Male-dominated industries are far behind us. Today, we all know that women can rock any position they take and perform even better than their male coworkers. But, even in 2022, some of the stereotypical behaviors are still among us. In the same year, many organizations still run campaigns focused on empowering women and getting over the stereotypes that they aren’t able to run a business or work in the b2b sales & marketing industry.

The truth is, many male-dominated areas can be run by females equally well (or even better). They can also change the working environment and motivate the people around them to perform better with their tasks.

But, do you know that women are still underrepresented in marketing, finance, wholesale, manufacturing, and many other industries? At the same time, they still manage to overperform their male coworkers. The good thing is that b2b sales & marketing agencies embrace female power, create new trends, and encourage women to apply for so-called male jobs.

We can also see successful women in the industry, IT, healthcare, law, electrical engineering, computer science, etc.

What are the Most High-Performing Capabilities of Women in Sales?

Before we go any further, we must understand the seven essential skills that every salesperson should have, no matter their gender.

1. Analyzing or understanding the causes and effects while having an image of what would happen afterward.
2. Connecting or creating a network between the customers, coworkers, and anyone else included in the process.
3. Collaborating or working on being open for communication and cooperation with the teammates and clients.
4. Shaping solutions, as you understand the client’s needs and requirements and adapt the resources accordingly.
5. Influencing or creating messages to maximize the impact.
6. Driving or taking all the actions that lead to delivering outcomes.
7. Improving, or working on better solutions, learning new things, and adapting the approach to the current market or client needs.

Women can emphasize and maintain connections, come up with creative solutions, and communicate as needed. That way, they keep the collaborations on the highest level, ensuring the clients will always return and repurchase the product or use the service again.

At the same time, men are all about improvement and testing their limits. But, when it comes to influencing and analyzing, there is no difference in the performance.

Companies today have digital tools to help them meet client expectations and learn about their behavior and see what they can offer next.

For example, when one b2b demand generation agency focuses on collaboration and communication, they need women’s qualities and skills. But, the best model is to have a diverse team, to meet all the requirements and deliver the wanted outcomes.

But, women are still underrepresented in many industries, including B2B sales, even though they have a higher success rate compared to their male coworkers. The situation is even worse in tech industries, even though it’s better compared to the last decade.

Some companies don’t offer equal job opportunities and choose male candidates first. This practice has existed for decades, and it may take time until we win against the stereotypes.

What do you get When you Hire a Woman in B2B Sales?

There are many reasons why to hire a woman in a b2b sales & marketing position, knowing that you are making the right decision. So, let’s see what the main ones are:

1. Women are Better Listeners

We all know how important it is to listen to what others have to tell, so we can understand what they want. Clients sometimes directly tell their requirements and define their goals. In some cases, the salesperson should listen and recognize what they want, especially when the clients can’t express themselves or are unsure about their needs.

Women are better listeners than men. The listening part in the female brain is bigger compared to men’s. That’s why they are more capable of listening and connecting the dots easily. That means they can locate and define the client’s specific needs and offer them the desired product or service. That’s why women are performing better in B2B sales.

2. Better Communication Skills

This is a direct result of women being better listeners the men. They know how to listen to what the people have to tell. Probably you’ve been in a situation when a man made a quick decision based on the known facts, but the woman went deeper, looking for hidden meaning and overthinking the whole process over and over again.

That skill is beneficial in the modern era of b2b sales & marketing jobs. As we said, some clients want something, but they can’t decide what they really want. By listening to their statements, women can come up with creative solutions, improving the overall collaboration. They also run better communication because of their capabilities to remember facts and things that seem unimportant.

Additionally, women can easily focus on team performance and adjust their individual approaches accordingly. On the other hand, men are more focused on themselves, even if that affects the team morale badly.

3. They Have Exceptional Emotional Intelligence

Even though it seems like we are generalizing this one, women often have more robust emotional intelligence. That can be a key factor for better B2B sales industry performance.

Successful salespersons must understand clients’ emotions and learn how to turn that in their favor. Women are better at this because they can easily relate to the situation and even give honest advice while selling.

So, if you need a professional who is self-aware and confident, and you want ongoing results, it’s time to hire a woman for your b2b sales & marketing position. Female salespersons can easily show sympathy and understanding, making them more trustworthy compared to men, especially in direct sales.

Note that we don’t say men are bad at B2B sales. It’s just the fact this market needs a fresher approach when offering products or services to clients. And women are able to bring something different in the whole process, resulting in more sales and more profit after that.

