New research from tech PR firm ARPR reveals how COVID-19 impacted the way corporations buy and sell software—and offers glimpses of how these behavioral and organizational shifts might persist long after the pandemic is over.
The firm’s new report, ARPR’s 3rd Annual Tech Marketing Data Report: Post-Pandemic B2B Sales Environment, surveyed 75 tech sales representatives and 99 CIOs and CTOs from enterprise brands, growth-stage companies and startups alike.
“The pandemic has permanently changed our economy—from when and where people work to how companies make decisions, expert after expert has pontificated on the lasting impact of COVID-19,” said Renee Spurlin, senior vice president of analytics and digital marketing at ARPR, in a news release. “With this report, we’re now looking beyond that initial wave of changes to the longer-term impacts of the pandemic on how buyers and sellers of technology products now prefer to engage with each other.”
Notably, the research found that 75 percent of CIOs and CTOs said IT and innovation are now viewed as more important to their companies’ futures. In part, that may be because COVID-19 accelerated digital transformation initiatives, bolstering the perception and priority of corporate technology departments. As IT and innovation become larger strategic imperatives organizationally, it’s not surprising that budget allocation reflects this. When we polled CIOs and CTOs, 63 percent of respondents said their IT budgets have increased slightly or significantly due to COVID-19.
“Our survey points to a moment of reimagination for software sales departments,” added Anna Ruth Willams, ARPR’s founder and CEO, in the release. “Tech buyers are now empowered to drive innovation with more budget and faster approval processes. To do so, they are turning to increasingly digital sales processes to find information exactly when they need it. We’re confident this report will help technology marketing and sales teams make smarter investments moving forward.”
