What is B2B Sales? The Complete Guide for 2025

Do you think selling your product/service to customers is hard? Try B2B. 

B2B or business-to-business ecommerce is expected to grow to $3.1 billion by 2027, which shows its potential.  

Anyone with the necessary funds can start a B2B company, but can everyone succeed in establishing a thriving B2B company? Ummmm!

Well, it largely depends on how well the salesperson can generate high-quality leads and turn them into sales. According to Belkins, only 10-15% of sales-qualified leads make it to the final stage of the sales process. In contrast, a 2024 HubSpot sales report found that 59% of salespeople believe that marketing-qualified leads are of higher quality. So, where is the gap? What marketing is doing right that sales cannot? It might be;

• Long sale cycles
• Lack of nurturing
• Missed touchpoints
• Or we all just decided it’s hard to close business over a phone call or an email. (Well, it’s only valid when you are just cold calling your prospects)

Or the reason might be something else. Let’s find out. 

In this blog post, we will discuss what is B2B sales are, how it works, what strategies and processes have proven best for sales representatives, and how the B2B sales cycle is changing tides in 2025 with the latest tools and techniques. 

What is B2B Sales?

As the name suggests, B2B, or Business-to-Business sales, involves selling products and services between two businesses. These sales are typically viewed as long-term partnerships, with products exchanged in bulk quantities and services resulting in collaborations and long-term relationships. 

Unlike B2C (Business-to-Consumer), B2B typically has longer sales cycles, involves multiple decision-makers, and commitments are made based on deliberate outcomes. 

As Verbatim from Reddit said: 

“If you hate long cycles, B2B will crush your soul.”

For example:

A company selling CRM to wholesale business owners is considered a B2B company. A Wholesaler selling products to e-commerce businesses is also considered a B2B company. 

How do B2B sales work

B2B sale cycles are different from consumer cycles. They involve teams, not individuals, when it comes to decision-making. It takes months, not minutes, to nurture a prospect, and it goes a long way rather than a 10-20-minute interaction, which is often repetitive and gives referral opportunities. HubSpot stated that the highest-quality leads for a B2B company come from referrals from their existing clientele. 

The B2B buyer journey is not linear; it’s more dynamic than we think. You need to nurture your prospects at every touchpoint, or you might lose them. At any stage, your customer can go back, leaving you to question your entire strategy or even the whole sales journey.

According to the Gartner framework, the typical buyer’s journey looks like this;

1. Problem identification – “We need to solve something.”
2. Solution exploration – “What options exist to solve our problem?”
3. Requirements building – “What specifically must our solution do?”
4. Supplier selection – “Which option meets our criteria?”
5. Validation – “We think this is right, but need confirmation.”
6. Consensus creation – “We need everyone to agree.”

Why are B2B sales cycles based on personal selling?

You know, in the past, business owners would usually hit the ground running by attending networking events, community fairs, seminars, and private meetings or even jumping into startup pitches and hackathons to hunt for better opportunities and collaborations. And sure, those events are still crucial today. But here’s the thing: More and more companies are discovering new ways to connect (mostly online nowadays).  

For instance, B2B companies can now connect with business owners in Toronto from the comfort of their own couch in London, sealing deals without having to meet face-to-face. Pretty cool, right? 

But how do they do this? Closing deals like this.

The answer is: Through personal selling and social selling. 

They build a strong online presence and present themselves as experts (providing solutions) that other businesses are looking for. 

Recently, many business owners have invested in personal branding, recognizing that people buy from people. Emotions, connections, and strategies matter in B2B sales. Let’s break down how B2B companies are finding leads, nurturing relationships, and closing deals without needing to be physically present. 

How personal selling impacts the B2B sale cycle

Personal selling is really important because in B2B (business-to-business) deals, there are usually about 6 to 10 people involved in making decisions, according to Gartner. This means that having real people involved in the sale process is essential. Now, let’s break down the process step by step;

A- Prospecting – Finding businesses that need your solution

The average sale cycle starts with the initial prospecting stage. Where a salesperson identifies the prospect and engages with them.

