What is the priority need of

Business Customers?

SATISFY
THEIR OWN
CUSTOMERS
AND CLIENTS
 Business customers are more rational

• Concern about product quality/functionality,

delivery service
• Dependability: concerns over sudden plant
shutdowns, employee strikes, explosions, toxic
spills, and other unplanned occurrences
• Corporate responsiveness and sensitivity to
customer complaints, speedy maintenance,
repair
• Reassuring customers that their needs and
concerns are the company’s top priority
FOR BUSINESS MARKETS, MANY DIFFERENT PEOPLE
MAY INFLUENCE A PURCHASING DECISION

WHO ARE THEY?

THEY ARE THE BUYING CENTER.
• PURCHASING MANAGER
• R&D PEOPLE
• TOP MANAGEMENT
• LINE WORKERS AND THEIR
SUPERVISORS
 Sales person must
• Study each case carefully to find out who
to talk witt and the various roles in the
buying center.
• Study the business customer’s purchase
policies.
• Study the business’s culture and personal
characteristics of members of buying
center.
 3 kinds of buying processes
• New Task Buying: when a Business
Customer has a new need.
• Straight rebuy : a routine purchase made
many times before
• Modified rebuy : when a Business
Customer want to improve /modify/ tailor
their products to suit their customers’ new
needs.
 3 kinds of buying processes
Characteristics New Task Modified Straight
buying rebuy rebuy
Time required Much Medium Little

Multiple influence Much Some Little

Review of Much Some None

suppliers
Information Much Some Little
needed
Business buying decision process
 Business buying decision process
I. Recognize the problem
Machine malfunction – introduce or modify a product (new
materials, lower price, better quality
I. Develop product specifications to solve the
problem
II. Search for and evaluate possible products and
suppliers
Search for products and suppliers
Conduct suppliers analysis : a formal, systematic evaluation of
current and potential vendors (price, quality, delivery service,
availability and overall reliability)
I. Select product and supplier and order product
Multiple sourcing – sole sourcing
I. Evaluate product and supplier performance
Compare products with specifications
Results evaluation for future purchases
 Major sources of information used
by Business Customers
MKT sources Non-MKT sources

Personal Sources • Sales people • Buyng center

• Others from supplier members
firms • Outside business
• Trade shows associates
• Outside consultants/
experts
Impersonal Sources • Advertising in Trade • Rating services
Publications • Trade Associations
• Sales literature • News Publications
• Sales catalogues • Product directory
• Web pages • Internet
 Influences on Business Buying
Environmental Factors
• Competition
• Industry Growth
• Resources constraints
• New Technology
Organizational Factors
• The company’s objectives, purchasing policies,
resources
• Changes in the buying center
 Influences on Business Buying
Individual Factors
• Personal characteristics of people in the
buying center (age, education level,
personality,...)
 Discussion
• As a sales person/ a marketer in the
business market, do you think you need
your business customers to share some
sort of their information with you such as
cost data, forecasts, new product design.
• And how does your business customers
think about this requirement of yours?
 Discussion
• Good buying organizations provide regular
feedback to their suppliers without being
asked.
• Smart suppliers listen closely and respond
to them accordingly
 Discussion
• As a sales person/ a marketer in the
business market, should you create on-
going coordination of activities between
your company and your business
customers’ .
 Discussion
• You are an industrial supplier, one of your
business customers asks you to custom
design a new product for them (just only
for one customer). What would you do?
 Discussion
• You are a marketer, you want to raise your
price to cover increasing costs. One of
your business customers demands that
you show a breakdown of all your content
from materials to labor to profit? What
would you do?
• 2) B2B Buyers Are More "Rational"
• B2B Products Are Often More Complex
• Limited Number Of Buying Units In B2B Markets
• Personal Relationships Are More Important In B2B
Markets
• ) B2B Buyers Are Longer-Term Buyers
• B2B Markets Drive Innovation Less Than Consumer
Markets
• ) Consumer Markets Rely Far More On Packaging
• B2B Buyers Are More Demanding
• B2B Markets Have Fewer Behavioural And Needs-
Based Segments
• *
• Understanding The Buyer's Journey: The Heart of Good B2B
Marketing
• Understanding the buyer's journey sits at the heart of good B2B Marketing
practice. Marketers should allow the journey their buyers go on - from
uninterested and unaware in their products or services, to defining their
problems and their need, to expressing interest in your solutions, to
purchasing and becoming a loyal customer - to inform every action, every
campaign, and every piece of content.
• g2m Solutions uses the foundation of buyer behaviour developed by our
partners MathMarketing, in all its go to market planning, b2b marketing
training, content marketing and when we design lead generation engines for
our clients.
• What next? Please complete the short form below to receive an email with
your complimentary whitepaper on the buyer's journey.
•
•
• Routine buyers – these buyers have no strong attachment to the salesperson, the
vendor, or the product. It is needed, so they buy it. As a result, they often pay full
price for each product and they seldom receive outstanding service.
• Attentive buyers – these buyers know the product is important to their company and
they know what alternatives to your product are available from competitors. They tend
to be price-sensitive and they demand a higher level of service. They usually receive
a small discount and above-average service
• Relationship buyers – these purchasing agents know the importance of the product,
the competitive landscape, and their sales representatives. They tend to prefer
working with a particular vendor as long as the price remains competitive. They
typically receive a small discount and average service.
• Bargain hunters – these buyers know the importance of the product, know the
competitive landscape, demand exceptional service, and will change vendors for a
lower price or better service. They generally get the best discounts and service, and
they are thus less profitable. They are generally important to the company because
they account for the volume that reduces production costs.
•
Read more at
http://www.business2community.com/b2b-marketing/principles-of-market-segmentati
on-part-2-business-to-business-0391062#9ZXGUwKcMb5m5a6r.99