Relationship Selling Isn’t Dead—It’s Simply Gone Digital (And a Bit More Calculating)
- philip bowler
- Aug 7
- 4 min read
While Gen Z’s buying style might have ditched the lunch-and-golf schmooze, the real game is still about trust, not just the price tag. (And yes, your calendar can handle fewer tee-times and more Teams calls.)
The Supposed Death of Relationship Selling
It’s easy to buy into the narrative that relationship selling is out and price-driven transactions are in—especially with a new generation of buyers wielding far more power than ever. Millennials now drive 44% of global B2B purchasing decisions, and Gen Z is hot on their heels, demanding instant digital service, hyper-personalization, and (above all else) a sharp price. (1,2)
But let’s separate the hyperbole from the facts:
Gen Z does emphasize value and affordability—but “value” doesn’t mean the lowest bid. Quality, supply security, and ethical business practices still matter (sometimes more so than to Boomers). (1,3,4)
“Relationship selling” has shifted to new channels—younger buyers favor Teams over tee-times, and LinkedIn over long lunches. The core human need for trusted advisors and partners remains, but the mode of engagement is multi-channel, digital, and driven by transparency. (2,5,6)
Price Is a Scoreboard—Relationships Are Still the Field
Here’s what’s really happening in the trenches of commercial excellence:
Price has become easier to compare—so it’s more salient. Gen Z and Millennial procurement leads are rewarded for cost impact. But in complex B2B sales, price is just the start of the conversation, not the end. As one CPO put it recently, “Procurement is now a chief partnership office, not just a pricing desk”. (7)
Value-based selling endures. Brands that lead on both value (ROI, technical support, supply resilience) and relationship (reliability, trust, integrity) still win repeat business—even if procurement needs to show a hard price gain. (8,9)
When it goes wrong, relationships are your safety net. Even highly digital companies admit: when the chips are down (say, a supply crunch), it’s the trusted partners who get the first call for a fix.(6)
In the age of Teams meetings, your handshake is now a digital “wave”—but keep it just as firm.
Dual Sourcing—Asia’s Multi-Supplier Mindset Unpacked
Asia’s embrace of dual sourcing for technical products illustrates a new flavor of relationship-centered procurement:
Continuity over convenience: The strategy is threefold:
Genuinely reduce risk of supply shock by not being “all in” with one supplier. (10,11)
Use competitive tension to get the best price and terms, leveraging supplier rivalry. (10,12)
Information advantage: Multiple suppliers give buyers a constant pulse on market innovation and shifting best practices.
Relationships matter—maybe even more. Managing two or more high-value supplier relationships takes active engagement, not less. It requires more regular touch-points, nuanced negotiation, and ongoing trust-building, especially when technical complexity and cross-border cultural dynamics are in the mix.(10,12)
Why have one supplier dinner when you can enjoy dialogue (and perhaps dumplings) with two?
Commercial Excellence—Timeless Principles, Evolving Playbook
Drawing from the Commercial Excellence Playbook—yours truly’s and also a growing global staple—A-level commercial performance is built on a “diagnose, idealize, prioritize” loop: (13,14, 15,16)
Diagnose: Understand your current commercial maturity—how strong is your relationship capital, digital channel management, and supplier diversification?
Idealize: What does gold-standard selling look like in your business, for your customers, and for your region?
Prioritize: Don’t just chase the lowest price or best friendship; align incentives, outcomes, and resilience.
Commercial excellence isn’t about picking a fad. It’s about combining human connection with data-driven insight (and a strategy you’d be proud to put in front of the C-suite or the audit committee).
Relationship selling isn’t dead. It’s evolving—alongside procurement’s new priorities, digital-native buyers, and Asia’s dual-sourcing wave.
Trust, value, and resilience are as vital as ever—just delivered through new platforms and measured against new KPIs.
Ready to navigate the new landscape of commercial excellence?
Book and introductory obligation free call Here. Or get a lighthouse for your team—literally and figuratively—via The Commercial Excellence Playbook. Hard Cover or Paperback.
REFERENCES:
1. Exploding Topics. (2024). 85+ Stats on Gen Z Spending and Buying Habits. https://explodingtopics.com/blog/gen-z-spending
2. Digital Commerce 360. (2025). Why millennials continue to reshape B2B ecommerce. https://www.digitalcommerce360.com/2025/04/28/why-millennials-continue-to-reshape-b2b-ecommerce/
3. 84.51°. 2024. Value vs price: How brands can appeal to Gen Z and baby boomers https://www.8451.com/knowledge-hub/insights-and-activation/value-vs-price-how-brands-can-appeal-to-gen-z-and-baby-boomers/
4. BBC. 2023. ‘The picky buying habits of Gen Z consumers’https://www.bbc.com/worklife/article/20231218-the-picky-buying-habits-of-gen-z-consumers
5. Annuitas Group. n.d. ‘Understanding the generational divide in B2B decision-making’ https://www.annuitas.com/articles/understanding-the-generational-divide-in-b2b-decision-making/
6. Zendesk. n.d. ‘Relationship selling’, Zendesk Blog. https://www.zendesk.com/au/blog/relationship-selling/#
7. ProcurementTactics. (2025). 11 Procurement Trends Set to Dominate in 2025: Be Prepared. https://procurementtactics.com/procurement-trends-2025/
8. SalesMasters. (2024). Value vs Price: A Winning Approach for B2B Sales Excellence. https://salesmasters.com.au/value-vs-price/
9. Yesware. (2025). Relationship Selling: Definition, Best Practices, Examples. https://www.yesware.com/blog/relationship-selling/
10. GetAhead Asia. (2024). Dual Sourcing – GetAhead Asia. https://getahead-asia.com/dual-sourcing/
11. SupplyChain Insights Media. (2025). Asia Pacific Firms Turn to Parallel and Dual Supply Chains. https://www.supplychain-insights.media/latest-news/asia-pacific-firms-turn-to-parallel-and-dual-supply-chains-to-navigate-geopolitical-risks
12. HashMicro. (2025). Dual Sourcing Mastery. https://www.hashmicro.com/blog/dual-sourcing/
13. SelfPublishing Review. (2025). Commercial Excellence Playbook by Philip Bowler. https://www.selfpublishingreview.com/2025/06/commercial-excellence-playbook-by-philip-bowler/
14. Bowler (2025) https://www.linkedin.com/posts/philip-d-bowler_the-lighthouse-approach-to-commercial-excellence-activity-7323942021457465344-dhO9
15. CommEx Consulting n.d. https://www.commexconsulting.com.au/product-page/commercial-excellence-playbook-hard-cover
16. Bowler (2025) Commercial Excellence Playbook. https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0F7QQGYDF
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