One message won't reach everyone at the buying table

Picture a sales meeting. Around the table sit a plant manager, a purchasing manager, an environmental health and safety (EHS) manager and an IT manager.

You give a great pitch. One of them nods. The other three are still waiting to hear why it matters to them.

In B2B, you're rarely selling to one person. You're selling to a table.

Why one message falls flat

Most companies write one message for "the customer." But the customer isn't one person, and each person at the table is asking a different question:

• The plant manager: Will this keep the line running and cut downtime?
• The purchasing manager: Is the cost right, and can I count on this supplier?
• The EHS manager: Will this keep our people safe and our company compliant?
• The IT manager: Will this work with our systems, and is our data secure?

When your message answers only one of those questions, good conversations stall.

Deals rarely stall because someone says no. They stall because someone at the table never heard why it matters to them.

What it looks like in real life

A B2B safety labeling manufacturer had just been acquired. It was relocating from Pennsylvania to Minnesota and launching under a new name, all at once.

As we built the brand foundation, one thing came up in nearly every conversation: every sale involved those same four buyers, and each one cared about something different. The plant manager was focused on efficiency and downtime. The purchasing manager was watching rising costs and supplier reliability. The EHS manager worried most about workplace accidents and keeping up with changing regulations. The IT manager was guarding against system failures and data breaches.

So we started with an ideal client profile to define the companies that were the best fit. Then we built a persona for each role at the table: who they are, what motivates them, what frustrates them and what keeps them up at night. Then we created one value proposition and one brand promise that all four could connect to.

The result was one clear story, a team aligned behind it, and a strong foundation for going to market under the new name.

One story, told four ways

The answer isn't four different brands. It's one core story, with the emphasis tuned to each person listening.

• Map the table. List every role that influences the decision, not just the person who signs.
• Learn what each one cares about. Ask what success looks like for them, and what worries them about making a change.
• Keep the core the same. Your promise and what makes you different should sound the same to everyone.
• Tailor the proof. Give each buyer the evidence that answers their question: uptime for operations, total cost for purchasing, compliance for safety, security for IT.
• Equip your champion. One person often carries your story into rooms you're not in. Give them what they need to make the case to everyone else.

A quick test

Pull up your homepage or your main sales presentation. Which person at the buying table is it written for?

Now ask yourself who's missing.

The takeaway

Your story should be one story. How you tell it should fit the person listening.