Could anyone tell us about the core difference between B2B and selling to ordinary people please?

๐Ÿ‘ฅ Social Selling
12
Sunbunny31
Arsonist
7
Sr Sales Executive ๐Ÿฐ
B2B can be very complex, with long sales cycles and involving multiple departments and divisions who have a stake in the decision. You often have to be strategic as to the solution you're selling, and have value propositions that can expand across an entire enterprise while also having specific benefits within different lines of business.

While B2C purchases can be large (roof, solar, etc), you're typically dealing with 1-2 people and what they can budget for and finance. While trust is important in sales, it's critical for a large B2C purchase, and is very often price driven by necessity.
ER0173
Opinionated
1
Sr. Business Development Manager
Excellent summary!
braintank
Politicker
5
Enterprise Account Executive
More money
CuriousFox
WR Officer
3
๐ŸฆŠ
Mo money mo probz
jefe
Arsonist
4
๐Ÿ
I mean you should remember that they still are ordinary people.

Otherwise, @Sunbunny31pretty much summed it up.
SoccerandSales
Big Shot
3
Account Executive
Typically b2b is going to have significantly larger deal sizes, more stakeholders, and ultimately more work associated per deal cycle (at least in my experience)
Rallier
Politicker
3
SDR Manager and Consultant
B2B is much more consultative, meaning the pushy tactics that you see in B2C won't work. You need to identify who needs your product, dig into that pain, and clearly define next steps for them
Kosta_Konfucius
Politicker
2
ERP Sales
In a single word I would say complexity.

B2C is typically more transactional while B2B the decision to buy affects a lot more people.
Pachacuti
Politicker
1
They call me Daddy, Sales Daddy
People buy on emotion and justify it with logic.
playerone
Politicker
1
Regional Account Executive
For me, the core difference is that I'm dealing with professional buyers. They understand exactly what I'm selling, they use the same language, and they are coordinating with multiple sellers. The number of people involved is much higher because typically we have a buying agency, a creative agency, a platform, and the client themselves.
JDialz
Politicker
1
Chief Operating Officer
As with anything, it depends largely on what you are selling and to whom. Based on the responses so far I think a vast majority here only have exposure to one or the other. Our firm engages in both, and I can tell you that sometimes the B2C process is far more complex. Usually it is not though. As far as the โ€œdeal sizeโ€ item that has been mentioned in comments, that also depends on what/whom, and if there are recurring revenues or just a pay for contract situation with whatever others here are slangin. We may get paid $180k on a โ€œdealโ€ this year, but also the AUM fee every single year as long as we have that client.
RckChlkG33k
Big Shot
0
AE (Account Executive)
I got my MBA in Marketing and Consumer Behavior. Let me answer from that perspective-

The first difference is that B2B buyers are buying with someone else's money. That makes them likely to spend more than they might spend on their own purchases, but also makes their decisions less emotionally impactful.

Secondly, many have already mentioned it, but B2B sales typically involve more complexity. That complexity can come in larger committees with unclear roles and influence, multiple departments with competing priorities, and frequently the products being sold are more complex, though not always. This introduces a new level of politics and complexity into a sales process that, frankly, muddies the waters compared to standard B2C sales.

Finally-The hours are different. B2C focuses on customers when they're not at work. B2B focuses on customers when they are at work, or at work events. That's not to say that B2B sellers get off easy only working 9-5 (time zones, events, and travel negate that schedule) but the clock for your customer changes drastically.

This is not comprehensive, and like most rules should be treated as suggestions and guidelines rather than gospel.
Bearmachine
Contributor
0
Regional Sales Director
Ordinary People can make decision right on the spot. You only need to convince that one person... B2B is more often a process within a company with a lot more people involved in the decision making.
hocktony
Big Shot
0
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