The Four Things B2B Buyers Seek

Long before money changes hands - I’m talking thousands or millions - the modern B2B buyer is trying to figure out how to make a smart business decision.

She’s not looking for a sales pitch. In fact, she almost certainly is actively avoiding anything that remotely resembles a pitch.

First, she wants to get educated. No one likes to make mission-critical decisions at a disadvantage.

So if your job is to sell, here’s what you need to understand: your buyer needs four things before she will entertain your pitch… 

Expertise: Who knows what the buyer doesn’t? She wants to find those people. If she’s shopping for an enterprise tool that can wring 20% of the costs out of her firm’s supply chain, she’ll look for supply chain experts long before she looks for supply chain salespeople.

Depending on her personal style, she may phone a living, breathing expert or simply search for articles, books, videos, webinars, and events that can educate her. She may consult colleagues or friends.

Empathy: Your buyer wants someone who understands her needs and situation, which means not only her company’s needs but also her personal circumstances. A non-technical person will need more support when searching for a technical solution; in contrast, a technical buyer doesn’t want to wade through piles of basic info to get the in-depth knowledge she craves.

Clarity: Imagine how your buyer feels when she asks for help and she gets a response like this. “Given the importance of Big Data, Localization, Customer-Centricity and Growth Hacking, it’s more important than ever before to achieve organizational alignment before engaging in a comprehensive modeling exercise.”

Huh?

Buzzwords won’t impress your buyer. 2,500-word white papers won’t do the trick. She needs someone who will listen to her (see empathy above) and respond in clear, accurate language.

Few things are more valuable - and less common - in business than plain and simple clarity.

Trustworthy sources: Sounding good isn’t enough. With the rise of social media, lots of people can sound impressive for five minutes or even an entire introductory meeting… but this doesn’t mean they have actual expertise. More than anything, a responsible buyer needs people and organizations she can trust.

What can a seller do?

Two words: build trust.

There’s a reason I spend SO much time convincing sales professionals to use social media… it is a spectacular, non-threatening way to build trust with a wary buyer. 

Social allows buyers to learn about you - and from you - without taking any risk.

Rory Vaden, author of Take the Stairs, puts it best. “Sales is about trust and that will never change. But in the future more and more trust has to be built with prospects before they even get to have a conversation with a salesperson...Salespeople and companies alike are going to have to have more useful content for customers.” 

It helps to also be empathetic, because the better you understand your buyer’s needs, the easier it will be for you to earn her trust.

This is the fourth in a series of articles about my Serving the Modern Buyer framework.

Jill Rowley delivers keynotes, strategy sessions and workshops on Social Selling. Always be connecting! Your network is your net worth.