The 4 most common mistakes when creating your B2B buyer persona

When designing your B2B buyer personas, it's common to make the mistake of not considering key aspects that differentiate them from B2C personas. Even though we’re still addressing people, their interests and priorities change significantly.

Below are the most common mistakes when creating a B2B buyer persona:



1. Using the same methodology for B2B and B2C

Although demographic data such as age and gender are essential in B2C—like selling a skincare product based on age—they may be irrelevant in B2B.

If you offer digital consulting services, for example, your potential customers could be of any gender or age. That demographic information might not help you much. Applying the same criteria used to create a B2C persona could result in collecting data that doesn’t help your business decisions at all.

2. Focusing only on the company and forgetting the person

When working with companies, it’s important to understand their characteristics, such as location, size, and industry. But don’t forget that you're dealing with people.

That’s why it’s useful to gather information like average income, educational background, and job title. These details can help you identify what influences their purchasing decisions and what incentives may be effective (like offering a free trial or demo).

3. Skipping Direct Communication and Prior Research

This point applies to both B2B and B2C personas. One of the most serious mistakes is not identifying who the decision-maker is in the company you want to sell to. You could end up investing in a marketing strategy that gets no results because you weren’t talking to the right person.

4. Getting information from the wrong channels

If you’re building B2B personas, LinkedIn is one of the best tools available. But if you base your research on platforms like Facebook or Instagram, you’ll likely get personal (not professional) information, which can create confusion.

When LinkedIn isn’t enough, other networks can be useful—but they shouldn’t be your primary source. For example, someone might share opinions or reviews about tools or platforms on Twitter or Reddit that give you clues about what they value in a service provider.

Final Thoughts

Understanding your buyer persona goes beyond filling out a template. It requires critical thinking and aligning it with your sales strategy. Don’t fall into the trap of creating a persona just to check a box.

Doing this properly allows you to identify your ideal customers more effectively and adapt your messaging to build trust and guide them toward a purchase.