Lesson 2: Buyers learn (a lot) before buying.


Similar to studies undertaken by the Corporate Executive Board and others, PeopleMetrics research found that around half of a buyer’s decision-making time occurs without any interaction with a company’s employees.


This time is spent learning about a company, its competition, and the solutions available for their pain points.


On average, buyers invest around 90


hours choosing a B2B partner, and half of that time is spent in online and network research.


That means prospects spend considerable resources to get to know companies before they speak with them.


Lesson 3: People drive decisions.


Human interactions influence the buyer’s purchase decision. This chart shows the difference in the proportion of buyers who spend time in meetings, either over the phone or in-person with potential partners.


It shows when personal interactions take place, the likelihood of buying is greater. That means human interaction is a predictor of sales success, but just as importantly, so is the amount and variety of that interaction.


Human Contact: Winning vs. Rejected Vendors


22pt diff


71% 58% 46% 68% 66% 57% 42% 30% 27% 16%


Winning Company Rejected Company


26% 18%


Enterprise Sale ($500k or higher)


Large Sale ($100k - 499,999) Medium ($25k - 99,999) Time Spent in Buyer’s Journey by Contract Size 127 97 55


Hours Average


33 86


Small (Under $25k)


Phone


In-Person


Email


Live Demo


Video Conference


Social Media Interactions


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