When we engage our customers in discussing opportunities, we know it’s critical to understand “why.” Why are they considering making a change? Why now? What are the consequences of doing nothing? What are they trying to achieve? Why is this important to you and the organization?

We are much more effective when we understand what’s driving the customer and we align our strategies around helping the customer navigate the change initiative. We ground everything we do in helping them better understand and address their “why.”

But often, particularly in complex B2B buying journeys, the customer loses track of their why–or some involved in the buying process may have never been a part of determining the why.

They get so involved in the tasks of buying, they lose track of what they were trying to achieve in the first place.

And this is precisely where so many sales people get in trouble. Some thinking they are being responsive, some through cluelessness. We tend to get sucked into what the customer is doing—even though they may be doing the wrong thing or have lost their way. One of the reasons 53% of buying journeys end in no decision made is simply they have lost their way. They lost why they committed to a change effort in the first place.

The customer must always ground their buying journey and change management process in their why. Sometimes they lose their way. We create great value in helping them understand this and how what they are doing right now helps them manage their buying journey much more effective.

Do you understand your customer’s why?

Do they understand their why?