IBM Steps Up Digital Efforts To Expand Its Domestic Influence
U.S. technology giants will provide better services through more advanced tools and technical skills. The US technology giant IBM stepping up its digital sales strategy in China. As digital channels are expected to play a greater role in promoting business-to-business sales in the next five years.
Alain Benichou, CEO of IBM Greater China, said: “During the COVID-19 pandemic, the digital sales experience has become more important. China is one of the most digitalized markets in the world. We need to adopt a more digital and agile approach to Customer interaction.”
His speech was delivered on the first anniversary of the establishment of the IBM China Digital Sales Center. In the pandemic that Chinese companies are stepping up their digital transformation. The Beijing-based digital sales center committed to quickly respond to the needs of local small and medium-sized enterprises and help them cope with challenges.
Benichou said that this year IBM proposed a new “going to market” strategy,
the digital sales center aims to use more advanced digital tools, solid technical sales skills and agile response speed to meet customer needs.
Specifically, the center will pay more attention to exploring business opportunities for customers’ digital transformation needs. Bring IBM’s hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence technology to more customers.
This is because market research company Gartner predicts that by 2025. 80% of business-to-business sales interactions between suppliers and buyers will be through digital channels. This is because 33% of all buyers surveyed by the company want a seller-free sales experience—the preference of millennials has risen to 44%.
Cristina Gomez, vice president of Gartner’s Sales Leadership Committee,
said: “As baby boomers retire and millennials enter key decision-making positions, the digital-first buying posture will become the norm. As customers become more To learn and buy digitally in many places. Sales representatives are just one of many possible sales channels. Therefore, sales organizations must be able to sell products to customers wherever they want to contact, interact, and trade with suppliers.”
According to Gartner, buyers usually only spend 17% of their time meeting with potential suppliers when considering a purchase. As customer face-to-face time decreases, virtual sales through digital channels will dominate. In addition, the pandemic has accelerated this trend.
In response to the buying habits and industry trends of Chinese customers, the IBM China Digital Sales Center also uses live video to attract customers in the B2B field. Dozens of sales and technical experts from IBM presented the company’s various flagship software, hardware, service products and solutions online in an easy-to-understand manner. Zheng Dong, general manager of Digital China System Security Strategy Division, one of IBM’s business partners, said earlier that Beijing’s digital sales center integrates products, solutions and services for customers, and brings new opportunities to companies such as Digital China. . This is especially important during the COVID-19 outbreak.