The Importance Of Marketing To Decision Makers 

Get to the decision maker. Market to the decision maker. These are not new messages. In fact, they are the code which many sales associates live by. However, reaching the right person can be more challenging than initially expected if you don’t implement the right tactics.

Why Is Marketing To Decision Makers So Important?

Marketing to the key decision makers can result in higher margin, value-added solutions. In addition, when you market to decision makers you can drastically reduce the time it takes you to close a deal. In order to do this you need to address the following components:

1. The Research Phase — Complete all of your homework before you even send out any marketing messages. Identify the right decision makers by thoroughly researching the target company. Understand their specific pain points (these items might be slightly different than the company’s identified challenges). Speak to the value that you can provide them.
2. Getting Through The Door — Side door, back door, or front door … there are numerous ways that you can approach decision makers. However, not all doors will lead to a successful sale. Understanding the persona of your potential new client will help you to chose the right door. Should you take a direct approach by contacting a decision maker without any type of introduction? Do you want to take a side door by using social media to establish a connection before you reach out to the decision maker? Or, should you plan on using the back door by relying on a mutual connection for the initial introduction? No matter which door you choose, make sure that it will lead to the path of least resistance.
3. Keep The Door Open — The journey towards closing the big sale will require you to not only get the door open, but you will also need to keep it from slamming shut. To do this, you should:
   • Educate your audience by informing decision makers how you can help;
   • Adding value as an industry expert vs a sales person;
   • Building credibility that encourages your audience to rely on you for the needed solution; and
   • Nurturing the relationship throughout the entire sales process.

Through the above three phases, you can and will be able to successfully market to decision makers. Keep in mind that you will need to track and analyze results throughout the entire sales process. This simple extra step will help you to improve upon each phase so that you can shorten the time to sale, create stronger relationships, and finally close the big account.