Understanding Customer Buying Signals

HCPs are often polite, busy, and tired—which is why most reps completely misread “interest.” If you’ve been in MedTech long enough, you’ve walked out of a call thinking, “𝘛𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦𝘥 𝘪𝘵… 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘨𝘰 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘸𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦.” Then nothing happens. They don't call. No case gets booked. And when you try to follow-up, it sounds like, "𝘖𝘩, 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘩...𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵. 𝘞𝘦'𝘳𝘦 𝘨𝘰𝘰𝘥." Before you bet this quarter's quota on a prospect's "interest," understand the reality: 𝗠𝗼𝘀𝘁 𝗼𝗳 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗿𝗲𝗽𝘀 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗲𝗹 𝗮𝘀 “𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘁” 𝗶𝘀 𝗷𝘂𝘀𝘁 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗳𝗲𝘀𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗿𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘆. Here are signals reps love to hear that don’t mean anything: • “Looks interesting.” • “Send me something.” • “Yeah, we can look at it sometime.” • Nods while scrolling on their phone. What does it really mean? “𝘐’𝘮 𝘣𝘦𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘰𝘭𝘪𝘵𝘦—𝘥𝘰𝘯’𝘵 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘰 𝘪𝘵.” If you're not hearing real buying signals, it means you have more work to do. Here's what the real ones look like: ➡️They ask a procedural question instead of a product question. “How would this change my workflow when I’m doing X?” This means they’re imagining themselves using it. ➡️They bring someone else into the conversation. When they pull in an MA, PA, or scrub tech, that’s not small talk—that’s internal alignment starting. ➡️They commit to a next step without you pushing. Not “Let me think about it.” But…“I have a case on Thursday—could you have it available?” ➡️They share a frustration you didn’t ask for. For example, surgeons don’t vent casually. If they open up about a workflow issue, they’re telling you exactly where your product might fit. Once you recognize these buying signals, instead of wasting time on maybes, you can focus on real opportunities that lead to sales. 𝗪𝗵𝗮𝘁 𝗮𝗿𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗳𝗮𝗹𝘀𝗲 𝗯𝘂𝘆𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂'𝘃𝗲 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝗿𝗻𝗲𝗱 𝘁𝗼 𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗼𝗿𝗲?

A sales rep just told me his deal was "90% likely to close this quarter." I asked him when the customer said they'd make a decision. He said "Well, they haven't given me an exact date, but they seem really interested." That's not 90%. That's ZERO percent. Your forecast is a lie because you're forecasting based on YOUR feelings instead of THEIR timeline. When buyers are ready to purchase, they tell you EXACTLY when they're deciding. They have board meetings. Budget cycles. Implementation deadlines. Real buyers say things like… "We need to decide by March 15th because our current contract expires April 1st." "The board meets on the 20th and this is on the agenda." "Our Q2 budget gets locked next Friday so we need to move fast." Fake opportunities sound like… "We're definitely interested." "This looks really promising." "We should move forward soon." Interest is not intent. Enthusiasm is not timeline. I started tracking this with our team 6 months ago. We created two fields in our CRM "Rep forecast date" (when the rep thinks it will close) "Customer decision date" (when the customer said they'll decide) Guess which one is accurate 80% of the time? Now we only forecast deals that have documented customer decision dates with EVIDENCE. "The CFO confirmed they need to decide by June 30th because their current vendor contract expires July 1st." If there's no customer decision date with proof, the deal doesn't belong in your forecast. Your pipeline is probably 60% wishful thinking right now. Stop forecasting hope. Start forecasting facts. — ♻️ Repost this if you've been burned by false forecasts Need help implementing systems that actually track what matters? See what we're doing at Skaled Consulting to help companies get accurate forecasting without the guesswork

