If you’re in sales, then speaking with the decision maker is the ultimate goal of your prospecting efforts. But there can be up to 10 decision makers in today’s B2B purchases. So in this article, we’ll cover how to identify the decision makers in a company, including the questions to ask.
Landing that crucial first sales meeting with the key decision makers of a company can make or break your business deal. But finding the real buyers who call the shots is easier said than done in the busy corporate world.
As a sales rep you need to navigate complex organizational hierarchies and buying committees to reach the people who can say that final “yes”. While decision makers ultimately control the purchase, it’s a team effort. Various stakeholders across departments usually influence the process.
This makes identifying and building relationships with all buyers integral to sales success. With the right strategies and tools, you can uncover decision making units and win them over.
In this comprehensive guide, we’ll explore proven techniques to find the decision makers who matter in B2B deals. Let’s get started.
Understanding Types of Organizational Decision Makers
Not all decision makers are equal. Depending on factors like company size industry and purchase complexity, different figures hold sway. Familiarizing yourself with various decision maker categories is step one for any sales team.
Here are five key decision making roles commonly found in B2B organizations
The Financial Gatekeeper
These executives manage the company’s finances and give the final stamp of approval for purchases. Typical titles include CFO, VP of Finance, Controller, etc. They focus on ROI, budgets, profitability and monetary impact. Come prepared with solid cost-benefit data.
The Technical Expert
CTOs, IT managers and engineering leaders assess the technical capabilities and system integration needs. Expect questions about functionality, scalability, compatibility, security and nuts-and-bolts implementation details. Offer demos, case studies and trial access.
The End User
Frontline staff like operations managers or customer support reps who’ll actually use your product day-to-day. They care about practical implementation – easy of use, training needs, workflow impact and problem-solving value.
The Executive Decision Maker
C-level figures like CEO, COO, CMO or President who align purchases with strategic business goals. Tailor your pitch to growth, competition and industry vision. Leverage high-level success stories.
The Champion
Influential figures at any level who believes in your solution and informally evangelizes its merits within their company. Provide internal selling materials to support their advocacy.
7 Strategies to Identify The Right Decision Makers
Now that you know who to look for, here are proven techniques to pinpoint the best contacts:
1. Use LinkedIn’s Free Search Tools
With over 850 million members, LinkedIn is a goldmine for finding decision makers. Start by searching the company name and filtering results by location, department, seniority, and more. Dive into profiles for clues on influence and interest. Leverage mutual connections for warm introductions.
2. Tap LinkedIn Sales Navigator
For premium insights, Sales Navigator lets you save advanced searches. Features like Lead Recommendations use AI to suggest relevant prospects. However, it lacks exporting options. Use tools like Evaboot to extract Sales Navigator data.
3. Leverage Intent Data
Intent data identifies companies in research mode for solutions like yours. Monitor keywords and topics researched by accounts you’re targeting to detect engaged decision makers worth contacting.
4. Network at Events
Industry conferences and trade shows attract key industry figures. Identify must-attend events for your niche. Follow up post-event with new connections.
5. Ask Your Customers
Existing clients can share insights on competitors’ decision-making units. This gives you an “in” for warm introductions.
6. Follow Personnel News
Job changes often signify new decision makers coming on board. Set up news alerts on your targets to stay updated. Reach out when appropriate to connect with these key new figures.
7. Use Tech to Verify Leads
Sales intelligence tools like Clearbit, UpLead, LeadIQ, Apollo and Lusha integrate with LinkedIn and websites to provide detailed employee contact data, org charts and leadership intel to pinpoint real decision makers.
Optimize Your Decision Maker Outreach
Once you’ve identified the right prospects, refine your outreach using these best practices:
Research Thoroughly
Review decision makers’ LinkedIn activity for shared interests and pain points. Follow them on social media to understand their priorities. The more you personalize messages, the better.
Note Influencers
Even if someone isn’t a formal buyer, they could impact the decision. Sales intelligence tools can map relationships and influence across an organization.
Use Multi-Channel Outreach
Email and LinkedIn are starting points. Explore ways to engage on social media, company blogs, webinars and other platforms prospects use.
Tap Referrals
Referrals from colleagues carry credibility. Ask happy customers for intros to their networks. LinkedIn shows shared connections to leverage.
Provide Value
Don’t immediately pitch. Establish yourself as a thought leader by sharing relevant content and resources. Guide prospects without pushing products.
Follow Up Persistently
Only 2% of sales happen on first contact. Set reminders to follow up – it takes an average of 12 touches to connect. Vary your message and cadence.
Get to the Pain Points
Ask smart questions to understand needs and challenges. Tailor your solution to address specific gaps, not generic issues.
Quantify Value
Back claims about results with numbers – ROI, efficiency gains, revenue increase, etc. Data-driven specifics are more convincing.
Helpful Tools for Identifying Decision Makers
While honing your outreach technique is crucial, leveraging the right tools makes finding genuine decision makers much easier. Here are the top sales intelligence platforms for pinpointing buyers:
1. ZoomInfo
Trusted by over 275,000 businesses, ZoomInfo combines robust company and contact data with advanced filtering and list-building capabilities. Plans range from $59 to $359/month.
