B2B vs. B2C CRM: What's the difference?
CRM solutions have a long history of helping B2B marketers achieve greater ROI from their leads. Yet for companies that sell their products and services direct to consumers, CRM solutions frequently miss the mark. A quick Google search for CRM helps prove this: The search returns plenty of B2B products, but sifting through the results to find solutions designed specifically for the B2C sale is like finding a needle in a haystack.
Why is this? To answer that question, it's first necessary to understand the unique differences between B2B and B2C sales. Of course, there are many formulas for sales and marketing success, but seven aspects that are common to both B2C and B2B sales effectively illustrate the differences between them:
- Speed of sales process: A B2C sale is typically fast, usually weeks or months; a B2B sale is much slower, usually months or years.
- Number of decision makers: There are usually one or two decision makers in a B2C sale; there may be a dozen or more involved in a B2B sale.
- Simplicity of buying process: A B2C sale is relatively simple; a B2B sale is usually more complex.
- Quantity of leads: A B2C sale starts with more leads; a B2B sale will have fewer leads to manage.
- Role of emotion: B2C sales frequently involve emotion on the consumers' side; a B2B sale is typically driven by a business decision rather than by emotion.
- Value of sale: The total value of a B2C sale is relatively small - hundreds or thousands of dollars; a B2B sale could be thousands or even millions of dollars.
- Uniformity of offer: B2C sales are typically a uniform product offering; B2B tend to be a more customised product offering.
It is clear that there is a distinct difference between B2C and B2B sales. So doesn't it make sense that sales and marketing professionals should leverage tools that are designed to address the unique aspects of each sale? To make matters worse, there is much confusion about the definition of CRM that frequently leads B2C marketers to implement solutions that either don't work or are overkill.
