1. SMB* Technology Buyers begin the process by educating themselves online
Whatever the motivation for considering new technology products or services, nearly all buyers tend to follow a distinct trend or pattern, which is referred to as the ‘Buy-Cycle’. Unlike their larger counterparts, SMB’s are unlikely to have a formal system of selecting and assessing new vendors, since this involves vast numbers of staff and large financial commitment.
Instead, technology buyers at smaller companies are most likely to begin their buying process by educating themselves, via the internet, about the relevant technological solutions and products in the market which may be suitable for their company. They will probably also use other informal routes such as talking to consultants, peers and networking, but according to a Google/TechTarget report, for 95% of technology buyers , the internet is the first resource they first turn to when seeking information.
*SMBs typically refer to organisations with 10-500 employees
2. SMB Buyers form their own hypothesis but marketers can help shape this early on
Through accessing blogs, forums, reviews and reading white papers or viewing other digital content online; visiting vendor or manufacturer websites (IBM, Dell, Cisco, HP etc) and utilising social media such as Twitter and LinkedIn buyers start to become informed about ways to fix their business “problem” and begin to think about which technology vendors might be able to provide them with a solution. In this way the buyer is gathering evidence which will fit in with a “hypothesis” about how best to address their particular business issue.
It is imperative that at this stage in the buying process that vendors ‘fit in’ with the buyers’ emerging conceptions of the type of solution which can help them solve their business issue. This means vendors must make sure they have a positive presence in all the right places and that they are speaking the same language conceptually as buyers in both the ‘awareness’ and ‘consideration’ stages of the buy-cycle. Positive information about vendors in settings such as blogs, or on Twitter, or information found via organic and paid search results, will make an impression on buyers at this stage.
Vendors who have won prestigious accounts in a buyer’s industry area need to publicise this information, not only inwardly, on their own website (since this will probably not be visited by buyers at this stage) but on blogs, social media sites and press and advertising copy.
3. SMB Buyers will arm themselves with detailed knowledge on your company and services before they make contact
Having spent some time researching online, buyers will start to get a good idea of the type of vendor who may fulfil their needs – the next step in the process will entail looking at the ‘mind-set’ of a number of vendors in an attempt to find out whether they could be the right fit for the SMB buyer’s company.
Disseminating this type of information will lead to buyers compiling a vendor shortlist and subsequently endeavouring to find out the specific pricing policy, products and terms on offer from each technology vendor i.e. they will start to get more detailed knowledge about particular vendors. They will probably use the interactive tools on a vendor’s website to find out more, and will assess the overall experience of their first visit to a website, particularly in how the firm markets its products.
4. SMB buyers expect business class service from prospective service providers
Only when a buyer has a strong degree of confidence that a vendor meets its criteria – criteria which will fit their newly formed hypothesis about ways to fix or improve their tech needs, will they make contact. Based on initial and subsequent contacts they will decide to accept or reject companies. Vendors who are slow to respond or fail to engage with buyers at this stage will lose the deal. Things which frequently ‘turn off’ potential buyers are poor communication, complex pricing structures or terms of service, poor and inconsistent marketing messages and lack of transparency.
Ways to impress potential SMB buyers are to make sure lead or contact forms can be completed quickly by visitors to the website – (filling in lengthy forms is off putting). Also the website should be up to date and relevant – with all the latest offers. Sales processes need to be revved up by aiming for, at minimum, the industry standard in terms response times to queries and relevant quotes should be sent out quickly (whilst always taking into account the customer’s specific needs).
5. SMB Buyers aren’t impressed with vendors’ generalisations; they want a tailored approach
Marketers are often charged with taking a buyer’s problem and turning it into their ‘own’ version of a problem i.e. telling buyers how to go about solving a problem in a factual and generalised way which does not individualise with a buyer’s ‘actual’ difficulties. Buyers are seeking a close alignment from vendors with regards to the exact situation they are facing, with a tailored solution to it, and are not interested in being given a talk about industry specifics. More generalised information may interest them initially but the further along they are in the buying process the more individualised the information needs to be.
6. Tech buyers at SMB firms are risk averse
Technology buyers tend to be a highly risk averse group at the best of times, but are even more so during an economic downturn. Since the products and services they are responsible for buying are likely to have significant financial implications on their organisation, anyone charged with the job of buying technology solutions must tread very lightly. With many CEOs resistant to making large financial investments, a buyer has a tough time trying to persuade those at the top that implementation of new technology will bring about better productivity or systems efficiency. What a CEO might want to see, rather, are ways to cut budgets and consolidate existing technology.
It is the job of technology vendors to find out what are the risk factors involved in deciding on a course of action for any individual buyer – factors will naturally include avoiding risk for their company but importantly also avoiding ‘pain’ for themselves as individuals. No technology buyer is going to commit to a vendor unless he or she is near 100% certain of the outcome so it is up to vendors to create a climate of trust secure enough to warrant this commitment.
7. Tech buyers have a complex and long buy cycle
B2B technology purchases generally have a buy-cycle of between 2-12 months, but it’s not uncommon on the more complex services for this to stretch to 18+ months. SMB buyers may be implementing technologies such as new security systems, networks, or hosting, all of which will have a long term effect on the company’s business practices. The cost implications, as well as the complexity of identifying products or services which can be integrated with existing technology or alignment with business goals denote a long buy cycle. Even in SMB’s there is rarely one decision maker. There is likely to be a team of people, made up of influencers and decision makers. Make sure you understand the dynamics of this within each of your prospects.
8. Technology buyers need to be ‘nurtured’
It will take time and effort to ensure that potential buyers and vendors start to have a meaningful relationship and this comes in the form of ‘nurturing’ buyers, interacting with them in a way which is sensitive to their needs at any one time. At first the low level of interaction between the parties means trust levels are low, but over time communications which are well-timed with relevant and helpful content help to build up a familiarity and lead the buyer further along the path to considering a purchase. Like accepting a marriage proposal, the tech buyer knows that a decision to buy will mean commitment at the highest level.
9. Both segmentation and buyer mindsets play a part when targeting SMB buyers
According to Laura Ramos, of Forrester’s B2B marketing, vendors need to not only target in a traditional B2B way, in terms of segmentation of the market by demographic data, but need to find out how buyers think and feel when making purchasing decisions.
“Because segmentation defines who to target and personas describe what to say to them, B2B marketers should use both hard numbers and soft emotions to expand their customer understanding. They should delve deeper into prospect requirements and needs in exchange for handing out information like white papers or detailed product specs.”
Consumer marketing has long had this approach targeting specific target groups with typical ‘personas’ e.g. mobile phones directed at teenagers, where the emphasis is on how the target group make decisions. This type of profiling could be utilised in the same way – researching how to create triggers which make IT buyers go about making a purchase decision.
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