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Buyer Persona and the Decision Unit

Day 4 of 30 · B2B Sales 2026 Masterclass

Map who uses, who pays, who blocks, and who decides—so you don’t sell to a single person.

Learning Goal

  • Identify the roles in the decision unit (user, champion, finance, procurement, legal/IT).
  • Create one decision-unit map for an ICP.
  • List 5 risks (who can block and how).

Why It Matters

  • Decisions are multi-threaded—if you rely on one champion, you stall.
  • Early blocker mapping speeds negotiation.
  • Persona clarity drives relevant messaging and next steps.

Explanation

Roles

  • User: daily user, pain owner.
  • Champion: business sponsor.
  • Finance/Procurement: cost, contract, ROI.
  • Legal/IT/Security: compliance, data, access.

Blockers & signals

  • No pain owner → “curiosity” project.
  • Security/IT not involved → late-stage stop.
  • Legal can’t see DPA/SLA → slip.

Examples

Bad: Only talking to the user; don’t know who signs; security ignored.

Good: Champion + user + IT/security + finance listed, each with a risk note.

Guided Exercise (10–15 minutes)

  1. Pick an ICP and draw the decision unit (role + name if known).
  2. For each role, note 1–2 risks/info needs.
  3. Write 3 discovery questions to reveal who decides and who can block.

Independent Exercise (5–10 minutes)

On a live deal, fill the missing roles: who’s absent, how will you engage them?

Self-check

  • Decision-unit map done.
  • Risks per role listed.
  • 3 discovery questions ready.
  • Applied to a live deal.

Optional Deep Dive