Follow the customer’s Buying Cycle, if you want B2B sales to grow…

B2B organizations must focus on the people and moments that matter so that marketing spend turns into real sales.

While B2B organizations have embraced the idea of customer-centricity, many have yet to adapt to the reality of customer behavior.

To right that train, B2B organizations need to develop a much deeper understanding of the modern customer decision journey .Where the old sales funnel assumed a linear purchasing path — customers take in information; narrow down their choices; negotiate with potential suppliers, and submit the purchase order — ?moves away from the "funnel" way of doing things. It recognizes that the decision process, in fact, is anything but linear, and the post-purchase period is often as, or more, important than other steps along the way.

Exhibit: The B2B Customer’s Buying Cycle

Find out what matters to your decision makers!

It's not enough to identify the decision makers in an organization. For marketing and sales activities to be effective, companies need to focus on those points in the decision journey where they can be most successful in influencing those decision makers. For some that might be procurement or finance. For others, it might be the CMO or even the end user. And for others still they might be a specific set of segments.

Understanding who those influencers are and what matters most to them in making their purchasing decisions gives marketing and sales leaders the insight needed to gauge where their efforts are likely to have the greatest impact. When organizations take the time to learn from their customers what parts of the buying process are most important to them, they are often surprised by the results.

Understanding what drives customer decisions means that marketers can make smarter, more informed decisions about where to allocate resources.

Foster partnership between marketing and sales

A standout point is the involvement of the sales team in crafting this pitch. You can't just have marketing build the pitch and heave it over to sales, recognizing the disconnect that often exists between marketing narratives and on-ground sales realities. The sales team's insights, objections, and experiences are invaluable in shaping a pitch that's not just convincing on paper but effective in practice.

Building on strong positioning

It is important to emphasize that a compelling sales pitch is an extension of robust positioning.

If I have good, strong positioning, I should be able to build a good, strong sales pitch, because all the information is there.

Positioning lays the groundwork by clarifying the unique value your product delivers, identifying direct competitors, and understanding the audience's pain points and desires... !