No one wants to talk to your sales team (yet). But they do want the right content.
Most people say they want to do their own research. But they soon run into the problem of too much information – and not enough of what they really need. Your content can help them help themselves.
By Ann Gynn
"B2B buyers prefer a self-driven experience. They want to research on their own. They don’t think they need any help from the sellers.”
That reality check came from Ardath Albee, CEO of Marketing Interactions, at Content Marketing World 2021.
But they arrive at a problem – too much information. Worse, she says, a 2019 Gartner survey notes only 9% say the content they come across from vendors is sufficient.
Content marketers can help buyers help themselves to the content they need to make a purchase decision. But they may be going about it the wrong way.
“We really need to make this shift from marketing-driven campaigns to buyer-driven experiences,” Ardath says.
To help you move toward buyer-led experiences, we’ve gathered advice from two Content Marketing World speakers: Ardath and Marcus Sheridan, president of IMPACT.
In the traditional approach, the sales process triggers the minute a potential buyer fills out a form for gated content. Then they get a series of emails or phone calls offering demos or requesting meetings.
But prospects usually aren’t ready for that. They may not have gathered the stakeholders involved in the purchase. They may not know what outcome they want. So, they ignore the outreach because it isn’t helpful.
A buyer-led approach recognizes that prospects want to address their problems or needs in the least disruptive way.
“We tend to market assuming that everybody is already an in-market buyer, and they're not,” Ardath explains. “A whole change management process needs to take place. And we can help them with that.”
How? Take part in solving their problem by helping them:
By the time they get to supplier selection, your brand is already involved in their process.
“We need to let them drive. We need to allow them to be in control, and we need to help them accomplish what they need to do,” Ardath says.
A buyer-driven content strategy, Ardath says, includes these four components:
Context: Build value by creating content based on the prospect’s desired outcomes. Focus content on helping them complete the steps in their task to solve their problem. Help buyers understand the questions to ask and simplify access to the right information to answer those questions.
Choice: Help buyers decide whether to stick with their current solution or to change. Guide them through options for minimizing the disruption involved in the change, and so on. Provide relief by making it easier to complete their research and buying process.
Conversation: Make sure conversations – exchanges of information – happen on the buyer’s terms. Focus on the information they want, not the information your brand wants to share. For example, the act of filling out a form isn’t relevant to a conversation, but the topic of the content they accessed probably is. Keep the exchange going by giving them the next thing relevant to their behavior and what they engaged in.
Confidence: Help buyers feel confident about their choice. Give them what they need to make an informed recommendation or decision, even if that choice ultimately isn’t your product or service. Prioritize becoming a credible resource over prioritizing your brand.
Marcus Sheridan, president of IMPACT, also spoke at Content Marketing World 2021 about prospects wanting more control of their research process.
“Buyers are forcing sellers, salespeople, and marketers to change,” he said.
Marcus points to studies that indicate:
These statistics point to the need to embrace the self-service model, Marcus says.
Help visitors research elements such as pricing on their own. Then, put them in control when it's time to choose a sales rep and a time to talk.
Marcus noted the excellent self-scheduling and self-selection process offered by Yale Appliance.
On the company's website, people can choose their preference for a showroom visit, video call, live chat, or online order placement (as this screenshot shows).
As the potential buyer clicks down the path, they can select the Yale team member they want to work with. They can choose based on who’s available when they are, but Yale goes further. It includes the sales reps’ name, headshot, and bio, in addition to availability.
Yale Appliance’s CEO told Marcus the self-select closing rate is 62% higher than for walk-ins. The average sale is $4,000 per scheduled appointment compared to a $2,000 deal average for a walk-in customer.
“Give visitors the ability to make important decisions by guiding them virtually to a conclusion,” Marcus says.
Marcus’ fiberglass pool manufacturing business offers another kind of buyer-driven experience: self-pricing. Self-pricing doesn’t mean the buyer determines the actual price. Instead, it involves walking buyers through choices to create the product they need and see the actual price or the range of pricing.
A self-pricing tool on Marcus’s site asks what pool shape the visitor wants, then returns the selected pool with details about the base package.
Buyers can click on any aspect to understand it in detail. They can choose upgrades and make comparisons. Eventually, the pool site will show other cost considerations (such as hidden costs related to construction).
The self-pricing experience has been a big success. As many as a couple of hundred wholesalers per day completed the form in the summer season. Marcus says the cash-cow lead magnet works because it gives the buyers the power to determine the pricing.
These ideas from Ardath and Marcus make a great case (and helpful tips) for transforming your traditional content marketing, marketing, and sales operations for a buyer-led future.
The buyer will remain in control. The only choice you’ll have is whether you’re willing to follow their lead. CCO
Ann Gynn edits the CMI blog. Ann regularly combines words and strategy for B2B, B2C, and nonprofits, continuing to live up to her high school nickname, Editor Ann. Former college adjunct faculty, Ann also helps train professionals in content so they can do it themselves. Follow Ann on Twitter @anngynn or connect on LinkedIn