How B2B Sales Has Changed

Odds are if you are reading this, you’re a little perplexed as to why B2B sales is shifting so rapidly. What used to be a face-to-face dominated landscape has started to push the salesman away and usher in a new type of salesman – one that is focused on consulting, educating and providing solutions online, many times for free. Here’s our take on why the ground is moving under you.

70% of the work is done by your customer before they contact you.

This is a widely known statistic; your customer now has more power in the sales game and is doing their homework before they reach out to you. “So what’s the big deal?” you might ask. The problem is that your site and marketing communications are doing a poor job of providing what the customer is looking for, so they are going to go somewhere else to get it. That’s a lost prospect and lost sale, as customers will end up connecting with the company who has helped them early on in their discovery of the information they need. Is your Website ready?

Marketing all the way to closing.

It used to be that marketing was thought of as the casting of the line, and the sales team reeled them in. This is not the case any more, as more and more firms are using marketing messages to connect with the customers during the whole buyer journey. This process is referred to as “lead nurturing” and allows companies to send email campaigns, social messages, and phone calls vetting the prospect along the way.

[tweetthis twitter_handles=”@gonewnorth”]Nurtured leads produce, on average, a 20% increase in sales opportunities versus non-nurtured leads.[/tweetthis] – DenmandGen

Intelligence is gathered and scored to evaluate the likelihood of a prospect closing, which brings more power and insight into the sales process. If marketing to you is only about “getting your name out there”, it’s time to expand your horizons.

Social Network Marketing Matters

Some sales professionals are still on the fence about social media and its impact in the sales role. Their own reluctance is costing your business thousands of dollars.

[tweetthis]73% of salespeople using social selling as part of their sales process outperform their sales peers[/tweetthis]

Yet only a few organizations have adopted social selling strategy on networks like Linkedin. There is a huge treasure to be found for B2B service firms that can deliver relevant connections via social media.

Get Started

If you feel like the items mentioned above are hitting a little too close to home, then its time to have a free consultation with one of our strategists at New North. During our free 30-minute consultation we’ll review your site and discuss a plan of action to bring you more results from your marketing. Don’t wait – sign up today.