24 B2B Buyer Insights [Revealed]

As B2B marketing professionals across the globe turn to data to inform their approach moving into a new year, we reveal 24 key insights that have shaped B2B buyer behavior across 10 key Tech Categories.

These Insights have been collated from a combination of first party research conducted on our Buyer Education Platform IFP and Intent analysis from our in-house Insights Team.

What’s been successfully captivating the attention of B2B buyers in your market? What are their investment plans for the next 12 months? Which intent topics are experiencing the greatest uplift in active searches?

Reveal all, in this handy infographic… 

Reading time: 3 minutes

What does our first party data REVEAL for the year ahead?

We’ve curated the most stand-out insights into a one-stop infographic to help pinpoint exactly where you need to focus your messaging, content and marketing efforts.

Which insights will help you plan for even greater success?

1. 64% of business and IT leaders cite the typical malware attack as their greatest challenge.

Nearly two-thirds (63%) of them reported up to 50 cyberattacks between 2021-22, with 10% recording over 251.

It’s no surprise that cyberattacks feature in the top 3 spiking intent topics in NAM, with 153,479 actively searching businesses – up 72% in 90 days.


2. $1,712.44 billion USD is how much the Cloud Computing market is projected to grow by 2029.

With 70% of businesses now operating in the cloud, it’s a clear target for cybercriminals like no other.

Backed up by the fact that 74% of cloud security professionals are extremely concerned about the security of their cloud-based systems and services, the demand for cloud security solutions is ever-present.


3. 80% of all data center outages are the result of server hardware failure.

The most common form of server hardware failure by far, according to a considerable 81% of IT professionals, is hard drive malfunction.

It’s no wonder server hardware appears in the top 2 surging intent topics across both NAM and EMEA, with 82,291 and 22,471 actively searching businesses respectively.


4. +76% uplift in businesses actively searching Marketing Attribution.

MarTech vendors wanting to drive growth in NAM, should focus their attention on Marketing Attribution – the number one surging ‘Marketing Tools’ tag in NAM over the last 3 months.

With more pressure being applied to the Marketing effort to accelerate the sales pipeline, it appears demand is rising for solutions that help marketers measure their impact while providing greater transparency over their multichannel, multi engagement strategies.


5. 70% of organizations will implement structured infrastructure automation by 2025.

This is compared to just 20% in 2021, with the aim of delivering greater flexibility and efficiency.

By 2025, 50% of businesses will develop skills for infrastructure automation across hybrid and multi-cloud platforms – up from less than 10% in 2021.

What’s more, 85% of infrastructure and operations leaders without full automation expect to increase automation within 3 years.


6. $3.1 trillion is the annual cost of bad data in the US.

42% of data scientists report difficulty in obtaining accurate results due to data bias or missing data.

It’s no surprise then, that over a quarter (29%) of organizational data is reported inaccurate.


7. +214% uplift in businesses actively searching for Unified Communications in EMEA.

Over the past 90 days, there has been an uplift in searches for Unified Communications in both EMEA (+214%) and NAM (+189%). 

This trend correlates with third party research which reveals the global Unified Communications industry is expected to expand at a CAGR of 17.4% from 2023 to 2030.


8. 74% of senior B2B marketers struggle to maximize the value of their data.

Nearly three-quarters of senior marketing professionals in both the UK and US struggle to effectively analyze their data.

Diving down deeper, our first party research uncovered nearly a third perceive their Data Analytics Infrastructure as average to poor.

With 39% planning to invest in Data Analytics over the next 12 months, our research shows there’s significant market opportunities for MarTech vendors with Analytic solutions to capture demand.

Learn more about our market research services.


9. +203% uplift in businesses actively searching for Customer Advocacy in EMEA.

While research shows 76% of people are more likely to trust content shared by “normal” people than by brands, our intent analysis shows Customer Advocacy is experiencing the highest % change in increased searches in the last 90 days.

This infers more businesses are recognizing the effectiveness of word-of-mouth referrals and are actively looking for to incorporate Customer Advocacy tactics into their strategy.


10. 69% of HR leaders use eLearning within their LMS to deliver their training programs.

According to our first party research, almost two thirds (65%) of HR leaders claim hybrid working has impacted their ability to train staff effectively.

With over two thirds (69%) of HR leaders leveraging eLearning, a further 60% believe that helping employees feel comfortable with using LMS software is the answer to improving learning outcomes.


11. 52% of C-Suite execs are willing to spend $250,000 – $1,000,000 on new security solutions.

Security Tools sees the greatest spike in intent across both NAM and EMEA, with 228,453 and 27,429 actively searching businesses respectively.

It’s no wonder C-Suite executives are willing to invest up to a million dollars on new security solutions in an attempt to alleviate the threats.


