Authored by – Mr. Sesha Rao, MD, India Operations, InsideView
The ecosystem of B2B buyers has transformed. It used to be that one decision making power responsible for major purchase decisions in enterprises, but that has changed radically in the past several years. According to CSO Insights, on average, 5.4 people are involved in the average B2B decision making process. So, do you only have one contact at each of your key prospect or client accounts? Today, it is crucial to identify and cultivate relationships with as many key decision-makers and influencers as possible. As a sales professional, you want to drive support and build consensus for your product or service, whether with a prospect or an existing client.
According to a recent LinkedIn research, 59% of buyers would think less of a sales person, and 53% would think less of that sales person’s company, if they made a cold call. However, 87% of B2B buyers had a favorable impression of a sales person who was introduced to them through someone in their professional network.
It’s important for marketers to have their ears to the ground when it comes to obtaining information about prospective buyers. Listening is how marketing and sales teams can find the relevancy that connects the brand and the prospect.
Marketers must collect the right data to know who to engage with at any given point. Doing this manually is way too tedious, and utter waste of time and resources. It’s essential to have the connections, and leveraging everyone’s connections within the relationship.
Identifying who the influencers are and what role they play in the buying process can be the difference between closing a sale in a timely manner and being stuck in limbo for a long period of time. Influencers and end users can also help to build a case for the initial sale and the ongoing product value. The more complex the sale, generally the more decision makers and influencers involved in the buying process. By using social channels, you have the ability to identify all of these parties and develop relationships with each of them.
Being relevant and connected is the best way for sales teams to increase their chances of connecting with todays more informed, better connected, less responsive buyer. Buyers are demanding relevance, and expecting sales people to know about them, their companies, and their needs before engaging. It’s no longer enough to just have a connection to the buyer. The power of “who you know” is being trumped by “what you know about who you know.” Effective B2B selling is about arming yourself with the wealth of information about your prospects, and leveraging it to connect in the most timely, relevant and valuable way. Effective B2B selling requires intelligence that brings together both traditional data and social media.
