Gartner Sales Survey Finds 61% of B2B Buyers Prefer a Rep-Free Buying Experience

While chief sales officers (CSOs) look for ways to enhance the quality of engagement with their buyers, 61% of B2B buyers prefer an overall rep-free buying experience, according to a survey by Gartner, Inc.

A survey of 632 B2B buyers conducted in August through September 2024 found most buyers prefer to carry out independent research through digital channels. Although many organizations have increased investment in outreach to reach hard-to-access buyers, 73% of B2B buyers actively avoid suppliers who send irrelevant outreach.

“Many B2B buyers feel overwhelmed and frustrated by the outreach they receive from sellers and the seller’s organization. Bad prospecting actively damages relationships with potential customers,” said Robert Blaisdell, VP Analyst in the Gartner Sales Practice. “CSOs must rethink their outreach strategy to improve engagement and deliver the experience customers demand.”

While buyers generally prefer digital self-service, their preferences shift at specific points of engagement. Buyers favor online self-service tools over sellers when searching for general information and learning new things. However, for buying tasks requiring contextual intelligence, such as determining whether a product or service fits their company’s needs, buyers prefer to seek seller input. When considering all stages together, buyers prefer to:

• Complete an average of 3.0 activities both online and with supplier reps.
• Complete an average of 2.3 activities with supplier reps.
• Complete an average of 1.8 activities via digital self-service tools.

“Instead of offering generic information that buyers can find elsewhere, sellers should offer unique guidance, acting as a sounding board for buyers,” said Alice Walmesley, Director Analyst in the Gartner Sales Practice. “CSOs must encourage their sellers to create value by understanding what is most important for buyers at every stage of the buying process.”

Many buyers report frustrations with inconsistent or conflicting information. In fact, 69% of B2B buyers report inconsistencies between information on the sales organization’s website and that provided by sellers.

“When sellers provide information that doesn’t match the organization’s messaging elsewhere, it can create mistrust, potentially putting the transaction at risk,” said Blaisdell. “CSOs today must ensure synchronized company information across platforms, aligning website content with sales messaging for consistent communication of their organization’s value proposition.”

Gartner clients can read more in “How to Align Sales Engagement Strategies With B2B Buyer Preferences.” Additional information can be found in the associated eBook.