What to Know About Global Software Buyers: Europe, Latin America and Australia

Software businesses face difficult questions about the shifting sales and marketing landscape in 2021. Through a survey of business leaders in 15 countries and data from the Gartner Digital Markets global network of sites, we gathered insights into how companies changed their approach to purchasing software, and how technology providers can adapt to win their business.

In a recent webinar series, Unlock Global B2B Buyer Trends, international marketing and sales leaders from Gartner Digital Markets laid out key traits of software buyers across Europe, Latin America, and Australia and New Zealand.

Several key insights became apparent across each region, including:

• Changes to business technology needs that are affecting global B2B software buyers 
• How businesses expect to make technology purchase decisions in 2021 and beyond
• Ways software marketers and sales leaders can better convert leads and retain customers

You can use these insights to create digital marketing and sales strategies that effectively engage and convert new prospects, no matter where your growth plans take you next.

Software Buyers in Europe

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Businesses across Europe research and evaluate software solutions in different ways. For your acquisition and retention strategies to propel international campaign success, you need to understand the diverse needs of buyers from the region as a whole, and from different countries.

Business leaders in most European countries — including Portugal, Spain, Germany, the U.K., France, Italy and Sweden — are prioritizing client retention over acquisition in 2021. For software providers, it is crucial to explain to prospects how you can help them proactively address customer pain points and reduce churn.

With differing informational needs among buyers, software sellers must provide marketing collateral in many different ways to convert customers across Europe. For any country, don’t rely on one content format or one marketing channel to present information to buyers.

Personal research is highly influential to European business decision makers, so explain your product’s value proposition well before a buyer encounters a sales rep. Implementation and onboarding information is likewise highly coveted, so be upfront about how your software works within a client’s existing tech stack.

Software Buyers in Latin America

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For software companies running acquisition campaigns in the southern hemisphere, there are several ways to capture more business in Mexico, Brazil and other Latin American countries.

The prioritization of acquisition over retention looks similar in Latin America to global buyer trends, with businesses in South America and Central America focusing more on retention than on acquiring new customers.

Gartner Digital Markets data shows that in Brazil, buyers want more technical information than anything else. So, software providers should ensure resources like online training, implementation materials, and product documentation are highlighted prominently on product websites and sales and marketing collateral.

User reviews are of vital importance to Mexican and Brazilian buyers. Out of 15 countries surveyed, only India had a higher percentage of buyers citing reviews as important to their software evaluation.

Project management and collaboration software are attracting the most attention from buyers across Latin America in 2021. They are also striving to use data in smarter ways, with analysis and AB testing solutions. 

Importantly, Spanish-speaking software buyers report a higher preference for in-language marketing and sales materials than any other language. A spike in web traffic to localized sites across Latin America, even during the pandemic, likewise proved the value of localized, translated content within Latin American markets.

Software Buyers in Australia and New Zealand

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By understanding how businesses in Australia and New Zealand make purchasing decisions, software providers can demonstrate value to engage leads and close deals.

One-third of Australian buyers are increasing their prioritization of employee retention in 2021, according to a Gartner Digital Markets survey. Project management and collaboration software are gaining traction across the region as companies invest in technology to manage and simplify employees’ day-to-day activities.

In Australia and New Zealand, buyers want technical, use-case information, such as implementation guides and case studies. Ensure these resources are highlighted prominently on your website and on sales and marketing collateral.

While Australian businesses are cautious when purchasing software for the first time, they tend to be more experimental when replacing existing products. These buyers, generally, are open to evaluating different software, even if they haven’t used a vendor before. In fact, nearly 90% of Australian software buyers explore alternatives before renewing a contract, even if they were satisfied with the technology.

Even with English as a primary language, localized sites in Australia and New Zealand attract significant web traffic compared to “.com” domains. Software providers don’t necessarily need a different site for each target market, but they can partner with companies like Gartner Digital Markets, which delivers localized content and highly relevant information about your software to prospects around the globe.

Thibaut De Lataillade

Thibaut De Lataillade is a Global Vice President of Gartner Digital Markets. He has more than 25 years of experience in business management, sales, and marketing under his belt, with a proven track record in cloud, mobility, digital marketing, CRM and growth strategies. Thibaut has held managerial and executive positions at large tech companies such as Cegedim and SAP. Connect with Thibaut on LinkedIn.