1. A Matter Of ChoiceHow B2B Buyers Choose InTodays Complex Marketsby Tony Zambito

2. Copyright NoticesA Matter Of Choice: How B2B Buyers Choose In TodaysComplex MarketsCopyright 2012 by Buyerology and Goal Centric Management,Inc., All rights reserved.No part of this publication may be reproduced or transmittedin any form or by any means, mechanical or electronic,including photocopying and recording, or byany information storage and retrieval system, withoutpermission in writing from the publisher. Requests forpermission or further information should be addressed toTony Zambito at: tzambito@goalcentric.com.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 2 3. Legal NoticesWhile all attempts have been made to verify information providedin this publication, neither the author nor the Publisher assumesany responsibility for errors, omissions or contrary interpretationof the subject matter. This publication is not intended for use as asource of legal or accounting advice. The Publisher wants tostress that the information contained herein may be subject tovarying state and/or local laws or regulations. All users are advisedto retain competent counsel to determine what state and/or locallaws or regulations may apply to the users particular business.The purchaser or reader of this publication assumes responsibilityfor the use of these materials and information. Adherence to allapplicable laws and regulations, both federal and state and local,governing professional licensing, business practices, advertisingand all other aspects of doing business in the United States or anyother jurisdiction is the sole responsibility of the purchaser orreader. The author and Publisher assume no responsibility orliability whatsoever on the behalf of any purchaser or reader ofthese materials. Any perceived slights of specific people ororganizations is unintentional.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. Allrights reserved.http://buyerology.com | 1-888-972-8937Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 3 4. Table of ContentsSlow Death of the Funnel6Revenue Growth by Choice14Psychology of Choice253 Ways to Connect with Buyers 344 Ways to Transform Business43Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 4 5. Slow Death of the Funnel:Why Buyer ChoiceMatters to RevenueCopyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 5 6. Finding the keys that unlock improving revenueperformance and achieving growth is becomingharder and harder as we go from a single buyermodel to that of more interdependency amongecosystems and networks by B2B buyers. B2Bmarketing and sales is still predominantlytethered to traditional ideas, approaches, andsystems that are being dragged into the modernera. While we have seen modifications, the ideaof the traditional funnel is still at the core ofmany B2B organizations today. It matters littlewhether you keep it vertical or flip it sidewaysand make it horizontal it is still suggesting afunnel that winnows down opportunities downto a buy decision.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 6 7. As the modern era rages on with increasingspeed where the Internet and Social Technologiesare converging into new forms, theoversimplification of the funnel becomes moreand more apparent. Simply put, buyers just dontact or behave in that way anymore. Evidencesuggesting that buyers are behaving well out ofthe norm of our conventional views of the funnelas well as the buying process is abundant fromsurveys. These behaviors cannot be representedin the view of a funnel.DemandGen, for example, reported that B2Bbuyers dont talk to a sales rep until theyveconducted independent research 77% of thetime. There are plenty of surveys around showingbuyers acting and behaving differently yet thewillingness to snap the tether cord of the funneldoesnt appear readily apparent. It does beg thequestion of: what is going on?Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 7 8. I believe that is still an open question without ananswer. We are about to see an uptick in Big Databeing touted as the next Big Thing. Why? Tofigure out whats going on. My thinking is that ifthis Big Data explosion is designed to tell uswhats going on within the confines of the funnel then B2B organizations can find themselves inthe untenable position of explaining why Big Datais not telling them anything. Heres why: we willlearn a lot about what buyers purchase and wewill learn a lot about how they are purchasing perhaps.What is missing is the most important question ofall why. And there are two very importantcomponents to the why question:First, why are they buying and second, why arethey making the choices they make.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 8 9. Traditional marketing and sales, oriented towardsthe funnel, dont answer these why questionsvery well. To get close, it may take years of pilingon data after data to get a clue. This is a veryexpensive proposition for companies to take ontoday.Despite the many super hyped concepts comingto the forefront attempting to address the 77%who are not getting a sales rep involved untilmuch later, the funnel whether vertical orhorizontal or even cyclical seems to be glossedover like a sacred cow. The language of thesemany new concepts is spoken through the prismof the funnel still.For example, if we take an often used expressionof the first part of a funnel awareness manyof the new concepts are really talking about howto make awareness happen differently in the newsocial buyer era.