Extended reality (XR) technologies hold great potential for sales processes in business to business (B2B) companies.
A study from Goldman Sachs has put the market potential of the metaverse - the fusion of physical and digital worlds - anywhere between $3.8 and $12.5 trillion. This depends on the share of the digital economy that shifts to the metaverse and market expansion.
What is clear is that XR technologies such as augmented reality and virtual reality will have powerful benefits in terms of B2B sales. It can both:
- Help customers with product evaluation and personalising complex products
- Provide the buyer with significant value during the decision-making process through tools such as virtual drop-down menus.
Using XR technologies in B2B sales processes also simplifies coordination between customers and sellers. Detailed product visualisations also help reduce product complexity.
XR technologies are already widely used across numerous industries. For instance, pharmaceutical company Roche employs XR technologies for collaborative laboratory planning with customers. In this they use high-fidelity product visualisations, enhancing decision-making in the procurement process.
In the construction industry, Peri, a family-owned company specialising in scaffolding and formwork solutions, integrates XR technologies into its sales processes. XR technologies enable realistic visualisations of virtual product solutions within real-world environments - enhancing client engagement and decision-making.
Research study
Against this backdrop, colleagues and I are currently undertaking an extensive qualitative study with B2B sellers, buyers, and XR technology experts from different industries and countries. The aim is to:
- Investigate in-depth the use of XR technologies in sales
- Understand how these can be used effectively in different contexts.
What is interesting is that, for whatever reason, many companies are still reluctant to embrace XR technologies. For instance, there can be challenges in implementing XR technologies in B2B sales processes due to hardware and software issues. Sellers can also fear a certain loss of control during sales conversations due to the immersive XR experience for the buyer.
To address these concerns, we argue that sellers should integrate XR technologies early in the sales process to engage buyers from the outset, fostering informed decision-making and reducing potential uncertainties.
In a recent cross-industry, quantitative study, we also identified key factors that influence XR adoption in B2B sales. For example, buyer readiness and product type emerge as critical determinants of successful XR implementation in sales interactions. Additionally, potential negative outcomes should be carefully considered when integrating XR technologies - for example, increased role stress among salespeople.
Public sector benefits
Apart from B2B sales processes, XR technologies also provide innovative solutions for governments and public institutions by enhancing connectivity between government services and end users.
For example, a study by Sabah et al. (2023) highlights XR's potential to transform urban planning by facilitating active societal participation through vivid interaction. This enables more inclusive and data-driven decision-making.
XR technologies will undoubtedly also have a huge role to play in the future of the business to government (B2G) sector. Given that governments worldwide spend a staggering $11trillion annually on public procurement (World Economic Forum 2022), this creates substantial B2G sales opportunities for suppliers.
In another study, my colleagues and I are also looking at the impact of sales strategies and structures on B2G sales performance. Our research aims to identify success factors for B2G sales, examining which sales strategies drive performance in B2G markets.
We also shed light on how selling organisations should strategically engage with governmental customers to leverage the potential of B2G markets. Specifically, our study underscores the critical importance of adopting a focused strategy for B2G sales success.
Sustainability
There is an important link to sustainability too. Our qualitative study and cross-industry survey provide evidence that XR technologies enhance efficiency, thereby contributing to more sustainable sales practices.
For example, XR implementation in sales interactions enables realistic prototype visualisation through real-time simulations, reducing the need for physical presentations. As a result, salespeople travel less, and prototypes no longer need to be shipped across continents. This minimises both costs and environmental impact.
In B2B markets, awareness of the importance of sustainability in the supply chain is growing too. However, only a fifth of B2B buyers prioritise sustainability aspects when selecting their suppliers. A deeper understanding of the individual motives and barriers faced by B2B buyers when selecting sustainable products is crucial for sales managers to set optimal prices for these products and effectively communicate their benefits to customers.
As such, we are currently conducting a cross-industry survey with hundreds of B2B purchasing managers in Germany and China. We're aiming to discover how B2B buyers balance price and sustainability, and how these trade-offs are influenced by personal and organisational factors.
Christian Homburg
Christian Homburg is a Professor of Marketing and Distinguished Professorial Fellow at AMBS. He is also a Director of the Institute for Market-Oriented Management at the University of Mannheim in Germany.
He was recently awarded a lifetime achievement award as a leading researcher in business administration in the German-speaking world by business news magazine WirtschaftsWoche.
