
Given that today we can access organisational information through ‘virtual’ means, clients haved already moved through significant stages of the traditional buying cycle before they even have a conversation with a sales representative.
So, what does this mean?
Rather than waiting for a company to knock on their door, the purchasers are likely to scope their own needs, define the nature of the solution required and develop a short-list of potential providers capable of delivering a solution. It is only at this point that they initiate the Sales Process with prospective organisations and equally, it is at this stage that the Sales Capability of the potential provider will determine their eventual success.
Simply put, sales professionals are no longer involved in the initial stages of a selling process – clients are doing that own their own. Only seeking out professional input when they have refined their search criteria and needs.
These changes are transforming the way organisations need to think about Selling within their enterprise. The emerging shift effectively means that the nature of B2B Selling is becoming narrower but deeper.