Decoding the Buying Group Model: Strategies for Success

A conversation with Evan Liang, Founder & CEO at Leandata.

In the traditional B2B playbook, the Marketing Qualified Lead (MQL) has long been the dominant metric for gauging marketing performance. It’s simple: someone fills out a form, downloads an eBook, or registers for a webinar, and voilà—they’re an MQL. That lead is then tossed over the fence to sales, where all too often it languishes, ignored or unqualified.

But the B2B buying journey has fundamentally changed—and with it, the metrics and models we use must also evolve.

Enter buying groups. A concept once understood only by experienced sellers, buying groups are now becoming central to how high-performing revenue teams plan, engage, and convert demand in today’s complex enterprise environments.

In this episode of The Revenue Lounge, Randy Likas sits down with Evan Liang, Founder and CEO of LeanData, to unpack what buying groups actually are, why they’re gaining momentum, and most importantly—how to operationalize them successfully within your sales and marketing workflows.

The Origins of LeanData and the Evolution of Go-To-Market Strategy

Before founding LeanData, Evan Liang had lived the problem firsthand. Working at a previous company, he struggled to integrate marketing automation with Salesforce in a way that made the sales and marketing teams more efficient. The process was chaotic, data was fragmented, and lead routing felt like a game of chance.

This personal frustration became the foundation for LeanData, which began as a lead-routing platform but quickly evolved into something much bigger: a revenue orchestration platform designed to help GTM teams align around data, process, and outcomes.

“Our original mission was to make sales and marketing more efficient through data and processes. That mission hasn’t changed—only expanded.” – Evan Liang

LeanData now supports over 1,000 customers, helping them orchestrate complex GTM motions beyond lead routing, including ABM and now—buying groups.

Why Buying Groups? Why Now?

While the concept of buying groups isn’t new to sales teams—who’ve always had to engage multiple stakeholders to close a deal—this concept is now becoming institutionalized. It’s gaining traction at the organizational level, especially in enterprise environments where buying cycles are long and decisions are rarely made by a single person.

Several macro trends have converged to push buying groups into the spotlight:

The Buyer Journey Has Gone Digital
Buyers today self-educate long before talking to a sales rep. Much of the research and decision-making happens across digital channels and is distributed among a group of stakeholders.
Deals Are Taking Longer and Involve More People
Research from Gartner and Forrester shows that the average B2B deal now involves 6 to 10 stakeholders. That makes tracking individual MQLs increasingly irrelevant.
Technology Has Finally Caught Up
The concept of buying groups has existed in CRM structures for decades. The “opportunity-contact-role” relationship has always been there—but underutilized due to lack of data and automation. Today, with tools like LeanData and Nektar, organizations can automate and scale this buying group motion.

“In some respects, buying groups are not a new change—they’re just the next evolution. The technology and processes are finally catching up to how enterprise sales have always worked.” – Evan Liang

The MQL Problem: Leads in Isolation

The shortcomings of the MQL model are becoming more apparent. Marketing teams are sending individual leads to sales—often with little context, incomplete engagement history, and no visibility into whether that lead is part of a larger buying motion.

This results in:

Lead duplication (same person, multiple forms)
Low conversion rates
Frustrated sales reps who disregard “low-quality” leads

In contrast, a buying group-centric approach clusters engagement data across multiple personas, providing a fuller picture of interest and intent.

“An MQL is a buying group of one. That’s fine for transactional deals. But in enterprise sales, it’s just not enough.” – Evan Liang

Why Adoption Is Lagging (and How to Overcome It)

Evan recommends a “crawl, walk, run” approach:

“Start small. Pilot in a region or with one team. Show success and build momentum.”

🎯 Pilot Criteria Matrix

Despite growing interest and case studies showing tangible impact—higher win rates, faster conversions—many organizations are still hesitant to embrace buying groups. Why?

The answer: Change is hard.

Adopting a buying group model requires shifts in:

Data models
GTM processes
Cross-functional alignment
Sales and marketing roles

“Everyone wants change… until it requires them to change something.” – Evan Liang

Evan notes that the early adopters of buying groups today are mostly large enterprises—unlike ABM, which was championed by early-stage startups. These enterprises have more to gain because they’re more likely to struggle with disconnected buying signals across large organizations.

How to Get Started with Buying Groups

Rather than boiling the ocean, Evan recommends a phased approach to adoption.

Start Small: Pilot Projects

Choose a specific region, product line, or sales team.
Focus on enterprise segments with long sales cycles and multiple personas.
Measure and report early wins to build momentum.