What can the B2B Companies do to Improve the Situation?

There are not enough women in b2b sales & marketing because many companies don’t even have roles for them in the first place. So, they are discouraged seeing how most of the positions are filled up with male candidates.

Some companies fix this situation by encouraging female employees to apply for internal vacancies for B2B sales positions. Luckily, modern B2B agencies always find a way to attract female talents and give them equal conditions as the male candidates. Today, women have more chances than ever to work in a male-dominated field and even outperform their male coworkers in just a few months.

The company should also offer flexibility and equal opportunities for all candidates. The option of remote work can be a good way to attract more women to apply to your job position. You can be surprised how quickly they can adapt to the new position and even be eligible to take more leadership roles in the future.

Make sure you create the job descriptions properly, and never exclude or discriminate against any gender.

How COVID-19 Reshaped the Future of Sales?

The year 2020 seems like it’s far behind us, but it wasn’t that long ago. We all remember how we needed to shift our habits and adapt to a new and unknown situation. Even though the coronavirus is a tragedy the then world wasn’t ready for, it also helped to reimagine and reshape many aspects of the way marketing agencies work.

The Harvard Business Review published a study that shows the pandemic changes and will change the women’s position in B2B sales. They prove women can easily learn the needed skills and become relevant in men’s industries. It seems like the coronavirus created a trend that won’t stop soon, boosting the number of female employees in sales departments.

So, today, we have:

More Female Mentorship Programs

These programs help the industry fill up the gap that was made during the period women weren’t favored as good candidates. Mentors help them get the soft skills they need before they embrace their career in B2B sales. Also, women today are more open to traveling alone for work, or even having dinner with male clients, without assuming anything that can hurt their feelings or morale.

Companies are getting more aware of maternity leave and the need for sick days for kids. During the mentorship sessions, women can build relationships with their coworkers, which can be pretty valuable later in their careers.

This also opens many options for coaching, encouraging women to apply for sales positions, and breaking the stigma about mixed working environments.

Options for Better Job Positions

Promoting a woman to a leadership role is an encouraging step for other female employees. Also, more women will apply to your job posting when you list that you encourage the female power on your website or LinkedIn profile. Some data says that when a woman leads a team, the team is half female and half male employees, which is not the case with male-led teams.

This is good to know, especially if we embrace diversity and inclusion. And when it comes to b2b sales & marketing industry, we are sure women can perform even better than their male colleagues, if they have a nice chance for that.

That’s why we all have to improve the job positions and offered conditions and gain the trust of female professionals in B2B marketing.

Diverse and Inclusive Recruitment

If you take a look over the open job positions around you, you will surely see a trend of using gender-neutral language. Sometimes, some roles are specifically focused on one gender, and that’s mentioned in the description.

But, we can also see companies that should explicitly bold the fact they are open to hiring the best candidate, no matter the age, years of experience, and of course, their gender. They are replacing the gender-sensitive words with neutral ones, hoping they will attract the same number of female and male candidates to apply.

When the company is diverse and inclusive, success is almost guaranteed.

Women can be Great Entrepreneurs

We’ve covered so many aspects and benefits of hiring a female candidate in a B2B job position, knowing that women can be exceptional entrepreneurs if given a chance.

But why it’s that?

Women can successfully run family-oriented companies that have no problem letting the employees work from home or take enough paid or unpaid sick days for the family. Their communication skills are helping them with that because they know how to properly address the issue and get the preferred response.

Also, their social connections can be a great way to attract more potential clients and establish durable contacts. As we said, women are exceptional listeners, very collaborative, and can balance emotional and professional decisions.

And the thing we love most, they decide to run a business to have more family time during the month. Sometimes companies are asking for more than a person can handle, but women-led businesses can be great for all those who need a perfect balance between work and private life.

At the end of this post, we also want to highlight the fact that women aren’t afraid to ask for help if they feel like it. Some male employees are too proud to do that, leading to mistakes that sometimes can’t be easily fixed.

Women can admit they are not sure about some decision or task, asking their coworkers for more ideas. This is a great way to grow as a team, leading to a better working environment. By building trust, women in the b2b sales & marketing industry are making more positive profits.

The time has come – let’s set us free from all the prejudices and stereotypes. Yes, female marketers can be exceptional in what they do. The industry only has to give them a chance and eliminate the conservative beliefs that hold their success back.