{"id":12018,"date":"2024-02-19T16:03:28","date_gmt":"2024-02-19T15:03:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.infopro-digital-media.fr\/leadgen-contexte-et-enjeux-pour-les-commerciaux-b2b\/"},"modified":"2024-07-01T16:41:41","modified_gmt":"2024-07-01T14:41:41","slug":"leadgen-context-and-challenges-for-b2b-salespeople","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.infopro-digital-media.fr\/en\/leadgen-context-and-challenges-for-b2b-salespeople\/","title":{"rendered":"Lead Gen: Context and Challenges for B2B Salespeople"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

More than ever, salespeople must be able to rely on an effective Lead Generation system<\/strong>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The buying process is getting longer, purchasing committees are overcrowded, B2B buyers are working underwater\u2026 salespeople are not necessarily spoilt for choice in their (delicate) job. More than ever, they need to be able to rely on a well-oiled lead generation system. Here\u2019s a breakdown<\/strong>.\u2026<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The buying journey continues to lengthen in B2B<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

8 months.<\/strong> That\u2019s the average time that elapses between when a B2B buyer is first exposed to the brand and when they (finally) contact a salesperson.[i]<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Across all industries, the average B2B purchase journey is gradually extending beyond 6 months and trending more towards 12 months due to three main factors:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#1 Information Overload<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

B2B buyers in the broad sense (decision-makers, recommenders, influencers) have never had so much marketing content to make decisions. Some of it is high-value, but the majority remains generic, mundane, without real added value, and lacking effort in personalization and contextualization around the specificities of the target’s core business.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

One in two B2B buyers admits to feeling “destabilized<\/strong>” by the abundance of content on their business issues. This observation has become more pronounced since November 30, 2022, the release date of ChatGPT. Each year, 52% of companies create even more content than the year before[i]<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

#2 The Expansion of Buying Committees<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Purchase decisions have never been so collective, now involving between 14 and 23 people<\/strong>, depending on the purchase amount (Gartner<\/a>). The expansion of buying committees makes it difficult for salespeople to understand group dynamics and power relations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

#3 Exogenous Factors Likely Influence the Decision <\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Technological advancements<\/strong> make solutions more technical and therefore harder to understand, requiring more tedious documentation efforts. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Likewise, increased competitive intensity<\/strong> means B2B buyers have more choices and thus take more time to decide. Lastly, the COVID-19 pandemic pushed some large companies to further rationalize their spending, at least during the period from 2020 to 2022.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your prospect has never been more autonomous.<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
\n
\n

Companies do not seem to fully appreciate the generational shift<\/strong> that has occurred in the purchasing function. This is the conclusion of a Forrester study published in March 2023[i]<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Indeed, 64% of B2B buyers worldwide belong to the Millennial generation (born between 1981 and 1996) or Gen Z (born from 1996 onwards). Another study estimates this proportion to be over 75%.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n
\n

The arrival of this generation, raised on digital technology, significantly impacts the purchase journey and, consequently, the approach needed <\/strong>to generate quality leads, engage them, and convert them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Because these buyers have the reflexes for “secondary” research on the web, beyond Google (review platforms, Twitter, Reddit), they complete between 50% and 70% of their purchase journey<\/strong> independently. This reality complicates the salesperson’s task for two reasons:<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n

\n
\"\"<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n