As the market and technology evolve, marketers must adopt a new approach to attracting consumers.
As a reminder, the concept of the “classic” B to B funnel assumed that a single buyer moved through a linear series of choices. Unfortunately, this way of thinking is no longer in line with current reality . From now on, it will be necessary to take into account the nuances in buyer behavior. Only in this way will you be able to stimulate the growth of your business.
The challenges of B to B professionals
People who purchase expensive products on behalf of their business face a real challenge. If they don't make the right decisions, it will affect their organization's ability to survive in an ultra-competitive environment. However, this same decision-making can take months or even years.
Concretely therefore, marketing budget cycles will not often be synchronized with market purchasing cycles . Naturally, this “slowness” will not suit financial services that focus on short-term results. It will be the same for the sales department, whose actions will depend on the strategies set at the marketing . Moreover, to define customer expectations , marketing uses digital channels and thought leadership .
The B to B funnel model redesigned for today’s market
The funnel, as it existed, is now proving redundant. To remedy this, here is a new model divided into 5 stages – each representing a buyer profile . This takes into account that the buyer groups are different at each stage. Thanks to it, you will know where to focus your efforts to maximize your chances of success.
- Horizon analysts : Buyers assess how the market or technological innovation provides opportunities or threats to current business models. They are looking for opinions to develop their strategy;
- Explorers : Buyers know what they need to do and determine whether they should seek outside help in their decision-making . In other words, they need relevant external opinions from people who have been faced with similar choices;
- Hunters : Buyers know the service they need, understand their challenges and have several solutions of them. They have gone through the first two phases or have already purchased a solution. Now they want to check if they made the right choice ;
- Active buyers : Buyers are thorough and compare a small group of competing suppliers . They need specific answers to detailed questions;
- Established customers who have already purchased your products: this is an opportunity to build their loyalty and eliminate competitors. You can take advantage of this to sell them more solutions .
The advantages of this new funnel model
This new model will help you on several levels. In particular, it will allow you to:
Create strategies that match buyer needs
During their development, make sure you can achieve another objective: that of acquiring information about your buyer . More precisely, it will be a question of determining at which level of the funnel it is located.
Better present the return on investment
Before any action, you must present the return on investment of your project to the senior managers of your company. For example, it might take 9 months of activity for the Horizon Analyst, then 6 months to move from explorer to hunter. The purchasing process could, for its part, be spread over 4 months. In this scenario, there will be a return on investment only in the second year. However, a recent LinkedIn study showed that 77% of marketers attempt to demonstrate the ROI of a campaign within a month.
It will then be necessary to have visibility on the buyer's journey . Otherwise, the marketing department runs the risk of spending money on short-term lead conversion. It also compromises awareness among many buyers who are in the horizon scanning and exploration phases.
Work on your brand image
The question of branding is a delicate subject in the B to B . Typically, businesses seek trade-offs between brand investment and lead generation. Yet brand impacts buyer choices all stages , but just in different ways.
Define the priority of technology investments
funnel model helps assess the importance and priority of technology investments. You will need to identify areas where you lack information about the buyer's process. As a result, you will be able to better choose the technological resources that will make your marketing actions more effective.
Clearly define the role of the marketing and sales teams
Today, buyers interact with sales teams much later in the buying process. But thanks to this new funnel model, no part of the route is no longer 100 % marketing or 100% sale. You will now be able to define more precisely the roles of each at each stage and determine the success factors the most important. This may include efforts to be made for prospecting or to retain established customers.
We need a new way of thinking that accounts for the many nuances in buyer behavior. You will need to ensure that the strategy, tactics and metrics align with the buyer's objectives at each phase. This will allow you to build a real relationship with him over time, rather than just offering him goods and