“Start with a pilot. Show the revenue impact. Then scale.” – Evan Liang

Executive Alignment Is Critical

Buying groups are not a departmental initiative. They require support from executive leadership across sales, marketing, and operations. Without that alignment, even the best technology won’t stick.

“Don’t go rogue. Get executive buy-in early. It’s essential for success.” – Evan Liang

Redefining Roles: What Changes in Your GTM Org

Implementing buying groups doesn’t just affect systems—it affects how people work. Here’s how:

BDRs and SDRs shift from lead qualification to identifying and engaging buying personas.
Marketing teams move from lead-gen to persona enablement, filling gaps in mid-funnel engagement.
Sales benefits from more contextual data on who’s involved and who’s missing.

Evan also emphasizes that buying group strategies are not one-size-fits-all. Every company is a snowflake. Some teams may prefer using zero-dollar opportunities as placeholders, others may use custom objects.

The key is to design a process that fits your business—and then align your tech stack accordingly.

The Role of Technology: You Might Be Closer Than You Think

Evan reassures that most companies already have the foundational tools to begin operationalizing buying groups. CRM systems, marketing automation, and sales engagement platforms provide the base. Additional orchestration and data capture tools like LeanData and Nektar help activate the motion.

“You don’t need to throw out your stack. Add 1-2 tools that give you orchestration and visibility.” – Evan Liang

Use Cases: Where Buying Groups Really Shine

1. Net-New Acquisition

Buying groups help you identify all active stakeholders earlier, leading to better outreach and higher conversions.

2. Mid-Funnel Enablement

Marketing can fill persona gaps and equip champions with content to drive internal consensus.

3. Cross-sell / Upsell

In expansion scenarios, different stakeholders are involved—buying groups provide visibility into those new personas.

4. Renewals

The renewal committee is often different from the original buying committee. A buying group approach helps customer success teams engage the right people, earlier.

“We almost create the renewal opportunity the moment a deal closes. It’s a different set of people—and a different strategy.” – Evan Liang

Data: The Foundation of Buying Groups

Evan stresses that buying groups live and die on data. The two most common challenges?

Missing data: Reps don’t always enter contacts into CRM.
Data misrouted: Even when the right contacts exist, signals may not reach the right team.

Solutions like Nektar help automatically capture contact and activity data from email and calendar, while LeanData routes and enriches that data contextually across objects and workflows.

“Technology is no longer the blocker. We have the tools. Now it’s about process and people.” – Evan Liang

Building the Internal Business Case

If you’re a marketing ops or RevOps leader looking to introduce buying groups to your organization, start by:

Connecting with peers doing the same (e.g., join the Buying Group Leaders LinkedIn group)
Gathering case studies from companies like Siemens, Palo Alto Networks, and RelTO
Conducting a retroactive analysis to identify missed opportunities due to incomplete buying group visibility

Most importantly, frame the conversation around revenue impact—not process change.

“Every exec wants more revenue. That’s the case you need to make.” – Evan Liang

Final Thoughts: Buying Groups Are the Future

Buying groups are not a trend—they’re a reflection of how enterprise buying actually happens. And as GTM complexity increases, organizations that fail to adapt will fall behind.

But those who do?

They’ll gain tighter alignment, better visibility, and ultimately—more predictable revenue.

“This is the ABM moment all over again. But this time, enterprise companies are leading the way.” – Evan Lian

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More Resources

Sales Development in the Era of Buying Groups

Learn how revenue teams are operationalizing buying groups to escape lead-based inefficiency, multi-thread deals & improve pipeline conversion.

How to Strategically Engage and Conquer Buying committees

Delve into the complexities of engaging buying groups and unveiling strategic approaches to conquer the challenges that arise. In Sales, the key to accelerating deals lies in understanding the nuances of buying group dynamics.