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 9 10. Buyers Explore vs. Become Aware. B2Bbuyers are less likely to become aware ofsolutions and more likely to explore and findthem. And they are making significant choicesduring their exploring based on what they find.Unlike consumer purchases where there is anobject of purchase desired for example a HDTV B2B buyers are making choices on which paththey will invest more time hiking and exploring.Buyers Are Part of Ecosystems andNetworks. The age of the single buyer has cometo a close in complex B2B environments. Whilethere may be a target buyer per se, they areincreasingly dependent upon various ecosystemparticipants who are directly impacted bypurchase decisions and have a voice in thesedecisions. The funnel is very limited outside thescope of the single buyer.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 10 11. Buyers Just Dont Make New Buys. In thecomplex realities of today, buyers are notrepeating the new buy orientation of the funnel.There are many choices being made around howto modify different alternatives. In the age ofjust-in-time and now in the age of real-time,buyers look ahead into the longevity ofrepurchase or continuous supply that feeds theecosystem with little disruption.Buyer Views Extend Beyond Purchase. Thefunnel is based on the short-term view of makingthe sale and it is measured in quantities. Intodays environment, the funnel cannotaccommodate the long term views buyers haveon the overall buying experience and doesntaccount for many factors that happen well afterthe sale.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 11 12. Given these limitations, I believe that companiestoday must attempt to understand buyer choicesand adopt a different model. A Buyer ChoiceModel that begins to reflect buyer behavior andprovides the language and terminology neededto understand why buyers choose as they do. Itputs the buyer at the center of B2B marketing,sales, and service and reflects, more accurately,that buyers are making multiple choicesthroughout their actions as well as behaviors thatultimately lead to a purchase decision.But it doesnt stop there at the purchasedecision. There is a continuous loop that extendsbeyond the purchase decision. The idea of buyerchoice modeling is to understand choices that arebeing made in this continuous loop so as not tobe left out of the loop.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 12 13. Revenue Growth by Choice andThe Buyer OrbitCopyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 13 14. Growth is getting harder and harder to come by.With this comes the realization that some of theembedded thinking about how to reach andmarket to buyers are not working well.Previously, we looked at how the funnel is facinga slow death and the limitations of so calledfunnel thinking. We are entering a new era of thebuyer. Buyer behaviors are shifting yet we knowonly a fraction about this shift. One emerginginsight is that of buyer choice. Simply stated,buyers are making multiple choices prior to aswell as well after buying decisions.Important to Understand Buyer ChoiceBuyers Have Many Options. The floodgates haveopened on channels, social media, old media, theInternet, and countless other ways to interact,explore, retrieve, and digest information in thisnew era of the buyer. With countless optionsavailable, buyers are making choices on where tostart their exploring.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 14 15. The Buyer At The Center Of Strategy,Marketing, And Sales.Conventional funnel thinking has a hard timedoing this. A better way of stating this is thatconventional strategy, marketing, and salesdecisions are funneled through an old paradigmof the buyer where marketing and sales held theinformation cards cards used to target, sell, andpersuade buyers.Today, buyers make the choice on whichinformation cards they decide to deal. B2Bleaders today must find ways to focus strategy onthe buyer, the choices they make, and theexperiences they have with their organizations.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 15 16. Experience Determines Choice. A while back,I made a choice to attend a Broadway musical of which I am a big fan. The pre-show experienceand excitement was plenty of fun with a greatdinner in New York. The musical started andabout 20 minutes into the musical the dreadbegan to overcome me. I knew this musicalproduction was going to be dreadful. We madethe choice to leave at intermission and the choicedidnt ruin the entire experience of the eveningbut it sure changed it. We chose to find a jazzclub and had a great time which meant cancellingout the plans we had after the show.Buyers today are taking experience cues wellbefore the buyer decision journey and well after.The buyer experience cues they take-in alter theirthinking about the choices they make. And theycould be choices about whether to continuehaving an experience with your organizations or find another.