This article originally appeared in the January 2025 issue of Security Business magazine. Don’t forget to mention Security Business magazine on LinkedIn and @SecBusinessMag on Twitter if you share it.
As we move into the back half of the decade, the process of business-to-business buying is continuing to change at an accelerated pace. As technology is advancing and Generation Z is entering the workforce, the world of a salesperson looks different from month to month. Ideas that worked for salespeople just a few years ago gain no traction today.
This leads us to a great opportunity for salespeople in the next few years. As we approach 2030, salespeople who do things once reserved for the marketing department will get into more doors much earlier, and they will be able to deepen loyalty from current clients.
Sounds great, but how? And why? Here are two ideas:
1. Use content to connect with prospects and current clients.
The people who work for your prospective customers do not want to meet another person to discuss your company or how you can help them. Because of the wide adoption of technology, customers do their own research without talking to a salesperson.
As younger generations grow into decision-making roles, this dynamic will drastically increase. The most fundamental change in sales over the last 20 years is that salespeople are no longer the primary source of information.
So, how can a salesperson get in the door of a potential new account if they won’t see them? With content! All the cool content that your company creates for marketing and education, and all the amazing content created by people outside of your company can be used to educate your prospects.
Don’t just send an email asking for an appointment, attach an article they will appreciate. Don’t just stop by and leave a card, leave a case study on how your company helped a similar business. Little by little, they will view you as a subject matter expert and invite you to compete on a project before they invite others. If you regularly send them content, you will be their go-to resource for any questions moving forward.
2. Build your personal brand.
As discussed already, getting an audience with a customer is almost impossible, unless you are perceived as a subject matter expert. Whether it’s a list of prospective new customers or your longest-tenured clients, if you’re not an expert, they won’t see you until they need a price.
How can a salesperson build their personal brand? By teaching in as many ways as possible. You can write articles or blog posts, record short videos, post intelligent content and engage in discussions on social media, speak at events and record the presentations for future sharing, etc. As long as the material is based solely on education, personal branding will elevate you to the subject matter expert level – which will soon be the only level that gets an audience with customers.
