You have identified a problem people may be experiencing.
But a problem alone doesn’t tell you why someone will act to solve it.
The Buyer Motivation Mapper helps you move from: They have this problem to I understand what is driving them to act, or preventing them from acting.
Instead of assuming what motivates buyers, you’ll map the forces influencing their decisions.
What is this toolkit about?
The Buyer Motivation Mapper is a guided tool for understanding the motivations, desired outcomes, barriers, and forces that influence how people respond to a problem.
It helps you look beyond the obvious problem and understand what is really driving the buyer’s behaviour.
Your goal isn’t to create a sales pitch.
Your goal is to understand what matters to the person experiencing the problem.
What problem does it solve?
Experts often assume:
“They have this problem, so they’ll want my solution.”
But people don’t automatically act just because a problem exists.
They may:
Put up with the problem
Delay taking action
Try to solve it themselves
Use an existing alternative
Fear making the wrong decision
See the problem differently from you
Want a different outcome from the one you assumed
The Buyer Motivation Mapper helps you uncover the forces behind these behaviours.
A problem tells you what is wrong. Motivation helps you understand why someone will, or won’t, do something about it.
When should I use it?
Use this toolkit when:
You’ve identified a problem worth investigating.
You want to understand why people may take action to solve it.
You need to understand what outcomes people actually care about.
You want to uncover barriers, anxieties, and objections.
You’re tempted to design an offer based on assumptions about what buyers want.
You want to understand the behaviour behind a problem before creating your solution.
Don’t use it as a substitute for customer research.
This tool helps you form better hypotheses about buyer motivation. You will need to test those assumptions with real people later.
What will I have when I'm done with the toolkit?
You’ll have a Buyer Motivation Map showing:
The problem or situation the buyer is dealing with
What they are trying to accomplish
What they want to achieve or change
What motivates them to act
What is frustrating or pushing them to change
What is holding them back
What alternatives they may already be using
What they fear, value, or care about
What might make them choose one solution over another
You’ll finish with a clearer picture of what is actually driving the buyer’s behaviour.
How to use it
The Notion toolkit will guide you through four simple activities:
1. Map the situation
Describe what the buyer is experiencing and what they are trying to accomplish.
2. Map the motivation
Identify the desired outcomes, frustrations, triggers, and forces pushing them toward action.
3. Map the barriers
Identify the fears, doubts, habits, constraints, and alternatives that may prevent action.
4. Identify the strongest motivations
Pull together the motivations that appear most important and worth investigating further.
Don’t assume you know what motivates the buyer. Treat your answers as hypotheses to test.
Evunn Action Points (Recommended)
The Toolkit
Buyer Motivation Mapper Notion Template
Use the interactive Notion template to map your customer motivation to solve the problem you uncovered.
👉 Open the Buyer Motivation Mapper Toolkit
Duplicate the template into your Notion workspace before you begin.
Your Completed Output after using the Toolkit
When you’re finished, save:
- Your Buyer Motivation Map
The motivations, desired outcomes, barriers, and forces influencing the buyer. - Your Key Motivation Hypotheses
The assumptions you believe are most important to investigate. - Your Research Questions
The questions you need to ask real people to find out whether your assumptions are correct.
Don’t turn these assumptions into marketing messages yet.
Your task is to develop a deeper understanding of the person and their experience of the problem.
What’s Next?
Customer Empathy
Understanding motivation tells you why someone may act.
Now you need to understand the problem from their point of view.
- What does the situation actually feel like?
- What are they seeing, thinking, saying, and doing?
- What are they struggling with that you may not have noticed?
Before designing your solution, learn to see the problem through the customer’s eyes.