So many companies look for 'thoroughbred' salesmen as they do not have the right 'stables'....

I have been saying this for years, but many companies still think this way. I am convinced that never before can you win a battle alone and with a bayonet! where your competitors are equipped with increasingly sophisticated and powerful weapons.

Buyers have changed and the time has come for the marketer to understand this evolution brought about by digital and change the strategies deployed to engage them accordingly.

In fact, thanks to the Internet, buyers have much more control over the buying process and have gained a great deal of power over time compared to sellers: they inform themselves, they make up their own minds, they compare solutions.

B2B buyers around the world consult at least 12 different online information sources before making a purchase, including online news, articles, social media, forums and so on. Being one of those sources is decisive for success.

In all companies, after all, the focus on costs has steadily increased year after year.

What does this mean for marketing? First of all, that in the minds of customers preferences are defined long before the salesperson enters the scene, and that it is therefore at that moment that one should intervene, otherwise it will be much more difficult to convince them. The meeting with a salesperson has in fact moved much further along the path leading to the purchase decision.

Secondly, it means that sales cycles are much longer and more complex than in the past.

What does your company's 'stable' look like at this point?