So now we're thinking about the
decision-making unit, let me break it
down into two different parts. We have
the primary roles, lets focus on the
primary roles for a second.
These are the most important people to
focus on at the beginning. And of them
there are three key people. Or shall we
say three key functions because it may
be one person but it could be three
people.
The first one, is the end-user. The end
user is the person who actually uses
your product and when they use that
product some value is created for them
or for somebody else.
So the first person is the end user and
that's why we always talk about people
starting there. Secondly, the economic buyer is
the one who will pay for the value that
is created. That may be the same person
as the end-user, it maybe somebody else.
In the case of buying a computer, if I
bought this computer then I am the
economic buyer, I am the user, I get the
value from that. But if the computers
being used at work, likely MIT was the
primary economic buyer and we're the
end-user. Exactly, it's not necessarily
dependent on the product it's dependent on
the situation in which you sell it.
Another one, is that people are from a
consumer standpoint is example of Google.
Google, we all use Google, do we pay for it?
No we don't pay for it.
Who pays for it? Well, we're the user the
economic buyer on the other hand is the
advertiser. They're the ones who were
paying but they'll only pay because we
use it and then they get to advertise to
us. In this case you see a clear
delineation between the economic buyer
and the end-user. Now, those are two very
important people. Who who else could be
important?
The third function or person, is the
champion. And the champion is the person who
will advocate to get your product
acquired. Whether that's the same
function as the end user and the
economic buyer, doesn't matter.
Newton's first law of motion says
standing bodies remain still. Moving
bodies continue to move. Right now we
have a customer that's not moving. So we
need to get them moving and the
champion is the propulsion engine that
will get this moving and the champion is
someone that wants to see this happen.
And that may be the same as the end-user
it may be the same as the economic buyer.
It often is the same as the end user. So
all three of these can be the same but
they're not always the same. If the
champion is not the end user, I understand
when the end user is a champion you want
to use the product and to so you are
championing it but why would anyone be
incented to champion if that person is
not an end user? Great question, I
mean, often they are one in the same. The
user gets the value and they want it
they're the champion but not always so. I
had one team that was selling water
filtration systems to data centers. So
the facilities manager at the data
center is the end user. They use the
system. If they use it it produces more
efficient cooling of the data center, it
reduces co2 emissions. So he has to use
it to do that. The budget it comes out of
that could be his or that could be the
data center managers. But neither of them
are going to be super inspired super
motivated to buy a system because it
might adversely affect there reliability.
They were interested but not that
interested. They were much more
interested in reliability.
So who advocated in that? The company
found success by going to the green Tzar,
the Chief Sustainability Officer. That's who
really cares. Yeah, and that person even
though they didn't have the budget and
they were the user they said this seems
like a good solution let me advocate for
you inside the organization and push
this through and they were very effective
they went to the end-user they would
recommend this is a good idea, by the way,
they went to this the CEO of the company
and said if we're going to meet
our targets of reducing our co2
emissions, this is a good project. So
think about it now here's the
facilities manager deciding whether they
want to get this system it marginally
makes sense their higher priorities. But
now their boss and the boss's boss is
saying hey this is a good project. All of
a sudden it becomes interesting to the
facilities manager. So there's a case in
a business to business environment where
the champion
is advocating evangelizing inside where
you the vendor can't go to advocate for
your product. You're saying that, you know,
you've gotta pay attention to the end
user and economic buyer but importantly not
to forget about the champion who can be
a different person. So you can be solving
the customers problem in a superior way
you can know who the end users, who
the economic buyer but still
not make sales because you don't have a
champion?
That's right.