LinkedIn alone is a hub of B2B sales, with over 80% of B2B leads hanging around there. Sales representatives who use LinkedIn to engage with their prospects have a 51% higher chance of closing quality leads and meeting their quotas than those who rely solely on cold pitches.

Take Matt Lakajev, who has over 71K followers on LinkedIn alone. He has a company named “Seven Figure Creators” and is helping businesses in lead generation through his winning LinkedIn DM Template strategy. And with his strong personal branding and selling skills, he managed to close millions of dollars from clients he closed on Linkedin. 

Also, he can generate multiple income streams from his single LinkedIn profile, such as selling his courses and e-books to salespeople and businesses that are struggling with lead generation. Who has ever thought that a single LI DM could turn into a sale someday?

Other than LinkedIn, you can prospect through cold emails and referrals. If you find DM does not align with your sales strategy, you can always go back to methods that have been working for your business for years, like Cold emailing. 

Earlier, we discussed that the best quality leads are referral-based. You can also engage with your potential clients on a referral basis and close deals with shorter sale cycles.

Tools: LinkedIn Sales Navigator, Apollo.io, cold emails (Mailchimp, etc).

B- Discovery calls – To find pain points.

• Decision makers hate generic pitches and scripted questions – Research everything you can before hopping into a meeting. 

After doing your research, schedule a call. 

The best way to understand your clients is to let them talk and just LISTEN. 

Ask them about the most urgent pain point in their business that keeps them awake at night. 

Why are they not considering any service or product (your product, for example)? 

What’s stopping them, and how do they expect their business to turn out if they consider that specific solution?  

Record these calls. Break them down and then make a list of the most urgent, mild, and can-wait pain points that your prospect identifies, and then base your next touchpoint around the most urgent one.  

Personal selling is again helping B2B outreach in this regard. Your prospecting stage is done; now it comes to discovery. You have made an initial call, and now you have a list of pain points in front of you. Don’t waste this golden opportunity.  

Make these pain points into a list of topics and write LinkedIn posts around each. If you haven’t added your prospect on LinkedIn, do us a favor and add them. Now, engage with your prospect’s profile to increase the chances for your posts to get into their feed.  

Keep them engaged with your value-based posts, and it will increase the chances of success in your second meeting.

C- Solution pitching 

Now that you have completed your work, it’s time to move on to the next step, which is solution pitching. If you believe you have nurtured your prospect enough and they are ready to convert, then pitch your solution. If not, circle back to the points that need improvement. 

If you think they are ready, then create a presentation or a video demonstrating how your product can help them achieve their goals. Remember, it’s about them, not YOU. Make your pitch all about them. Show outcomes, case studies, and real-time results before discussing features. Never start with features, as business owners don’t have enough time to hear about a product they don’t yet know is worthy or not. Make your pitch ROI-focused.

Your posts on LinkedIn are now based on your client’s current stage. If they progress past the awareness phase, then it’s your time to start posting about the solutions, share case studies and testimonials, and collaborate with previous clients to showcase their success.

D- Negotiation

The next step is negotiation. Now, you are discussing and making agreements about budgets and contracts and working with legal teams. 

When businesses sell to other businesses, it’s important to understand what these buyers are looking for.  One major concern for them is compliance, which is about following laws and regulations. Two important rules to be aware of are GDPR and SOC2.

 GDPR

This is a law in Europe that protects people’s personal data and privacy. Companies need to prove that they are handling this information safely. 

SOC2

Managing customer data is really important, and it boils down to five key principles: security, availability, processing integrity, confidentiality, and privacy. Companies need to prove that they take these principles seriously so that people can trust them with sensitive information. 

When B2B buyers are choosing a service or product, they look beyond just the price. They want to ensure that the company they’re purchasing from follows important rules and regulations. If a business can prove it’s compliant, it could have a better shot at landing a contract, even if its price is slightly higher. This shows that for B2B buyers, being compliant is just as crucial as pricing when negotiating deals.

