The invisible decision-makers

I heard something interesting during a client workshop last month.

“We know our buyer perfectly,” the GM declared confidently. “Mid-level IT manager, technical background, 35-45, concerned about system integration.”

The marketing director cleared her throat:

“Except the IT manager never signs off on the purchase,” she said. “They champion it, but the CFO, CIO, and procurement team all weigh in—and we have nothing that speaks to their concerns yet…”

This disconnect—between who marketing creates content for and who actually influences buying decisions—isn’t unique to this client. 

While you might engage initially with one person, research from Gartner shows us that the final decision typically involves 5-7 stakeholders, each with different priorities, concerns, and information needs.

And most firms are creating content for just one of them.

The complex reality of B2B decision-making

The traditional buyer persona approach has two fundamental flaws that cripple its effectiveness.

First, it focuses almost exclusively on demographics and job titles. “Director-level, 35-45, technical background, 10+ years experience.” These surface-level attributes tell you almost nothing about what actually drives decisions—the emotional needs, career aspirations, and personal motivations behind the purchase.

A technical director isn’t just looking for features. They’re looking for certainty. Security. Perhaps advancement. Maybe even protection from blame if things go wrong.

Second, traditional personas typically target just one decision-maker—usually the primary contact or economic buyer—when the reality is far more complex.

Research by Gartner reveals that the average B2B purchase decision involves 6-10 decision-makers, each armed with 4-5 pieces of independently gathered information.

The result is long sales cycles filled with unexpected objections from stakeholders the marketing team had never considered, and missed connections with the very people they were targeting.

Does this sound familiar?

Imagine a different scenario

Picture this.

Your prospect calls a meeting to discuss your proposal. Five people file into the room—the operations director, the CFO, the technical lead, the end users, and the compliance manager.

As the discussion unfolds, something unusual happens.

The CFO nods approvingly. “I’ve been following your case studies on financial impact. Your ROI framework makes complete sense.”

The technical lead jumps in. “I’ve watched all your methodology videos. I’m confident your approach aligns with our systems.”

The end users are already discussing implementation details they learned from your guides.

Even the compliance manager mentions, “I appreciated your risk assessment framework. It addressed my main concerns.”

This isn’t fantasy. This is what happens when you create content for everyone at the decision table.

When decision day comes, you’re not a stranger to anyone in the room. Each stakeholder has been educated on their terms, addressing their specific concerns, in language that resonates with their priorities.

This is the power of stakeholder-centric content strategy. And it begins with understanding the five critical players at every decision table.

The five critical stakeholders at every decision table

While every industry has its nuances, our work with Sydney accountants, lawyers, IT consultancies and construction firms has revealed five stakeholder types who influence virtually every significant B2B purchase:

1. The Champion

Who they are: The internal advocate who initially recognises the need for your services. Often a middle manager or department head experiencing the problem firsthand.

What they care about: Solutions to specific operational problems, ease of implementation, and how your offering makes their job easier or their team more effective.

Content they need: Practical guides, implementation roadmaps, case studies from similar roles, and ROI calculators focused on operational metrics.

A Sydney accounting firm created a series of “Department Head’s Guide to Financial Compliance” resources specifically targeting operational champions. These resources equipped champions with the language and evidence they needed to build internal consensus.

2. The Economic Buyer

Who they are: The person who controls the budget and makes the final purchasing decision. Often a CFO, finance director, or department head with P&L responsibility.

What they care about: ROI, cost justification, risk mitigation, and bottom-line impact. They’re evaluating your offering against competing priorities for limited resources.

Content they need: Comprehensive ROI models, competitive comparisons, risk assessments, and case studies focused on financial outcomes.

An IT consultancy we work with created a “CFO’s Guide to Cybersecurity Investment” that translated technical security concerns into financial risk language. This single piece of content shortened their sales cycle by nearly 30% by addressing the economic buyer’s specific concerns.

3. The Technical Evaluator

Who they are: The specialist who assesses whether your solution meets technical requirements. In legal services, this might be a junior lawyer; in IT, a technical architect.

What they care about: Specifications, methodologies, technical capabilities, integration requirements, and compliance with standards.

Content they need: Detailed methodology documents, technical specifications, security information, compliance certifications, and integration guides.

4. The End User

Who they are: The people who will actually use or implement your solution day-to-day. Often overlooked but critically important, as they can sabotage implementation if not brought onboard.

What they care about: Ease of use, training requirements, how it affects their daily work, and whether it makes their job easier or harder.

Content they need: Quick-start guides, training materials, FAQ documents, and day-in-the-life scenarios showing practical benefits.

