Insights

Gartner defines the sales pipeline as a tool for converting leads into sales. It provides sales leaders with a visual representation of the different stages of the sales process, such as the point at which a prospect becomes a qualified lead, or when salespeople should follow up with a lead.

Because every company’s sales pipeline is different, depending on internal factors and their business sector, designing and building a reliable and predictable pipeline requires much client research and the ongoing crunching of data. The stages of your sales pipeline should match your prospects’ buying journey to help you effectively track their progress and predict revenue.

Over the last few decades, with the advent of the digital era, this B2B buying journey has become more complex. It has given rise to several new stages in the buying process that have influenced identifying business needs, researching solutions, and evaluating and analyzing options before making a final decision. As B2B marketing evolves, it has been witnessed, in certain respects, to be shifting toward aligning with elements of the B2C consumer experience. However, one aspect that still clearly distinguishes B2B from B2C is the buying process. In B2B, it typically involves an entire buying group, ratherthan a single purchasing decision maker.

According to Gartner (2019), a B2B buying committee can consist of six to ten such decision makers. Buying groups and their processes are a key contributor to a more sophisticated and complex buying journey and a longer B2B sales cycle.

As of the writing of this paper, many global brands and start-ups alike have made the decision to cut budgets and lay off staff. It’s highly likely we are in a global recession, albeit one that is asymmetrical across business sectors. 

Demand generation is the backbone of any successful marketing strategy. Yet, despite its importance, 61% of marketers have indicated that generating traffic and leads is their top challenge. Today’s current economic uncertainty may well exacerbate this problem, particularly as fewer companies appear willing to adequately invest in marketing.