Added on May 5, 2010 Ray Collis The Buying Revolution

Why Saying Buying Has Changed Is An Understatement

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Buying has changed, that is little doubt about that. As salespeople we have witnessed first hand the changes and many of them have hurt us in the pocket. But add up all the changes and it amounts to something revolutionary.

How Much Has Buying Changed?

We all know that buying decisions are taking longer, that buyer priorities have changed, that more decisions are being stalled. We are also painfully aware that accessing and influencing the decision maker (or more to the point decision makers, as there seem to be so many people now involved in the decision making process) is much more difficult than at any time in the past.

So, there is no doubt that buying has changed. We all know it to be true. However, just how much it has changed is something that we can easily underestimate. Afterall, these changes have been happening behind closed doors.

Did You Know There Was A Revolution in Buying?

We were as guilty as anybody in our profession of underestimating the changes in buying – that is until we started talking to manager-buyers in some of the world’s largest companies. They quickly put us in the picture. Buying has not just changed, it has undergone a REVOLUTION.

This revolution is manifest in more than 10 ways, as shown below:

Are The Changes Reflected In How You Sell?

There are few of these changes that will surprise you. However, the test for us as sellers is the extent to which they are reflected in how we now sell.

Let’s face it most salespeople are selling the same way today as they were 3, 5, or 10 years ago. That means that while buying has changed, selling has pretty much stayed the same.

Our book The B2B Sales Revolution™ goes into the detail not just of how today’s buyer buy, but more importantly how they want to be sold to. It challenges us all as salespeople to reflect the new realities of the buying process, the business case and the buying team in how we sell.

The B2B Sales Revolution™ explains how last year’s cold call, sales pitch and sales proposal are no longer enough to cut the mustard and what we as sellers need to do about it. That is pretty priceless information and just the guidance that is required to put sales figures on the road to recovery.