E- Closing & Onboarding 

Once all the above stages have been completed, the final rituals must be performed. Now, get back to work and keep communication clear and transparent. Consider minor energy points that a client could raise and tackle those immediately. Provide them with the best solutions to increase your chances of having them refer your services/products in their business circles.

Difference between B2B and B2C sales

The major difference between B2B and B2C sale models is how they perform. B2B involves transactions between businesses, while B2C targets individual consumers. Both have different targeting strategies and distinct sales and marketing approaches. In short, there is a significant difference when we break down the basics and explore the details of both business models.

Is B2B sales better than B2C?

Both are better in their own way. B2B businesses are mostly run on relationship building, while B2C is volume-focused. As a B2B company, one long-lasting client can generate your quarter-long ROI, but in B2C, you have to maintain a customer flow to generate a consistent ROI.

Difference between B2B and B2C buyers – Risk Aversion 

B2B buyers are more risk-averse than B2C buyers because they know what is at stake and understand the responsibility of making decisions on behalf of others. They think strategically, consider risks, and make strong decisions based on reasoning. In this case, bridging trust is the only way to establish a long-lasting relationship between a B2B buyer and a potential vendor.

What Does a B2B Sales Representative Actually Do?

There are two main types of roles B2B sales representatives fill, 

1- The “Hunter” 

Someone who seeks new business, constantly looking for new clients and opportunitiess.

2- The “Farmer.”

Who manages existing accounts? This role involves building relationships with customers, making sure they are satisfied, and finding ways to upsell.

In short, Hunters chase new leads, and Farmers care for existing clients. Both roles are important for a successful B2B sales team!

Major Role and Responsibilities of B2B Sales Rep

Their responsibilities typically include:

• Prospecting and qualifying potential clients
• Building relationships with decision-makers and stakeholders
• Understanding clients’ business challenges and goals
• Customizing solutions to meet specific organizational needs
• Managing complex, multi-stage sales processes
• Collaborating with marketing, product, and customer success teams
• Meeting sales targets and revenue goals

The best B2B sales reps know their products well, understand business, and build strong relationships.

Skills needed for B2B sales representative success

What is the B2B sales experience like?

In B2B sales, you often run into challenges, like dealing with rejection and complex objections (like we’re locked into a competitor’s contract), since not every pitch leads to a sale. But there are also great rewards, like high commissions, that make all the hard work worthwhile! 

Overall, being a B2B sales rep can be tough but also very rewarding, with plenty of chances to grow both professionally and financially.

Winning B2B sales strategies 

1- Value-Based Selling 

Value-based selling is all about showing the real business value your solution brings, instead of just focusing on features or price. Focus on ROI: “Our clients save $2.7M/year on average. Let’s build your case.”

 To do this effectively, you need to:

• Understand what your prospect wants to achieve and the challenges they face.
• Show how your solution can positively impact their business outcomes.
• Use case studies and success stories to demonstrate return on investment (ROI).
• Present your offering as an investment rather than just an expense.

This approach works really well in high-value B2B sales, especially since stakeholders often need to convince others before making a purchase.

2- Account-Based Selling

Account-based selling is about treating each target company like its own little “Market”. Here’s how it works in a more personal way:

• Find out who the key decision-makers are and what matters to them.
• Create tailored content and outreach for them.
• Make sure sales and marketing are working together on these target accounts.
• Use different channels to engage with them.
• Look at the account success instead of just individual leads.

This targeted method can lead to better conversion rates for complicated B2B sales, especially when you’re aiming at larger enterprises.

3- Social Selling 

Social selling is super important in B2B these days. In fact, 78% of people who sell on social media are doing better than those who don’t! Here’s how to do it effectively:

• Build a strong professional profile online.
• Share useful content about your industry.
• Engage with what your prospects post.
• Use platforms like LinkedIn to find and connect with decision-makers.
• Join discussions and communities related to your industry.

B2B sales professionals who use social media well can create more opportunities and build trust before they even start selling.

