The path to purchase is taking longer and deals are getting more complex. Yet in our latest data report, The New B2B Buyer Experience, we found that that human interaction still matters.
Despite trends that show decision-makers researching on their own, the data shows that top executives still want to interact with sales reps and managers prefer the combination of self-research and help from their sales reps. It turns out that most people want a personal connection — calls or emails — when they have questions, opposed to finding solutions themselves.
Finally, B2B buyers are finding content difficult to share internally and often difficult to understand, which strengthens the reliance on their reps.
Clearly, there remains a need for a guiding hand to help buyers through the process. Selling may be more challenging than it was in past years, but the new world of B2B selling has not made sales reps obsolete.
How can sales reps adapt to this new world? By presenting themselves as trusted advisors.
Our survey results confirm that buyers respond positively to reps who can serve as a partner with them opposed to someone who is only pitching them a product or service. Sales reps need to have a deeper understanding of the industry and of the dynamics between its major competitors. That way they can respond to shifts in the industry with the right content at the right time. Through continual education, reps can reposition their roles as trusted advisors who buyers can rely on for creating solutions to the challenges they face in their business.
Sales reps now face the challenge of showing that they create solutions to problems their buyers are anxious to solve. Their expertise, and ability to create the right content at the right time, is what buyers want.
Understanding this new relationship is critical. After all, reputation matters — by making the purchasing process a pain-free experience that leads to success, sales reps will gain a strong foothold among buyers. The relationship between both parties may be shifting, but the human touch still matters, now more than ever
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Want to make your sales reps trusted advisors? Read our new report, The New B2B Buyer Experience. Filled with exclusive survey data, it will locate where the pain points are for buyers and show where the opportunities are for sellers.
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