Don’t let the age of AI make you forget the B2B buyer is human

The useful part

Today, as I look across tech, industrial, and professional services, I see hundreds of companies doing extraordinary work. I see marketing leaders holding onto outdated assumptions about why B2B buyers really make decisions. I see executives, marketers, and customers missing the point about what AI does well and what it can never replace.

How it works

• Long sales cycles can be measured with short-term metrics B2B purchases are frequently made by multiple decision-makers, after extensive research, over months or even years of consideration.
• Had we measured ourselves on the number of demos requested or clicks to our site, we'd have targeted only the comparatively small number of buy...
• It's clear that B2B marketers have never had more sophisticated tools at their disposal.
• Here are three myths they need to bust if they want to get the most out of those tools, and the people who use them.
• Yet the marketing to influence them is often managed by short-term metrics.

What to take from it

The key to better B2B sales outcomes—and better decision-making along the way—is to focus on what matters most in long-haul buying cycles: creating a memorable brand. When I was at GE, where long cycle was the name of the game, the goal was not to explain every technical detail in our marketing. It was to create meaning and differentiation so future customers knew and trusted GE.