Why is B2B Sales Hard?

Sales cycles can be tough. They often take a long time, and gatekeepers can stop your message from reaching the decision-makers. Plus, budgets can change, making it hard for you to plan your sales strategy. But with the right tools and strategy you van always make things work. 

1- Long Sales Cycles: 

Unlike B2C sales, where customers make quick decisions, B2B sales often take a long time. This is because businesses typically need to go through several layers of approval before closing the deal.

2- Gatekeepers: 

In B2B sales, you often encounter gatekeepers, these are individuals who control access to the decision-makers. They can be tough to reach, making it hard to present your product or service.

3- Shifting Budgets: 

Business budgets can change frequently due to economic conditions, project priorities, or organizational changes. This unpredictability can make it challenging to plan your sales approach effectively.

How to Make B2B Sales Easier

Despite these challenges, there are effective strategies you can use to make the process smoother:

Use AI Tools: 

Using AI tools can help streamline your prospecting efforts. For instance, Cognism is a platform that helps sellers identify potential leads more efficiently, making the initial outreach easier.

Build Champions: 

Try to identify and nurture relationships with enthusiasts or “champions” within your target accounts. These individuals can advocate for your product, helping to influence the decision-making process.

Share Case Studies: Use case studies to showcase your product’s success and reduce perceived risk for potential clients. When prospects see how other businesses have benefited from your solutions, they’re often more inclined to consider your offering.

What B2B Sales Model companies are using in 2025? 

Hybrid model = Tech + Human Touch

Digital tools: Chatbots for FAQs, AI-powered lead scoring.

Human moments: Fly out for quarterly reviews, send handwritten notes.

Tools to adopt now:

• Video prospecting: Send Loom videos instead of emails.
• Virtual deal rooms: Share pricing, contracts, and demos in one secure portal (e.g., DocSend).

Cold outreach is an old talk now. Prospects respect a warm, data-driven, personalized approach that makes them feel valuable.

5 things every B2B rep needs in 2025

1. A CRM – HubSpot, Salesforce
2. LinkedIn Sales Navigator for social selling.
3. A library of case studies and battle cards.
4. AI prospecting tool (Cognism, ZoomInfo).
5. Patience – this isn’t a “get rich quick” gig.

Conclusion

This is your guide for B2B sales. To succeed, focus on building your brand and reaching out to potential clients through friendly, warm communications instead of just cold pitching via email or calls.. Develop relationships with prospects using your personal selling skills, and then close the deal by showcasing your success stories and results. 

Happy Selling!

FAQs

Q: What is B2B sales?

Answer:

As the name suggests, B2B, or Business-to-Business sales, involves selling products and services between two businesses. These sales are typically viewed as long-term partnerships, with products exchanged in bulk quantities and services resulting in collaborations and long-term relationships. 

Q: Example of B2B sales?

Answer:

A company selling CRM to wholesale business owners is considered a B2B company. A Wholesaler selling products to e-commerce businesses is also considered a B2B company. 

Q: How do B2B sales work?

Answer:

B2B sale cycles are different from consumer cycles. They involve teams, not individuals, when it comes to decision-making. It takes months, not minutes, to nurture a prospect, and it goes a long way rather than a 10-20-minute interaction, which is often repetitive and gives referral opportunities. HubSpot stated that the highest-quality leads for a B2B company come from referrals from their existing clientele. 

Q: How can B2B sales benefit from social selling?

Answer:

Engaging with your prospects on LinkedIn and sharing valuable, outcome-oriented content builds credibility and trust. It also helps shorten the longer sales cycle by nurturing prospects beforehand rather than cold pitching them with emails and cold calls alone. It’s called warm outreach.

Q: Is B2B sales a promising career?

Answer:

The average salary of a B2B sales representative in the USA is around $69,412. This career is considered good because you gain vast exposure and can earn commissions on top of your basic salary, which creates a handsome package. As this is a challenging job, sales reps with strong profiles and skills are in greater demand.