B2B buyer journey has changed - has your sales and marketing?
When the buyers are online and your presence isn’t…
B2B marketing is not just about lead generation – it guides the B2B buyer through a digital journey from interest to purchase.
A typical B2B purchase path includes identifying suppliers and researching offerings, considering and evaluating products, ordering, and reordering.
Today’s B2B buyers are more self-directed, more informed, and more skeptical than ever before.
75% of B2B buyers prefer to buy without contact with a salesperson, using the self-service principle.
Most of the buying process takes place independently on digital channels: websites, comparison sites, webinars, blogs and online recommendations.
90% of B2B buyers say that social proof significantly influence their purchase decisions.
In addition, a typical B2B buying process involves 6-10 people on the buyer's side.
McKinsey reports that
At any point in the B2B buying process, a third of customers want in-person interaction, a third want remote communication, and a third prefer digital self-service options.
B2B buyers expect omnichannel: most decision-makers use ten or more channels to interact with suppliers during the customer journey.
E-commerce has become the leading sales channel for B2B sales. 71% of B2B respondents offer some form of e-commerce, and it now accounts for 34% of B2B revenue.
According to McKinsey, the number of channels that B2B customers use has doubled in the past five years.
Example: A B2B buyer journey — High-value SaaS platform
Product: Enterprise-level cybersecurity software
Contract size: $100k+/year
Sales cycle: 6–12 months
Buyer group: CIO, CISO, Procurement, Security Architects
How the journey unfolds:
Awareness: A security engineer sees a LinkedIn post referencing a Gartner Magic Quadrant and clicks to read the company’s blog.
Research: The team consumes 3–4 blog articles, downloads a Zero Trust whitepaper, and watches a demo video on YouTube.
Comparison: Procurement and technical evaluators benchmark features and pricing via review sites, partner directories, and analyst content.
Validation: The CISO attends a webinar on risk mitigation and reads a case study from a similar industry.
Engagement: After weeks of exploration, the CIO books a discovery call — with specific questions about integrations, compliance, and cost-benefit.
Decision: Internal alignment takes another 2–3 months, with the deal finally closing after a custom security audit and legal review.
Takeaway:
Every one of these touchpoints is an opportunity for marketing to influence the sale — or lose the buyer to a competitor.
Without a connected digital sales and marketing strategy, sales would never get the chance to convert this deal.
To support B2B buyers throughout their self-directed journey, your marketing should do four key things:
Marketing plays a critical role in reinforcing value throughout the buyer journey. By consistently showing how your solution addresses real business problems and delivers measurable outcomes, you help buyers justify their decision — both to themselves and to internal stakeholders.
Demonstrate a deep understanding of the buyer's world — Use menus, categories, and decision criteria that reflect their specific industry or business challenges.
Quantify the value — Share clear, relevant performance data to help buyers assess how your solution delivers measurable benefits for their organization.
Build buyer confidence — Offer tailored recommendations based on the buyer’s needs and preferences, making them feel informed and in control of the decision.
Guide the next step — Always provide a clear and helpful call to action that encourages buyers to move forward in their process.
Why Marketing-Sales alignment is critical for B2B
Too often, B2B companies treat marketing and sales as separate functions. But in today’s landscape, they must act as one unified team.
When B2B-marketing generates leads that sales can’t qualify, or when sales closes deals with no understanding of how buyers arrived, both teams lose visibility — and velocity.
Here’s how you can create true sales-marketing alignment:
✅ Shared KPIs: Define metrics both teams care about — like Sales Qualified Leads (SQLs), pipeline value, and deal velocity, not just MQLs.
✅ Journey mapping: Build detailed buyer journeys across personas and buying stages to ensure content and campaigns meet real needs.
✅ Enablement: Create messaging frameworks and sales content that help reps convert more consistently.
✅ Tactical coordination: From CRM integration to handoff workflows, make sure no lead is left behind — or wasted.
The result? A revenue-generating sales-marketing engine that scales your growth.
Marketing is no longer optional in B2B growth
Modern B2B marketing isn’t just about generating awareness or branding. It’s about enabling revenue.
If you want to win in this environment, your marketing must deliver value at every digital touchpoint — long before your sales team ever gets on a call.
Interested in designing a go-to-market strategy that brings your ideal customers from discovery to decision — and keeps your sales team focused on closing? Take our free GTM audit test to check your Go to market readiness.
