Here’s a stat that should make every B2B marketer pause: 95% of deals are effectively decided before a salesperson ever picks up the phone, according to 6sense’s 2025 B2B Buyer Experience Report. It’s a clear signal that the B2B buying journey has evolved in ways that materially affect how marketing needs to operate.
Understanding the modern B2B buying journey matters because, according to 6sense, the first vendor a buyer contacts goes on to win the deal around 77% of the time. In fact, buyers have already ranked their shortlist 94% of the time before that first contact even occurs.
The implication isn’t that sales or conversion tactics no longer matter. It’s that, by the time sales teams get involved, buyers are often further along in their thinking than many organisations assume. Sales is increasingly validating and de-risking decisions shaped earlier in the journey.
Buyers are more informed and more deliberate than ever. That shift doesn’t render existing marketing approaches obsolete, but it does change where and how marketing has the greatest influence. Conversion tactics remain essential, but without strong brand perception and early-stage credibility, they have far less to work with.
The modern B2B buyer journey
B2B buyer journeys have shrunk significantly. According to 6sense, prospects are engaging sellers around six to seven weeks earlier than the previous norm.
There are two main drivers behind this shift. Firstly, buyers feel a growing need to do due diligence on AI. 58% said that earlier engagement helps them understand AI capabilities, pricing, security and implementation.
Secondly, economic uncertainty is accelerating decision-making. The spectre of tariffs and other macroeconomic risks has led to 62% of buyers moving engagement earlier to secure budgets before potential constraints or cuts.
Earlier engagement, however, doesn’t mean less considered decisions. In many cases, the opposite is true. Buyers are doing more work upfront to arrive at a confident shortlist.
6sense says a mammoth 94% of buyers now use large language models (LLMs) like ChatGPT during their buying process. They’re researching vendors, comparing solutions, reading reviews and forming opinions through AI-powered tools that can synthesise information from hundreds of sources in seconds.
AI isn’t actually replacing human interactions. Buyers still average around 16 interactions per stakeholder with their eventual vendor. What has changed is when those interactions actually happen. They increasingly take place after buyers have built a strong baseline understanding and aligned internally.
Forrester’s research reveals that an average of 13 people are now involved in B2B buying decisions, with 89% of purchases involving two or more departments. This makes the pre-shortlist research phase even more critical, as buyers need to build consensus across multiple stakeholders before they ever reach out.
Why shortlists rule the buying cycle
Today’s buyers are conducting sophisticated research processes that happen entirely outside of sales team’s visibility.
As a result, 95% of purchases come from vendors on a day one shortlist. Getting onto that shortlist is no longer a nice-to-have. It’s table stakes.
Understanding where buyers are in their journey is critical. The modern funnel breaks down into three distinct stages:
1. Not in market
This is where 60% of all buyers are at any given time. While they’re not actively shopping, they’re far from passive. They’re consuming content, forming opinions about vendors and building awareness of who the credible players are in your space.
2. Selection phase
This is where active research happens. Buyers compare options, consult peers, read thought leadership and increasingly use AI tools to synthesise information. By the end of this phase, the shortlist is set.
3. Validation phase
It’s at this stage where sales engagement typically begins. By now, these buyers are now pressure-testing their assumptions. Checking for fit and risk, rather than starting from scratch.
The pivotal moment in this funnel is the shortlist formation, where ranking matters enormously. According to 6sense, the number one ranked vendor wins 77% of deals.
The takeaway for marketers isn’t that sales conversations are unimportant. It’s that the foundations of those conversations are laid earlier. Influence is earned during the selection phase, often before buyers make contact.
If you’re not investing in pre-shortlist engagement and brand visibility, you reduce your chances of being considered. And if you’re not considered, no amount of late-stage optimisation will fully compensate.
Practical implications for B2B marketers
So how do you actually make a positive impression before the shortlist forms? The shift is less about abandoning what works and more about rebalancing from interruption towards education and credibility.
Focus on top-of-funnel investment
The fight for mindshare happens long before buyers enter the market. That means that bottom-of-funnel tactics remain vital, but they work best when supported by brand-building activity that shapes perception early. Make sure you’re not just positioned to capture demand, but to shape it in the first place.
Ensure modern discoverability
The prevalence of LLMs during research means your content needs to be optimised for AI-powered discoverability. That makes it highly important that you create generative engine optimised (GEO) content, backed by credible backlinks and third-party validation, that platforms like ChatGPT and Google Gemini can find, understand and trust. If AI tools aren’t referencing your brand during the research phase, it makes it that much harder to make the shortlist.
Don’t waste sales effort on buyers not in the market
Remember: 60% of your potential buyers aren’t actively looking for solutions. Traditional sales outreach to this group will yield poor return without prior brand awareness. Invest in marketing materials that educate, provoke and guide these buyers before they’re ready for sales engagement.
Add genuine insight, not obvious solutions
Buyers average eight to nine purchase journeys in their category. They’re experienced evaluators who’ve seen it all before. Your messaging can’t simply reiterate what they already know. It has to challenge their thinking and add genuine value to their research process.
Reframing your marketing strategy
The data points to a simple reality. Most buyers may not be in market, but they are forming opinions that shape future decisions. When they do engage, it’s earlier in the journey and with clearer expectations.
The question for B2B marketers isn’t whether this change is good or bad. It’s how well your strategy reflects it.
If buyers are shaping preferences before they speak to you, how is your brand showing up during that time?
Marketing success is increasingly measured not just by leads generated, but by influence earned early. Be discoverable, credible and genuinely helpful long before buyers enter the market, and you give sales far more to build on when the shortlist is already in play.
