As you have probably heard over the last several years, it is estimated that B2B purchasers are 60% through their decision making process, or more, before they ever reach out to a sales team. I have been reading recently different sales experts contesting this figure.
Whether this stat is fully accurate or not is really a matter of which study you read. However, what it indicates, and what sales and marketing executives across the country are validating, is that the purchaser does not reach out to the sales team as a first step.
Knowing this, there are a couple of things we can learn from the most successful organizations:
1. If you are not providing quality information, you are handicapping yourself for sales.
This statistic reveals one very relevant fact: today’s purchasers require information. This is not just the simple sales material you leave at the front desk when you stop into an office. Rather, today’s purchasers want details, case studies, testimonials, and demonstration of the viability of your solution for their problem. All of this can, and should be, delivered electronically.
According to the last GlobalSpec study more than 60% of industrial buyers use the Internet to:
- Find components, equipment, services and suppliers (74%)
- Obtain product specifications (73%)
- Compare products across suppliers (69%)
- Find pricing information (68%)
- Research (66%)
- Instruction Manuals (63%)
As you can see, providing the right information to your market online is a very important to get them through the sales process.
2. If your phone is not ringing, are you dialing?
I have just completed my first year in a sales role, after nearly a decade in delivering results in SEO and digital marketing. One of the things I’ve learned over and again, and have confirmed across industries, is that making the sales call is still one of the most important aspects to successfully building sales. So if your organization isn’t calling your B2B prospects, don’t expect too much in return.
That said, even the organizations who are calling are finding the point 1 is affecting the efforts on the phone. People don’t necessarily want to talk with sales people right away. When that happens, what do you have to give them? If you’re not ready to provide information that now puts your organization at the top of their consideration list, then you’re losing the opportunity to finish the sales process.
What’s The Key?
The key to all of this is to ensure you have strategically considered what you need to give to your prospects.
Are you speaking directly to their needs in a categorical way?
- Does your website present multiple opportunities for your prospects to get the information they need to continue considering your product or service as a viable option?
- Are you collecting the right information to allow your sales team to follow-up with your prospects?
If you’re not sure if your website is meeting the needs of your clients, let our team help you quickly assess if there are additional needs you haven’t met.
