Meet the Peekaboo B2B buyer
Revealing the vital stats to help B2B marketers understand the modern B2B buyer
B2B buyers are hiding from you.
But don't take it too personally, it's happening industry wide.
The past few years have seen massive changes to the B2B marketing landscape.
94% of buyers now use AI in their buying process, and 67% prefer the rep-free experience. That's made them harder to find, track, and get a decision out of than ever before.
That's why we've collated everything you need to know about the Peekaboo Buyer – their research habits, their decision-making process, and their priorities – to make sure they turn up and advocate for your business.
Introducing the
Peekaboo buyer
They're digitally adept, increasingly self-directed, and sick of the old playbook.
On average, 80-90% of B2B buyers have a brand in mind before they even start researching, and a massive 94% rank their shortlist before ever reaching out.
It's also harder to change their minds than you might think - only one in five ever change their initial choice. In other words, by the time you hear from the Peekaboo Buyer, there isn't really much you can do. To win is to be known by them long before you know they exist.
As Forrester puts it, "B2B buying is a process of confirmation, not selection."
Unlocking the buying committee
The Peekaboo Buyer isn't just one person; they're a growing group.
In fact, the average decision-making committee now includes 10+ stakeholders – with 72% of high-complexity decisions involving IT, Operations, Finance, and end-users, and 52% now involving VP-level or above decision-makers.
Addressing the wider buying group matters for three reasons:
- Internal stakeholders exert 'just as much' influence
- They approach procurement more strategically
- They're more open to disruptive ideas & challenger brands
Failing to do so means cutting the chances of your being shortlisted significantly: businesses known by the whole buying committee on Day One are 20x more likely to be bought. Getting on the Day One list should be every business' priority.
AI has become a gatekeeper
And it's the hardest decision-influencer to convince.
AI's entrance as the newest member of the decision-making unit has made optimisation for LLMs a business-critical activity.
The good news is, 42% of buyers say AI overviews have identified vendors they wouldn't have otherwise considered – leading to a 35% increase in organic clicks for those featured. The bad news is that 40% now trust AI-generated summaries more than vendor documentation.
It's a new B2B marketing reality that's made a mention in an AI summary the bedrock of getting discovered, evaluated, and chosen today.
Owned channels are a fraction of the big picture
Decision-making is more robotic, and more human, than it ever has been.
While the Peekaboo Buyer is increasingly using AI to conduct research, the LLMs themselves are using very human channels to come up with an answer.
85% of all brand mentions in AI-generated responses come from third-party pages, not a brand's own domain – with Reddit, LinkedIn, and Wikipedia the top three domains cited by LLMs in 2026.
The wider your presence on the sites that matter, the better you perform in LLMs and the more you get talked about. You could even say that AI visibility is the new mental availability.
People trust people
Success is reliant on extending your sphere of influence.
The vast majority of B2B buyer research now happens anonymously. 84% happens in private channels like Teams, WhatsApp, etc., and up to nine or more external parties are now involved in influencing a decision, depending on its complexity.
In a world of AI-generated content, mass outreach, and vendor noise, it all boils down to a question of trust. 90% of B2B buyers trust their industry peers, 87% industry experts & B2B influencers, and 77% user reviews on third-party platforms.
Compare that to 70% for vendor case studies and 45% for vendor thought-leadership content, and it paints a clear picture: trust has become the scarcest asset in B2B marketing.
- 84% of content sharing happens in private channels. Source: MMA Global
- 90% of buyers trust their industry peers. Source: Forrester
- 45% of buyers trust vendor thought-leadership content. Source: PR Newswire
We're in a
'no-decision epidemic'
And no, more content isn't going to solve the issue.
You've heard of FOMO. Now, let us introduce you to the 'Fear of Messing Up'.
The broader economic climate has raised the stakes for B2B decision-makers. Fears of job loss due to a looming recession saw a six-point rise between 2020-2026, while 70% say concerns about economic conditions made them make more conservative vendor choices.
What's more, 40-60% of all qualified B2B deals end in 'no decision', not because a competitor won, but because the buyer chose to do nothing. Convincing a buyer doesn't involve highlighting every product and feature you offer, it requires you to make them confident they're making the right decision.
- 70% say economic conditions made them make more conservative vendor choices. Source: 6sense
- 40-60% of all qualified B2B deals end in "no decision." Source: tomekchojnacki
So, what constitutes buyability today?
It's not just about persuading buyers, but helping them persuade another.
To do that, you need to move from individual engagement to building collective confidence. That means…
- Focusing on distributed authority by making sure your brand plays well off-grid (i.e., through creators, customer advocates, etc.)
- Optimising for attention – and reaping the rewards of upper-funnel (33%) and lower-funnel (53%) average uplifts in KPIs
- Investing in original content over AI slop
- Mobilising your people, taking advantage of the fact that 82% of buyers trust companies more when senior leaders are active on social channels
- Turning your Sales Reps into Customer Concierges
- Maximising your event presence to tap into the 80% of eventgoers who say in-person events are their most trusted marketing channel
- Making the whole experience frictionless
Getting the Peekaboo Buyer to advocate for your business won't be easy. But it's something every B2B company needs to focus on.
That's why we hosted Vital Stats: Pinning Down the Peekaboo Buyer. If you couldn't make it on the day, you're in luck – we've pulled together an in-depth summary of everything our B2B buyers and marketers discussed here. Read on for next steps and how to justify marketing investment to the business!
For any specific questions or if you'd like us to run a Vital Stats session bespoke for your business, don't hesitate to reach out. We're only a click away.