• by Ray Schultz , January 5, 2023

Content creators must be frustrated by the fact that few B2B salespeople use their material. But it depends on who presents it.  

Sellers are more likely to use content when they learn about it from a high-performing peer rather than a sales leader or marketer according to Getting Sellers Engaged, a new study from Allego and B2B DecisionLabs.

The study found that:

• Using a high-performing seller to present new collateral increased the likelihood of use by 61% versus that of a product specialist. 
• Case studies and demonstrations boosted the chances of use by 30% over basic information. 

• When a high-performing seller presented new collateral with a demonstration, the likelihood of use jumped by 111% of a basic information presentation by a product specialist.  
• Firms that ask reps to create a plan for using the new collateral saw a 98% increase in the likelihood of  usage over not asking the reps to engage in learning activity.

“It’s a common problem: The marketing team creates content for sales, but sellers don’t use it. Companies in this uncertain economy cannot afford to waste time, money, and effort this way,” states Mark Magnacca, president and co-founder of Allegro.

“The data is clear,” adds Tim Riesterer, chief visionary at B2B DecisionLabs. “And while the results might seem obvious, I’m not sure this approach has been common practice,” 

Riesterer adds that“now that you know there’s a significantly better way to increase content usage, it would be malpractice not to do it.”\ 

The field trial was led by Leff Bonney, behavioral scientist and research director at B2B DecisionLabs.