After spending several weeks trying to make a certain forum system work with Windows Live Writer or ecto I finally gave up and had my technical expert Mark Edwards replace the forum system.

Thanks to Mark I can now use an offline blogging tool to generate blog posts while I am offline, publish them once I get back online, AND have a forum system at the same time.

David’s comment back on October 9th is very valid. David is talking about when a customer has an internal crisis and moves beyond the Window of Dissatisfaction and into the buying mode of Searching For Alternatives.

  • Window of Dissatisfaction: A Window of Dissatisfaction occurs after a buyer experiences an initial Trigger Event and realizes that their current solution no longer meets their needs but before they start the process of searching for alternative solutions.
  • Searching for Alternatives: Searching for Alternatives is when a buyer experiences a series of Trigger Events and now realizes that their current solution no longer meets their needs and is actively searching for alternative solutions

The table below describes the differences in the types of customers you get depending on which buying mode they are in when you get to them.

Window of Dissatisfaction Searching For Alternatives
Customer Type Core Peripheral
Loyalty Loyal Disloyal
Profitable 80% of Profit 20% of Profit
Demanding 20% of Headaches 80% of Headaches
Reference Gladly Unlikely
Referrals Likely Unlikely

David is partly correct when he says getting to customers who have experienced a Trigger-Event results in more demanding customers.

The secret to leveraging Trigger Events is to get to buyers right after their first Trigger Event – The one that shifts them from Status Quo into the Window of Dissatisfaction. If you miss the Window of Dissatisfaction buyers very often experience a second Trigger Event or a series of additional Trigger Events and now they enter the buying mode of Searching for Alternatives and they are much more likely to become the kind of demanding customers David refers to.

Trigger Resources To Consider

“How To Strategically Use The News To Identify & Create New Business Opportunities”

Please contact me when you have any ideas, resources, or success stories about leveraging ‘Trigger Events‘ – aka selling triggers – that you want to share.

Have an eventful week!

Craig