Sales 101: Knowing the Buying Influencers to get a “Yes”

This is the second article in a series called “Sales for Creatives” aimed at helping industry professionals understand how to identify key people in a sales/pitch situation and use it to land the business they want.

The pitfalls of not knowing

Have you ever gone into a pitch or sales situation only to have the person or client say:

Thanks for coming in, I’ll take this to my boss and we’ll get back to you.
(Not the decision maker)
It’s a nice idea but I’m not sure we can handle that right now. We’d have to involve IT and lots of red tape. Leave it with me.
(Intimidated by tech and implementation processes they don’t understand)
I’m not sure our company is ready for this yet, maybe in a year.
(Can’t see the benefits to offset possible workflow changes needed)

We’ve all been in situations where we were surprised by a hurdle or resistance. Situations like these are very common and a good way to offset that is to prepare for the 4 key influencers that are generally needed in situations to move things forward.

Understanding the 4 Influencers

A good decision maker is usually in the position they are in because they don’t do it all. They have the power to say yes, but they often make good decisions because they seek the insight of others before pulling the trigger and moving forward. Often, a fatal mistake in sales is not anticipating and planning for those other influencers.

Think of “Influencers” as each having roles. In some situations, a couple of these influence roles will be rolled into one, in other situations they will be 4 (or more) different people. The benefit to understanding this is in the pre-planning, by going in prepared to address what each roles needs, you are in a better place to move your project forward and get a yes.

Influencer 1: The Money Person

This person’s role is to give final approval to buy or more forward, this is the decision maker and there’s usually only one in any given situation. They tend to control the approval to spend money because they are also accountable for the budgets. They are critical to know about since they veto anything, but they are also the ones that say our favorite word, “Yes.”

Their needs

To provide this person with what they need, make sure you let them know what the bottom line is and what impact this will have on the company/department/team. Make sure they know what they are going to get for this investment of time and money.

Sales tip: You want to find out in each sales situation who this person is going to be, don’t assume who you are talking to is this person.

Influencer 2: The People Person

These buying influences (I say “they” because there are often more than one) are all about people and how what you bring to the table will affect and impact job performance in their team or environment. What you are proposing will be a personal decision for them because they have to live with the decision. They will be using, supervising and even implementing what you are pitching and their team success will depend on it.

Their needs

To help these people, make sure they know how the job will be done or how they will be rolling it out. They will want to know how this will affect them and their job responsibilities. If at all possible position yourself as a consultant to ease resistance, know their challenges and understand what their challenge is before proposing a solution or concept that will ease transition or workload.

Influencer 3: The Technical Person

Judging the solution and screening out things that don’t match is the focus for this influencer. They are usually brought in by the Money Person to judge whether the solution is feasible. So this person is important because they have the power to say “No” without the authority to say “Yes.” This person is the gatekeeper, they understand what is needed on the technical side and they can kibosh your proposal based on specs or technical difficulties. Decision makers bring in The Technical Person when they have tech phobia or don’t understand the processes/ramifications of implementing what you are selling well enough to make a decision.

Their needs

They will want what you are offering to match with their specifications (they will know these based on expertise, so it’s good to know their level of skill or knowledge). All they want to know is if it meets the criteria, so be prepared to demonstrate how it will work for them.

Influencer 4: The Coach

The Coach is one of the more subtle influencers, yet often one of the most important to you. This person will work with you to understand the client objective(s), identify other Influencers and help guide your sales strategy. Sometimes, they are a referral source who brings you into the sales opportunity and other times they may be in the client organization and want what you are offering; they may even double as another influencer like The People Person in the company. This influencer has the potential to be your biggest champion because they see the potential of what you bring to the table and believe what you offer will help. In an ideal situation they are in the client company working behind the scenes when you aren’t there to explain and guide others on the opportunity your product/opportunity/services bring.

Their focus

This person wants you to succeed in your proposal. When they ask “How can we make this happen?”, they will want to see you dedicating the time and effort to answer that question. This person will want to know that their trust is well placed and you will deliver.

Sales tip: Coaches can be nurtured within client companies. Find people who are at the Influence level who like what you do or offer and give them what they need to succeed. As they move up the chain or move to other companies they will bring you with them!

Adapting for success

Think of each sales/pitch situation like a creative project. While most have the same structure underneath, it’s the components that you need to integrate that make each situation unique. When you layer your understanding of their buying process with your knowledge of the buying influencers, you will have a distinct advantage when trying to get your “Yes.”