Why the buyer’s research starts on social
Irina discusses the shift toward social discovery and why companies need to understand the research buyers do before contacting sales.
Summary ·Watch at 06:46
Founder conversationUnicorn $50m+
B2Z: A New Generation of Customers Are In Control
Why buyers research on social before contacting sales, and how to replace the demo request with self-service
Irina Novoselsky · Hootsuite
Published September 6, 2024About this resource
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What you’ll learn
Irina discusses the shift toward social discovery and why companies need to understand the research buyers do before contacting sales. Irina explains how buyers consume multiple pieces of content and expect to research products at their own pace.
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Creating content for self-directed buyers
Irina explains how buyers consume multiple pieces of content and expect to research products at their own pace.
Summary ·Watch at 07:44
Replacing the demo request with self-service
Irina describes Hootsuite’s work to change its demo journey and points to Monday.com as an example of an experience buyers can explore themselves.
Summary ·Watch at 12:34
Turning employees into brand ambassadors
Irina discusses employee advocacy, peer recommendations, and making the buying journey accessible without requiring a sales conversation.
Summary ·Watch at 17:21
Customers in control
“SaaSOpen, September 2024 A New Generation of Customers In Control Irina Novoselsky CEO of Hootsuite”
Buying-cycle pressure
“↑ buying cycle ↓ sales productivity ↑ CAC ↑ acq. budgets ↑ sales hires ↑ cold outreach 🧐”
Demand authentic intelligence
“Use artificial intelligence but demand it be authentic intelligence.”
Getting to know buyers
“= Getting the tea on you Longer sales cycles”
Sales-productivity pressure
“= I smell 🐂💩 Low sales productivity”
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B2Z: A New Generation of Customers Are In Control - Slide Deck
CEO of Hootsuite, a social media management platform that helps businesses schedule and manage their social content.
- Company revenue
- $400M
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Each slide with a short explanation of what it shows. Open the slide text for its exact wording.
31 passages
Customers in control
Slide text
SaaSOpen, September 2024 A New Generation of Customers In Control Irina Novoselsky CEO of Hootsuite
B2Z: customers are in control
B2Z, a play on B2B, frames the talk: a new generation of customers now holds the control. The slide carries only the title and no further detail.
Core segment ARR rose from 51 to 64
The headline claims 3X ARR growth in 12 months, footnoted as being for a core business segment. The chart shows ARR rising from 51 to 64 ($MMs) between Q1'23 and Q2'24, while year-over-year growth goes from 8% to 21% with a dip to 19% in Q1'24.
Slide text
*For a core business segment
Three emoji introduce the speaker's story
A transition slide with a Ukrainian flag, a US flag and a detective emoji. It carries no stated claim; it appears to set up a personal introduction before the main argument.
The speaker pictured with groups of young people
Photos show the speaker in selfies and a pointing pose with several groups of young people, some in the room and some on a video call. The slide has no text.
Slide text
🕶️
Pressure on the buying and sales cycle
Companies answer bad results with more of same
In a rejecting-versus-approving meme, the rejected column lists a longer buying cycle, lower sales productivity and higher CAC. The approved column lists more cold outreach, more sales hires and bigger acquisition budgets, the usual response to those problems.
Slide text
↑ buying cycle ↓ sales productivity ↑ CAC ↑ acq. budgets ↑ sales hires ↑ cold outreach 🧐
The SaaS playbook is dead
The slide's whole message is that the SaaS playbook is dead. It has no supporting detail.
Gen Z is a generation of contradictions
This section opener names Gen Z as a generation of contradictions. The slide itself gives no examples.
Gen Z has phones but avoids calls
Gen Z grew up with phones but rarely uses them for talking. The slide is a one-line statement.
Gen Z likes the office, not mandatory RTO
Gen Z wants to come into the office but says no to mandatory return to office. An emoji graphic contrasts disgust at mandatory in-office work with delight at working from home, so the point is choice, not location.
Authentic intelligence
Use AI, but demand authenticity
Gen Z is comfortable using AI but wants the output to be authentic intelligence. The meme, where relief at ChatGPT doing the job turns to worry, hints at the tension.
Slide text
Use artificial intelligence but demand it be authentic intelligence.
Welcome to the B2Z era
A section opener titled Welcome to the B2Z era. The slide carries no further detail.
62% of Gen Z employees are in buying decisions
62% of Gen Z employees are involved in buying decisions, according to the source cited on the slide, Forrester. It is a big-number slide with no other detail.
65% start B2B search on social, not Google
65% start B2B search on social rather than on Google. It is a big-number slide with no source shown.
60% of the process is done before sales
60% of the buying process is done before Gen Z talks to a sales rep. It is a big-number slide set over a meme of a man tapping his temple.
Gen Z is the social self-service generation
A one-line label for Gen Z: the social self-service generation. It follows the three statistics before it.
Understanding buyers
Longer sales cycles mean buyers are vetting you
A Kermit sipping-tea meme equates longer sales cycles with buyers getting the tea on you. The slide links the sales-cycle problem to buyers researching sellers.
Slide text
= Getting the tea on you Longer sales cycles
Low sales productivity means buyers smell bluff
The slide equates low sales productivity with the buyer saying they smell nonsense, shown with bull and poop emoji. It is another meme-style reading of a sales problem from the buyer's side.
Slide text
= I smell 🐂💩 Low sales productivity
High CAC means buyers say don't @ me
The slide equates high CAC with buyers saying "Don't @ me". A collage of lifestyle social posts from one creator account sits beside it.
The myth that social is irrelevant in B2B
A quote, shown with a skeptical emoji, states the belief that social media is not relevant in B2B because companies do not sell to consumers.
Slide text
🤨
Solution 1: win the research phase
The first of three solutions is to win the research phase. The slide is a section opener with no further detail.
Solution 2: demand on-demand
The second of three solutions is demand on-demand, shown with a joystick icon. The slide gives no further detail.
Solution 3: social selling
The third of three solutions is social selling, shown with a megaphone icon. The slide gives no further detail.
Buyers won't be led, but follow sellers
Buyers will not be led to buy, but they will follow people who sell. It is a text-only statement slide.
Visible CEOs are a vibe
The slide says visible CEOs are a vibe, a one-line claim about executives being publicly active.
Takeaway 1: does your business match this buyer?
The first takeaway is a question: does the way we do business match the needs of this new generation of buyer? The slide has no further detail.
Takeaway 2: are you winning the research phase?
The second takeaway asks how we are winning the research phase of the B2Z buyer journey. The slide has no further detail.
Takeaway 3: stay relevant without a conversation
The third takeaway asks how you will stay relevant when Gen Z expects to find every detail needed for a deal without ever speaking to you.
Adapt or get ghosted
A one-line warning: adapt or get ghosted. The slide has no further detail.
To be in control, put buyers in control
The closing message: if you want to be in control, put them in control. The slide has no further detail.
A selfie to end the talk
The speaker closes by saying "But first, let's take a selfie", with a phone-selfie icon. It is a light sign-off that echoes the talk's social theme.