of house hunters who have usually had a long road of failed house hunting, disagreements and wish-lists that don’t match their finances! Kirsty and Phil take them around three houses and help them reach an all-important compromise, giving them confidence in their decision. Finally, the couple decide on the perfect house and Phil and Kirsty help them buy it.
It’s interesting that, despite the fact that some of these searches have often been going on for a very long time and the requirements are very precise, when they find THE house, it’s often not at all what they had originally asked for. Or when they have been shown something that meets their exact criteria, they often don’t buy it, as they “didn’t get the feeling.”
I was thinking about this recently when I read an article that talked about how you need to understand the mentality and emotions of how buyers make purchasing decisions…. but only when you are talking about consumers. The author stated that business purchases are made with logic only.
I totally disagree!
Every person in a business is just that - a person! We might like to think we make logical decisions at home and at work, but anyone who’s ever worked with an ego-driven boss, in a team with two factions that don’t get on, or have themselves stated that they just ‘know’ something to be right, will know that’s not entirely true!
So, if you can buy a house - probably your biggest personal financial decision ever, based on a ‘feeling’, then I think you can also buy software, services and products for your organisation based on emotions.
Now flip that over to the fact you are trying to sell to someone who is perhaps, on the face of it, full of logic, but in reality may be driven by emotional, or less logical decision-making.
So, whether you are creating your ideal customer persona, developing your marketing messaging, updating your website, or briefing your sales team - don’t forget to think about the personal drivers of the people you are trying to persuade.
Personal Drivers in a B2B Environment
Below are some potential personal drivers you might want to think about when positioning your offering.
Which of these might be relevant for your target audience and how can you position your product or service to make the most of this?
Fear of Missing Out (FOMO) - are others like them using your product for great advantage
Entrepreneurial or innovative - are they interested in being ahead of the curve and getting an edge on their competitors, or colleagues? They may not want to know that ‘everyone else’ is using it, rather that they are leading the pack
Risk - are they looking to manage risk? No matter how good the logic of your offer - you need to ensure they consider that it is a safe bet?
Ego - does your service make them look good in front of their peers? Does it help them position their expertise, or give them some kudos?
Career progression - will your offering help them position themselves for their own personal career advancement, for example giving them new skills
Convenience - does it save them time on something mundane, or free them up to do something else?
Personal interests - never underestimate what being able to relate to someone can do to a sale! Share what makes your team tick on your website About Us page and take time in conversations to get to know the person
Post-Purchase Rationalisation
Despite all of these (and more) potentially swaying our decision-making, we are apparently very good at post-purchase rationalisation! We like explaining our decisions to others (and ourselves) in logical terms, even if the decision was not made for rational reasons!
A very long time ago, I was a teenager and got suckered into buying cleaning cloths! I still lived at home where:
a) We had plenty of cleaning cloths and
b) I did very little cleaning!
When I showed my parents our new purchase, I talked about how good the cleaning cloths were. The reality was, I bought the cloths as the door-to-door salesman was cute!!!
As always, I'd love to hear what's working (or not) for you, so don't hesitate to get in touch.
Get In Touch
I provide leadership, support and direction for growing Kiwi tech and innovation companies as a ‘virtual’ (remotely) or 'fractional' (part-time) Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) - an affordable way to get senior thinking and direction for businesses.
If you could do with some help to grow your business, get in touch
Helen Shorthouse
Virtual / Fractional Chief Marketing Officer (CMO)