Ideal Customer Profiles
Part of Outbound account prioritisation
Identifying a buying committee without guessing personal traits
Map the decisions involved in a potential purchase, check responsibilities and avoid unsupported claims about named people.
Map a potential buying committee by listing the business decisions an offer would require, then checking who takes part in those decisions at the account. Start with responsibilities and open questions.
Map decisions before people
A complex purchase may involve the owner of the affected work, someone checking technical feasibility, people who use or maintain the result, and whoever approves spending. The set depends on the offer and account, not on a fixed collection of titles.
| Decision to understand | Responsibility to check | Open question |
|---|---|---|
| Is a change worth considering? | Owner of the affected work | Does this person see a relevant issue? |
| Could the approach work here? | Technical or delivery reviewer | Which requirements apply? |
| Who would use or maintain it? | User or service owner | Do they need to assess the proposal? |
| How would it be approved? | Commercial or budget owner | Who participates, if a review occurs? |
Use the map to decide where to ask questions. It does not claim that each role exists at every account or that a buying process has begun.
Record what the evidence establishes
A company page, an organisation chart or a person's own description may identify a stated role. Date the source and keep its claim narrow; a public title does not verify decision rights. A colleague's account of who approves a proposal is useful context. Check it with the account before treating it as the current process.
Use plain labels in the account record:
- Stated role:the title or responsibility a source describes, with its date.
- Provisional responsibility:a possible role inferred from the organisation's structure.
- Account-confirmed process:what an appropriate contact has said about how the account handles this decision.
- Unknown:whether a decision or participant is relevant at all.
A contact's account of the process may reflect only their own knowledge. Update the map when another participant clarifies the process. Check with the existing account owner before a separate approach.
Types of Role Information in Account Records
- Stated RoleA public title or responsibility described by a source; must include date of source
- Provisional ResponsibilityInferred role based on organisational structure; not confirmed by the account
- Account-Confirmed ProcessDirect confirmation from an appropriate contact about how decisions are made
- UnknownWhen relevance of a decision or participant is unclear or unverified
Ask without presuming authority
Use a neutral question: “If your team were to examine this workflow, who would need to assess the operational and technical parts?” The person can correct the premise or say no review is planned. Seek names only when they are needed for an appropriate next step.
Leave personal trivia, personality labels and speculative concerns out of the map. Where APP 3 applies, an organisation may collect personal information only where it is reasonably necessary for its functions or activities, and by lawful and fair means.
APP 10 requires an APP entity to take reasonable steps to ensure personal information it collects is accurate, up-to-date and complete. Whether an organisation is subject to those rules depends on its circumstances.
If a proposed next step involves a commercial electronic message, consult the ACMA guidance on avoiding spam.
Best Practices When Asking About Buying Committees
- Use neutral, open-ended questionsAvoid presuming authority or roles; e.g., 'If your team were to examine this workflow, who would need to assess the operational and technical parts?'
- Do not collect personal traits or speculative insightsFocus on roles and responsibilities, not personality or behaviour
- Ensure compliance with APP 3 and APP 10Only collect personal information if reasonably necessary and ensure it’s accurate and up-to-date
- Follow ACMA spam guidelines if sending commercial messagesReview ACMA’s guidance before sending emails to avoid being classified as spam
