The audio-visual (AV) industry is at a crossroads. As AV and IT systems converge and AI-driven applications reshape client expectations, technical expertise alone no longer guarantees success. Companies must now master the new B2B buying journey - a complex, multi-stakeholder process - while adopting sales and marketing approaches to lead clients through evolving needs.

IDEAL System Singapore, a leader in ProAV and Broadcast solutions, exemplifies this evolution, having upskilled 17 team members through the Strategic Compass workshop led by Marc Remond, a veteran sales strategist in Asia-Pacific.

The New B2B Buying Journey: Complexity Demands Strategy

Today’s B2B buyers are no longer linear decision-makers. The modern buying journey involves diverse stakeholders—from technical experts to C-suite executives—each prioritizing different outcomes. Sales cycles are longer, objections are more nuanced, and clients demand solutions that align with both immediate technical requirements and long-term business goals.

Marc Remond, Executive Partner and Founder of Strategic Pathways, explains: “The B2B buying journey is a maze of competing priorities. Winning requires teams to decode stakeholder motivations, deliver insights that reframe client thinking, and guide buyers toward decisions that drive mutual value. This is where the Challenger Sales methodology becomes critical.”

IDEAL System Singapore: Mastering the Challenger Approach

Fintan Mckiernan, CEO at IDEAL Systems Singapore, underscores why the company prioritized the Strategic Compass program: “As we continue to invest in growing our Pro-AV business it’s imperative that we continually upskill our sales staff. In an industry fixated on product specs, we needed a framework to cut through noise. The Challenger Sales methodology taught our teams to proactively shape conversations, challenge client assumptions, and position our solutions as catalysts for business growth. Combined with insights into the B2B buying journey, this approach is transforming how we engage clients.”

The workshop’s focus on the Challenger Sales methodology - emphasizing reframing conversations, tailoring insights to stakeholders, and proactively addressing objections - equipped IDEAL’s teams to navigate intricate sales cycles. By mapping their strategies to the B2B buying journey, staff learned to identify pain points early, align solutions with stakeholder priorities, and accelerate decision-making.

Challenger Sales: The Skills AV Teams Need to Lead

Marc Remond highlights three pillars of the Challenger Sales methodology critical for AV professionals:

1. Teach, Tailor, Take Control: Deliver unique insights that challenge clients’ status quo, tailor messaging to specific stakeholders, and guide the buying process with confidence.
2. Stakeholder-Centric Communication: Craft messages that resonate with technical, financial, and executive audiences, bridging gaps between IT requirements and business outcomes.
3. Proactive Objection Handling: Anticipate and address concerns before they derail deals, positioning solutions as indispensable to clients’ success.

“The Challenger approach isn’t about pushing products—it’s about leading clients through their own buying journey,” Remond emphasizes. “In a market obsessed with technical features, teams must pivot from reactive problem-solving to insight-driven selling. This means leveraging data, understanding the impact of new technology in client ecosystems, and positioning AV solutions as enablers of digital transformation.”

Channel Management and Strategic Alignment

The workshop also addressed the nuances of channel partnerships, where conflicts between vendors, distributors, and integrators can hinder growth. By understanding Channel Management principles and economics, teams learn to align ecosystem partners around shared goals, transforming potential adversaries into collaborators.

“The B2B buying journey extends beyond the end customer,” Marc Remond notes. “Managing relationships with strategic rigor ensures seamless execution and reinforces trust across the value chain.”

Conclusion: Thriving in the AI-Augmented Landscape

For AV companies, survival hinges on understanding the new B2B buying journey and adopting methodologies like Challenger Sales to lead clients through complexity. IDEAL System Singapore’s investment in strategic upskilling underscores a broader industry truth: Technical knowledge is merely the entry ticket - mastery of the buying journey and new sales and marketing techniques separates leaders from followers.

“The future belongs to those who teach, challenge, and guide,” Marc Remond concludes. “By arming teams with these skills, AV firms won’t just adapt to convergence and AI—they’ll define the next era of the industry.”

Strategic Pathways’ Strategic Compass workshop was held on April 25, 2025, at Crowne Plaza Changi, Singapore. Learn more at www.strategicpathways.asia.