With B2B buyer habits, priorities, and expectations constantly evolving, new research has revealed the latest trends that shape their decision-making.

The sales engagement experts at B2B lead generation agency Sopro, have analysed a wealth of industry data to inform B2B marketing and sales strategies in 2025 and beyond.

According to Sopro’s State of Prospecting 2025 report, 88% of B2B buyers want to hear from vendors when researching and evaluating their options, highlighting why businesses should engage buyers early.

Top 10 B2B buyer statistics and insights

1. Millennials and Gen Z now account for 71% of B2B buyers, up from 64% in 2022.

2. Younger decision-makers (under 40) involve nearly twice as many stakeholders (6.8) as older executives (3.5) in buying decisions.

3. The average buying group for complex B2B solutions involves 8.2 stakeholders, up by over a fifth (21%) since 2015.

4. Over 8 in 10 buyers know what product they want before starting research, and 70% buy their initially preferred solution.

5. Three-quarters (75%) of B2B buyers prefer a rep-free sales experience, but self-service digital purchases are more likely to result in purchase regret.

6. Almost 9 in 10 (86%) B2B purchases stall during the buying process, and 81% of buyers are dissatisfied with their chosen provider.

7. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of B2B leads take at least three months to decide, and a fifth (20%) wait over a year before purchasing.

8. Social proof dominates buying decisions: Over three-quarters (77%) of buyers read user reviews, and more than half (54%) speak directly with current users before purchasing.

9. Email is the most preferred outreach channel, with 73% of buyers favouring it and 64% opening emails based solely on the subject line.

10. Enterprise buyers spending over £100k show higher AI adoption (39%) than overall buyers (30%), and Gen Z buyers use AI nearly twice as much as the average (15% vs. 8%).

Victoria Heyward, Director of Marketing at Sopro, comments: “B2B purchases rarely involve a single buyer anymore. They’re shaped by multi-stakeholder groups, longer sales cycles, and heightened scrutiny at every stage. Our research shows 86% of purchases stall during the process, and 81% of buyers end up dissatisfied. That tells us something’s broken.

“Vendors need to move beyond just lead generation and focus on enabling buyer journey progression, whether that’s through education, stakeholder-specific content, or simply being clearer and more transparent. The brands that remove friction will be the ones that win market share long term.”

Further insights you can find in the research include:

• B2B buyer frustrations
• The types of content that influence B2B buyers
• B2B buying budgets
• Conversion rate optimisation (CRO) statistics
• B2B buying through social media insights

You can view the full statistics page, including the methodology and sources, here.