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 16 17. Understanding Buyer Choice Helps You ToMake The Right Choices AvailableBuyer choice anchors five choice elements thatcan be thought of as continuously orbiting buyerstoday. A fundamental shift is happening here. Inthe conventional DNA of funnel thinking, we areaccustomed to thinking that involves phases orsteps. One phase ends and another phase begin.What I propose is something we can call theBuyer Orbit. This is meant to shift the thinkingtowards recognizing that buyers are continuouslyaddressing goals, challenges, issues, uncertainty,and growth that are in a continuous orbital loop.This applies to buyer choice:Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 17 18. Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 18 19. Explore. As mentioned, funnel thinking usuallystarted with attempts to make buyers aware of aproduct or solution. It is still rooted in thethinking of flashing attention-getting meansbefore buyers eyes as well as push messagingoutwards in the hopes of making buyers aware.Today, buyers are mapping out deliberateexploration prompted by the orbital loop of thegoals and etc. that orbit them. Confronted withmany choices, buyers are taking time to map outwhere to explore, how to explore, and etc.Network. As buyers make progression towardsless of a single buyer model to that of a worldthat includes ecosystems and open networks,buyers are making choices to interact withnetworks and different ecosystem players tocollaborate on addressing the issues orbitingthem.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 19 20. Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 20 21. Decide. The way buyers decide today isbecoming increasingly complex. Choices arebeing made on such things as the rules fordeciding,whoisincluded, checkingdependencies, and assessing impact. Buyerstoday no longer make decisions in a vacuum.Buy. The actual buy choice has become a higherstakes game in the B2B world. Not only are therules for deciding more complex, but there aremore dependencies related to buying andpotential impact as well. The experience elementhere is now more critical than ever because ofthe high stakes. Making the wrong choice, forexample, on a software platform designed tomeasure quality of manufactured parts couldhave drastic affects downstream with OEMs anddistribution.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 21 22. Relate. The word relate has moreapplicability in a B2B context than say engage forexample. The higher stakes involved meansbuyers needs an organization that can relate tothe high stakes and a relational bond is beingformed. In the example mentioned above, theremay be many discussions before and after thebuy choice to ensure that the software platformmeets an intended goal.The ability for B2B companies to providerelational choices and experiences becomes animportant factor. Does the company providerelational choices whether they are face-to-face,telephone, or complex networking technologythat involves exchanging design ideas andspecifications?Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 22 23. The new era of the buyer is resulting in aparadigm shift on what is required thinking aboutthe buyer today. Letting go of funnel thinking isno easy task especially when you strip away thehyperbole and promotion that can surroundstrategy, it is still very much about the funnel.Buyers today have many elements related togrowth, goals, and uncertainty orbiting theirworld. Making choices as this orbital loopcontinuously impacts their world is changing thevery nature of buyer behavior today. Thesechanges are rocket propelled by a new world ofhyper-connectivity and hyper-competition.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 23 24. How B2B Leaders Respondto thePsychology of Buyer ChoiceCopyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 24 25. When it comes to understanding the psychologyof the buyer, much has been done in the world ofB2C to get inside the mind of consumers tounderstand buying choices. For B2B, it has beenharder to translate B2C research dynamics intoways that would make the psychology of B2Bbuyers readily understood. However, what we doknow is that there is an increasingconsumerization effect happening in B2B buyingwhereby B2B buyers have the same desires formore experiential purchasing.In the previous section we discussed the BuyerOrbit and the elements of the Buyer ChoiceModel. Each of these now filled with morepsychological aspects related to why B2B buyersbuy. This comes with implications for B2B leadersto not only understand new buyer psychology butto also shift business models, operations,strategies, and interactions that transforms theway they connect with B2B buyers.