Thinking About Buyers

I have referenced The Challenger Sale and The Challenger Customer a few times in my writings because Brent Adamson & Matthew Dixon do a very nice job of thinking about the way in which buyers perceive what sellers are doing, and how that influences behavior. The Challenger Sale focuses more on seller behaviors and how buyers react to those behaviors while The Challenger Customer focuses on the buying organization and how the personalities and behaviors of individuals in the organizations can affect deal outcomes.

The Challenger Customer, specifically, does a really nice job talking about the different types of buyers within a buying organization. The book spends time talking about what types of individuals we should spend time trying to influence and what types of individuals will monopolize our time and make it harder to succeed. It talks about how to build consensus, and unite individuals, while thinking about the different buyer types, and maybe most importantly, it talks about the importance of insights, and how to use insights to increase your own value and stature within the buying organization.

All of that information is highly valuable, and I strongly recommend both books. For the purposes of today’s writing, I would like to key in on the idea of buying personalities and how to address different types, and I would like to do it through the lens of Brian Tracy’s book, The Psychology of Selling. In it, Tracy works through the personality types that double as buyer types and he discusses how these types of individuals should be handled.

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Understanding what drives and motivates your buyer as a human being separate from their organization can help you identify and speak to the right set of incentives, but even if you don’t fully understand your buyer, simply thinking about things from your buyers perspective will help you resonate more with them. For that reason I recommend the book, and the general practice of considering your buyer’s point of view as often as possible throughout a sales process. Tracy lays out the 5 most common types of buyers that a seller comes across, and I have summarized and paraphrased them here with some of my own thoughts:

1. Apathetic buyer — The apathetic buyer is apathetic because they have been cheated or let down before. They will see let downs as a constant in their lives, because they will consider the lack of delivery up to their high level of expectations as a form of being cheated. For this reason, they won’t buy. This does not mean they will never buy anything, but their level of skepticism and cynicism is so strong that their past experience will trump any ability to form a relationship or have a productive dialogue. It is very hard to influence people like this, so most of their purchase decisions will happen as a result of timing and happenstance, and sellers will have little ability to influence them, and should therefore seek out other individuals within organizations or other organizations to work with.

2. Analytical buyer — The analytical buyer wants to know every single detail, fact, and piece of information before buying. For some this is a way to protect themselves internally from backlash if the decision goes poorly. For others, this is just how their brain works, and it is part of their modus operandi. It is smart to be wary of these buyers because sometimes they will go through the motions without intending to buy, but those who have serious conversations and also want facts and details can be good partners.

3. Relationship oriented buyer — The relationship oriented buyer wants to know how your solution will affect people. This buyer needs to feel very comfortable with the seller, and needs to respect and trust the seller before the real dealings can begin. This buyer will care about the current processes that the internal teams are experiencing and how those can be improved, as well as if there will be any negative effects or externalities as a result of implementation of your solution.

4. Entrepreneurial buyer — The entrepreneurial buyer is Tracy’s version of what we often call the alpha. These buyers need pertinent facts quickly, and want to make a quick decision and move on. If they judge your understanding of what is pertinent and what is not to be in line with theirs, they will trust you and move quickly. However, if your conversations lack relevance or do not get to the point, they will be quick to move on from you.

5. Self actualizing buyer — The self actualizing buyer already knows what they want, and will buy right away if you have it. They are the researchers, and good students of the bunch who know as much as you do about your products, and a lot about their competitors as well. Understanding why they want what they want is the key to opening up conversations with these buyers; if you can open them up, they will want to learn, and will be open to real and productive conversations.

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Tracy’s classifications are an excellent guide, and I hope I have done them justice in my very abbreviated summaries. However, the point is not to adhere to his definitions and prescriptions at all costs. The point is to think about how you classify your buyers. Think about what they care about, and how they prioritize their needs, and work towards a proactive effort to be relevant, prepared, and action oriented with each individual you interact with.

Know what kind of buyer you are talking to