"How Digital Natives Are Changing B2B Purchasing"

As we learnt from the first class, Digital marketing is upending the ways consumers make decisions, and the ways companies influence consumers. So, digital marketing is changing B2C businesses' marketing landscape for good. But what is happening with B2B? An HBR article(link below) shows that digital is changing B2B marketing as much as B2C. Among all the changes, the changing role of a salesman is the most fascinating: "when a salesperson eventually is invited to the table, buyers will have already formed a strong opinion about many aspects of the value expected from a vendor," says the author. In a way, a salesperson is walking into a purchase managers room with a product catalogue seems no longer a value-add. The author concludes by saying, "Today, though, that first look comes through websites, user forums and quick case studies, not flesh-and-blood sales pitches. The key question for a vendor: Does your online footprint communicate your chosen elements of value?"

https://hbr.org/2018/03/how-digital-natives-are-changing-b2b-purchasing