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1. The survey’s in:
B2B buyers don’t trust what
we say about our products
Let’s change that!
Tim Hinds

2. The Plan for Today
• Present survey results and analysis
• Present theories and tactics
• Open up for discussion (debate?)

3. The Survey by TrustRadius

4. Buyers’ Usage of Information Sources
0% 10% 20% 30% 40% 50% 60% 70% 80%
Vendor Blog
Solution Consultant/Agency
Vendor-Provided Customer References
Vendor-Produced Case Studies
Analyst Rankings & Reports
Third Party Publications
Referral From a Friend, Colleague, Peer
Communities/Forums
Vendor Marketing Collateral
Prior Experience with the Product
Free Trial/Account
Vendor Reps.
User Review
Vendor/Product Website
Product Demos
TrustRadius B2B Buying Disconnect Survey 2017-2019

5. Buyers’ Trust in Information Sources
1.0 1.5 2.0 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.0
Vendor Blog
Vendor Marketing Collateral
Vendor-Produced Case Studies
Vendor/Product Website
Vendor Reps.
Vendor-Provided Customer References
Third Party Publications
Communities/Forums
Solution Consultant/Agency
User Reviews
Analyst Rankings & Reports
Product Demos
Referral From a Friend, Colleague, Peer
Free Trial/Account
Prior Experience with the Product
TrustRadius B2B Buying Disconnect Survey 2017-2019

6. What can we do based on this data?
Highly
Trusted
Rarely
Used

7. Highly Trusted & Rarely Used
Get buyers to use more sources they already trust

8. Top 3 Highly Trusted & Rarely Used Sources
1. Analyst Reports/Rankings
2. Referrals from Friends/Colleagues/Peers
3. Prior Experience with the Product

9. Highly Trusted & Rarely Used
Hardest for vendors to control

10. What else can we do based on this data?
Less Trusted
Easily
Controlled
Often
Used

11. Less Trusted, Often Used, Easily Controlled
1. Vendor/Product Website
2. Vendor Marketing Collateral
3. Vendor Representatives

12. Less Trusted, Often Used, Easily Controlled
How can we make buyers trust these sources more?

13. But first, why?
I am hesitant to believe the vendor’s
own website and staff. I feel like they
are always trying to just put the
product in the best light not
necessarily find out if it is the right fit
for our company’s situation.

14. But first, why?
Vendor collateral is valuable for
initial research but from there, it’s
really a matter of needing to actually
see the functionality work as
opposed to pretty pictures & glowing
case studies…

15. But first, why?
…sometimes the marketing was
vague so it was difficult to
understand what the features
actually were…

16. Should we be 2nd guessing some advice we’ve heard?
“Focus on business outcome messaging,
not features and functionality.”

17. Less Trusted, Often Used, Easily ControlledWHAT USE IS A BUSINESS OUTCOME
IF YOUR PROSPECT IS UNABLE TO BELIEVE IT?

18. Or how about this one?

19. Top 3 responses
1. “I don’t believe you.”
2. “How?”
3. “Prove it. Who have you done that for?

20. Top 3 sources buyers trust most and use most
1. Free Trials/Accounts
2. Product Demos
3. User Reviews

21. Making Our Websites, Collateral, and Reps Trustworthy
1. Show the product doing it
2. Explain how the product does it
(straight talk, not automagical puffery)
3. Point to a 3rd party who can vouch for
your claim

22. 1. Show the product doing it
More Demos!

23. 1. Show the product doing it

24. 1. Show the product doing it

25. 2. Explain HOW the product does it
BOLD CLAIM
• Supporting Feature 1
• Supporting Feature 2
• Supporting Feature 3

26. 2. Explain HOW the product does it
Supporting Feature 1
• It’s not automagical. Here’s what that
feature does in plain, transparent
language.
• Here’s how doing that supports that
previous bold claim

27. 3. Point to a 3rd party who can vouch for you
Why can’t I just point to our own case studies?

28. 3. Point to a 3rd party who can vouch for you
1. User Reviews (like on TrustRadius
2. Analyst Reports (if you can get in
them)

29. Discussion