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 25 26. Understanding buyer choice has manyimplications for B2B strategies and tactics whether they are focused on demand generation,content marketing, or selling approaches.Addressing new buyer psychology and buyerchoice paradigms, within elements of buyerchoice modeling, can be transformational:Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 26 27. ExploreWith more and more buyers mapping outexploration due to the proliferation of contentand information channels, a side effect of B2Bbusinesses scrambling to be noticed in the 50%to 70% window of buyers remaining anonymous,B2B businesses are considering the implicationsof buyers taking deliberate action to map outtheir exploration.What this means: predicting and modelinghow buyers map and begin their exploringas well as what forms of navigation theyusually take specific to their industry.How to respond: devote more resources toqualitative investigative means, such ascontextual interviewing and ethnographicresearch, to uncover how buyers begin theirefforts to explore and how they are dealingwith content proliferation.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 27 28. NetworkAs elaborated upon recently, the single buyermodel is no longer sufficient and more and moreB2B buyers operate from the new buying modelof working within ecosystems and relying onnetwork participation. Codependency is here tostay and B2B businesses must adaptWhat this means: reexamine how buyers areviewed internally and what forms ofoutmoded approaches may be resulting inmissed opportunities.How to respond: use various forms of B2Bbuyer research and begin working withbuyers to understand important ecosystemand network drivers for their business andindustries. Incorporate important ecosystemviews into strategy and organizationalinfrastructure.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 28 29. DecideThe art and science of decision-making isbecoming more complex each year. An increasingnumber of variables are being introduced intodecision-makingsuchas globalization,uncertainty, ecosystem considerations, and more shifting how buying is taking place.What this means: how buyers are buyingtoday is shifting dramatically and B2Bbusinesses need to understand the newrules of decision-making, in addition to thebuyer decision journey, that are beingimplemented for purchase decisions.How to respond: shift internal focus tounderstanding new rules affecting decision-making, acquired through the mix ofanalytics and qualitative insight, and supporthow buyers are making purchase decisions.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 29 30. BuyBuying today is a higher stakes game for manybusinesses today. The margin for costly mistakesis the slimmest in decades. The extent of poorchoices can have disastrous effect on manyaspects of a business.What this means: B2B leaders must notconfuse how buyers buy with why buyersbuy. The focus is on understanding newbuyer psychology in terms of their collectiveattitudes, goals, beliefs, and perceptions.This new collection of mental models arechanging each time new variables, such asnew technologies, are introduced.How to respond: getting an understanding ofbuyer mental models via qualitativeresearch efforts will become crucial eachyear as buyer psychology continues to shift.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 30 31. RelateWith higher stakes involved in decision-makingand purchases today, B2B buyers seek moreassurances post-purchase than ever before.Unlike the emphasis on engagement in B2C post-purchase, the need for deeper ties relationally isaffecting long-term loyalty.What this means: shifting out of funnelthinking and viewing the entire buyerexperience cycle is a new rule of B2Bthinking today.How to respond: post-purchase support andtalent can no longer be an after-thought oforganizational planning but be seen as thegateway to being included in newly formedecosystems and networks by buyers.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 31 32. What we are witnessing today is a marked shiftfrom funnel-thinking to that of focusing on thetotal buyer experience that does not fit neatlyinto stages or step approach thinking.The new buyer psychology compels B2Bbusinesses today to make the buyer thecenterpiece of strategy and respond to thecontinuous loops of what confronts them (thebuyer orbit) and the choices (buyer choicemodel) they must make.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 32 33. 3 Ways To Connect With Todays B2B BuyersCopyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 33 34. Connecting with todays B2B buyers is on theminds of most CEOs and their teams today. Nottoo long ago, reaching and connecting with B2Bbuyers was a straight forward proposition.Depending on surveys from such sources as IDC,IDG Connect, DemandGen Report, Forrester, andmore, we know that buyers are remaininginvisible to B2B businesses and spend only aquarter of their time talking directly to saleswhen making purchase decisions.The idea of connecting to B2B buyers has gonefrom straight forward to major league complex.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 34 35. There are plenty of debates regarding the besttactical means to connect with B2B buyers. Theeffectiveness of these tactical means, as reportedby once again the likes of IDC and etc., show thatmany B2B leaders believe these tactical effortssuch as content marketing and marketingautomation may only be effective about aquarter of the time. It does represent a big gapand it begs for a rephrasing of the challenge this a big disconnect with B2B buyers. Enough tokeep any sane B2B CEO and their seniormanagement team scrambling for answers.We have pointed out in this book thatconventional funnel thinking is woefullyinadequate in todays B2B buyer landscape and islimited in the ability to address new and evolvingcomplexities.