What is b2b sales?

B2B is an abbreviation of “business-to-business”, which translates to “business to business”. It is a type of sales where buyers are some legal entities and sellers or suppliers are other legal entities. Commercial relationships with individuals are considered simpler than b2b sales. Organizations working in this field cooperate with professional customers who agree to conduct only the most profitable transactions. Add to this longer sales cycle, a number of important and necessary documents (often accompanying any contract), the specifics of cooperation with legal entities – the output is what business-to-business constantly copes with.

Types of b2b sales

Below let’s look at what types of b2b sales there are:

1. Selling a product that meets a business requirement (e.g., office supplies or computer equipment). Often the sales method is similar to the b2c process, except for certain ancillary steps (such as coordination with the purchasing department). There is a pattern: the more difficult and valuable the product, the longer the sales cycle needs to be and the more people will be involved in the transaction on the customer side.
2. Selling products that the firm will use to make its own goods. For example, a tire manufacturer may sell them for an automobile manufacturer.
3. the wholesale sale of goods to be sold to retailers. This delivery structure often involves selling goods wholesale to a legal entity that sells to retailers. For example, selling books from a publisher wholesale to bookstores or wholesaling clothing to a chain of clothing stores.
4. Sale of services. A standard example is a firm that provides accounting services for a small business (tax consultant services).

What is the difference between b2b and b2c

The main difference between business-to-business and business-to-consumer is that in the former, the transaction is between two legal entities, while in the latter, it is between a legal entity and an individual. Apart from this, there are several other aspects:

• Many interested parties

Approximately up to 10 people are taken on to carry out one contract, which generates the process of correctly drawing up all the documents and paying taxes. Quite often in smaller companies, important purchasing decisions are made not only by key employees, but also by the CEO.

• Long sales cycle

Because of this property of the b2b sector, it sometimes seems that the deal will last forever, because new obstacles are constantly appearing in the process. This can also include the increased price of goods, the difficult path of engaging potential buyers, and the focus on a rational approach rather than an emotional feeling.

• Large-scale transactions

They include bulk purchases with the intention of further sales, quality improvement of work production and the process of setting up a production system. Many employees are involved in the transaction as interaction between different departments is required. As a result, b2b is a field where specialists are paid higher than in b2c because:

1. a) Complex processes need to be followed;
2. b) serious sales yield higher profits.

Advantages and disadvantages of b2b sales

Like any field, b2b sales is an area that has its pros and cons.

The advantages include:

1. It is possible to achieve high revenues by working with a small number of large clients.
2. Many of the consumers who contact the company are already ready to cooperate.
3. There is less competition in the b2b industry than, for example, in b2c.
4. In certain areas, business can be expanded both in the domestic market and in the foreign market.
5. Quite often at the start of the growth of the enterprise can be limited to a small capital.

As for the disadvantages of this sphere, they are as follows:

1. The efficiency of the entire company is based on the qualifications and experience of the staff.
2. The effectiveness of the company depends on the state of affairs at customer firms. 3.
3. It is required to continuously find new customers, as there is a constant risk of losing the current ones.
4. Small marginal income.

Sales methods in the b2b industry

In business-to-consumer customers often buy products without consulting a salesperson, but in business-to-business almost all sales are conducted with the help of a manager. It is his or her talent for finding and generating customer interest that determines the outcome of the transactions. Let’s look at the techniques that are used in the b2b industry below.

1. Presentation

Presentation of the offered product or service is usually prepared in advance. However, this is not always good, as the manager often does not take into account the needs of the client. Therefore, even the strongest arguments and persuasive words do not bring the expected result.

In order for the presentation to work, find out what the potential client is interested in, and then emphasize the advantages of the product, taking into account the data obtained. In such a situation, thanks to the presentation, you will establish contact with the buyer and will be able to convince him that the proposed product will fully cover his request.

2. Customer-oriented selling

Sales should start with individual communication, during which the manager gets acquainted with the needs and objectives of the client, considers them and recommends a solution using his product.

There are no classic scripts, ready-made plans or uniform solutions – each situation is exceptional. The outcome of the transaction depends on the manager’s experience, his skill in building relationships and his ability to think analytically.

3. Expert selling

In this situation, the manager does not make the sale in the open – he shows the company’s position, its innovations, successes, experience and qualifications of employees.

Components of such a sale include speaker presentations, webinars, scientific publications and research. Information that confirms a company’s prowess is easy to find on available resources. By studying such data, the client will be convinced that the chosen organization is indeed one of the best options. Which will encourage him to purchase the goods offered by this particular company.

To achieve good results in b2b, it is not enough to use one of the sales methods, you need to combine them. It is ideal when a manager can and knows how to use several methods at once and adjust to any client.

How to increase sales in the b2b industry

You can use tools like these to improve sales:

• Profile activities

This includes various seminars, exhibitions, conferences. At specialized events, companies show their goods, get acquainted with the participants of such events, establish a relationship with potential customers.

• Contextual advertising

Banners with a concise statement of the advantages of products show potential customers who have entered the appropriate query in a search engine.

• Sales representatives

Employees of the selling firm organize a meeting with representatives of the enterprise-buyer, present the product or service and make the sale.

• Website landing pages

Many companies have these. The site publishes information about the business and its products, terms of cooperation and contact information. Anyone interested can either contact the company directly or fill out a form for feedback.

• Entrepreneurial tenders

Buying companies organize competitive tenders in which potential sellers offer their goods. As a result, the organizer of such a tender chooses the company that was able to offer the most tempting conditions to work together.

• Email marketing

In emails, firms notify their customers about upcoming events, discounts or promotions, tell them about bonus projects, thus reminding them about themselves. This is one of the most effective ways of sales.

• SEO and SMM

These tools affect business promotion indirectly. The more people know about the organization, the more chances that potential customers are present among them.

• Telemarketing

This is where potential customers are called. During the conversation, they inform about the advantages of the product and offer to cooperate. The method is common and quite labor-intensive, but at the same time necessary for newcomer companies.

To increase sales in b2b there are 2 strategies:

1. The business itself promotes its product through various marketing tools and end-to-end analytics.
2. Distributors promote the business, as well as its products and services. For the work done, they get their share of the sales.

Dynamics of b2b sales development

At the moment there are quite a lot of innovations in the b2b sphere, but at the same time the buyer’s road has become longer and more complicated. To make a deal, a customer needs to overcome a number of steps:

• identifying and formulating a problem;
• finding a solution to the problem;
• compiling a list of requirements;
• finding and selecting a stable and reliable seller;
• controlling and approving the need;
• harmonization and agreement.

To summarize

To be productive in b2b sales, you need to settle a lot of functions and adapt to the fact that everything around you are constantly changing. Your product may remain unchanged. But the state of the market, the mood, demands and needs of your customers – all these things are bound to become different. B2b sales is a special field with its own routines and philosophy. It’s a story about personal relationships and maintaining credibility, and only then is it about commerce.

Olha Tyshchenko

Editor

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