We all know that B2B buying and selling is changing rapidly. Technology has provided easy access to information and the ability to move through the buying journey without meeting with anyone in person. Many of the actions fulfilled by salespeople forever are now done by machines. Technology has created efficiencies in the buying process, and that usually means elimination of jobs.
In What the job of a B2B Salesperson will look like in the year 2030, Cirrus Insight Marketing Director Amy Green lays out this dynamic in a simple and easy manner. In the article, Green defines four types of salespeople - order takers, navigators, explainers, consultants - and provides projections of labor increase or decrease for each by 2030. While reading the article, I dove into the four types of sales roles defined and thought through the real-world examples that we see every day. Her projections for all the roles make sense. They should – she sited extensive research work by McKinsey, Forrester, and Gerhard Gschwandtner.
After digging through the work, I concluded one skill that will grow in demand as we move into the future. What’s that skill? ….
The ability to manage a complex customer environment will increase in demand as we move toward the 2030s. If you’re selling a complex product or service into a complex environment - a consultant - the demand will be greater and there will be 10% more jobs. But even the role of selling a simple product into a complex environment – a navigator - is decreasing at a slower rate than the explainer and order takers.
This makes sense. The ability to understand politics and personalities, ask tough questions, build trusting relationships, and help internal stakeholders meet their individual goals will be needed regardless of technology. In fact, I think the demand will increase because of technology (visualize a multi-departmental committee arguing over conflicting reports posted on LinkedIn about vendors).
So, if you want to succeed in sales through the next ten years or so, then learn how to manage complex accounts. The ability to gracefully guide multiple influencers with different perspectives and goals through one buying process that ultimately leads to them selecting you is helpful today. In 2030, it will be rare and necessary.
