AIDA has been around for over half a century. But a more recent flavor of the sales model has enhanced AIDCA slightly. Since the 1980s, some sales training has added a C, or Commitment phase to AIDA – after the Desire phase and before the Action phase. So the new acronym stands for:
- A – Attention
- I – Interest
- D – Desire
- C – Commitment
- A – Action
In the AIDA model, commitment is considered to be part of the Action stage. But there is no reason you cannot consider Commitment as a separate stage. Commitment in this sense is a way of securing that your prospect will move to the Action stage. Once you have given your presentation for a solution, you gain commitment to your solution before moving on to take the necessary action to implement the solution.
One thing to realize about AIDCA is that this sales model is only applicable when you are selling in a format that involves two-way communication. For example, on-line sales opportunities can follow the AIDA model, but you wouldn’t need the Commitment stage because there is no means for the prospect to commit before purchasing – the purchase is the commitment in those cases. AIDCA is more appropriate for face-to-face or phone presentations where you have an ongoing dialogue with the customer.