個案資料

Today, the information required to make highly technical and complex purchasing decisions is readily available to buyers through online, intelligently enabled self-service tools. So what happens to the traditional B2B sales structure? It evolves. Four disruptive shifts are creating the urgency and change, the root causes of which are deep and permanent: 1) B2B customer expectations are (surprisingly) not following B2C trends, such as Amazon-like shopping experiences, smart product replenishment, and consultative selling. 2) Widely available and extremely sophisticated technological capabilities are automating the selling process and making relevant sales recommendations, and they are always available with a responsive interface. 3) The retail market is consolidating, with traditional concepts of shelf space and brick-and-mortar becoming less relevant. 4) The previous three shifts together are leading to a radically redefined outside salesforce whose relevance, efficacy, and efficiency are diminishing. These shifts will see large B2B selling organizations supplanted by smaller commercial organizations that integrate marketing, sales, and service activities. The authors discern three pillars at the centre of a 21st-century commercial capability: 1) a reimagined customer experience, 2) technology-enabled sales execution, and 3) a digital-ready commercial organization.

• B2B market disruption, B2B sales, Evolving sales models, sales management