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B2B Companies and the Digital Buying Journey

February 24, 2022

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In the last couple of years, the buying journey has drastically changed for both B2C and B2B consumers. Companies in the B2B industry have had to create a digital buying journey for their customers, to deliver what the buyers are now expecting. To create such a journey, businesses have to invest a lot of time and effort into communicating with consumers about what they expect from businesses, their needs, and their values.

Subscriptions

One of the biggest trends in software sales has been the subscription sales model. A similar sales model can be implemented by many other businesses in the B2B industry, which can help drive long-term relationships between companies and their audiences. For instance, when a consumer purchases a certain product from Amazon, they might want to re-order it at a certain frequency. While that’s not the same as a subscription (more a recurring order), it’s a similar idea. As companies evolve beyond recurring purchases, they have to start thinking about the value and utility of those purchases. Instead of only focusing on consumers that purchase a product at one point and are done with a business, companies can create a recurring relationship with them that’s oriented toward what they need or value. The companies that utilize a subscription model for sales can also guide their consumers toward upselling, aside from renewing their subscriptions.

Digital Sales

Before the pandemic started, many companies had already begun their slow path toward digitization and online sales. While it wasn’t the biggest priority for many companies before the pandemic, it quickly rose to the first spot on their list, since many were trying to keep their customers happy. Fortunately, many consumers in the B2B industry were craving a digital customer journey. Companies have received great benefits from today’s customer engagement efforts, especially in terms of the information such efforts generate. Many consumers these days tend to start their buying journey on a digital device instead of inside a brick-and-mortar store. Companies in the B2B industry can help them on their journey by introducing more digital experiences and touchpoints. That doesn’t mean the role of salespeople in a company is easier these days, however, because now they have to deal with more detailed questions from consumers. With consumers being more informed or highly knowledgeable about what they need or are looking for, sales teams have to work harder to gain credibility and trust with consumers and build a strong relationship with the audience.

Customer Experience

These days, the main element of many companies in the B2B industry is customer experience. While B2C marketing relies on appealing to the emotions, companies in the B2B industry can instead rely on trustworthiness to close a sale. To improve the buying journey, B2B businesses should be focused on building trust with the target audience and should show that they have the consumers’ best interests in mind. Ronn Torossian is the CEO and founder of NY based PR firm 5W Public Relations. Torossian is also the founder of the Ronn Torossian Foundation, and a lifelong New Yorker.