Your marketing strategy is addressing only 1/7 of your customer's journey and it's costing you sales. Only focusing on the "Buy" stage while neglecting the critical moments that lead to purchase decisions ignores the full needs of your buyer. There are 7 critical stages of a customer purchase journey and knowing each stage doesn't just refine your marketing—it transforms your entire growth strategy by helping you meet customers where they are, create targeted triggers, remove hidden obstacles, and build a complete funnel rather than just focusing on the purchase moment. The Customer Purchase Journey: 7 Critical Stages 1. First Thought  → When do prospects first realise something isn't working?  → Where are they when this happens?  → What are they struggling with? Most startups miss this stage entirely, yet it's where category awareness begins. 2. Passive Looking  → How do they articulate their desired outcome?  → What might spark their interest in solutions?  → What content are they consuming casually? This is where your content strategy should begin—long before they're actively searching. 3. First Trigger  → What finally triggers them to act?  → What's the circumstance that pushes them from awareness to consideration?  → Where are they when this happens? These trigger moments are gold for targeting and messaging. 4. Active Looking  → What are they searching for (exact keywords)?  → Who are they turning to for advice?  → Where do they inquire about solutions? This is where most marketing begins—but it's already the 4th stage. 5. Second Trigger  → What pushes them from browsing to the final stage?  → What objection did they just overcome?  → What new information changed their perspective? Identifying these accelerators can dramatically shorten your sales cycle. 6. Deciding  → What options are they considering?  → Where does this decision actually happen?  → What final questions remain? Understanding the actual decision environment is crucial for conversion. 7. Buy & Consume  → How do they purchase?  → What happens immediately after buying?  → How do they use your product? The journey doesn't end at purchase—it transforms into retention and advocacy opportunities. Why this matters for startups: When you understand all 7 stages, you can:  → Create content that meets customers where they actually are  → Design triggers that accelerate movement through the journey  → Identify hidden obstacles in your conversion path  → Build marketing that works at every stage, not just at the bottom of the funnel The startups I've seen scale fastest aren't necessarily the ones with the biggest budgets. They're the ones who understand their customer's entire journey and show up at each critical  moment. Which stage of the customer journey does your marketing currently focus on? Share below 👇 ♻️ Found this helpful? Repost to share with your network.  ⚡ Want more content like this? Hit follow Maya Moufarek.

What tracking every client question for 90 days revealed. I thought I knew what prospects cared about. The data proved me wrong. After logging 84 questions from sales calls, the patterns shocked me: What I expected to hear about: - Pricing structures - Feature comparisons - ROI calculations - Timeline concerns What they actually asked: The Top 5 Questions That Predict Buying Intent: 1. "Can you show me someone like me who succeeded?" (87% close rate) Not case studies. Not testimonials. Someone EXACTLY like them. 2. "What happens when this doesn't work?" (73% close rate) They're not asking about success. They want to know about failure recovery. 3. "Who on my team needs to be involved?" (71% close rate) Implementation questions = serious buyers. 4. "How do you measure [specific metric]?" (68% close rate) Specificity reveals commitment. Vague questions reveal tourists. 5. "What would you do in my situation?" (64% close rate) They want your opinion, not your pitch. Questions that predict they'll ghost: - "How much does it cost?" (with no context) - "Can you send me more information?" - "What makes you different?" These aren't buying questions. They're shopping questions. How this changed my sales conversations: Before: I waited for their questions After: I plant the right questions early Example opening: "Most people in your situation ask me three things..." Then I answer the high-intent questions before they ask. The Question Tracking Framework (steal this): 1. Create a simple spreadsheet 2. Log every question verbatim 3. Track outcome (bought/didn't buy) 4. Review patterns monthly 5. Update your sales approach What 90 days taught me: Prospects don't care about your process. They care about their problems. The right questions reveal commitment. The wrong questions reveal confusion. My new rule: If they're asking about implementation, they're buying. If they're asking about features, they're browsing. Track your questions for 30 days. You'll discover your prospects are telling you exactly how to sell to them. You just have to listen.

