When it comes to purchasing decisions, people have many variables to consider, and they tend prioritize them differently in different circumstances.

If you were having a one-on-one conversation with a customer and you could determine what kind of buying preferences they have, you would probably adapt the way you speak to them to appeal to those preferences.

The same applies to your media, although in a bit more of a general sense.

Here is a summary of four different buyer preference profiles as categorized by pricing and selling expert Blair Enns (who, in turn, adapted this model from others):

price buyers

Just as it sounds, these buyers are shopping for a specific price. Usually the lowest, but sometimes people will always choose the middle option or even default to the highest.

value buyers

These buyers care about ROI. They will pay more if you can prove they are getting more value in return.

convenience buyers

These buyers are not in a position to shop around. They need a solution that can be delivered with as little friction as possible, so the first viable option will probably be the one they go with.

relationship buyers

These are the loyal ones. Once they decide they like you, your organization, your brand, etc, they will buy everything they can from you, and probably return more than once.

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While not an exhaustive list, I think this is a solid starting framework.

Most likely your customer base is a mix of these, but depending on your offering, market, or business structure, you may find that you have a predominance of one or another type of buyer. When that’s the case, it can be very useful for deciding how to speak to them.

In the next few days we’ll break down each of these buyer types a little further and think about how they might shape the form of the media you choose to create.