Buying Center
What is the buying center?
All of the people formally or informally involved in the purchasing decision
What are the stages of the purchasing process?
Recognition of needs, Evaluation of Options, Purchase Decision, Implementation and Evaluation
What stage of growing relationships gains customer attention?
Awareness
Name this relationship binder, C_______ V_______
Create Value
What was the name of our last guest speaker?
Adrienne Robertson
How many purchasing roles does the buying center consist of? What are they?
Three: User buyer, Technical buyer, Economic buyer
Does the purchasing process end with the purchase?
No, it ends with Implementation and Evaluation
5
What are the relationship binders?
Creating value, meeting expectations, and building trust
What percent of sales executives wish to increases the sales to existing customers?
70%
What is the goal of the technical buyer?
To narrow down the choices of products and services
What part of the purchasing process is the final "burst" of activity before a sale is made?
Purchase decision
What does the exploration stage consist of?
Tentative initial trial with limited commitments by both parties
Creating value does not always mean what?
The lowest price
In what stage of the purchase process do sales proposals take place?
Evaluation of Options
Who/ what must be present in order for a sale to occur?
One or a combination of the purchasing roles and an advocate
Whose obligation is it to ensure that all promises made in the deal are fulfilled?
Sellers obligation
Do the stages in the evolution of relationships have to be in order?
No, they are not always linear and can often recycle through the different stages.
What group of people is crucial to establishing relationship binders?
Sales managers
What are the four keys aspects to business-to-business relationships?
Account Purchasing Process, The Buying Center, Building Account Relationships, Account Relationship Binders
Who has the final approval to make a purchase? Can anyone veto their decision?
The Economic Buyer has final approval to make a purchase but the technical buyer does have power to veto.
What segment of a company is responsible to help the customer know the extent of a problem?
Salesforce
What is the goal of the expansion stage?
To increase customer knowledge and broaden customer engagement
In a transactional relationship, in what stages are the opportunities for creating value the highest?
Purchasing decision and Implementation & Evaluation
What are the components to building trust?
Honesty, competence, dependability, customer orientation, and likeability