Outdated Approaches in B2B Sales and Marketing Are Losing Relevance
In the ever-evolving landscape of B2B sales, the traditional methods of sales and marketing are taking a backseat. This shift is highlighted in an article by Brent Adamson, published in HBR 2022/02, titled "Traditional B2B Sales and Marketing Are Becoming Obsolete."
SMART Technologies, a leading company in the industry, has redefined its sales process by adopting a unified commercial engine model. This model, centred around a centralized, data-driven platform, integrates product data, inventory, pricing, and customer insights across all channels.
This unified commerce strategy enables SMART Technologies to synchronize product information and retail availability in real time, automate campaign management by replacing out-of-stock items dynamically, and provide seamless, scalable commerce experiences to brand partners and buyers.
Key strategies demonstrated by SMART Technologies include:
- Centralized Product Data Management: Consolidating product data from multiple sources into a single reliable source, eliminating the need for manual data handling or complex PIM (Product Information Management) integrations.
- Real-time Synchronization Across Retail Networks: Continuously monitoring retailer product assortments to maintain up-to-date visibility of brand presence and availability across all retail partners.
- Automated Marketing Campaign Optimization: Dynamically substituting out-of-stock products with similar alternatives to prevent campaign performance drops and maximize media spend efficiency.
- Commerce Enablement: Providing tools such as one-click carting for ads and social media, and enabling brands’ own websites for direct commerce, facilitating smooth B2B buying journeys within a unified ecosystem.
- Data-Driven Insights and Reporting: Offering real-time data and analytics to inform better decision-making for sales and marketing teams.
This model aligns with broader unified commerce principles that emphasize centralized data management, flexible integration, scalability, and real-time visibility, which collectively improve operational efficiency, customer experience, and agility in responding to market changes.
Interestingly, while customers may seek sales reps early in their buying process, they often turn to digital channels to build their requirements. Each pod leader in the SMART Technologies' structure is responsible for ensuring their team receives support, catering to this shift in customer behaviour.
In summary, SMART Technologies exemplifies a unified commercial engine in B2B sales and marketing by creating a seamless, integrated platform that synchronizes data and automates processes, driving efficiency and effectiveness in how products are marketed and sold across multiple retail channels. This approach underscores the importance of adapting to the evolving B2B buying process, where customers have become largely agnostic to where they find information to make their purchase decisions, and where B2B buying has evolved to a more digitally oriented process.
- To stay competitive in today's business landscape, it's crucial for companies to adopt technology that centralizes and utilizes data effectively, as demonstrated by SMART Technologies in their unified commercial engine model.
- In the realm of B2B sales and marketing, the integration of technology and data can help synchronize product information and retail availability in real-time, creating a seamless, scalable commerce experience as SMART Technologies has demonstrated.
