The Real Reason People Aren’t Buying From You, and What to Do About It
Hosted by: Barclays Eagle Labs – Scotland
Date: Tuesday, 20 January 2026 · 9:00 – 10:30 am GMT
Location: CodeBase Edinburgh
Booking via Eventbrite
About the event
Most customers aren’t rejecting you. They’re delaying the moment they commit. This session uncovers the real psychology behind indecision — and why people cling to outdated, half-working solutions even when your offer is objectively better.
Led by Sid Kathirvel, Founder and Strategic Growth Partner at Unlock Growth, this workshop shows founders and teams how to decode the emotional triggers, anxieties, and competing forces that shape buying decisions. You’ll learn why logic rarely wins on its own, how to surface the quiet fears customers rarely articulate, and how to turn hesitation into momentum.
Expect a relatable true story that permanently changes the way you observe customer behaviour. Most people walk out thinking, “We’ve clearly got work to do.”
What you’ll learn
- The hidden psychology behind customer inertia, and why discounts or persuasion rarely fix it.
- How to identify the Four Forces that accelerate or stall buyer journeys.
- How to spot Locksmith Moments, the points where customers finally become open to change.
- Practical ways to apply these insights to your product, messaging, and customer experience.
- A simple framework for building a repeatable, customer-led growth system.
Who it’s for
- Founders and CEOs dealing with slow sales cycles or plateauing growth.
- Product and marketing teams wanting sharper positioning and messaging.
- Anyone tired of guessing, and ready to ground growth in real customer behaviour.
Expected outcomes
By the end of the session, you will:
- See indecision not as disinterest, but as a solvable design challenge.
- Reframe your buyer journey around the customer’s emotional timeline.
- Know where to focus — and what to stop — to unlock meaningful growth.
About the speaker
Sid Kathirvel is a strategic growth leader with 25 years of experience across strategy, product, and growth marketing. He helps early-stage startups and scaling SMEs break through growth ceilings by stripping away guesswork, sharpening positioning, and crafting messaging that sticks. Recognised as Marketing Mentor of the Year 2024, Sid works with founders through programmes including Barclays Eagle Labs, Techscaler, Edinburgh Innovations, and Digital Boost.