These 10 Stats Just Beg You to Become a Social Seller

Every sales rep knows that numbers speak louder than words. In this post, we share some pretty compelling numbers that should convince you social selling is a must. We also sprinkled in a few tips on how to use social selling to your advantage. Read on for 10 stats (plus one bonus stat) that should get you fired up about social selling.

1. An average of 6.8 people are involved in each B2B purchase decision, up from 5.4 in 2015. (CEB)

2. The bigger the purchase, the bigger the buying committee. Purchases of $500,000 and up typically involve five or more buying centers and six to 10 colleagues — sometimes more.  (SiriusDecisions’ 2015 B-to-B Buying Study)

3. 94% of companies using account-based marketing (ABM) would like to identify target roles and titles at client companies. (2016 ABM Benchmark Survey Report)

Social selling tip: The more connections you make at a company, and the more you interact with those connections on social media, the more fully you’ll understand how the various decision makers and influencers work together. ABM has been proven to work. The legwork sales pros perform only makes ABM efforts stronger, assuming sales and marketing are collaborating, of course. 

4. 87% of organizations using ABM seek to add intelligence and insights on key contacts. (2016 ABM Benchmark Survey Report)

Social selling tip: Developing a web of connections at a company via social media gives you a fuller picture of the prospect’s needs and makes it easier to deliver personalized, targeted content.

5. Nearly two-thirds (65%) of buyers say the winning vendor’s choices about how and when to contact them influence the buying decision. (Demand Gen Report’s 2016 B2B Buyer’s Survey Report)

Social selling tip: By keeping you abreast of multiple contacts’ interests, concerns or questions, social media can alert you when the time is right to reach out to prospects with useful content, jump on a call to answer questions, or suggest a face-to-face meeting.

6. In the early stages of the buying process, buyers spend 54% of their time online. (ITSMA, How B2B Buyers Consume Information Survey, 2016)

7. Organizations that make buying easier are 62% more likely to convert high-quality sales. (CEB)

8. 81% of buyers view content, especially thought leadership, as critical or important during the early stage of the buying process. (ITSMA, How B2B Buyers Consume Information Survey, 2016)

9. 64% of B2B buyers say the fact that a vendor “demonstrated a strong knowledge of [our] company and its needs” is a very important reason they chose that vendor. (Demand Gen Report’s 2016 B2B Buyer’s Survey Report)

Social selling tip: CEB found that the majority of buyers said they spent as much time as they’d expected to spend on the entire purchase just preparing to speak with a sales rep. Providing these prospects with guidance and helpful content via social media – in the earlier stages of the buying journey – can position you as a trusted advisor that eases the purchase process.

10. 90% of decision makers don’t respond to cold calls or emails. (LinkedIn)

Bonus stat: The best time for cold outreach is never. (Deductive Reasoning)

Social selling tip: According to LinkedIn data, buyers are five times more likely to engage with salespeople who come through LinkedIn warm introductions. Plus, when you’re trying to connect with someone who gets hundreds of emails a day, InMail can give you a real advantage. MailChimp found that the average click-through rate for email campaigns is 2.69%, while the average click-through rate of InMails is 14.69%.

To make the most of your social selling efforts, download the Social Selling Index Kit. In it, you’ll find just what you need to engage buyers on LinkedIn.