Describing who an ideal customer is has become a foundational part of B2B business strategy. We look at the characteristics of our best customers and use them to identify other companies that may be a good fit.
But fit only tells us part of the story. Our best customers also have patterns in how they buy.
Understanding those patterns gives us a richer picture of an ideal customer. It helps us recognize not only who may be a good fit, but what gets them moving and how their decision takes shape. When we understand that buying motion, we can design our sales system to better support how our customers actually buy.
What starts a B2B buying motion?
When crafting an ideal customer profile, most people start with characteristics that help identify a good-fit prospect. For B2B companies, that usually includes firmographics such as industry, company size, location or business model. Qualifiers and disqualifiers can make that picture more useful.
These characteristics matter. They help sales and marketing teams identify and target the companies they are best positioned to serve. They also give us criteria we can use in our CRM, lead scoring and prospecting tools.
But not every signal we can identify or search for is about fit.
A change in management, a new source of funding or a shift in regulation may not make a company a better fit. Instead, it may change what is happening inside an already good-fit company. A new priority emerges. A familiar problem becomes more urgent. The company becomes more ready to act.
Fit and readiness aren’t the same thing. Fit helps us recognize the companies we are well positioned to serve. Readiness helps us recognize when one of those companies may begin moving towards a buying decision.
And once they begin moving, the decision itself starts to take shape.
What does a B2B buying motion look like?
Buying isn’t simply the reverse side of your sales process. It’s not that you take an action and the customer responds in a predictable way with the corresponding action you have cued up. If that were the case, we would hand everyone a contract and a pen as early as we could.
Especially in consultative sales, there is often more of a dance.
One person may make the initial connection. Other people become involved over time. Priorities, perceived risks and confidence can change as the decision progresses. A decision that seemed definite can accelerate, stall or even disappear. And something that may not seem important to us can signal meaningful progress inside the buying company.
Each buyer’s journey can seem unique. Yet, when we look back at our best customers, we can often see patterns. They may express things differently or take different amounts of time, but the motion can be surprisingly similar.
Look back at what was happening when they started to take action. Notice who got involved first, and who else needed to get involved before the decision was final. Consider what mattered as the decision progressed, what got in the way and almost stopped the deal, and when that happened. Then look at what ultimately gave them the confidence to proceed.
Looking carefully at some of your best deals can reveal the patterns that help your best customers move towards a decision. Once you understand those patterns, you can start considering how to meet buyers where they are and help them move forward.
How can buying motion improve your sales system?
Understanding your customer’s buying motion is more than a useful customer insight. It can help you design a sales system that better reflects what is actually happening with the buyer.
When you know what meaningful progress looks like from the customer’s perspective, you can get better at recognizing real sales opportunities. That can inform deal scoring, pipeline management and forecasting. Instead of relying only on sales activities, you can look for evidence that something has changed with the buyer.
Buying motion can also inform how your organization responds as a decision progresses. Different people may need to get involved at different times. Certain activities or resources may help move the decision forward. At other times, the better response may be to wait.
The sales system itself needs to support this. The information you capture, the processes your team follows, and the systems and tools they use should help people recognize and respond to the customer’s buying motion.
Your sales system performs better when it reflects the buying behaviour of your best customers. What you do, when you do it and what you use to help you can all be informed by how your customers actually buy.
Finally,
Knowing who your best customers are tells you where to focus. Understanding how they buy tells you how to better design your sales system around them.
Much of that understanding may already exist within your organization. Your best sales reps and leadership team have likely learned to recognize some of these patterns through experience. They show up in the things people do that work and in the conversations and activities that help customers move forward.
Often, that knowledge is hiding in plain sight.
The opportunity is to bring that knowledge together and look at your sales process from the customer’s perspective. To look for the patterns in how your best customers actually buy, and then consider where your sales system supports that motion and where it gets in the way.
What do you think is important to the buying motion of your best customers?
