Selling to Groups Is Hard

 Selling to Groups Is Hard

The more people who have to sign off on a sale, the lower the likelihood the sale will happen, according to research by CEB. A survey of 5,000 stakeholders involved in B2B transactions found that there was an 81% chance of a purchase if you're selling to one person, but that the chance drops to 31% once the group of decision makers reaches 6. And as Karl Schmidt, Brent Adamson, and Anna Bird write on HBR.org, the average number of people who have to sign off on every purchase is 5.4. Luckily, there are proven strategies for making a consensus sale, ranging from creating shared perspectives to encouraging stakeholders to advocate for your product or service among their colleagues.