When I met “Revenue,” I thought it would look like likes, comments, and reach. It didn’t. I thought the metric stick for personal brand revenue would be based on traditional KPIs. Impressions. Engagement rate. Follower growth. Calls. But the more podcasts I talk on, and the more founders + executives I support over time, the more I realize I need to normalize/keep saying this out loud: The KPIs that create revenue from your personal brand are rarely the ones you can screenshot or that you find in a dashboard. Early on, I measured the obvious things mentioned. Then I started paying attention to repeated things of what started happening after the post. The quiet signals. The “did you see that?” The “I’ve been watching you for months/years” Here’s what being an active creator on LinkedIn (and a marketer) taught me: People rarely buy from your posts. They buy from the patterns your posts create over time. And those patterns aren’t built on LinkedIn alone, they’re built across podcasts, speaking, newsletters, blogs, and the ads/press hits that keep your name in motion. They see you in one place… then again in another…. then again when they’re finally ready. And the conversion signal shows up like this: ➡️Someone calls you off-hours because they saw your ad on another platform. ➡️You get a DM that says: “I don’t know why this hit me, but it did.” ➡️A text from a friend-of-a-friend: “My CEO keeps talking about you.” ➡️A prospect references your newsletter — not your sales page. ➡️An email that starts with: “We’ve been following your content on LinkedIn.” ➡️A connection request comes in: "I heard you on x podcast." ➡️Someone in the office started talking about your content ➡️On a call prospects say: “I feel like I already know you” ➡️A prospect references a specific sentence you wrote three weeks ago ➡️A recruiter / partner asks, “Are you open to...?” ➡️An event organizer says, “You were recommended more than once.” ➡️A silent follower turns into your highest-paying client. ➡️You hear, “You’re everywhere lately” ➡️Your inbound calls get shorter because trust was built before the meeting. Those are KPIs. So yes—track what you can. Document all the basics. Data will tell you a story, but it is only part of it. Don’t let traditional metrics be the only data point to convince you nothing is working. Because no matter how many KPIs you report, one thing stays true: Virality ≠ Revenue. When was the last time a “small” signal proved your marketing was working— even if the post didn’t perform? Hi, I'm Melanie Borden. I build revenue engines around executive visibility across multi-channel positioning. 👋🏻

A like is not a buying signal. 99% of you get that wrong. Buying signals are precise. Buyers drop clues long before they commit. Most sellers chase the wrong ones. A like isn’t intent. A compliment isn’t commitment. And “great post” doesn’t mean “I want to buy.” Here are the 8 way to tell the difference: 1️⃣ Passive Likes vs Patterned Attention ❌ Random likes on your content. ✅ Repeated and thoughtful comments and DMs 🔬 Science: Patterned consumption = dopamine-driven curiosity. That’s early-stage intent. 2️⃣ “Sounds Interesting” vs Ownership Language ❌ “That’s cool” or “I’ll think about it.” ✅ “How would this work for my team?” 🔬 Science: Ownership language activates planning circuits. The brain is rehearsing the decision. 3️⃣ Talking in Circles vs Clarity Moments ❌ Telling long stories about their company with no point. ✅ They articulate the problem clearly and connect it to outcomes. 🔬 Science: Clarity = PFC engagement. That’s when decisions begin. 4️⃣ Information Hoarding vs Micro-Commitments ❌ “Send me more info.” ✅ They attend your event, answer questions, or complete a short action. 🔬 Science: Micro-commitments create consistency bias. Once the brain starts saying yes, it prefers to continue. 5️⃣ Surface Engagement vs Depth Engagement ❌ A quick DM reply or emoji reaction. ✅ They ask specific questions that reveal internal problem-solving. 🔬 Science: Specificity = cognitive effort. The brain only invests when it cares. 6️⃣ Random Compliments vs Risk Reduction Questions ❌ “Love your work.” ✅ “How do you handle onboarding?” 🔬 Science: Risk questions mean their amygdala is evaluating safety. They’re preparing to commit. 7️⃣ Friendly Vibes vs Monitoring Behavior ❌ They seem nice, polite, or responsive. ✅ They quietly check your LinkedIn daily, revisit your DMs, or watch old content. 🔬 Science: Monitoring = pre-decision due diligence. The brain is gathering safety data. 8️⃣ “Just Exploring” vs Timeline Talk ❌ “I just wanted to learn more.” ✅ “We’re planning for Q1.” 🔬 Science: Timeline activation reduces uncertainty and accelerates commitment. Buying signals are simple: 🧠 Depth over noise 🧠 Patterns over one-offs 🧠 Specificity over compliments Once you know the difference, You stop chasing and start closing. P.S. Ever notice how the real buyers talk very differently? My workshops are open again. BIG NEWS! SALES SAGE IS LIVE! See the truth your reps won’t say out loud (before it blows up your number) Taking 100 beta testers - 14 day free trial Minority Report for Sales Teams https://salessage.co/ ------------------------------------------------------------------ ➕ Follow 🧠 Shannon for more brain-based sales tools ♻️ Repost to help more people read buyers clearly

