January 27, 2021
The Mastery blog has focused on Decision throughout January 2021. As a quick refresher, Decision is the D in Maestro’s DRIVE information-gathering framework. It corresponds to some of the information you’d be familiar with seeking under Authority in BANT or CHAMP selling. But in addition to asking about Who the decision-makers are in an organization, DRIVE strives to uncover How decisions get made in the organization.
This month’s sales news roundup surfaces some of the last few months’ most insightful reports on decision-makers and the decision-making process.
A statistic I definitely did not expect to see: 60% of B2B technology buyers are Millennials. This is according to TrustRadius’s 2021 B2B Buying Disconnect Report, which also contains key insights on topics like the information sources buyers use to come to a decision, and the influence of reviews and demos in the B2B technology buying process.
Besides the fact that most software buyers are Millennials, another factor to keep in mind is their background and education. It’s best to avoid jargon when selling to today’s technology buyer. While many do in fact have a technical background, CEOs and decision-makers who are most open to innovation can come from a humanities background.
Beyond the big-picture demographics of decision-makers as a whole, think about the factors that make your users successful, happy customers. Are there other individuals who would fit that persona? Brian Balfour has a very concise take on “Adjacent Users,” and how to identify people who are similar to your core users but haven’t yet had success with your product.
Business2Community provides an interesting take on how to talk to the C-suite and encourage them to take action. As in so many cases, it’s essential to think about the purchase from the buyer’s perspective. Hiten Shah recently went on the Everyone Hates Marketers podcast to discuss how your buyers determine your value prop. News flash: it might be totally different from the value prop you thought you offered.
Meanwhile, research by ZS Associates published in Harvard Business Review suggests that women in sales are meeting quota more often than men because they are practicing listening more effectively than their male colleagues. Yes, this does mean you should consider hiring more female sales professionals. But it also points to the importance of listening skills that anyone can foster. After all, we’ve known for years that listening to the prospect is much more powerful than talking at them.
Technology, technology, technology. You sell technology…using technology. And buyers evaluate your technology…also with technology. Especially in 2020-2021, everything seems to be virtual and computer-enabled.
This fact has led to a huge blossoming of e-commerce in B2B SaaS sales. I’ve found two great pieces in the past month about how technology can remove friction from the sales process and product/service delivery. The Motley Fool’s Blueprint site gives an overview of B2B e-commerce, while Fastspring offers key stats and strategic suggestions.
First among them: the power of SEO. Overthink Group has a perennially-updating rundown on B2B SEO that is worth the time spent reading it. It’s very targeted to the specific tactics necessary to reach B2B decision-makers.
Decision is just one part of the information you need to amplify and accelerate your sales success. Follow the Mastery blog to join in on the journey through DRIVE over the next several months, as we provide insight into the research behind Resources, Impact, Velocity, and Expectations questions.
Prefer doing to reading? Reach out to mastery@maestrogroup.co to put the latest sales tips and tricks to work for your team.
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