2. DiscoverOrg
DiscoverOrg compiles detailed intel on over 14 million decision makers across 450,000 companies in its proprietary database. Subscription plans start at $250/month.
3. Owler
Owler’s community-driven database helps you access and verify 8 million business profiles along with news and competitive intel for targeting. Plans from $99/month.
4. Lusha
Browser plugin Lusha finds email addresses and phone numbers for 90 million professionals across platforms like LinkedIn and Twitter. Starts at $50/month.
5. Clearbit Connect
Clearbit integrates with your CRM to append advanced contact info like emails to your database. Plans from $50/month.
6. LeadIQ
LeadIQ is a Chrome extension that identifies contact info for prospects directly on LinkedIn. Plans start at $97/month.
7. Apollo
Combines AI, data enrichment and automation to deliver quality contact data, accounts and lead list building/verification capabilities. From $99/month.
8. UpLead
UpLead is a simple Chrome extension to get company intel and contact details for prospects from any website. $49/month basic plan.
9. Seamless.ai
Seamless offers an end-to-end platform with AI-generated emails, voicemails and scheduling assistance to automate outbound campaigns. Starts at $600/month.
Key Takeaways
With the exponential growth of the B2B tech landscape, identifying and nurturing the right relationships is make-or-break. While decision makers ultimately call the shots, cross-departmental buying committees and influencers often sway the verdict.
This makes getting intel on all stakeholders and their interconnections invaluable. Combine smart organizational mapping with value-driven, multi-channel outreach powered by relevant tools. And remember – persistence and personalization are key.
Using these approaches, you can cut through the clutter in any complex sales situation to build fruitful relationships. So go ahead, find those vital decision makers and unlock your next big enterprise deal.
Why Job Titles Aren’t Enough Info
Job titles are an excellent heuristic — or shortcut — for identifying decision makers. For instance, imagine that your prospects are typically CEOs. Attempting to get an appointment with the CEO will be the right move more often than not.
But don’t rely on job titles as your only prospecting metric. Hunting purely for job titles creates lost opportunities. You may end up skipping over companies that don’t have that particular role listed. Or you could reach out to someone with the seemingly correct title, just to discover they are not the decision maker.
6 Ways to Find Decision Makers in 2024
Now you know what a decision maker is, but how do you find them? If you don’t know where to start, you risk wasting time prospecting instead of presenting. Therefore, there is one place you should always start:
There are various tools and platforms used by professionals today. But LinkedIn is the golden standard. It is the world’s “business hub.” If Facebook is the social network for friends and family, LinkedIn is the social network for B2B.
There are two main ways to leverage LinkedIn for identifying decision-makers:
- Use Your Connections – If you’re already connected to the decision maker on LI, you just need to send them a message. Otherwise, if you are connected with someone in a different department of the same company, you can ask them who the decision maker is.
- Look for Titles – If you don’t have any luck with the above method, you can browse the company on LI for certain job titles that tend to be decision makers. You’re likely to come across the right person, or at least narrow the search.
- Make a Call – It sounds old school, but sometimes picking up the phone is the best way to find the decision maker. The person answering the phone is usually happy to tell you who you should reach out to.
Attending industry events and conferences can be a great way to find decision makers. These events provide an opportunity for you to meet people face-to-face and network with the right people in your industry. Plus, if you attend these events consistently enough, you’ll eventually start to build long-term relationships with key decision makers that could be a valuable asset in the future.
You can’t always tell who’s the decision maker by just looking at their job titles. For example, sometimes the person who has the ultimate power to decide isn’t the one with the CEO title. So if you’re unable to find them through other channels, try cold emailing/calling and asking the company directly. This could also be a good option for smaller companies that don’t have a lot of information available online.
Reading blogs and newsletters in your industry can be a great way to find decision makers. Key decision makers are often featured as experts, providing insight into their processes and experiences.
You can also visit businesses in person to look for what you need. Although this may take more time, it could be very effective when done properly. Instead of asking the receptionist general questions, inquire about who would be the best person to talk to concerning your needs. This way, you will have direct access to the decision maker and save time on finding them.
You can also find decision makers through professionals and experts in your industry. Professionals such as consultants, lawyers, and accountants often have direct access to key decision makers in the companies they work for. So look for professionals who work for companies in your target industry and reach out to them for help with finding the right person.
7 Ways to Get in Front of Decision Makers as an Entrepreneur
How do you find a decision-maker?
If it’s a private company, you can use things like LinkedIn Sales Navigator’s advanced searching—they even have sorting with decision-maker relevance now. When you have a map of the organization, you have a clear picture of the decision-makers, gatekeepers, and influencers. You then know who to target with your communications.
How do you identify decision-makers within a company?
When identifying decision-makers within a company, avoid what most SDRs do and don’t base your hunt on job title alone. This approach may seem intuitive, but often the size and type of company will dictate where certain decisions will fall.
Who are the decision-makers in a company?
A decision-maker is an employee, usually in leadership, who makes challenging decisions that impact how the company operates. Employees who are strong decision-makers know how to effectively problem solve and use critical thinking skills that help find solutions to problems.
Why is it important to find a decision-maker in a company?
There are many decision-makers within a company so it’s important to find the person who has the authority to say “yes” to your specific product, service or offering. Finding this person in a company is key to increasing your effectiveness.