Brands seem to underestimate how much the annual planning calendar shapes success in U.S. retail. This is something I've been surprised by since I left big beverage. It’s not about being less strategic. It’s about not realizing how much timing drives everything here. Here's my tips:   1️⃣ 𝗔𝗰𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗶𝘁𝘆 ≠ 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 Most brands have full calendars - events, collabs, social pushes - but they’re not sequenced around resets, distributor programs, or seasonal demand curves. Even the best ideas miss when they land out of rhythm. Start backward from retail moments that matter most.   2️⃣ 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗨.𝗦. 𝗿𝗲𝘁𝗮𝗶𝗹 𝗰𝗮𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿 𝗿𝘂𝗻𝘀 𝘆𝗼𝘂 Retailers and distributors plan months ahead. Holiday programming, resets, promotions are all locked early. If you’re not in sync with their rhythm, you’re fighting for scraps. Ask your buyer or distributor when they plan their year- and align to it. Better yet, find out their plan and hot buttons, and BUILD around it.   3️⃣ 𝗕𝘂𝗱𝗴𝗲𝘁𝘀 𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸 𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗲𝗿 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝗿𝗵𝘆𝘁𝗵𝗺 Without a framework, budget gets scattered. Anchor spending to your two or three biggest business-driving windows. That’s where you’ll see faster ROI.   4️⃣ 𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝘀𝗶𝗴𝗻𝗮𝗹𝘀 𝗽𝗮𝗿𝘁𝗻𝗲𝗿𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 When you show up with a plan, it says you’re building with your partners, not selling to them. That’s what earns trust, attention, and eventually features and displays.   5️⃣ 𝗙𝗹𝗲𝘅𝗶𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝗹𝗶𝘃𝗲𝘀 𝗶𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝗮 𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 Planning doesn’t mean rigidity. It means knowing what to protect and what can flex when things hit.   The system rewards rhythm. When your brand moves in sync with it, everything else moves faster too. What’s one thing you’ve learned about timing that made a real difference for your brand?

"Happy ears" is why so many independent recruiters lose deals they think they've already won. Let me explain. I was on a coaching call recently and a client shared some exciting news. She had a great prospect call. The hiring manager was engaged, asked good questions, and ended with "I think this is a good fit too." She was pumped. Sent over the contract right away. Then silence. When we talked through what happened, the issue became clear. She never discussed the fee, the terms, or asked for a verbal commitment. She heard something positive and her brain filled in the rest. I get it. When you're building your own recruiting business, every bit of validation feels like a win. You want so badly for it to work out that you start hearing what you hope to hear. But "I think this is a good fit" is not the same as "I agree to your 20% fee and I'm ready to sign." Here's what I shared with her. Before you send any paperwork, make sure you've confirmed that the hiring manager: Wants to work with you (check) Agrees to your fee structure (check) Commits to moving forward (check) When you nail this sequence, the contract becomes a formality. They sign in 30 seconds because they've already said yes to everything that matters. The good news? This is a skill you can practice. Next time a prospective recruiting client says something positive, hold back your excitement and pause for a moment. Ask yourself "Am I getting happy ears?”

𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗡𝗕𝗗-𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗹𝗲𝘁 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲𝗹 – 𝗣𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗜𝗜𝗜 (𝗡𝗕𝗗 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀) Every scientific model starts with a small number of simple assumptions that everyone can broadly agree on. The NBD-Dirichlet model consists of two separate but interconnected models based on simple assumptions about buying behavior. The 𝗡𝗕𝗗 part of the model describes the timing of purchases, what drives that timing, and how it differs between buyers. -- 𝗡𝗕𝗗 𝗔𝘀𝘀𝘂𝗺𝗽𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀 – 1️⃣ Some buyers purchase more frequently than other buyers 2️⃣ An individual buyer tends to buy at a constant rate over time 3️⃣ But that "buying rate" will be different for other individual buyers 4️⃣ The exact timing of each buyer's next purchase is essentially random 5️⃣ Each purchase is an independent buying decision 6️⃣ The timing of all purchases is just the sum of all the individual purchases from each buyer 7️⃣ There's a fixed set of buyers (true in the short-term, but not long-term) 8️⃣ These assumptions apply to ALL products (both B2C & B2B) Mathematically, all these assumptions are reduced to the following statement: 👉 Each buyer's purchases follow a Poisson Distribution over time, with the heterogeneity across the population being modeled as a Gamma Distribution. A Mixing of a Poisson + Gamma Distribution results in a Negative Binomial Distribution (NDB) But you DO NOT need to understand the math to understand the NBD model. -- As a practical way to think about these assumptions, examine your own behavior around buying laundry detergent. The average number of boxes of detergent you buy monthly is about the same. Most people don't do 500 loads of laundry one month and only two the next month. Our individual buying is based on some underlying consumption rate. But if you have a family of five, you likely buy detergent a LOT more frequently than when living alone in a dorm room. But there will still be an "average buying frequency," just at a much higher rate. -- The exact day you pluck that next box of detergent off the shelf is fairly random. It's not like you purchase ONE box of detergent exactly on the 2nd Tuesday of every month. You might buy sooner, even if the current box is still half full...or you might panic buy when you realize there's a load in the machine and the detergent box is completely empty. So, there is randomness in the exact timing, even if the average number of boxes of detergent purchased over time remains about the same. -- Likewise, each purchase is independent of prior purchases. Your behavior in the store isn't determined by precisely what you did the last time you were there. Finally, if we add up all the purchases from the heavy buyers (big families of 12) and light buyers (one guy living in a dorm room) that will always match the "average rate" of total purchases for any given time period. -- ♦️ In Part 4, I'll examine the assumptions underpinning the 𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗶𝗰𝗵𝗹𝗲𝘁 part of the NBD-Dirichlet model

Most B2B teams already have access to high-quality buyer intelligence. They just don't pay attention to it. Here's what I mean: Your prospects are constantly giving you signals about their interest level. But instead of capitalizing on these moments, most teams treat every lead the same way. They send the same generic outreach to everyone. But here's what you should do instead: Build a signal-based outreach system that responds to specific buyer behaviors in real-time. What are the signals that actually matter? → Direct message conversations where prospects ask problem-specific questions → Recurring engagement with your educational content (especially posts about challenges your solution solves) → High-intent website behavior like multiple visits to pricing pages, case studies, or product demos within a short timeframe → Newsletter engagement patterns like opening consecutive emails, clicking specific links, or forwarding content to colleagues → Professional transition signals (think new job announcements, company expansions, or team hiring in relevant departments) The goal isn't to track everything. You should use the data that will actually help you start a meaningful conversation: When someone visits your pricing page three times in a week, that's not a coincidence. When they comment on your post about a specific challenge, then visit your case study page the next day, that's a signal. Most teams miss these moments because they're focused on volume instead of timing. The result? They reach out to cold prospects while hot ones slip through the cracks. P.S. What signals have you noticed that were the real green light to reach out to the buyer?