This article was published in Sales & Marketing Management magazine online on January 26, 2017. The author, Tim Riesterer of Corporate Visions, was a past speaker at the IES.
Most marketers and sales pros have accepted the stat that says buyers are at least 57 percent of the way through the buying cycle by the time they engage a salesperson. A recent State of the Conversation report from my company found that nearly 80 percent of marketing and sales leaders believe the stat is true.
But, based on the data that keeps coming out and telling us more about the realities of modern, complex B2B sales, there’s good reason to view this stat with some skepticism – and to really question the belief that buyers are more than halfway done with the buying journey by the time a rep enters the picture.
Two findings in particular cast doubt on the idea…and these could have significant implications for how salespeople understand the messaging role they need to play to steer successful customer conversations.
Read the full article here.
