New B2B Marketing and Selling Truisms

This is my list of new truisms for B2B marketing and sales. They provide context for most of our services and writing.

I post them prominently here so as to not have to repeat them in any conversation or material I create. If you agree with these truisms, please join the conversation. If you have additional, please help me growth a comprehensive list. Thanks to those who have provided suggestions, some of which I've added.

1. Buyers are more in control of the B2B buying process than ever before.
2. For buyers, all sellers look and sound alike. Products and services appear undifferentiated. Therefore, the way we sell is a critical area of differentiation and value add.
3. The Internet changes everything, by providing instant access to virtually unlimited information.
4. This requires new ways of thinking about marketing and sales, as well as new processes, skills, resources and investments.
5. "It's not about the bike!" It takes more than technology to achieve outcomes, especially strategy, skills, process and content.
6. Content is the new currency for marketing and sales.
7. The goal of content marketing is to provide the right person with the right content in the right media at the right moment in time. That requires a new approach to content.
8. Content must help customers with their buying process by addressing their questions and issues, which are not addressed by vendor product features and functions.
9. Content must be relevant, remarkable, timely and convenient to be appreciated by buyers who are inundated with information and have limited time and attention.
10. Content must meet and optimize a new set of criteria:

• Quality -- professional, but perhaps only "good enough"
• Rapid development and instant availability,
• Affordable cost,
• Flexible tailoring for relevance,
• Accommodate the volume of content required,
• Easy to share and maintain to optimize use and shelf life, as well as provide an acceptable return-on-content
• Ability to enable front line to access, select, assemble and deliver relevant content in a timely and convenient manner.