A construction firm we work with created video walkthroughs of their project management methodology specifically for site managers—the end users of their services. This dramatically improved project kickoffs and reduced implementation friction.

5. The Risk Assessor

Who they are: The person evaluating potential risks of the purchase. Often legal counsel, compliance officers, procurement specialists, or senior leaders concerned with organisational impact.

What they care about: Compliance issues, security concerns, contractual terms, implementation risks, and reputation considerations.

Content they need: Security documentation, compliance certifications, implementation risk assessments, and client testimonials addressing risk mitigation.

Ensuring you’ve covered all bases

Understanding these stakeholders is one thing. Creating appropriate content for each is another challenge entirely.

We use a simple but effective matrix approach with our clients to ensure comprehensive coverage:

Step 1: Map your specific stakeholders

Start by identifying the specific stakeholders involved in purchasing your services. While the five archetypes above are common, your situation may include additional roles or combine certain functions.

Interview your sales team and existing clients to understand exactly who influences decisions in your world. Create a comprehensive list of every role involved.

Step 2: Document each stakeholder’s journey

For each stakeholder, map their typical involvement in the decision process:

• When do they typically enter the conversation?
• What specific questions do they ask?
• What objections do they commonly raise?
• What information do they need to move forward?
• How do they prefer to consume information?

A Sydney NDIS provider discovered their services required approval from both clinical directors and financial administrators. They mapped completely different content journeys for each role based on their distinct concerns and entry points.

Step 3: Audit existing content against needs

Create a simple grid with stakeholders on one axis and content pieces on the other. Evaluate each content asset against each stakeholder’s specific needs.

This audit typically reveals significant gaps—stakeholders for whom you have little or no targeted content.

An IT consultancy we work with discovered they had created 47 pieces of content for technical evaluators but only 2 addressing procurement concerns—despite procurement being the source of their longest delays.

Step 4: Prioritise content development

Based on your audit, prioritise content creation to fill the most critical gaps. Consider:

• Which stakeholders most frequently block or delay decisions?
• Which roles have the most influence in your typical sale?
• What stages of the decision process lack appropriate content?

Step 5: Create stakeholder-specific content packages

Develop comprehensive content packages for each key stakeholder. These might include:

• Role-specific case studies highlighting relevant outcomes
• FAQ documents addressing common concerns
• ROI or value calculators with metrics relevant to their priorities
• Comparison frameworks using criteria they care about
• Implementation guides addressing their specific involvement

A Sydney accounting firm we work with created complete “decision packages” for each stakeholder in their typical sale. Their business development team can now instantly send tailored materials to any stakeholder who enters the conversation, regardless of role or stage.

Content distribution strategies

Creating stakeholder-specific content is essential, but ensuring it reaches the right people is equally important. Our most successful clients implement these distribution strategies:

Equip your champions

Provide your initial contact with shareable content specifically designed for other stakeholders. Remember, your champion needs to sell internally—give them the tools to do so effectively.

A law firm we work with created a “Building Internal Consensus” guide specifically to help their champions navigate internal approval processes.

Leverage multi-person meetings

When multiple stakeholders attend meetings, come prepared with role-specific content packages. This immediately signals that you understand each person’s unique concerns.

Implement trigger-based content sharing

Train your sales team to listen for specific triggers indicating a new stakeholder’s involvement, and immediately share relevant content.

Phrases like “I’ll need to run this by finance” or “Our technical team will want to review this” are clear signals that role-specific content is needed.

Create stakeholder identification tools

Help your primary contacts identify other relevant stakeholders. Assessment tools like “Who else should be involved in this decision?” can reveal critical participants you need to address.

The competitive advantage of stakeholder-centric content

In a world where most firms create generic “one-size-fits-all” content, addressing the specific concerns of each decision-maker creates a significant competitive advantage.

A Sydney construction company we work with revamped their entire content strategy around this stakeholder-centric approach. Six months later, they reported:

• 34% reduction in sales cycle length
• 27% increase in first-meeting-to-proposal conversion
• 42% decrease in “stalled” opportunities

The shift wasn’t about creating more content—it was about creating the right content for each person at the decision table.

It’s time to stop creating content for a single “buyer”

The buyer’s journey is not a solo expedition. It’s a group consensus-building process involving multiple stakeholders, each with their own priorities, concerns, and information needs.

Is your content strategy reflecting this reality?

Or are you still creating content for a single mythical “buyer” while ignoring everyone else at the decision table?

Ready to develop a content strategy that addresses every stakeholder in your buying process? Let’s talk about how we can help.