Summary
B2B Buying Groups have become the dominant buying model in enterprise sales. The Buying Groups Cheat Sheet explains how Buying Groups work, why they outperform lead-centric models, and how GTM teams can operationalize Buying Groups using opportunity-based go-to-market execution. Learn from the Buying Groups experts at LeanData.
What You’ll Learn
- How Buying Groups differ from traditional lead-based GTM models
- The roles that shape enterprise buying decisions
- Why Buying Group signals outperform individual lead scores
- How opportunity-based execution improves conversion and velocity
- The foundational building blocks of a Buying Groups Motion
Buying Groups Are How Enterprise Purchase Decisions Actually Happen
Enterprise B2B purchases rarely involve a single decision maker. On average, 13 people across multiple departments participate in a buying decision, each bringing different priorities, influence, and risk tolerance.
When GTM execution focuses on individual leads, critical signals and stakeholders are missed, creating stalled deals and wasted effort.
A Buying Groups Motion aligns marketing and sales around the full buying committee and treats engagement as a shared opportunity rather than isolated activities.
“Buyers are in control, and that change in control is causing a breakdown in processes we architected 20 years ago…”Amy Hawthorne
Why Lead-Centric Execution Breaks Down
Lead-centric models struggle to reflect real buying behavior. Single-contact opportunities convert poorly, sales teams lack visibility into influence and intent, and marketing investment is often misdirected.
Research shows that teams can hit 100 percent of MQL targets while achieving only 30 percent of pipeline goals, exposing a fundamental disconnect between volume and value.
How Buying Groups Improve GTM Outcomes
A Buying Groups GTM strategy connects signals across people, roles, and accounts. Engagement from multiple stakeholders signals stronger intent and enables teams to qualify opportunities with greater accuracy. Organizations that deliver verified Buying Groups to sales see conversion improvements ranging from 20 to 50 percent, along with faster opportunity progression and fewer closed lost deals.
