{"id":188,"slug":"gartner-77pct-b2b-purchase-very-complex-2019","title":"Gartner: 77% of B2B buyers say their latest purchase was \"very complex or difficult\" (CSO Update 2019)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","status":"current","audiences":["kevin","smb-owner","candid-team"],"topics":["measurement","b2b-buying"],"reference_body":"**Claim:** Per Gartner (CSO Update 2019), **77% of B2B buyers stated their latest purchase was \"very complex or difficult.\"**\n\n**Source:** Gartner — <https://www.gartner.com/en/sales/insights/b2b-buying-journey>\n\n**Confidence:** Verified (Gartner-attributed industry consensus).\n\n**Implication for IA:** The site has to help buyers reduce complexity. Specific tactics that lower the perceived-complexity dial:\n- Clear vertical entry points (the buyer doesn't have to translate their problem into your service vocabulary)\n- Decision aids (comparison tables, \"which service is right for me\" pages, calculators)\n- Trust signals at the point of friction (case studies on pricing pages, not just on a separate `/case-studies/` page)\n\nThis is the empirical anchor for why \"make the site do something\" beats \"ship a brochure.\" The buyer is already overwhelmed — the IA that reduces their cognitive load earns the relationship. See [[research-brief-marketing-sites-that-do-something]].","rationale_body":null,"metadata":null,"links":{"outgoing":[{"slug":"gartner-six-buying-jobs-non-linear","title":"Gartner: B2B buyers complete \"six buying jobs\" in non-linear \"looping\" order","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"},{"slug":"research-brief-marketing-sites-that-do-something","title":"Research brief: What makes a marketing site do something (piece on brochure vs platform)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"}],"incoming":[{"slug":"research-brief-ia-multi-vertical-service-business","title":"Research brief: Information architecture for service businesses with multiple verticals (piece 6 of 15)","kind":"reference","scope":"business","link_type":"relates-to"}]},"created_at":"2026-05-22T19:40:49.061Z","updated_at":"2026-05-22T19:40:49.061Z"}