As business leaders start to look forward to the new year, it’s worth taking stock of how B2B and B2C sales strategies are evolving. Cutting-edge agentic AI will empower sales teams to work smarter. However, strong sales and marketing collaboration with a personalized approach to lead development are still the main ingredients for success in 2025.
The expansion of digital touchpoints
Hybrid selling is essentially an omnichannel sales approach that combines digital and offline outreach. While many sales teams have the offline outreach part down to a science, some small merchants lag behind on the digital side.
[Read more: How to Create a Hybrid Sales Model]
By 2025, Gartner predicts that 80% of B2B sales communication between suppliers and buyers will occur in digital channels, such as email, social media, text, live chat, or all of the above. Self-service options will become increasingly popular as more people seek convenience, speed, and a tech-first relationship with sales representatives.
“When asked what they wanted most from their sales rep, one executive told us, ‘Please stop asking to meet with me in person. I’m busy enough as it is,’” reported McKinsey. Their study found that 90% of companies were willing to complete high-value deals without a single in-person interaction.
Small business owners can enable these interactions by expanding digital touchpoints and training sales representatives on the hybrid sales approach to customer service.
Deeper collaboration between sales and marketing
With the rise of hybrid selling comes the need for sales and marketing teams to work together closely. Siloed sales and marketing teams can lead to incomplete customer insights, negatively impact commercial performance, and waste company resources.
“The likelihood of strong commercial growth increases with sales and marketing alignment,” said Robert Blaisdell, VP Analyst and Chief of Research in the Gartner Sales practice. “A Gartner survey of 632 B2B buyers from August through September 2024 found that B2B buyers are completing purchases through different channels, underscoring the need for a less siloed approach.”
Customers don’t necessarily view sales and marketing as two distinct practices; they want any company representative to provide a consistent, personalized experience. Sharing data and resources across the two teams helps improve the outcomes of both.
Prepare for more educated leads
Research in G2’s 2024 Buyer Behavior Report found that nearly 70% of buyers have already done their research and made a decision by the time they reach out to a salesperson. This dynamic fundamentally changes the role of the salesperson, shifting their job from education to enablement.
“Buyers are more educated than ever and have become immune to spamming sales outreach. Of course, buyers still need to buy, so it’s imperative to cater sales outreach purposefully,” wrote G2.
This new approach emphasizes talking about integrations, onboarding, and helping sales leads understand how a product or service can immediately deliver ROI. Sales teams should demonstrate that they understand the short- and long-term goals of the prospective lead—such as customer experience and retention.
When asked what they wanted most from their sales rep, one executive told us, “Please stop asking to meet with me in person. I’m busy enough as it is.”
Lisa Donchak, Julia McClatchy, and Jennifer Stanley, McKinsey & Company
Focus on customer retention
There are dozens of stats quantifying just how important it is to retain customers, such as:
- It is five times more expensive to earn a new customer than keep an existing one.
- Increasing customer retention by just 5% can increase profits by 95%.
- Existing customers spend 67% more than new customers.
Customer retention has long been the goal for many business owners, and today’s business environment is leading sales teams to zero in on this key metric. Sales teams can start improving retention as early as the onboarding process. The language app Duolingo, for instance, reinvented its onboarding process to reduce customer churn by 13%.
[Read more: B2B Sales Techniques for Building a Loyal Customer Base]
And it’s not enough to simply maintain existing customers. Your sales strategy should incorporate opportunities to upsell and cross-sell to current customers. Consider increasing your upsell and cross-sell abilities by adding apps to your online store, launching a targeted email campaign, and reaching out with personalized offers to each individual client.
The rise of AI agents
AI agents, or agentic AI, are autonomous, proactive applications designed to execute specialized tasks—from handling customer service queries to advanced tasks like making travel arrangements. This technology is at the forefront of AI innovation, and sales teams are among the first to benefit from AI agents.
In 2025, Salesforce predicts that AI agents will become more like copilots than simple SaaS tools. “The transformative leap will come from AI that moves past generic assistance and evolves into business-aware intelligence — understanding the unique context, challenges, and needs of your industry to carry out meaningful, strategic business tasks and decisions on your behalf,” said Adam Evans, EVP and GM at Salesforce's AI Platform.
Moreover, AI agents will be able to work together in multi-agent teams to handle complex sales tasks and customer service needs. As AI develops, it will empower sales teams to make smarter decisions and scale outreach in ways that feel meaningful and personal to sales leads.
Sales culture is king
A healthy culture in which your representatives feel supported is shown to make a difference in reaching your sales targets. Invest in meaningful initiatives that help you recruit great sales talent, promote healthy collaboration, and drive results. The key word here is “meaningful.”
“Within the sales team, steer clear of symbolic moves such as suddenly sending the CRO into the field to support deals, if their presence will only intimidate sellers who’ve never interacted with them before,” wrote Peter Ostrow, VP and Principal Analyst at Forrester.
A supportive sales culture isn’t something you can mandate or buy. Instead, consider investing in long-term initiatives like a mentorship program, a sales advisory council, and a compensation structure that shows employees you value their hard work. Not only will you motivate your employees to work productively, but you can also improve your employee retention—a metric that’s just as important as customer retention.
Use demos wisely
Many organizations offer demos as an inbound marketing lead magnet. These demos can be incredibly powerful ways to connect with people who are interested in your product or service. But it’s also likely that a potential customer is asking for demos from a number of different vendors at the same time.
To make your product or service stand out, Dan Tyre, Inbound Fellow at HubSpot, suggests focusing on the problem someone is trying to solve, rather than the solution your product offers. "Prospects are less interested in 'seeing how it works' and more interested in making sure you understand their needs, have a comprehensive idea of their requirements, and that the product will work," he said.
Use your demo to separate your brand from the competitive landscape. Instead of talking about your product or service features, speak to the customers' goals and personalize your pitch.
CO— aims to bring you inspiration from leading respected experts. However, before making any business decision, you should consult a professional who can advise you based on your individual situation.
CO—is committed to helping you start, run and grow your small business. Learn more about the benefits of small business membership in the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, here.
