‘Your buyer journey no longer exists’: Hootsuite CEO on the rise of the B2Z customer

According to the social media management platform’s data, 75% of B2B buyers now identify as Gen Z or millennials, and the expectations of this new cohort are reshaping the path to purchase.

Novoselsky describes this buyer group as a “big contradiction,” growing up with phones in their pockets but avoiding direct contact. “They don’t want your cold calls, they don’t want your cold emails, they don’t want your pushing. They want to be able to get access to your information, but they want to reach out to you.”

Hootsuite found that younger buyers consume an average of 13 pieces of content before making a decision, across YouTube, LinkedIn, reviews, and peer communities – not in the old gated or email-led environments.

Novoselsky believes the shift is generational but inevitable, though marketers have not yet recalibrated their budgets accordingly. “It takes a minute. So right now, Gen X has a seat at the table and they’re starting to influence budgets, but over the next five to 10 years, Gen Z and millennials are going to be the budget owners full stop.”

She says social is inherent in their decision-making. “As Gen Z comes in, it’s native. They’re making their financial decisions on social. They’re making their health decisions, their fashion choices, everything on social media. And as these people rise and have more budgets, they’re not going to be debating social ROI.”

Her observation echoes broader research highlighted in The Drum’s recent coverage of Forrester’s B2B Summit, where principal analyst Daryl Wright shared how AI search and social influencers have become two of the most impactful interactions in the B2B buying process.

The problem is that this vexes marketers who are under immense immediate pressure to demonstrate the return on every dollar of marketing investment.

Novoselsky offered an example of what she calls the “phantom funnel” – the unseen layer of influence that never appears in attribution data. “We did this whole case study on bringing in the NBA. One of our employees posted about it, and another NBA team never engaged with him, never liked the post, never tagged, nothing, just completely ghosted it, then went straight to his DMs and said, ‘Hey, we have the same problem. Can you help us?’ It ended up being a several-hundred-thousand-dollar deal in 30 days. But when you look at the data, it’s not going to show up anywhere.”

For her, it illustrates why marketing metrics are out of sync with reality. “We spend 80 to 90% of budgets on ads with a three to seven percent click-through, yet the referral or the word of mouth has the highest propensity for us to buy. If somebody recommends something, you’re 70% more likely. Yet the budgets allocated to that organic side are three to five percent.”

Novoselsky insists the change begins with leadership. “As a CEO of a B2B company, I don’t know how you can afford not being on social,” she said. “Even if you’re not posting, just interacting, commenting, hearing what people are saying. If you’re not the one listening, your competitors are.”

She notes that attitudes are already shifting. “Even a year and a half ago, very few CMOs or CEOs brought up social. If you were to talk about it, they’d say, ‘Yeah, I have a 23-year-old intern who does that.’ Versus now, they’re talking about how to stay relevant, how to get their CEO engaged, how to get data from it. My conversations have materially changed even in the last six months.”

For Novoselsky, who began her keynote by sharing a story about moving to America as a Ukrainian refugee, the process has been humbling. “You kind of have to put yourself a little out there,” she said. “It’s a very awkward thing. I just filmed a few videos... you have to talk to yourself and walk with a phone and people are looking at you. But it’s really healthy for a leader. It’s humbling to get that little bit of fear every once in a while.”

Novoselsky says every marketer needs to face a simple truth. “If you were to pull up the settings on your phone and screen time, it’s embarrassing. You think it’s way lower than it is, and I guarantee you it’s at least eight hours. You’re being influenced without even fully appreciating it. But somehow, when you work in a B2B business, you’re not going to be influenced? Of course you are.”