When you use Personality AI to tailor your communication and address costs in a way that accounts for the buyer’s core motivations and preferences, you can avoid mistakes and solidify strong long-term customer relationships.
A few months ago, a VP Sales friend of mine reached out to me for advice on product pricing after dealing with a prospect at her business. This prospect, who we’ll call Todd, was particularly insistent on negotiating pricing for the software product my friend’s company was selling. Despite the fact that she had already offered a discount for paying annually and for purchasing licenses for several members of his team, he seemed determined to get a better deal, for no clear, specific reason. They had multiple discussions, attempting to justify their pricing model, but after a while, it began to feel like nothing she did could really make a difference or close the deal unless she just dropped the price, which her company always avoids doing.
Concerned that she may have overpriced her product, she reached out to other prospects, customers and friends like me to get feedback. Most of us validated her initial assumption: the price is relatively low and the product has a lot of value. So why was her prospect, Todd, so determined to push on the pricing?
Why are some people just naturally more focused on driving down costs, while others are not?
While any given buyer’s individual circumstance certainly impacts their motivation to negotiate, much of it comes down to their personality. Some people have a natural inclination toward efficiency, cost, and value, and they will do whatever they can to increase their return on investment. Others are innately more big-picture focused, driven mostly by new ideas, relationships, and gut instincts, making them less concerned with the details about a deal and more focused on the high-level outcome.
By learning to identify the different motivations and preferences that drive each personality’s behavior during pricing discussions, you can successfully make sales hooks, navigate these conversations, and avoid getting stuck in a stalemate (much like my friend was with Todd). To do this, we need to understand more about personality.
Historically, the only way you would be able to fully understand someone’s personality is by either getting to know them really well, which takes lots of time and emotional intelligence, or having them take a personality test. Both of these approaches require that you have an established relationship with the person, which doesn’t tend to work in the world of outreach communication, since we are often trying to connect with new people who we have never spoken with before.
Thankfully, there is a new technology that unlocks another way to learn about someone’s personality without an assessment - Personality AI. We wrote about this in detail in another ebook titled, Personality AI (which you can download for free). This new technology analyzes publicly available information on websites like LinkedIn to predict someone’s personality, using artificial intelligence and machine learning. We built our product, Crystal, to harness Personality AI and enable anyone to identify personalities online to improve their communication and build stronger relationships, all based on the core principle of empathy.
Without getting too technical, when Crystal’s AI predicts personality, it uses a framework called DISC to classify personalities into a few categories that we refer to as D (dominance), I (influence), S (steadiness), and C (conscientiousness). Each of us has a primary DISC type in one of these categories and sometimes a secondary DISC type in another. To keep things simple, we separate these into easy-to-remember labels called Archetypes.
You can see them all on this graphic called the Personality Map:
Below is a breakdown of common personality traits within each of the categories in DISC.
D Personality Types: Captains, Drivers, Initiators, Architects
I Personality Types: Influencer, Motivator, Encourager, Harmonizer
S Personality Types: Counselor, Supporter, Planner, Stabilizer
C Personality Types: Editor, Analyst, Skeptic, Questioner
These differences are extremely important to understand when approaching a conversation with anyone. For example, someone who is a warm, people-oriented Supporter (S) is less likely to engage in a discussion about facts and data. They’d usually prefer to engage in a more personal, get-to-know-you conversation. An Analyst (C), on the other hand, tends to enjoy learning more about specific, concrete information. By identifying someone’s personality type, we can learn how to best communicate with them.
In the same way that personality impacts the way we think about making plans or working through conflict, it also affects how we think about details like pricing. Discussing cost in the wrong way or at the wrong time can easily lose you a sale. The same applies to other money-related issues, like discussing salaries or raises with employees. While some people are very direct and expect to talk through financial details immediately, others are likely to be offended if you address money-related topics too quickly.
By understanding personality and using Personality AI to improve your communication skills, you can be prepared to better handle challenging cost conversations.
Addressing D-types:
Direct, assertive D-types tend to prioritize key factors like pricing and will likely want to be presented with information up front. When communicating cost to D-types, don’t tiptoe around the question or hesitate; instead, give a clear, bottom line price. If you spend too much time engaging in small talk or overloading them with detailed information about your product, they are likely to lose interest and you are less likely to move the conversation forward.
If you’re discussing pricing with a D, try saying or writing…
D Personality Types Captains, Drivers, Initiators, Architects
Do
Don’t
Addressing I-types:
Creative, enthusiastic I-types usually want to be connected to the idea or product before they hear about pricing. It’s most important to capture their imagination and make them interested in future opportunities before you discuss cost; help them see the exciting value in what you have to offer. When you do discuss pricing, make sure they have an understanding of what others are paying. Avoid being overly-analytical or hyper-specific.
If you’re discussing pricing with an I, try saying or writing…
I Personality Types Influencer, Motivator, Encourager, Harmonizer
Do
Don’t
Addressing S-types:
Warm, supportive S-types tend to seek connection and trust in their relationships, and this holds true in the buying process. It’s important to ask them questions about themselves, teach them about the product, and establish a more comfortable and secure environment before discussing pricing.
When you address cost with S-types, focus on commitment and predictability. How can your company make sure their purchase will pay off in the long-run? Try discussing warranties and extended service agreements with them, but be sure to give them the flexibility to choose without unnecessary pressure.
If you’re discussing pricing with an S, try saying or writing…
S Personality Types Counselor, Supporter, Planner, Stabilizer
Do
Don’t
Addressing C-types:
Analytical, reserved C-types will likely want to hear all of the concrete information you have to offer.
Focus on explaining the logic of the cost first, then offer clear breakdowns of the details and specific pricing. With C-types, it’s important to have significant, justifiable reasoning as to why your price is what it is, otherwise they will be more likely to push back.
If you’re discussing pricing with a C, try saying or writing…
C Personality Types Editor, Analyst, Skeptic, Questioner
Do
Don’t
However, if you use an approach that is wrong for the customer’s personality (even if it’s not wrong for your personality), it will likely put the entire deal in jeopardy.
When you use Personality AI to tailor your communication and address costs in a way that accounts for the buyer’s core motivations and preferences, you can avoid mistakes and solidify strong long-term customer relationships.