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There are three basic kinds of B2B purchase situations. Each of these must be supported
by different marketing strategies. The first kind is called New Task Buying: This is when
a business is making a risky type of purchase for the first time. In this case, the purchaser
which will require much more information than usual as they are, presumably, ill-informed
about the nuances surrounding the purchase. The purchasing company may have many influencers
involved in the process, which increases the complexity of the sale. Usually, these situations
require a longer sales cycle and possibly a bid process. The types of purchases that
might be included in this situation would be when a company is purchasing a fleet of
cars for the first time or perhaps implementing a new information system. For this situation,
websites and both search engine marketing and search engine optimization are usually
very important in providing initial information about the product and company to the prospect.
Often, the first company that gets their foot in the door gets the job! Timing is everything.
This is why direct mailing, emailing, telemarketing and canvassing are used! In other words, prospecting
is extremely important. The first salesperson to contact the prospect can present their
information in such a way as to make it seem as if no other company's proposal is necessary.
This is called "hand-holding". When I was New Product Development Manager at Aramark
Uniform Services, we used to monitor new business licenses at the local chambers of commerce.
We would then drive by the anticipated new location of the business periodically, hoping
to be the first uniform rental company to meet with the business decision-maker. If
we were, our chances of making the sale were very good. You see, for a new business like
a quick service restaurant, which will need to rent uniforms for their employees, selecting
a uniform provider was not one of their highest priorities; building the location, purchasing
the kitchen appliances, hiring the employees, and obtaining inventory were all perceived
as more important. Thus, if our salesperson was the first one to meet with the manager,
the desire to meet with anymore rental uniform companies was low! The second kind of B2B
purchase situation is called a Straight Rebuy: This includes routine or frequently purchased
products. Such purchases require little-to-no information, often involve only one person
during the purchase process, and have a shorter, and sometimes instantaneous sales cycle time.
What I mean by instantaneous is that these re-purchases might be made electronically,
by a computerized order system that has been programmed to make pre-determined purchases,
based on inventory levels. In other words, a human might not even be involved in this
kind of purchase situation! So, how does a marketer approach such a situation? If the
client is already yours, then the most important thing to do is provide good service and have
the sales force conduct relationship-building activities. A good example of this would be
office supplies. If you are an office supply provider, the most important thing to do is
deliver your products on time, provide competitive prices (not necessarily the lowest, but comparable)
and have your salesperson visit the buyer every once in a while to "touch base". Often,
these salespeople will bring donuts to the office or take the buyer to lunch, just to
remind them that they are important. However, what if your sales person meets with a prospective
client and they already have a vendor for your products with which they have a solid
relationship. What should they be trained to do? A good salesperson will not simply
walk away from a prospect in this situation. What will they do? This is when a salesperson
should attempt to setup a "nurture account". A nurture account is when a salesperson contacts
a prospect occasionally looking for an opportunity to get their business sometime in the future.
Here's how it works: Going back to my office supplies scenario, a sales person meets with
a prospect who is already doing business with another office supplies provider, and is happy
with them. The salesperson's job at this point is to try and get the prospect to provide
them with their email address. He or she might say something like "I am glad you have a good
relationship with your current vendor. Would you mind, however, if I email you information
about exclusive products my company gets from time-to-time that I think you might be interested
in?" There is no guarantee they will provide the email address, but if it seems sincere
and risk-free, the odds are in the salesperson's favor. What next? Marketing should then take
over the account by sending meaningful, interesting emails to the prospect every few months. If
they do this well, this situation can lead to the next type of purchase situation: the
Modified Rebuy. This is when the prospect is looking for a new vendor. This can happen
for several reasons: The current vendor has let them down. The current vendor has gone
out of business. The contact person at the company they have been buying from has changed
and the buyer does not like them. A new buyer has started work at the company and wants
to look into using new vendors. No matter the reason, by setting up a nurture account,
my company would be in a good situation to at least be requested to bid on the business
when this opportunity arises!