“We want your software (or training or whatever it is you are selling).” No, it’s not the software or training they want to spend money on. It’s performance and productivity they want to improve. In understanding customer needs in sales, “We want your software” represents the surface need, while enhancing productivity by reducing drop-off rates reflects the business need.
And yet that’s not all. There’s still the buyer’s emotional need to address. In B2B selling this awareness of buyer needs accelerates your sale – and the converse holds. Fail to address his (unspoken) emotional need, say, “If this training works, I’ll finally get senior management off my back about declining sales,” and you will wonder why he is dragging his feet about making a decision.
Most salespeople stop at the surface need. Top performers dig deeper. They understand that behind every stated need lies a business justification and beneath that, a personal motivation. Let’s unpack the three.
1. Surface Need — The Stated Problem
“We’re thinking about integrating mobile disbursements, but we’re not sure if the change is worth the hassle.” Or, “We are considering mobile disbursements,” the microfinance says. “Aha! We have a live one,” you excitedly think. You even mentally add it as a notch on the butt of your sales gun. “Good to hear. In fact, we have one. When can we do a demo?”
Most likely he agrees and you execute flawlessly. That was 16 months ago and to date you still don’t get why they went with the coopetition and yet yours was a superior mobile disbursements product.
The answer lies in understanding customer needs in sales. “We are considering mobile disbursements” was what the customer said they needed — the surface need. But the real decision hinged on the deeper business and emotional needs you never uncovered.
What to do about surface need level to address customer needs in sales
The surface need is the visible part of the iceberg — easy to spot but shallow in insight. “We need sales training.” “We’re looking for new accounting software.” “We want to redesign our website.” These are surface-level needs — symptoms of a larger issue. The customer may genuinely believe this is what they want, but often, it’s just the most immediate and convenient way to describe their frustration.
So. What you should have done, your role at this stage, was to listen carefully, show empathy, and avoid jumping to offer a product pitch. Until you understand the business need (say, delays and manual reconciliations are affecting turnaround time) and personal need (say, her team is under pressure to digitize before the next donor audit). And then incorporate these in your demo.
When you respond too quickly, you risk treating the symptom instead of the root cause.
2. Business Need — The Rational Problem
“That’s a great question you’ve asked. ‘What challenges are we facing with our current vendor?’ Well, customers complain about delays and lack of confirmations.” That’s the business need and not the surface need he opened with: “Your rates look okay, but we already have a local processor. Why switch?”
The business need is what the organization actually needs to achieve its objectives. It’s the logic behind the purchase and forms a critical layer of customer needs in sales.
Business needs tie directly to performance metrics: revenue growth, market share, efficiency, cost reduction, or customer satisfaction. “We need sales training so that our salespeople can increase conversion rates and shorten the sales cycle.” “We want accounting software that reduces billing errors and improves cash flow.” “We need a lubricant that reduces factory downtime from cleaning clogged pipes.”
What to do about business need level to address customer needs in sales
Your role here is connect your offering to a measurable business outcome. How will your product or service improve productivity, save time, or reduce costs? “Using our lubricant which has additives will see you reduce your fuel costs by 20% and reduce factory downtime from the current once eery quarter, to once every two years.”
When you speak the language of metrics and results, you align with how decision-makers justify expenditure. You’re no longer “another vendor”; you’re a partner in performance.
But even this is not enough. Because people don’t buy for business reasons alone. They buy to feel something. They are only human.
You may like to read: Are customers rational or emotional?
3. Emotional Need — The Hidden Driver
“Boss. My job is on the line. This training has to work,” the customer reveals. This rarely happens. It might, as in this case, when the customer is a close friend but it’s not to be counted upon.
To unearth emotional needs, ask, “How has this (name the pain) affected your department?” And then, listen actively. Most salespeople hear what the buyer says; few listen for what’s behind it.
“We’ve tried training before, but it didn’t really change much.” You interpret this as: ‘They’re sceptical’ which is true. But what they are actually saying and where opportunity lies, is in the deeper (unspoken) meaning: ‘They’re afraid of looking foolish if this fails again.’ So, you say, “It sounds like previous programs didn’t deliver the results you hoped for. What was missing?” This opens space for honesty — and emotion.”
Emotional needs often hide in tone, hesitation, or repetition. Emotional needs are personal and often unspoken. You don’t “find” emotional needs — you earn the right to be told them. Emotional needs drive human behaviour and, therefore, decision-making — even in corporate settings.
Align outcomes with personal wins to address customer needs in sales
So, tie your proposal or presentation not just to company success but to their success. When you reduce costs by 15% (business need), you’ll be the leader who streamlined operations (emotional need.”
Understanding customer needs in sales means recognizing that behind every professional role sits a person with ambitions, fears, and insecurities. The project manager wants to look competent. “I want to be seen as the person who turned things around.” The head of department wants to avoid blame. The CEO wants peace of mind. “I just want a solution that won’t embarrass me in front of the board.” Now you know why that your pal, a senior manager or executive, hesitates to use his position and influence to on-board your start-up as a vendor.
When you uncover and address emotional needs — the deepest layer of customer needs in sales —you build trust and empathy — the foundation of influence. The emotional need may never be spoken aloud, but it shapes the buyer’s decision far more than any spreadsheet does.
Customer needs in sales: Customers buy for business reasons but decide for emotional ones
When you respond only to the surface need, you risk being compared purely on price. Every competitor can train, design, or code.
Selling becomes easier — and faster — when you make all three connections:
But not everyone can demonstrate how their solution delivers business impact and personal reassurance: surface (you understand what they say); business (you show how it solves their organizational pain); and emotional (you make them feel safe about choosing you).
Your proposals and pitch become more relevant. Your follow-ups more effective. And your close rates higher — because you’re not selling a product; you’re solving a business problem and protecting someone’s reputation while at it.
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