Article
5 Decision Roles in Every Sale - RAIN Group Sales Training
RAIN Group
Quoted on this wiki
Every place a page here uses this source, in the order the words come in it.
"It was like a phantom swooped in in the eleventh hour and killed the sale." We've all been there...You had a series of great meetings. You built rapport and developed a strong, trusted relationship. You uncovered (and got agreement) on the buyer's needs—needs that they didn't even know they had. You spent days working with your delivery team to scope the project and write the proposal. You sent it off to your contact and called him at the time you had scheduled to review it: The Importance of Decision Roles Buyer: "Thanks for putting this together. You've really hit the nail on the head outlining our company’s needs. I like the phase-by-phase approach you're proposing, allowing us to make adjustments along the way. I just need to have Brian take a look and give the green light." You: "Wait. Brian? Who's Brian?" Buyer: "Oh, Brian's our CTO. If we're going to move forward with the project, he'd be involved in the actual implementation and making sure it gets rolled out to all of our reps." In complex B2B sales, most corporate buying decisions involve a core group of people who all have influence on the final outcome. They each bring their individual, and often differing, expectations and decision criteria. They all have the power to kill the deal. Identifying and interacting with this group—the buying team—is critical for both new sales and account growth. If you don't know who the buying team is early in the sale process, by the time you're further along it may be too late. You may find that your sale is upended because you didn't pay attention to one or more of these people. How different people influence the sale depends on their decision roles. Here are the 5 core decision roles of the buying team that you need to sell to and how to succeed with each. Meet the 5 Decision Roles 1. The Business Driver This person is on a mission to create results and achieve a return on investment. “You may face resistance from the Business Driver when it comes to inviting the Approver to the table.” So it's worthwhile to make the case: "In my experience, it's helpful to get folks such as Brian in on the conversation early. I've been doing this for years and, often, questions come up that I'll be able to address right then and there, so you don't have to take time to track things down later. If we loop Brian in early, we can keep this process moving so you hit your implementation date." 3. The Evaluator This role can be anyone who evaluates the purchase from an operational perspective—with an eye toward either how the solution relates to the organization, or how the decision will affect them, personally. Their job is to figure out what can go wrong, and to make sure that if something is bought, it will work for the company or will work for them. For example, for a leadership development program, an Evaluator might say, "We use another company's method for leadership development. If we introduce a different method, it won't fit." Or, "We have multiple teams using this project management approach already. Introducing a new one will add complexity to our already-complex system." How to influence them: Evaluators can get defensive and scuttle your sale if you leave them out of the process. Don't ignore them. The Business Driver might say, "Don't worry. I'll get Jane's buy-in on this." But, often, relying on the Business Driver to get the Evaluator's buy-in isn't enough. You should orchestrate and lead the process if you believe there's any chance they'll derail the sale. Tip: Ask the Evaluator practical questions to avoid missing an opportunity for needs discovery. If you don't ask about their decision-making criteria, you could be disqualified for overlooking a hidden operational factor. 4. The Champion This is the person who is going to support you on your quest. It could be a contact you already have a relationship with, or just someone who really wants to see this project move forward.
Whatever the case, the champion is a powerful person to help you navigate through the organization. They could be the key to helping you discover what's most important to each of the buying team members. Think about it in reverse: Ever lost a sale because the buyer had a prior relationship with a seller who swooped in at the end and won? It could have been the other seller had a Champion and you didn't, or the other Champion had more clout. How to influence them: Too often, sellers don't take the time to look for a champion. There are most likely other people in the organization, even people who are only tangentially involved, who could be a real advocate to help you move forward. The best way to find them is to ask your contacts at the company, "Is there anyone else who might really like to see this happen?" You could get invaluable aid in return: "You know, you should talk to Jill, our VP of sales. She might not even know this is happening but she can definitely give you some insight." And when you talk to Jill, you could learn a lot more. The Business Driver might be courting other providers, but you might be the only one who reaches out and talks to the VP of sales. Tip: Ask if there's a pre-existing relationship in play. You might learn, for example, "Actually, yes, the VP of Operations worked with ACME Inc. at his last company and really wanted us to pull them into the process." You might not want to hear it, but it is important information. Now you can make a case for why you're the better choice. 5. The Domino The fifth and final role is critically important, yet rarely discussed. This is the person (or two) in the sale who, should they bless the opportunity or you, the odds of you winning will greatly increase because others will follow their lead. In many complex sales, there's one person that if they say, "We should do this" or "We should do this with you," everything else falls into place. “The best way to identify them is simply to ask.” Reach High and Connect with Key Decision Makers Your ability to engage with executive-level buyers can be the difference between winning and losing a sale. Learn a framework for selling to senior executives with this complimentary white paper.