When it comes to the relationship between tech marketing and sales, it’s crucial that everyone involved spreads love and engages with the hearts and minds of today’s buying committee. As an evangelist of your product or solution, you’ll need to play matchmaker between decision makers and craft content that satisfies your committee’s needs. You’ll also need to nurture existing relationships and support prospective clients as they navigate the purchase path. So where does one start? Luckily, we’ve recapped best practices to help you be both mind reader and hand‐holder when it comes to loving and caring for your client’s content needs. Check out our latest infographic which takes a powerful pulse on: - The hidden influencers your clients turn to for input and advice on purchase decisions - The right content, right stage, right audience and right connection to win over the most crucial decision makers - A breakdown of today’s increasingly complex tech vendor selection and buying cycle stages

1. 1
2
3
4 5
6
1. Needs Analysis
2. Specs and Funding
3. Vendor Selection
4. Implementation
5. Management
6. Renewal
PLAYING A “MATCH” GAME WITH
BUYING COMMITTEE MEMBERS
The tech decision maker is no singleton.
Stakeholders in Marketing, Finance,
Sales and Operations each have
a say in which tech product or
vendor should win their devotion.
BUT ONCE A DECISION IS MADE, IT’S UNLIKELY TO
CHANGE WHEN IT COMES TO RENEWAL...
Yes, winning business and becoming the tech partner of
choice is hard. Once you’re “in,” however, the odds are stacked
in your favor to hold that special place in tech buyers’ hearts:
Only 19%–36% of buying
committee members are
considering new vendors.
Only 17% of companies with
budgets over $2 million
will consider bringing
in a new vendor.
IT’S NOT JUST ABOUT THE PURCHASE.
BE SURE TO CONNECT ACROSS ALL
6 STAGES OF THE BUYING CYCLE.
MATCH CONTENT TO TECH BUYERS’ THOUGHTS
AND FEELINGS AT EACH STAGE
1. Needs Analysis
Focus: Identifying needs
Feeling: Overwhelmed,
yet open, ready to learn
2. Defining Specs/
Determining Funding
Focus: Price, performance,
practicality
Feeling: Pressed to beat
multiple challenges with
one product
3. Vendor Selection
Focus: Reliability,
product support
Feeling: Anxious
and risk-averse
4. Implementation
Focus: End-user
product delivery
Feeling: Concerned
about reactions
5. Management
Focus: Ease of use
Feeling: Need for the
vendor to make their
jobs easier
6. Renewal
Focus: Price, value/worth
and customer experience
Feeling: Need for cost
justification and having
expectations met
BEYOND THE TECH COMMITTEE:
MARKETERS MUST INFLUENCE THE INFLUENCERS
Before you go off crafting the perfect marketing proposal,
there’s one more thing to point out. 86% of tech buyers look
outside the tech committee when making a decision.
So, who are they looking to?
RIGHT CONTENT, RIGHT STAGE,
RIGHT AUDIENCE, RIGHT CONNECTION
Tech marketers have a lot of people
to reach, so it’s important to note that
the three stages that include
the most stakeholders are:
A
A
A
A
The headline says it all. Today’s tech marketers must
be mind readers and hand-holders. They must
connect with tech buyers at every opportunity, and
with messages that make an impact. It’s no longer
“just the IT guy” tech marketers must affect.
CONNECTING TO THE
HEARTS AND MINDS
of Today’s Tech Buying Committee
70%
Professional peers
51%
Technology users
45%
Colleagues not directly
involved in the process
22%
Thought leaders
13%
Friends and family
1%
Others
For tech marketers, being able to craft content that connects
with the hearts and minds of the buying committee at every
stage is like holding the key to a lasting relationship.
Specs/Funding
Needs
Implementation
The buying cycle is a cycle with six stages that repeat,
as shown here. The great news for tech marketers is that
this affords many opportunities to cement a relationship:1
Do you have what it takes to win tech buyers’ hearts and minds?
LinkedIn can help tech marketers reach tech buying decision
makers and their influencers with targeted messages for the
greatest impact with our in-depth research e-book, “Beneath
the Surface: Taking a Deeper Look at Today’s Empowered Tech
Buying Process.”
1
Andy Bartels, “Understanding Shifting Technology Acquisition Patterns,” Forrester, February 2014.
LinkedIn Tech Research, “Beneath the Surface: Taking a Deeper Look at Today’s Empowered Tech Buying Process,” September 2015.