Between three and five corporate departments weigh in on B2B purchases, on average, according to recent research from LinkedIn.
The report was based on data from a survey of 6,000 buyers, marketers, and salespeople at mid-sized to enterprise-level B2B companies in seven countries: The United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, India, France, and Germany.
The number of departments involved in B2B purchase decisions varies significantly by industry, the analysis found. For example, in the travel vertical 3.4 departments impact buying decisions, on average, whereas in the manufacturing industry it is 4.6 departments.
Respondents across all industries say IT is the department most often involved in B2B buying decisions (32% cite), followed by finance (31%) and business development (26%).
Respondents in the marketing and advertising industry say that the marketing department has the most influence on B2B purchase decisions; business development is second, followed by sales.
See the full report for a breakdown of other industries.
About the research: The report was based on data from a survey of 6,000 buyers, marketers, and salespeople at mid-sized to enterprise-level B2B companies in seven countries: The United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Australia, India, France, and Germany.
