B2B Decision-Makers and Emotion
B2B decision-makers have complex needs for two main reasons.
Firstly, there is usually a decision-making unit (DMU) involved in the process. The DMU is made up of several individuals, each with their own business expertise and priorities. Secondly, within this DMU, there will be a primary decision maker accountable to others within the team and wider business.
This complex dynamic in effect results in the primary decision maker acting to fulfil both their individual needs and their wider business needs. Navigating this balance of individual and company needs requires an upfront research consideration in order to best capture decision-maker needs.
Many business professionals naively assume that B2B decision-makers are acting completely rationally but when was the last time you turned up to work and left your emotions at the door?
A study carried out in 2013 by Google, Gartner, and Motista actually found that B2B buyers are more emotionally driven in their decision making compared to their B2C counterparts. This study considered 3000 B2B buyers across a range of industries, and found that an average B2C brand has an emotional connection of between 10% and 40% with their consumers compared to 7 out of 9 B2B brands establishing an emotional connection with more than 50% of their customers.
The Two Decision-Making Responses: Rational and Emotional
A widely accepted theory on decision making by Nobel Prize winner Daniel Kahneman, suggests that there are two decision-making systems, known as the ‘fast’ and the ‘slow’ systems.
When creating marketing campaigns, B2B businesses considering their target audience may only think about system two, the rational, ‘slow’ response, neglecting system one, the emotional, ‘fast’ response. In reality, even when the ‘slow response is taking the lead, the ‘fast’ response is contributing on an autonomous level.
No matter what the industry, product or service being considered, we must consider both responses related to the emotional and rational responses and the inter-relationship between the two. This inter-relationship yields the framework below.
This matrix comprises of four distinct quadrants that break down the complex decision-making needs of B2B buyers by rational vs emotional and company vs individual so that we can better understand the relationship. In any B2B decision-making process, factors from all four quadrants will come into play, which may be distinct or overlap and will have varying degrees on impact on the final decision.
So, lets break the individual quadrants down a bit further.
Rational motivations…
…individual needs.
On the whole, most professionals want to do their job as effectively and efficiently as possible defined by the parameters of the role. As a result of this, when making a professional decision a common thought is ‘how will this product / service help me to do my job?’ Additionally, these individuals will also spend time contemplating the possible pain points associated with the purchase.
Individuals in business are actually much less willing to make compromises and accept pain points in their professional lives compared to their personal ones.
When considering the rational needs of an individual, the main consideration should be – ‘how can this offering help said individual do their job well?’
…company needs.
At the point of purchase consideration, decision-makers will already have a definitive list of functional needs that are defined on a company-level, most likely by the decision-making unit. These are the basic needs that must be fulfilled for an offering to be considered any further.
Not meeting these functional needs would mean that said supplier is not even an option. Meeting these needs essentially means that the supplier is meeting the basic requirements of the offering. This list of factors will most likely have the greatest impact on decisions where price is a significant consideration.
When considering the rational needs of the company, the main consideration should be – ‘does this offering meet the functional needs of a business?’
Emotional motivations…
…individual needs.
Emotion is an autonomous response of human beings so it is unlikely that individuals will leave them at home when they go to work. Yes, we may control or conceal these emotions to a certain extent so that we can function effectively and allow others to count on us. In opposition to this, these emotions are likely to surface as we aspire to impress others, appear as a leader, and avoid confrontation in the workplace. Many of the emotions that surface whilst at work, are a result of a human need to succeed and impress resulting from personal ego.
When making decisions at work, individuals will likely ask themselves ‘how will making this decision make me look?’
The individual, emotional needs may be the most complex quadrant to fulfil. Individuals inherently possess different emotional tendencies and as a result respond to business offerings in different ways.
When considering the emotional needs of an individual, the main consideration should be – ‘how will this offering make the individual look at work – will the offering make them feel and look good?’
…company needs.
More so nowadays than ever before, companies have definitive sets of values, including ethics and morals, that they strive to uphold. These may derive from the company’s overall goal, their employees or even their customers, but will always define the companies ‘soul.’ Branding is a huge company asset when it is done right and will likely nowadays encompass these company’s values.
Businesses not only want to align with other companies that share the same values but also want to maintain their own customer perceived reputation along the way. This desire to align and maintain reputation is the strongest representation of a company’s emotional range. Essentially, will your offering align with the company’s values, and will it protect and uphold their brand?
When considering the emotional needs of a company, the main consideration should be – ‘does this offering align with the business’s values, such as ethics and morals, and help promote their reputation in a positive light?’
Addressing The More Complex Individual Needs: Creating B2B Buyer Personas
We can employ this framework when further developing B2B buyer personas.
As we have previously discussed; analyzing and targeting individual motivations, whether rational or emotional, can be complicated.
Marketing and advertising campaigns can be a significant expense for B2B companies so the last thing you want is to miss the mark with your target audience. This is where the creation of B2B buyer personas comes as a great advantage.
By using the rational and emotional needs established from the above framework, a more accurate buyer persona can be developed. One in which a B2B business can be sure that they are really targeting a somebody rather than an anybody, when they are developing their marketing strategy.
For each of the buyer personas created, the questions specified in the above quadrant breakdowns, and summarized below, can be addressed individually and a more specific campaign, which truly reaches the businesses target audience, can be created as a result.
- Rational & Individual: ‘How can this offering help said individual do their job well?’
- Rational & Company: ‘Does this offering meet the functional needs of a business?’
- Emotional & Individual: ‘How will this offering make the individual look at work – will the offering make them feel and look good?’
- Emotional & Company: ‘Does this offering align with the business’s values, such as ethics and morals, and help promote their reputation in a positive light?’
To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.
