B2B-Buying-CenterBy now, it’s a well-accepted concept that buyers have deep product knowledge and are well-versed in their potential benefits long before the formal sales process begins. And, there are lots of eyeballs looking at the pre-purchase data all wanting different degrees of detail and context. In fact, complex sales cycles in the B2B space involve a growing number of decision-makers, who collectively comprise the organization’s “buying center”. Understanding the organization’s overarching buying trigger and its unique spin for each person in the buying center is crucial for sales and marketing success. Deep insights into the role of each buyer, the filters they use in comparing options and how they evaluate the purchase and make the business case for the winning solution gives the seller an edge.

 

Adopting a buying center intimacy model necessitates creating buyer personas and getting in their heads. According to a recent survey by ITSMA, 44% of organizations say they have buyer personas but 85% do not use them effectively.  In ComBlu’ s experience, many organizations that think they have a customer intimacy model in reality have a segmentation approach which is more product-focused than customer centric.

Personas need to be well-crafted if they are going to yield meaningful information. According to Adele Revella, of the Buyer Persona Institute, most organizations simply overlay information they already know rather than sussing out net-new information. They continue to act on what they think they know rather than finding the nuggets that spark true customer insights. Her organization created this infographic that summarizes this very well.

Here are some other posts that interweave the value of well-crafted personas in driving marketing excellence.

Creating Content for the Tech Buyer
Content Forensics a Six Step Process
A Hitchhiker’s Guide to a Content Journey

Understanding the independencies of the all-important buying center members is crucial to sales and marketing success. Well-developed personas provide the roadmap.

Cheryl Treleaven

Cheryl Treleaven

Principal

Engaging your customers is at the heart of successful marketing programs. For more than 20 years, Cheryl has been building and executing content and thought leadership strategies designed to do just that. She is excited to be applying that well-honed skill to a help companies like Microsoft, Cisco, 3M, Intel, Capital One and Barclaycard tap into their stakeholder communities and build sophisticated content strategies.

Her experience base spans a range of industries – from technology and financial services to retail, travel, consumer products and healthcare. Cheryl has served as an integral member of her clients’ marketing teams, providing counsel on marketing and brand strategy, thought leadership, media relations, product introductions, and event management.

Prior to joining ComBlu, Cheryl spent 10 years leading corporate marketing for large, complex organizations.