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2 – Gartner, 2021
As the B2B sector digitises, the role of guided selling is evolving, too. New AI and technologies are helping businesses to nurture customers down the sales funnel with more personalised experiences. Here we explore some of the solutions that could help transform your business' B2B sales strategy.
What is B2B guided selling?
B2B guided selling is a strategy that leverages technology, data, and expert-driven recommendations to help buyers make informed purchasing decisions.
It’s no secret that a successful B2B sales strategy involves a high degree of personalisation. Guided selling promotes this by using AI-driven data analytics tools to actively guide prospects through the buying process to a curated selection of products. They are no longer overwhelmed with excessive volumes of choice; instead they are delivered a streamlined customer experience that increases their chances of returning to the business.
As the B2B sector digitises, guided selling tools can be applied to self-serve customer portals, or used in tandem with human interaction.
Benefits of B2B guided selling
Personalised customer experiences
According to research firm Gartner1, 86% of B2B customers expect companies to be well-informed about their personal information during interactions. Guided selling uses AI and analytics to tailor recommendations based on customers' past behaviors and preferences – ensuring they receive highly personalised solutions.
Increased conversions
B2B guided selling removes friction and “decision fatigue” from the customer journey, helping buyers to make informed choices quicker. This increases their likelihood of completing the sale. Furthermore, the data capabilities of guided selling tools maximise order value through intelligent cross-selling and upselling.
Enhanced competitiveness
Research by Gartner2 found that 75% of B2B sales organizations will augment their traditional sales methods with guided selling solutions by 2025 to better connect with customers and drive conversions. Leaning into guided selling will help your business keep up.
Seamless omnichannel sale
Though B2B e-commerce is growing, many businesses still use sales reps in some capacity, too. Smart guided selling solutions ensure a consistent buying experience across all touchpoints, enhancing engagement by providing personalized recommendations across all.
The growing role of AI in B2B sales
AI-driven solutions transform the B2B sales strategy by analysing customer data and delivering personalised recommendations, insights, and support. Below are some examples.
A personalied approach
- AI analyses a buyer’s company size, industry, past interactions, and purchase history to provide highly relevant recommendations.
- Dynamic content personalisation ensures that prospects receive case studies, product demos, and marketing materials tailored to their unique needs.
- Automated email campaigns and chatbots can adjust messaging based on a prospect’s behavior and preferences, improving engagement.
As an example, a manufacturing company visits a software provider’s website multiple times, engaging with automation-related content. AI detects this interest and triggers a sales email with case studies relevant to automation in manufacturing.
Data-driven insights
- AI processes vast amounts of customer data to identify patterns, preferences, and potential buying triggers.
- Predictive analytics help sales teams forecast customers’ needs and proactively offer solutions.
- Competitive analysis tools compare customers’ interests with market trends, helping refine product positioning and value propositions.
As an example, a B2B company selling supply chain software can use AI technology to analyse recorded calls. It can identify key phrases that indicate strong buying intent, allowing sales reps to prioritise high-value leads.
Consultative selling
- AI assists sales reps in shifting from transactional sales to a consultative approach by providing deep insights into customers’ pain points.
- Virtual assistants can recommend conversation starters, industry-specific solutions, and real-world success stories to build trust.
- AI-powered CRM systems suggest the best follow-up strategies to nurture leads effectively.
As an example, a cybersecurity firm can use AI chatbots to ask website visitors about their current security challenges. If a visitor expresses concerns about compliance, the bot connects them with a sales rep who specialises in compliance solutions.
AI-powered assistance
- Real-time AI guidance provides instant recommendations to sales reps during calls, meetings, or email interactions.
- Chatbots and virtual assistants can answer customer queries 24/7, ensuring continuous engagement even outside business hours.
- AI-driven automation streamlines administrative tasks, such as lead qualification, scheduling follow-ups, and managing customer records, allowing sales teams to focus on relationship-building.
As an example, a cloud solutions provider can use AI to equip sales reps with the most relevant product demos in real time, ensuring an engaging conversation with prospects.
Four B2B guided selling best practices
These are strategies your business can lean into to enhance the customer buying experience and increase conversions.
1. Prioritise personalisation
As we’ve touched upon, B2B buyers truly value personalised experiences. Here’s a couple of examples:
Use AI-driven recommendation engines. These analyse vast amounts of data to provide relevant product or service suggestions. For example, they aggregate data from CRM systems, purchase history, website behaviour, and sales interactions, identifying patterns in customer preferences. Your business can use these insights to curate customised product selections for buyers.
Customise pricing. Price negotiation has long been a big part of B2B sales – this doesn’t have to be lost as transactions move online. By leveraging real-time customer data, AI-driven systems can adjust pricing and offer tailored discounts based on factors like customer history, order volume, industry trends, and market demand.
2. Maintain a consultative selling approach
B2B sales have traditionally been built on carefully nurtured, long-term sales relationships. Buyers prefer trusted advisors who solve their challenges rather than push products, and this can be supported with guided selling:
- Train sales teams to use guided selling tools for deeper customer discovery and problem-solving.
- Provide AI-driven insights that help sales reps recommend solutions based on the customer’s specific challenges.
- Offer interactive product comparison tools to help customers make informed decisions.
3. Optimise for an omnichannel experience
B2B buyers often interact with multiple touchpoints before making a decision. Ensuring they have a seamless experience across all channels is key:
- Ensure guided selling recommendations remain consistent across your website, email, chatbots, and sales calls.
- Use a centralised CRM to sync customer interactions and preferences across all platforms.
- Use AI-driven chatbots and automated recommendations to assist with initial inquiries but route complex queries to human sales reps.
4. Ensure ethical AI & data privacy compliance
Much of guided selling involves scraping and analysing large amounts of customer data. This brings with it ethical and privacy concerns, which your business must consider if it is to build trust and avoid regulatory issues:
- Implement clear consent policies for data collection to your customers.
- Ensure you comply with key global data privacy regulations like GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation.)
As your B2B business continues to scale and digitise, guided selling will help you to enhance sales, improve customer relationships, and maintain a competitive edge. Over time, and boosted by machine learning and predictive analytics, you can continually optimise your sales process for maximum results.
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