In B2B, purchasing decisions are often made by committees consisting of controlling, technology and management. Each decision maker has different goals and therefore needs different information. Sanjay Sauldie shows how a corporate website can serve each of these three types of decision-makers.
The B2B buying cycle is very different from the B2C buying cycle. Therefore, many companies’ B2B internet marketing is still lagging behind. It becomes much more important to pay attention to the influencing factors that buyers are exposed to today. Purchasing decisions in B2B are often made in a committee where different people sit – people with different requirements and goals. If a company knows these influencing factors and can integrate them into the marketing mix, the chances of success are very high.
To do this, the first step is to classify the decision-makers into different types. These three main types are characteristic:
- The economist (controls the budget and wants the cheapest offer).
- The technician (looks from the technical point of view and seeks the right technical solution to his problem).
- The manager (looks at how he can serve his customers even better and is on the lookout for suitable partners).
Surely there are more types, but it doesn’t matter – there can be many more. The important question is: Are all these types properly served on your website? If you fixate on only one type with your information (and unfortunately that is often the technician), then you simply leave potential left and right.
More and more of these decision-makers are using the Internet (see Tip 27). You are very welcome to request the study on this topic directly from me – b2b@iroi.de
Offer each type of decision-maker the information they need
How about serving exactly the needs of these people on your website? To the economist, you clearly present the price advantages. If you are the most expensive supplier, make it very clear why this is so and what the long-term benefits are for the buyer if he does not save now, but has a longer-term benefit. It is ideal if this is clearly expressed on your website.
For the technician, offer white papers (see tip 20) or technical details that will excite him. Ideally, not on the page that is made for the economist, but on a separate page.
For the manager, show your competence through examples with customers, perhaps even with customer references that demonstrate that you are exactly the right partner who is reliable and competent.
And if the one buyer is on the committee and is still unsure, then help the one who is already on your side with arguments that you provide on the website so that you get the contract.
Make sure you have your own optimised page
As you can see, an individual approach can be realised very well via the website! Make sure that there is a separate page for each type of decision-maker on your website, because each of these pages is then individually optimised for the key words that each type enters.
If you are at trade fairs, for example, then it is ideal to collect the buyers’ questions and answer them on the website. However, not in the form of an FAQ (frequently asked questions), but in the text itself. This has a very high persuasive character! Only through this differentiation according to decision-maker types can you use your website very strategically. Start studying your buyer types and then build a separate page for each type – ideally optimised for the keywords (see tip 4) of each type!
Many web agencies sell their clients, especially in B2B, expensive Adwords campaigns to bring even more visitors to the website. According to the iROI strategy (iROI strategy), this is rather a weak solution for B2B companies, because you don’t need more visitors (as with many B2C projects), but more buyers who are enthusiastic about your website and then about you.
Think about it: Who are you really building your website for?
Last updated on 7. February 2023