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 35 36. Buyer Modeling To Understand BuyerChoices and ScenariosBusiness executives today are using the conceptsof buyer modeling to understand as well asvisually illuminate buyer choice. Buyer modelingincorporates the elements of attitudes, beliefs,values, goals, perceptions, needs, andmotivations. By modeling buyers, buyingscenarios, buyer experience, and decisionjourneys, B2B executives can then map strategyas well as tactical marketing and sales activitiesthat enable them to connect with B2B buyers ona relational level.Buyer modeling is based on qualitative researchthat addresses choices being made versusinadequate interviewing that is done in thecontext of the funnel.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 36 37. On The Total Brand and Buyer ExperienceB2B businesses are learning how to think outsidethe context of the funnel and how to encompassthe total view of the brand and buyer experience.The invisibility of buyers who are in explore andnetwork mode of the buyer choice model makesit an imperative for B2B businesses to betterunderstand how different buyers interact withdifferent channels that create impressionablebrand and buyer experience. The emphasis here is on identifying critical BuyerMoment of Truth impression points thatcontribute to the overall brand and buyerexperience. For example, does the web channelbrand and buyer experience stay true to formwhen buyers interact with either the socialmedia, sales, resellers, partner, or servicechannels?Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 37 38. HP, for instance, has a strong ecosystem ofreseller and partner channels where the brandand buyer experience has many potential pitfallsand has several challenging Buyer Moment ofTruth handoff points that can make or break theirinvolvement.B2B leaders today can conduct buyer experiencemapping that identifies critical Buyer Moment ofTruth and ensure that the brand and buyerexperience stays true to form throughout.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 38 39. Descriptive Buyer Segmentation Based onBuying Behavior and OpportunityBy integrating the benefits of predictive analyticswith that of predictive buyer modeling, B2Bleaders are gaining smarts on takingsegmentation to a new level. With the use ofvisually illuminating B2B Buyergraphics, buyerscan be segmented descriptively by explore andbuying behavior and also by modeling buyingscenarios that identify where the organizationcan reach a best fit level with buyers.This can be especially useful in industries wherethere is a strong company or account focus aswell as complex buying scenarios that involvelengthy buying cycles.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 39 40. Descriptive means of segmentation helps toilluminate the many elements related to choice,needs, goals, attitudes, behaviors, values, andexperience. This approach enables bothmarketing and sales to focus on resonating withbuyer segments that have similar goals andbuying behaviors where knowledge in doing so isdynamic and enriched with each company oraccount interaction.In essence, allowing B2B businesses to buildstrong connections with B2B buyers in buyersegments that have higher winning percentages.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 40 41. When B2B leaders can do these three things,they can be better informed on how to guide theoverall trajectory of their organization. Theirfocus is on identifying the buyers and buyersegments that they can best establish aconnection within the context of understandingchoices being made.More importantly, they can learn how to connectwith B2B buyers today in ways that resonates andinvites participation into the buyer driven worldof goals, challenges, issues, uncertainties, andgrowth objectives that orbit them continuously.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 41 42. 4 Ways the PowerofBuyer Choice Will TransformBusiness MarketingCopyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 42 43. How buyers make choices today, in large partdriven by empowering new technologies, willtransform how B2B businesses will view buyersas well as redefine what is meant by businessmarketing. The rigid funnel will no longer serveas a workable means of communicating uniqueviews of buyers and their buying behaviors.This not to say that buyer processes, stages, andsteps are no longer relevant but to highlight thatbuyers today no longer make choices neatly inthe paradigm of the funnel. A rigid funnel view,whether it is drawn up horizontal or vertical,cannot provide the orbital view of choices beingmade continuously.There are four ways that new buyer choicedynamics will transform the practice of businessmarketing and alter the view of what practicesare relevant:Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 43 44. Predictive Buyer Modeling And IntelligenceAs we covered, many B2B businesses arewrestling with the unknown and the invisible.B2B buyers are remaining invisible in theirbehaviors associated with exploring as well asestablishing new networks of participants indecision-making. There will be a rise in the use ofbuyer modeling techniques as well as integratingthe use of buyer intelligence, predictive analytics,and the illuminating aspects of predictive buyermodeling.The changes underway in buyer behavior willcause B2B business marketing to extend wellbeyond conventional buyer profiling as well assimplistic buyer persona creating for demandgeneration.