Module 1 · Digital selling and the buyer's journey
1 of 7 steps complete
Learning objectives
- Explain how remote buying changes the timing and content of sales conversations.
- Identify the stakeholders and buying stage of an opportunity.
- Choose an interaction and technology that fits the stage, and agree a useful next step.
Lesson 1
How buyers research and decide remotely
Most business buyers now do a large share of their research before they talk to a supplier. They read websites, compare reviews, ask peers in their network and watch recorded demonstrations. By the time a salesperson is invited in, the buyer often has a shortlist and a rough idea of price.
This changes the salesperson's role. Repeating information the buyer has already found adds little. What buyers value is help with what they cannot easily do alone: clarifying the real problem, understanding risks, comparing approaches fairly and building a case that others in their organisation will accept.
Remote buying is also less linear. A buyer may move back from comparing suppliers to redefining the problem when a new stakeholder joins. Decisions are made in internal meetings you do not attend, using material you may never see.
A practical response is to make your contribution easy to share. Short written summaries, a clear one-page comparison or a recorded explanation can travel inside the customer's organisation and speak for you when you are not in the room.