How to optimise digital experiences when long sales cycles are involved
- sandip amlani
- May 6
- 4 min read
Updated: May 7
Note: This article is taken from my course: CRO for complex B2B sales companies. If you would like the entire 6-part email series from the beginning, you can sign up here.
“We’ve made changes to the site—but how do we know they’re working when our sales cycle is 120+ days?”
If you're working in a business where deals take months (or even longer) to close, you've probably hit this wall before.
Long B2B sales cycles can make it feel like you're flying blind. Unlike eCommerce or SaaS, where results are fast and tangible, you’re stuck waiting for data that may not surface for months - if at all.
Why long sales cycles hamper optimisation and experimentation.
Delayed feedback loops: Website changes can take months to show any impact. This delay makes it hard to track success and respond quickly.
Multiple decision-makers: Sales cycles include various stakeholders. Each one has different concerns, priorities, and approval processes.
Attribution complexity: Buyers interact with various touchpoints, like websites, emails, calls, and meetings. This makes it tough to identify what really drives results.
Buyers take time to gather information before sales. This needs a content strategy that nurtures them over time.
Procurement and compliance challenges: A champion in the business helps, but red tape, procurement rules, and budget cycles can still cause delays.
How to optimise for long sales cycles
1. Prioritise lead quality over volume.
Don't just look at form submissions to measure success. Also, check how leads move through your sales pipeline.
Assign lead scores based on website behaviour. Visitors who check high-intent pages, like pricing and case studies, are more likely to convert later.
Track post-conversion behaviour: How many leads move to SQL (Sales Qualified Lead) status? How many lead to a sales conversation?
2. Apply Account-Based Marketing (ABM) principles
Long sales cycles often mean high-value accounts with multiple decision-makers. ABM tactics such as these can help:
Personalised landing pages – Custom messaging for different industries or roles within an account.
Re-target key accounts and test different messaging strategies. Use LinkedIn, display ads, and email to keep your brand fresh in the minds of target companies.
Sales and marketing alignment – Team up to ensure sales outreach and marketing content help each other at the right stages.
3. Optimise Early-Stage Interactions
Since the final sale takes time, engaging users early is critical:
Create and test valuable content for each stage of the funnel, such as white papers, comparison guides, and case studies.
Use micro-conversions, such as downloading a resource or viewing a demo video, as a proxy to interest in your product/service.
4. Leverage User Testing to uncover buying committee needs
People in the buying process have different needs and FUDs (Fears, Uncertainties, and Doubts). User testing can help you understand each of their needs and create content that resonates.
Conduct moderated user testing with different personas—procurement, technical users, and finance teams.
Use surveys and interviews to uncover friction points in the decision-making process.
Test messaging and content ideas based on real decision-makers' feedback.
5. Experiment with email as a testing ground
Email plays a crucial role in long sales cycles. It’s a great spot to test how well your messaging and content work.
A/B test subject lines and content themes to see what drives higher engagement.
Use dynamic content based on a lead’s stage in the buying process.
Test different call-to-actions. For example, use "Book a Consultation" and "Download a Case Study."
6. Implement Multi-Touch Attribution Models
Long sales cycles need many interactions. So, single-touch attribution, like last-click, can be misleading.
Use UTM tracking and CRM integrations to link online actions with offline sales conversations.
Assign different weightings to touch points such as website visits, content downloads, webinars, and sales calls.
Case Study: How Data Sheets became a key driver of demand at Cisco
At Cisco, we discovered several important "moments that matter" during users' digital journey. These key interactions lead to higher conversion rates. One key finding was that visitors who looked at data sheets (detailed product specs) were much more likely to contact us.
To capitalise on this, we optimised the data sheet pages by adding a prominent 'Contact Us' section at the top of each one, personalised with country specific contact details depending on where the user was based.
This simple but smart change led to a big boost in both the number and quality of leads. We started connecting with users at the point they were making important decisions.
This method uncovered a crucial area of the site that was previously overlooked for optimisation. It also created several testing opportunities to boost the performance of these valuable assets.
Key Takeaways
✔ Optimising for long sales cycles means focusing on early-stage and mid-funnel interactions.
✔ Lead quality, not just quantity, should be the primary performance indicator.
✔ ABM tactics, user testing, and email experiments can refine messaging and boost engagement.
✔ Multi-touch attribution helps us see what leads to conversions in a long sales cycle.
✔ Your most valuable touch points might not be where you expect them.
Next week, we’ll address a key challenge: How to engage various stakeholders and optimise for complex buying committees. Stay tuned!
I'd love to know how you deal with optimising digital experiences when long sales cycles are involved. Let me know in the comments!