How Advanced Analytics Is Changing B2B Selling

From targeted online advertising to more precise recommendation engines, consumer markets are bursting with innovation around machine learning and advanced analytics. While there's less buzz around business-to-business markets, these innovations are changing the game in B2B as well, even in old-line industries selling what might be considered commodity products. A growing number of B2B companies are using data and analytics to add services that bring new elements of value to customers, and in some cases new sources of revenue. These elements are fundamental attributes of a company's offering in their most essential and discrete forms – things like product quality, flexibility, and associated expertise; they lift value propositions above commodity status and benefit customers in particular ways. Consider recent moves by Australia-based Orica, which provides packaged explosives materials to mining companies worldwide.