Data and analytics are evolving B2B sales, and for good. No doubt about that. With that in place, where does the ‘human element’ and traditional research stand, and how can that enable your B2B sales? Let me explain.
Traditional research is not the only tool being used by B2B marketers to drive forward the growth of B2B sales. Traditional research is being augmented with advanced analytics to create a 360-degree view of each customer. This then creates a detailed profile of each customer for the marketer and the salesperson in order to facilitate effective account-based selling and marketing.
Here are more ways how research can facilitate the growth of B2B Sales:
Research helps find you the right data to win big deals
Simple desk based research can reveal a lot of about your customers. This is primarily because traditional research is powered by human intelligence which is equipped with the ability to filter out and extract key insights from publicly available sources such as company website and social media sites. Leveraging simple desk based research helps in finding the right data can reveal deep insights about target customers and can be the difference between success and failure of ABM program.
Data is crucial for targeted marketing initiatives
In a survey of 250 B2B professionals, the 6th Annual B2B Marketing Data Report reveals some key insights. 88% believe data is crucial for Account Based Marketing initiatives and 89% believe data quality drives the right B2B sales and marketing campaigns. According to the report, “data” is viewed as a key catalyst that drives forward sales and marketing campaigns and in turn, improving business performance overall. These key insights prove that data is crucial for targeted marketing programs, like Account Based Marketing.
Access to actionable insight enables sales and marketing alignment
Sales and Marketing alignment is brought by Account Insight through the unity of insight. Sales and Marketing teams are level in terms of insight, and empowers co-ordination based on the same insight. Account Insight helps in the achievement of Sales and Marketing alignment which drives positive business results, such as higher revenue and higher profit growth. Forrester Research data revealed that aligned Sales and Marketing teams witness 32% yearly revenue growth whereas unaligned teams see 7% negative growth.
Conclusion
Research helps in enabling the growth of B2B sales through helping you find the right data, which is crucial for targeted marketing initiatives. In addition to helping you find the right and high quality data, access to actionable insight enables sales and marketing alignment as Account Insight brings forward unity in terms of insight. In sum, research is a strong tool that drives forward real business results through sales and marketing alignment and empowering understanding of target customers.