Which approach focuses on understanding the buyers' needs and systematically preparing for negotiations?

The approach that emphasizes understanding the buyers' needs and systematically preparing for negotiations is consultative selling. This strategy involves engaging with customers to uncover their specific requirements and challenges, allowing the salesperson to tailor their offering to meet those needs effectively. Consultative selling relies on building a trusting relationship with the customer, where the salesperson acts more as an advisor than a traditional salesperson. By prioritizing the customer's needs, this method fosters better communication and leads to more effective negotiation outcomes.

In contrast, transactional marketing focuses primarily on individual transactions rather than building long-term customer relationships, which doesn't involve a deep understanding of buyer needs. Relationship marketing seeks to establish an ongoing emotional connection with customers, which is important but is broader than just the negotiation phase. Experiential marketing creates memorable experiences for customers, emphasizing engagement through emotions or experiences rather than understanding needs for negotiation purposes. Thus, consultative selling is the most suitable choice for the focus described in the question.