5 Steps to Navigate Buying Groups in 2025: A RevOps Guide

5 Steps to Navigate Buying Groups in 2025: A RevOps Guide RevOps 10 min In today’s business environment, B2B buying is never just one person. According to Forrester Research, more than half of global business buyers purchase in complex buying scenarios that include more people, more departments, and generally higher price points. And this buying group can be made up of 7 to 20 people! Unlocking the power of buying groups is a crucial aspect of the B2B landscape. This blog is a synopsis of our conversation with revenue operations leader, Nandini Karkare. She is currently the SVP of RevOps at Zywave. Nandini suggests strategic steps to navigate through the realms of Revenue Operations and helps uncover the strategies, insights, and best practices that constitute a comprehensive guide to mastering the dynamics of buying groups. Read on to get actionable tips on how you can navigate buying groups in 2025 (and beyond). And implement the learnings to create a winning GTM motion. Here are the 5 steps Nandini recommends: 1. Decode Your Buying Groups The buying groups typically consist of members from departments and they all contribute different aspects. It is critical to understand the scope of decision-making including the people who play the most significant roles in making the call. Gartner’s report on B2B Buying highlights that 77% of B2B purchases involve a buying group of four or more people. PS: The key stakeholder can turn out someone altogether different from who you had building a relationship with all along. a. Capturing Buying Group Members Effective buying group management means considering not just decision-makers but influential stakeholders across departments. Misidentifying key players or focusing solely on the main contact risks derailing the sale. (i) How can you map the entire buying group efficiently? Leverage internal and external data to identify the key players Segment the Group by Role and Influence (ii) Not everyone in the buying group holds equal power or influence. Segment them into categories: Decision-makers (who give the final heads-up) Influencers (who sway the decision) Users (who use the product and provide feedback) Budget owners b. The Role Transition Within a Buying Group Moving the focus from a buying group to a renewal or expansion committee includes knowing precisely who remains in the relationship, as well as who becomes more active as an account grows. (i) New roles may emerge in a Buying Group Technical or operational leaders may become more influential post sale, since they are now using the product. (ii) The focus shifts from buying to renewal The interaction should be more about the return on investment (ROI) of the product placed on the market, ongoing value delivery, and ongoing needs. (iii) Alignment between the buying groups and renewal committee Leveraging the same enthusiasm and relationships generated at the first-buying stage helps in anchoring the transitions and preventing any drop-offs in engagement. Related Resource: Navigate Enterprise Buying Committees: Strategies for Driving Alignment c. Understand the Personal and Collective Priorities of a Buying Group As per McKinsey & Company, B2B buying decisions increasingly require engagement across departments, with 60% of purchasing committees including members from outside traditional procurement, like IT and HR. (i)Alignment Between C-Suite and Technical Teams Decisions aren’t Made in a Vacuum Collaboration between C-suite and technical teams ensures a holistic approach to solving customer problems, creating stronger, more sustainable relationships Their cross departmental collaboration can help with: (ii) Alignment on Strategic Goals C suite executives need technical assistance to translate their strategic vision to reality that also aligns with company-wide objectives. (iii) Technical Validation These insights guide the C-suite in making informed decisions that fit technical infrastructure and future-proofing. (iv) Cross-functional Communication Bridging the gap between these two groups involves continuous, open communication, ensuring that technical evaluations don’t delay business goals but instead support them cohesively. iii. Understand the Product Take product demos, listen to sales calls, and use tools that show how the product is sold. This helps in understanding the customer needs better. iv. Dive into Your CRM Understand your CRM (whether Salesforce or HubSpot) to assess how the data is organized. This is to check whether it’s easy to use, and identify immediate improvements. The CRM should be the central source of truth, with other tools supporting it. The data should be unified with easier adoption for the teams. v. Build Trust Internally Establish trust within your teams by listening carefully, asking questions about how RevOps can help, and addressing quick fixes to show you’re there to help. Having this trust shows them that you’re here to support their success. Quick wins, such as small fixes that make people’s jobs easier, helps in establishing credibility early. 2. Establish Clear KPIs i. Understanding Team KPIs It is important to ask you stakeholders about the KPIs that matter to understand their goals and what their expectations are. ii. Aligning KPIs Across Teams Different departments oftentimes work in silos. RevOps should strive to align these departments and check if these KPIs match the overall business objectives. Gaps must be closed if their KPIs don’t align. iii. Setting RevOps KPIs As you approach the end of the first 30 days, start establishing RevOps-specific KPIs that match company goals, which may involve metrics like revenue increase, conversion rates, or improvements in overall efficiency. 3. Tech Stack Audit Deep dive into the existing tools that your company is using. Identify all redundancies, and find opportunities to streamline the entire tech stack. i. Map Out Tools Compile a list of all tools used by teams, noting their purpose and how they work with the CRM. ii. Evaluate Use and Cost Determine if tools are actively used or if there are duplicates. Look for cost-saving opportunities by consolidating tools when possible. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sVDJ9KI1tGw&t=869s Next 30 days – Alignment and Control The next 30 days marks a shift from discovery to alignment. The goals should be to create cohesion between departments (e.g., Sales, Marketing) and laying down effective controls. The improvements need to be implemented without overwhelming the teams. This phase combines