12. 76% of businesses use 2 or more Cloud Service providers.

Spreading the risk by using more than one cloud service provider is a wise tactic to remain vigilant to cloud hackers.

That’s why nearly a quarter (24%) of companies are in fact choosing to use more than five.


13. 40% of organizations have lost between $1-5 million in a single hour of downtime.

A single hour of cloud downtime can cost businesses, on average, over $100,000 annually.

It’s clear that any downtime has a huge impact on the bottom line, so having the right server and storage solution in place is paramount.


14. +89% uplift in businesses actively searching for Marketing Tools in NAM.

With an overall increase in searches for Marketing Tools in the US, our Category Intelligence also shows Marketing Attribution, Affiliate Marketing and Data Integration are 3 specific areas surging.

What is driving demand for these tools?


15. +309% uplift in business actively searching Network Automation in EMEA.

With digital transformation accelerating network advancement in the last few years, it’s no surprise that Network Automation is a key area of interest, particularly in EMEA where it’s experiencing spiking intent.


16. $5.4 billion USD is what the global market for Data Quality Tools is expected to reach by 2030.

Ensuring data quality is a major priority for organizations going forward.

Hence why it’s the number one surging intent topic in this category across the NAM region, with a 146% increase in searches over 3 months.


17. 50% of Contact Center Leaders cite Reducing Costs as their top priority for the next 12 months.

The top 3 priorities for Contact Center Leaders over the next 12 months are:

  • Reducing Costs
  • Expanding Support for Digital Channels
  • Implementing AI

While Live Chat, Business Intelligence and CRM were cited as the 3 most important integrations.


18. 76% of B2B organizations deploy up to 25 types of MarTech to run their marketing operations.

With over 2/5 of marketers dedicating only 10% or less of their overall budget on MarTech, it’s crucial Tech Vendors align their GTM strategies to the priorities and pain points of their target buyers.

In the race to carve out differentiation between other MarTech solutions, vendors should consider the crucial role of brand awareness and thought leadership within an integrated full funnel, multichannel strategy to intercept key stakeholders earlier in their buyer journey.


19. 66% of businesses say their biggest CX challenge is understanding customers.

Lack of Personalization, Poor Communication and Rising Customer Expectations were cited as the 3 biggest reasons business fail to retain customers.

Our research shows problem recognition is well established, with many businesses actively in the research stage and willing to invest in solutions, such as the 30% prepared to spend from $100,000 to over $2.5m to reduce wait times and improve overall customer service.


20. 27% of HR leaders spend around one week on course creation.

While 27% of HR leaders spend around one week on course creation, our first party research found resource dedicated to creation time varied significantly, from as little as 30 minutes all the way to 3-6 months.

What factors impact how much time L&D professionals assign to the creation of new courses and what are the key challenges preventing them from driving greater efficiencies?


21. 63% of businesses backup data daily, with 24% doing so weekly.

81% of large companies perform daily backups, compared to just 55% of smaller firms.

Regular backups aid business recovery efforts in the case of any major event and can mitigate ransomware attacks when protected and stored remotely, to prevent ransomware perpetrators from accessing them.


22. +82,410 NAM and +16,292 EMEA uplift in businesses actively searching for Cloud Onboarding.

Cloud onboarding sees the greatest spiking intent in both NAM and EMEA, suggesting that cloud adoption is taking precedent for IT professionals on both sides of the Atlantic.

It’s unsurprising that businesses are requiring support with the onboarding of something as complex as the cloud – yet cloud computing vendors need to be ready to target and intercept in-market buyers with their solutions.


23. +160 uplift in businesses actively searching for Marketing Automation Tools in NAM.

Over a third (37.8%) of senior B2B marketing professionals on our Buyer Education Platform IFP, plan to invest in Marketing Automation over the next 12 months.

When combined with our Intent Intelligence, there is a strong indication that these marketers are already in-market and are actively researching their purchasing decision.


24. +311% uplift in active searches for Incentive Programs in EMEA.

A surge in interest for Incentive Programs over the past 90 days, infers HR professionals are looking for solutions to improve employee engagement and experience.

Along with attracting and retaining employees by offering them great benefits, HR leaders in both EMEA and NAM regions are prioritizing the physical and mental health of their employees, with Health being another key topic area with spiking intent.

Ready to accelerate your growth?

These Insights are just a selection taken from our latest Market Intelligence Report. Dive down deeper into your specific category to uncover actionable Insights that move the dial.

Download our full Marketing Intelligence Report here.

Jennifer Brennand

Jennifer, a highly respected figure in B2B Tech media, offers strategic leadership through data driven and insight led recommendations that deliver better business outcomes. With expertise in both digital and traditional B2B media, she excels at building integrated demand campaigns and driving client growth.
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