New Ironpaper Survey Finds 44% Of B2B Leaders Struggled to Connect With Buyers During the Pandemic

B2B growth agency, Ironpaper, has released the results of their survey, “The Digital Buyer’s Journey is a B2B Challenge — and Opportunity.” This survey examines the changes in marketing and sales tactics that have resulted from the dramatic market changes of the last year.

Ironpaper surveyed 180 B2B leaders with decision-making power within their organizations across a range of industries to understand behavioral shifts for B2B buyers and organizations.

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The shift to a digital-first buyer’s journey has been a struggle for many B2B companies. When asked about barriers to revenue generation, 44% of respondents noted that it is difficult to connect with prospects in a virtual environment. This challenge, coupled with increased competition in the market, has been met by shifting to a digital buyer’s journey. When asked where significant portions of in-person event budgets have been allocated, respondent’s top answers (digital marketing, online advertising, and marketing technology) indicate investment in a digital-first approach.

“Many companies struggled during the pandemic as in-person events were canceled. B2B companies had to focus more attention on their digital buyer’s journey. Instead of relying on in-person events, businesses shifted to digital tactics while also addressing changing buyer needs,” noted Jonathan Franchell, CEO and founder of Ironpaper.

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“Messaging to key stakeholders is a major pain point for B2B organizations,” explains Nora Leary, Growth Director at Ironpaper. “When asked why leads drop out of the pipeline, 32% of respondents said they don’t get buy-in from all decision-makers. Understanding the buying group and how to tailor messaging will be critical moving forward.”

Ironpaper’s survey also examined the misalignment between sales and marketing teams, a common issue plaguing companies of all sizes. After analyzing how salespeople and marketers responded to questions, Ironpaper realized that marketing and sales must align with the buyer, not necessarily with each other. Not focusing on the buyer is a significant problem among many B2B companies.

The analysis also spurred further questions about how B2B organizations react to market forces changes, which has pushed Ironpaper to launch a follow-up survey that digs into specific questions. They expect to release the results of the second survey in late August 2021.

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