Wow, what a conference. Day 3 was short and sweet, so this post will be too. I’ll leave you all with five key takeaways, one anti-key takeaway, and 10 of my favorite quotes/stats I gathered throughout all three days here in Las Vegas. Then I promise to leave you and your inbox alone… until my next campaign, at least.
Key Takeaways:
- Buying difficulty has commercial consequences.
- Customers are looking for information, not conversations. They want the conversation for the sake of information.
- B2B buying isn’t linear – it’s about completion, not progression.
- Customers are channel agnostic when it comes to job completion.
- Suppliers must deploy Buyer Enablement through both sales and marketing channels for all buying jobs.
Anti-Key Takeaway:
Brent Adamson made sure to right a wrong in his closing keynote. The same quote was posted throughout the conference on social media: “Brent says, ‘Your customers want a seamless experience!'” Firstly, Brent wants us to know Brent did not say that! Secondly, customers don’t want an experience; customers want help. Lastly, it’s not that customers want a seamless experience, it’s that customer do go to multiple channels to find the help they need. They are seeking information, and it’s in our best interest as a supplier to make that process easier.
My Top 10 Quotes/Stats (in no particular order):
- “There are fewer opportunities for sales to communicate potential value.” (Scott Collins, VP of Advisory at Gartner)
- “How do we win the right to get more time with our customers? We’ve got to provide more value. We have to give our customers a reason to talk to us in the first place.” (Brent Adamson, Distinguished VP of Advisory at Gartner)
- “What are you going to say that customers haven’t figured out on their own?” (Brent Adamson)
- “How can we start showing up as learn-it-alls instead of know-it-alls?” (Rick Sirois, Director of Business & Operations Program Management at Microsoft)
- “When data and stories are used together, audiences are affected both intellectually and emotionally.” (Jennifer Aaker, Behavioral Psychologist, Author and Professor at Stanford Graduate School of Business)
- “How many of you use PowerPoint?” **Almost the whole audience raises their hand.** “Okay, that’s a problem!” (Jennifer Aaker)
- “People always ask, ‘Well, how do I know what’s hard for my buyer?’ …Ask them!” (Brent Adamson)
- “What factors slowed down your B2B purchase?” 28.81% answered “difficulty showing ROI.” (Showpad Study)
- “Which tools, if they were available, would accelerate buying decisions?” 44.05% answered “ROI analysis or calculator.” (Showpad Study)
- The #1 reason sales don’t make quota: Inability to articulate unique value. (SiriusDecisions Study)
