Page 104 - Writing Winning Business Proposals

Analyzing the Buyers 95

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FIGURE 6.6 Different buyers, playing different roles, will have different perceptions of the
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current situation and the benefi ts they, individually, expect to receive.
current situation and the benefits they, individually, expect to receive.
or firmwide perception of the current situation. S1 refers to individual pain,
uncertainty, or opportunity. The difference between one person’s perception
of S1 and S2 is the distance she must go to eliminate her pain or realize her
opportunity. The distance her fellow buying committee members must travel
is likely different, because they start from different points, have different
orientations, and travel a different terrain. Individual perceptions of S1 might be
different because, obviously, people are different, with different needs, desires,
responsibilities, and perspectives. What to one person might be a problem in
customer service might be a problem in sales effectiveness to another. What
to one person might be perceived as increased inefficiency might be seen as
eroding profits by another.
2. Regardless of individual perceptions of the current situation, definable
agreed-upon results, S2, will eliminate everyone’s perception of S1. Therefore,
the importance of getting right the overriding question and objective. If all
parties agree on the project’s objective, they will be able to visualize a future
situation in which their current pain or their existing opportunity is addressed.
3. The perceived benefits accruing from buyers’ perceptions of S2 will vary by
buyer and by buying role. If S1 is an ineffective information system and S2 is the