Buying group
In short
A buying group is the collection of people at one company who are involved in researching, evaluating, and approving a purchase of your type of product. Marketing teams use the term to define who to target with campaigns, not only who to sell to once a deal opens.
Buying group is close to buying committee, but the emphasis differs. A buying committee is the group formally evaluating a live deal. A buying group is a broader idea that includes people who shape opinion before a deal exists, and it is usually defined by role and seniority so it can be targeted at scale.
Why buying groups matter for ABM
Account-based programs target accounts, but messages land on individuals. If ads and emails reach only one role, the rest of the group never hears from you. Defining the buying group tells marketing and sales which roles need coverage at every target account.
How to define your buying group
Start from closed-won deals
List the titles that joined calls and signed off in your last 10 to 20 wins. Group them into roles and note which appeared most often.
Set a standard role template
For example: one executive sponsor, one functional leader, one or two practitioners, and one technical reviewer. This becomes your coverage goal per account.
Convert roles to search filters
Translate each role into titles, seniority, and departments so you can find the people in your data.
Measuring buying group coverage
- Roles covered: How many of the roles in your template have at least one known contact.
- Engaged roles: How many of those contacts have opened, clicked, replied, or attended.
- Gaps: Roles with no contact. These are the next outreach targets.
Example
Say your template needs four roles. At one account you have an engaged practitioner and a known functional leader, but no sponsor and no technical reviewer. Coverage is two of four, so the plan is to find those two people and add them to ads and outreach.
Common mistakes
- Targeting titles, not roles: Job titles vary by company; roles are more stable.
- One template for all segments: Enterprise and mid-market groups often differ.
- Stopping at the list: Knowing the group is only useful if messages reach them.
Buying group FAQs
What is a buying group?
A buying group is the set of people at a target company who research, influence, and decide on a purchase. Marketing and sales teams define it by role and seniority so they can reach all of those people with relevant messages.
What is the difference between a buying group and a buying committee?
A buying committee is the group formally evaluating a specific live deal. A buying group is a broader targeting concept that also includes people shaping opinion before a deal opens. The two overlap heavily and are often used interchangeably.
How do you identify a buying group?
Review your recent closed-won deals to see which roles took part, build a standard role template, then translate those roles into title and department filters to find matching people at each target account.
Why is buying group coverage important in ABM?
Deals rarely close on one person. If only one role engages with your campaigns, the others may never learn about you. Tracking how many roles you have reached shows where outreach and advertising still need to expand.
