Intro
The B2B industry is often not the focus of online statistics. People tend to care more about retail businesses and services. However, B2B businesses deserve attention. A lot of the information can be used to improve how you market, run and profit from your business.
So here are some of the top B2B statistics you need to know.
General Statistics
- B2B digital sales grew by 10.9% in 2019.
- Many B2B retailers have been using the internet for more than two years to ensure smooth operations.
- 61% of B2B transactions begin online.
- 85% of B2B businesses will utilize live chat in the sales process.
- The B2B eCommerce market reached $1.134 trillion in 2018, nearly 20% more than predicted.
- Allowing for a range in payment methods is crucial for success as B2B buyers are very diverse in how they now pay for goods and services online.
B2B Buyer Expectations
- The importance of customer experience will increase in the future, according to 86% of B2B CMOs.
- 33% of B2B buyers want a better customer experience than they’ve received in the past.
- B2B buyers rank features/functionalities (73%), pricing (72%), reviews (59%), development time/ease of use (56%) and solving a pain point (47%) as the most important factors when purchasing a solution.
- If you’re selling to B2B customers, concentrating on their experience can increase revenue by up to 10%.
- 86% of B2B buyers will be overwhelmed when provided with more than ten types of sales content.
- 42% of B2B buyers feel overwhelmed when provided with more than five types of sales content.
- 81% of early-stage B2B buyers prefer listicles, 72% will read visual content and infographics regularly, while 66% enjoy reading business blogs.
- 58% of mid-stage buyers prefer to see assessments. Half will want to watch webinars, while 40% are more interested in case studies.
- For late-stage B2B buyers, case studies are the preferred marketing material (39%) and user reviews (38%).76% of B2B buyers have an increased demand for personalized content and sales material.
- 97% of B2B buyers want content on a vendor’s website to be more relevant to their brand.
- The majority of buyers will place orders via a website (80%), email (77%) and mobile phones (72%).
- 77% of B2B buyers found that their last purchase was too complicated and challenging.
B2B Networks
- 35% of a B2B brand’s revenue is influenced by external organizations, according to 60% of business leaders.
- Only 6% of organizations are actively attempting to build their network.
- 63% of B2B brands have used start-ups and digital ventures to help them improve operations.
- Most B2B companies (84%) have no idea about their partners’ pipelines.
- Businesses that cultivate good partner relationship campaigns are 63% more likely to accomplish revenue goals.
- Three-quarters of B2B vendors implementing a Partner Relationship Management program have more visibility into their partners’ pipelines.
B2B Marketing
- Companies deploy a wide range of marketing strategies, including social media (95%), blogging (89%), email marketing (81%), in-person events (73%) and videos (71%).
- The most effective lead-generating strategy is in-person events according to 19% of business leaders.
- In-person events are the most effective lead conversion option for 25% of B2B brands.
- Email marketing is the most effective demand generation for 79% of marketers.
- Over two-thirds (69%) of B2B marketers document a content marketing strategy.
- Only 42% of B2B marketers believe their content marketing strategy is sophisticated or mature.
- A personalized website experience can increase sales by 19%.
- The most effective lead generation tactic was email marketing (50%), SEO/SEM (43%), content marketing (34%), live events (32%) and social media (23%).
- According to 59% of B2B marketers, an effective SEO strategy has the most effect on lead generation. That's why you should spend time on creating a content strategy that works.
The B2B Buying Process
- Nearly 70% of the B2B buyer’s journey is finished before the prospect speaks to a sales representative.
- Only 48% of B2B buyers rely solely on the vendor’s website to conduct research and make a purchase decision based on that.
- 77% of B2B buyers spend more time researching vendors.
- Only 53% of B2B buyers will utilize social media content as a research resource during the buying process.
- 54% of B2B sales representatives now find it more challenging to speak to prospects than they did five years ago.
- At least 50% of initial prospects have no requirement for the product or service that the sales representative is calling about.
- Nine out of ten decision-makers will not respond to cold outreach campaigns.
- The vendor’s knowledge of the solution and business landscape is the most important reason why a buyer will choose one vendor over another.
- Four in five businesses no longer use a sales calendar.
- The buying process has lengthened for 68% of B2B buyers.
B2B Software
- About a third of B2B businesses (30%) are expected to start using AI by December 2020.
- Investment in data, improving customer experiences and multi-channel marketing are vital for B2B marketing departments currently.
- More than half of high-tech B2B sales are expected to come through digital channels.
- Those brands utilizing a high degree of digital marketing will generate five times the revenue of their peers.
- A quarter of businesses (25%) will utilize AR technology by the end of 2022.
B2B Sellers Using Data
- Over two-thirds (68%) of vendors believe that customer data management is vital for driving growth for their business.
- Nearly one in five businesses (19%) utilize social listening in their marketing and data collection campaigns.
The Covid-19 Pandemic and B2B Brands
- Two-thirds of businesses in the tourism and hospitality niche reported the pandemic significantly impacted their business.
- Nearly half (47%) of businesses have experienced budget freezes or budget reductions.
- Nine in ten business executives believe that remote, digital sales methods will become a new part of normal business.
- 97% of business leaders and B2B buyers are willing to purchase in an end-to-end, digital self-service environment.
- Three-quarters of business leaders believe that the new sales methods created by the pandemic are as effective or more effective than old business models.
- Only 20% of B2B buyers are now willing to interact face-to-face with sales representatives.
Final Word:
The B2B space is very competitive. Above are the statistics you need to know to learn about the trends and advantages. Using this information, you can improve your chances of being a successful B2B business leader.