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 44 45. Reorient From Business Marketing Teamsto Buyer Driven Marketing TeamsTraditional business marketing has beenhistorically put together teams that are sellerdriven and narrowly funnel focused. The singlebuyer model view narrowly shared across allchannels. Leaders in B2B marketing and sales willsoon have to migrate towards buyer segmentteams that are focused on activities that arefocused on the buyers entire brand and buyerexperience.We are beginning to see leading organizations,such as GE, move towards aligning theirorganizations to industry buyer segment teamsfocused on deeper understanding and alignmentwith buyers.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 45 46. Create Orbital Match With BuyersB2B is becoming more complex with everypassing month. When informed with deep buyerintelligence, business marketing can begin toalign to the continuous orbital loop of whatconfronts buyers and how they make choices.The new role of business marketing is to pullbuyers into an orbital loop that mirrors theirown. The new business marketing strategy is tocreate the gravitational pull that buyers aredrawn to because it aligns with their own orbitalloops. Conversely, how can your organization getclose to the buyers own gravitational pull and bedrawn into their orbital loop?This is a departure from the seller driven andnarrow funnel view of push messaging. Anotherway of positioning this concept in simple terms isthis: either your B2B business becomes part ofthe orbital loop or you can watch it from afarwith a telescope and be out of the loop.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 46 47. Total Brand and Buyer ExperienceBusiness marketing today can take a leadershiprole by transforming itself to orient around thebuyer. Historically, in the seller driven view world,business marketing has been positioned as theconveyers of getting information in front ofbuyers. Producing material that buyers couldread, provide messaging to sales, and puttingtogether promotional programs with the aim toget sellers to sell harder. My intuitive guess is thatin the world of business marketing, thispositioning still exists in a large majority of B2Borganizations perhaps trapped within the labelof marketing communications.To influence corporate strategy and decision-making, business marketing must now becomethe conveyors of buyer intelligence andinfluencing organizations to orient around thebuyer. Conveying that what counts is the totalbrand and buyer experience.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 47 48. Business marketing today, by making these fourways the cornerstone of transformation, canenhance their leadership role in organizations.Orienting businesses around the understandingof buyer choices being made in a new complexbuyer driven world. This is no easy challenge yetone that business marketing must take up.Business marketing must demonstrate that itunderstands buyers deeply and that a designedfocus on the total brand and buyer experience isthe new business marketing strategy. It is time forbusiness marketing to come out of the literaturecloset and lead.Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 48 49. About Tony ZambitoTony is the originator of buyer persona research and creation. Today,Tony is breaking new ground in establishing Buyerology as the newqualitative research means of understanding buyer behaviors andchoices to make better informed decisions.A seasoned corporate senior executive with Fortune 100 firms and nowentrepreneur since founding Goal Centric in 2002, Tony offers the rarecombination of both executive experience and unique buyer insightapproaches. He is the author of his widely read blog Buyerology NowContact:and keynote speaker on the topic of how changing buyer behaviors areimpacting business today. Tony has helped Fortune 100 companiestzambito@buyerology.comsuch as FedEx, HP, and Reed Elsevier to make informed decisions using Twitter: @tonyzambitobuyer personas, buyer insight, and Business Buyergraphics. He holdsa B.S. in Business and an M.B.A. in Marketing. LinkedIn: Tony ZambitoTony and his wife Cindy with their two daughters returned to the eastBlog: Buyerology Nowcoast after nearly a dozen years living through the boom and bust ofSilicon Valley. He is an avid jazz fan as well as jazz percussionist and youWeb: www.buyerology.comjust may catch Tony playing with his band My Cousin Tone somewhereon the east coast. Copyright 2012 Buyerology and Goal Centric Management, Inc. 49