How to nail B2B marketing in 2026 + Pro tips, tactics, & new data

In this latest report, we focus on one of Teams use Forrester Buyer Insights research to shape GTM strategy, refine messaging, align sales and marketing, prioritize investments, and validate decisions with buyer data. The Buyer Insights series includes interactive reports and custom data cuts that allow you to explore buyer behavior by industry, region, role, persona, and company size. Forrester’s B2B Buying Group Journey Map shows how different roles engage at each stage — from discovery through decision — helping teams understand who influences, decides, and validates purchases over time. Forrester’s Buyer Insights research is designed not just to track changes in buyer behavior but to help teams apply those insights across GTM strategy, messaging, and engagement.

It’s a complex, multi-stage process that involves research, collaboration, risk assessment, and (often) a long list of decision-makers. The B2B buyer’s journey isn’t a straight line. Powerful and easy-to-use sales software that drives productivity, enables customer connection, and supports growing sales orgs Because in 2025, the best sales teams won’t just react to change. Rather than seeing these changes as obstacles, consider them opportunities to refine your approach, build stronger relationships with buyers, and create a sales experience that truly resonates with your customers. Ultimately, 2025 will undoubtedly bring unique challenges for your sales team, but those challenges are nothing to be afraid of.

By joining groups relevant to your potential customers and sharing and engaging with useful importance of b2b buyer journey content, you can help increase your reach. Use features like Advanced Search, LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Sidebar, Lead Builder, Saved Search, and LinkedIn Pulse to prospect and connect with your audience. With social media being the key to social selling, your brand profile should help you establish a reputation with your customers as a trusted expert. Use LinkedIn Sales Navigator Our B2B social selling tool can help you find and target new leads based on specific criteria like location, industry, role, and more. Create social listening alerts Sales reps can go a step further by using Google alerts or social listening tools to set up notifications that identify prospects talking about their business or service.

Sometimes, needs and sophistication aren’t as helpful as dividing your potential customers according to their behavior. For example, a highly sophisticated software provider might not need basic cloud hosting services – but they might need your highly secure package. To begin your buyer journey, you’ll first need to gather data and segment your potential customers so you can narrow down who is most likely to make a purchase. They might reach out to sales, but to help them along to the purchase process, sales reps might need marketing support with product demos, testimonials and product reviews to push marketing leads into sales lead generation.

• These statistics have direct implications for how marketing and sales teams structure their content, their outreach, and their measurement.
• One thing that must be said is this, understanding the B2B buyer’s journey is quintessential when it comes to the success of your business and the future of it.
• This can include industry segments, but you cannot intentionally solicit from customers who are more likely to provide more positive reviews.

Introduction to the Gartner B2B Buying Journey

The comparison stage is high-risk—your customers can easily fall off the map. Often, the B2B buying process involves shortlisting products and comparing them for a clear, logical choice. You can provide accurate information about your products and features through product videos, demos, etc. For B2B organizations, aligning marketing and sales has always been a critical priority — but achieving that alignment is more essential today than ever before. It also includes personal influencers (e.g., a trusted colleague), consultants and analysts, and your own salespeople and channel partners. This includes all the various channels and vehicles in the classic marketing mix, such as websites, webinars, and events.

While both B2B and B2C journeys involve guiding customers toward a purchase, a few key differences shape how you approach each. Think of it as being one step ahead in the game. This is where understanding the B2B buyer’s journey becomes crucial. It’s tempting to blame this lack of access on sales reps failing to deliver value. And since they’re evaluating multiple options, the actual time spent with your sales rep could be as low as 5-6%! We know the B2B buyer’s journey is a winding road.

It’s all too easy to choose specific strategies, like social media marketing and content marketing, without a strategic approach. It marries all of the information about potential customers with the information teams already know about their product. It could also be a feeling of hope (i.e., if we invest in this new software, we can become more efficient and stay ahead of our competitors). However, anyone who understands sales knows there are typically some emotions at play behind any purchase. Customers make purchases for long-term solutions, resulting in a longer sales cycle, longer contracts, and longer relationships with companies. B2C marketing targets the needs, interests, and challenges of individual consumers who make purchases on their own behalf, making the individual the customer.

Explain how these features translate into real-world benefits for the buyer. A content strategy built around the buyer’s journey and their preferences has more chances of being successful. This method is superior to traditional value tables, which list features in isolation without context or comparison. Relative value tables are an effective tool to communicate your unique value propositions by directly comparing your features, benefits, and outcomes against those of your competitors. Many companies fail in the crucial step of narrowing down because they do not adequately differentiate themselves. The process of how B2B buyers make purchasing decisions is intricate and requires a nuanced approach from sellers, especially when it comes to differentiating their offerings in a crowded marketplace.

We have broken down the 6 steps of creating a B2B customer journey map below. There are 6 steps in creating a B2B customer journey map that have been listed below. The B2B Customer Journey includes all steps from first contact through post‑purchase support and retention. B2B buyers are typically more risk-averse than their B2C counterparts due to the larger scale and potential consequences of their decisions. Ensure your messaging is genuine and trust-focused, providing transparency and value that helps your buyers filter through the noise and make informed decisions.

Positioning provides a consistent narrative that resonates with everyone involved in the buying process—from champions to blockers. Decision-makers might skip or repeat steps, involve multiple stakeholders, or change their priorities midstream. This internal inconsistency eventually impacts your external messaging. Trying to cater to everyone leads to vague, uninspiring messaging that resonates with no one. This "knife-sharpening" approach reinforces the core idea that great positioning often emerges from deliberate simplicity. By focusing on what truly makes a product indispensable and removing everything unnecessary, companies can ensure their value is crystal clear.

Over 20% of social media users have purchased based on an influencer’s recommendation in the past three months; 62% of influencers that successfully inspired a viewer to buy had under 10K followers. This approach aligns with current trends in consumer behavior on social media platforms. He envisions a future where sales reps have built social followings and demonstrated their expertise in a given industry, so they’re seen as thought leaders rather than just sellers.

Challenger vs. Consultative Selling

This personalized approach not only enhances the buying experience but also makes the buyer feel valued and understood, thereby accelerating the buying decision. Many B2B buyers report a disconnect when sales reps fail to offer personalized interactions, making them feel like just another number in the sales process. Technology can streamline the buying process, personalize interactions, and provide buyers with the information and support they need, when they need it. Technology integration in the B2B buying journey involves utilizing digital tools and platforms to create a cohesive and efficient experience for buyers, from initial research to post-purchase support. Customer feedback is invaluable for continuous improvement, helping businesses refine their offerings and customer journey to better meet the needs of their target audience. A detailed buyer persona helps tailor your marketing and sales strategies to address the specific needs, pain points, and decision-making processes of your target audience.

The Dark Funnel: Why 80% of the B2B Buying Journey Is Invisible to You

One of the most obvious stages of the buyer’s journey is the identification of need. At its heart though the B2B buyer’s journey consists of three stages. The buyer’s journey may seem like quite a simple thing; in fact, it can be quite a detailed and intricate process.

When potential customers see that others in their position have succeeded using your services, they feel more confident moving forward. Segment your email list based on the buyer’s journey stages and send tailored content accordingly. The blogs generated leads like I’ve never seen before—enabling the sales team to nurture prospects effectively.

This is where demand generation earns its keep. Leadership decides it is time to evaluate customer support software. The average B2B buying group now includes 6 to 10 stakeholders, each conducting independent research and arriving at the group conversation with different information and different priorities. This article walks through the full B2B buying process as it actually works today, not as it worked five years ago.