A Data-Driven Approach to the Buyer's Journey in B2B Tech

B2B Technology Buying

If the B2B tech buying journey is an odyssey through treacherous waters, data is your compass. You don't need us to tell you B2B tech marketing is complex. There's uncertainty at every turn, and a significant amount of that is down to how unpredictable we humans are.

Buyer behaviours, even between one business and another, are rapidly changing thanks to:

• New ways we live and consume in our daily lives

• The growing complexity in the marketing ecosystem, with new channels, touchpoints, technology, and tools.

• An explosion of data.

To differentiate and accelerate growth, your marketing organisation must be intelligent, agile, and ready to embrace innovation. You need to be laser-focused on what drives results. 

Table of contents:

Understanding Your Buyer
Using Data to Navigate the Buyer's Journey
Perception Audits
ICP Buyer Preferences
Analysts and Analyst Relations
SEO Tools
Competitive Analysis
Online Communities and Forums
Gartner Peer Insights
Harnessing the Data
Building your Data-Driven Approach

Understanding your buyer

Understanding your target buyer isn’t just important—it should be the first step you take, and the last thing you think about before you go to bed. In a sea of rapid technological advancements, understanding the purchasing motives and movements of a B2B tech buyer requires a holistic, data-driven approach. 

But what do you need to understand about your buyer? What specific data do you need to collect? Start by taking a look at these:

1. Demographics: Who's making the buying decisions? Are they tech-savvy millennials or experienced baby boomers? Understanding who you're selling to can help tailor your approach.

2. Industry: What industry is your buyer in? Different industries have different needs, and understanding this can help you position your product effectively.

3. Pain Points: What problems is your buyer trying to solve? By understanding their pain points, you can position your product as the solution they've been looking for.

4. Budget: How much is your buyer willing to spend? Understanding their budget can help you price your product competitively.

5. Buying Process: What's the buying process like for your buyer? Do they need to get approval from several stakeholders, or can they make the decision themselves? This can affect your sales cycle.

6. Decision Criteria: What factors does your buyer consider when making a purchase? Knowing this can help you highlight the features of your product that matter most to them.

Remember, it's not just about selling a product—it's about providing a solution. And to do that, you've got to understand your buyer inside and out.

Using Data to Navigate the Buyer's Journey

From prospect to customer, every step of the buyer's journey in B2B tech marketing reveals a goldmine of data. There’s insight and information on buyers’ needs and preferences in every click, download, and engagement. It’s in these digital whispers that our journey into customer understanding begins.

Perception Audits: Your Mirror and Crystal Ball

Who better to tell you about your product or service's impact than those it is designed to impact? Perception audits, encompassing feedback from prospects, clients, and even those elusive closed-lost prospects, offer invaluable insights into how your brand is perceived, where it impresses, and where it may fall short in comparison to your competitors.

• Clients might share what keeps them loyal, uncovering your strengths and areas to champion.

• Prospects can reveal perceived barriers or gaps that may be inhibiting conversion.

• Closed-lost prospects offer a raw glimpse into missed opportunities and areas for improvement.

Painstakingly collecting and analysing this data creates a mirror reflecting your present image and paves a clear path for marketing and sales.

ICP Buyer Preferences: Crafting a Precise Arrow

Ideal Customer Profile (ICP) surveys can further refine your understanding, narrowing down the vast ocean of potential prospects into a concentrated pool of high-potential leads.

Surveys that delve into the preferences, pain points, and purchasing drivers of your ICP facilitate the ability to be targeted and impactful with your marketing strategies that speak directly to those you seek to convert.

The aim here is to be precise - use as much data as you can when making your decision. 

A note on analysts and analyst relations

The Unsung Hero - Analyst Relations in Unveiling Data Layers

Sailing into the multifaceted sea of B2B tech marketing, the role of Analyst Relations (AR) emerges as a lighthouse, often unsung yet indispensably guiding strategies through the intricate waves of market trends, emerging customer needs, and competitive landscapes.

AR channels conversations with market analysts, mining rich, in-depth insights into the evolving ebb and flow of the market, unearthing emerging customer demands, and charting the nuanced paths of buyer journeys.

Moreover, it taps into analysts’ reservoirs of data on competitors, providing a tactical advantage by illuminating their strengths, weaknesses, and unexplored market gaps. It's in these valuable exchanges that AR not only acquires a clear, strategic view of the external environment but also enhances external perception, skillfully positioning the company in the analysts' narrative.

Now, let's dive deeper into the hidden waters and murky depths of the buyer's journey.

SEO Tools: The Beacon in the Digital Murk

SEO tools illuminate the hidden pathways through which buyers meander in the digital space. What keywords are your target buyers using? What content are they consuming, and which digital corridors are they traversing? This data not only enhances visibility but also empowers you to position your brand precisely where your buyer seeks solutions.

Competitive Analysis: Navigating Through the Rival Seas

In the turbulent seas of B2B tech marketing, understanding how your competitors’ ships sail can equip you to navigate cleverly and distinctively. Analysing their strategies, successes, and shortfalls using tools like SEMrush can reveal market gaps and opportunities to steer your own vessel innovatively.

Online Communities and Forums: The Hidden Depths 

Peering into online spaces where your buyers candidly converse—forums, Reddit threads, LinkedIn groups, or other niche communities—can offer unfiltered insights into their challenges, aspirations, and scepticism. This not only aids in understanding their unspoken needs but also in crafting content that resonates and solutions that genuinely alleviate their pain points.

Learn more about monitoring online communities through social listening. 

Peering into Gartner Peer Insights: Real Talk, Real Impact

Gartner Peer Insights is like the coffee shop of the IT world - a spot where professionals just spill the beans. Here, tech leaders swap stories of their digital escapades, sharing the highs and lows of using various IT solutions. It’s raw, it’s real, and for marketers, it’s a goldmine.

Navigating through these straightforward chats, we uncover the real talk of buyers, revealing not just what they loved, but where they hit roadblocks. It’s a genuine peek into their world, offering us marketers the kind of insights that help shape campaigns that truly hit home.

Harnessing the Data: Crafting Your Vessel

Having accumulated a wealth of data, the next leap is converting these insights into a vessel that propels you through the buyer’s journey.

• Tailored Content: Sculpt content that speaks to the pain points, desires, and curiosities unveiled through your data.

• Solution-Driven Positioning: Position your product or service as the beacon that guides them through their challenges towards their aspirations.

• Engagement that Resonates: Utilize data to discern which platforms and formats your buyers engage with and prefer, optimizing your marketing initiatives.

Sailing into Horizonless Opportunities

In the ceaseless voyage of understanding and appealing to the B2B tech buyer, data is your unwavering compass, perpetually pointing towards deeper understanding and enhanced connection. It empowers us to not just navigate but also shape the journey, offering solutions that are not mere products but vessels that carry our buyers towards their desired destinations.

From perception audits and ICP surveys to exploring SEO tools, competitor strategies, and online communities, every data point harnessed is a gust of wind propelling your vessel forward, crafting journeys that are not just successful, but monumentally impactful.

Let’s navigate, explore, and conquer the boundless seas of opportunities together, with data as our perpetual guide. Embark on your journey with Resonance, where data-driven strategies transform journeys into adventures and buyers into long-term fellow voyagers.