Less than 50% of forecasted B2B sales are being successfully completed due to the new ‘pull’ factors, brought about by a new generation of B2B buyers coming through the sales funnel.
How can B2B organizations adapt? In this article, Georgia Harris, PR Lead Themes, IBA International, explores in four simple steps how PR and marketing pros can update the journey through the B2B sales funnel to ensure B2B sales are closed and the journey is smooth.
A new younger generation of B2B buyers with different needs has led to leads being missed, as the traditional B2B buyer journey is no longer suitable for new buyer pull factors. The B2B buying process is evolving fast. Gartner research shows that 6 to 10 people are now involved in the process with varying self-interests including new external stakeholders. The way in which the new generation of B2B buyers gathers information has changed. Sales representatives are no longer the primary source of information. In fact, 67% of B2B buyers state they prefer to gather their information themselves. So, what can B2B organizations do to alter the sales journey to match these new expectations?
Getting to grips with the sales funnels begins at the very top with identification and goes all the way to the bottom with nurturing leads. In today’s digital era, B2B organizations need to optimize the way they interact with leads online – this is where the skills of PR and marketing pros can be flexed with content marketings and account-based marketing (ABM) tactics.
Get in front of the new B2B buyer with an all-out media strategy
The very top of the funnel, where prospects become aware of a business, the focus must be on all fronts – social media, content marketing, and SEO.
Research has shown that 80% of business decision makers prefer to get company information from a series of articles versus an advertisement before making a decision, with 9 in 10 B2B buyers saying online content has a moderate to major effect on purchasing decisions. But how can B2B businesses find out what their leads are looking for and what industry struggles they are having?
Enter, social listening a relatively new skill in B2B PR and marketing pros’ arsenal. Through its process of monitoring and analyzing social media conversations, PR and marketing pros can gain insights into industry pain points, market trends, and brand narratives. From this PR and marketing professionals can plan content tailored to the insights they’ve gained.
A good place to start is with a case study demonstrating how a company has helped overcome similar situations in their specific industry. To support this, social posts should be tailored with content and messaging that aligns with key industries that leads are in. Credibility and trust can be built through these techniques of consistent messaging with leads across multiple sources of content.
All this work will be for nothing without good technical SEO! There is no point in having informative assets if prospective leads cannot find or navigate a company’s website – technical SEO focuses on the user experience. Think speed of website, mobile-friendly, and ease of use. Why is this so important? This can be the make-or-break point of the B2B sales funnel if the website is not accessible or user-friendly this can cause businesses to lose the lead!
Why are you the best in the market? Show off your brand equity to resonate with leads
Once prospects are aware of the business offerings, the pressure is on to show why it is the best in the market. How? Prospects want to know that a business understands their pain points, but they also want to know that they can help alleviate these ongoing issues.
It’s all about demonstrating expertise and establishing the company as a thought leader – remember the power of executive profiling. Even though it’s business-to-business and buyers are choosing digital sources of information over human lead sales interactions, human relationships still matter. It’s time to establish executives as industry thought leaders and produce relevant thought-provoking thought leadership content relevant to the pain points that leads are suffering.
In this way, businesses can address a lead’s specific concerns and showcase unique value proposition because over 60% of B2B buyer cannot tell the difference between one B2B brands’ digital experience from another. It’s called showing off your brand equity – and at the same time making brand equity relatable to build trust in the minds of prospective leads.
And what’s not working is just as important as what is. Tracking lead-gen interactions through targeted backlinks, measuring social click through, and analyzing web traffic and behaviour on owned sites can identify where the buyer journey might be stumbling. For example, placed content may be generating a ton of click throughs – but if the website can’t convert then there’s something missing somewhere! Adjust accordingly to unjam the sticking points for prospective B2B buyers.
Make the decision-making process easier and personal with account based marketing
But the journey doesn’t end here! In today’s information-driven world, people expect timely and relevant content promptly that can help address their pain points and guide them through the decision-making process. This is where a well-thought-out ABM strategy can prove its worth – an ABM strategy will rely on analysis to identify target accounts and the correct contacts to reach out to. All data should also be shared between marketing, sales, and PR teams to ensure activities are aligned with the correct information to guarantee a seamless buying experience and a smooth transition through the sales funnel.
Then it’s a case of creating targeted content aimed at just a handful of buying personas, delivered strategically across the channels they use. LinkedIn feeds, specific interest groups, the industry publications they read, targeted web ads, and keywords – they can all converge to target a single prospect as many times as possible.
Influencer marketing and executive profiling may be a fairly new practices in the B2B space, but they are both key parts of any B2B ABM strategy. With over a third of respondents to a B2B Influencer Marketing Research report claiming that influencer marketing can directly contribute to sales and revenue, it is a key tactic for PR and marketing professionals to use. Add executive profiling into the mix and B2B organizations can drive credible thought leadership, loyalty, and brand awareness.
The final stage is just the start of a relationship – think B2C with incentives and trial periods to nurture leads
The last stage of the B2B sales funnel is one of the most important parts, closing a deal can be one of the most difficult and being at this stage doesn’t mean it’s a done deal. Nurtured leads pay off as they can generate 47% of larger purchases than non-nurtured leads at a 33% lower cost.
This is not the end state for dealing with the B2B buyer however but rather the start of a relationship and making it an easy decision for the buyer – learn from B2C sales strategies and tactics – utilize incentives and trial periods to encourage repeat business.
Case studies play a huge role in building trust and credibility. Permission to use the case study in the media might be a problem, but customers are often happy to be a sales reference, particularly if incentivized in some way! Real-life success stories of how a company overcame a specific industry problem or achieved exceptional results could just be the tipping point for a buyer to close a decision.
Nurtured leads will come to fruition at this stage and then it’s all about the relationships that can be created and fostered through a positive customer experience to gain customer loyalty and encourage repeat business.
Patience is key when moving through the sales funnel!
Today’s digital era means that vast amounts of data and information are readily available to the new wave of B2B buyers, causing the B2B sales funnels to become both time and resources intensive. Here is where PR and marketing pros can make a difference with strategic content marketing and personalized ABM that align with other departments at every stage of the sales funnel. Together, they can help to turn leads into long-lasting customers.
Georgia is responsible for running internal campaign meetings, tracking new and emerging themes, topics, and technologies, with a focus on how to bring these insights into client-facing activities.
