What is a buying group, and who from it should you invite to your event?
A plain definition from Forrester's research, and how to turn it into a guest list for an event you host, one key account at a time.
By CordiallyPublished · 5 min read
The short answer
A buying group is everyone at a customer's company who shapes one purchase: the decision-maker, the champion, influencers, ratifiers such as procurement, and the users. Forrester counts 13 people inside the buyer's company on average. For an event you host, invite by buying role and fill the roles you have never met before inviting more of the ones you know.
What is a buying group?
A buying group is the set of people at one company who together decide whether to buy, from whom and on what terms. Forrester names five roles in it:
“The typical B2B buying group is made up of individuals from different parts of the organization, each with their unique needs and roles in the buying process, including decision-maker, champion, influencer, ratifier, and user.”
The groups are large. Forrester's State Of Business Buying, 2026, based on a survey of nearly 18,000 business buyers, reports that 13 internal stakeholders and nine external participants influence a buying decision on average, and that procurement now serves as a decision-maker 53% of the time. Purchases with generative AI features had buying groups twice the size of those without (14 members against seven). The external nine are peers, analysts and communities, so don't add them to the 13 when you count the people at one account.
Buying committee usually means the same thing. Forrester also writes about the buying network, which adds those outside voices. For a guest list, the internal group is the part you can invite.
Who from the buying group should you invite to an event you host?
Invite the roles your team has not met yet, then the ones it has. A champion who already likes you will probably come to your user conference anyway. The ratifier from procurement and the senior decision-maker usually won't, unless someone invites them for a reason that fits their job.
| Role | What they need from you | Formats that suit them |
|---|---|---|
| Decision-maker | Peers at their level and a short, direct conversation with your executive | Executive dinner, customer advisory board |
| Champion | Material to argue your case internally, and a chance to bring a colleague | User conference, workshop |
| Influencer | Proof the product works for teams like theirs | Workshop, roadshow session, customer talks |
| Ratifier (procurement, security, legal) | Answers on risk, terms and security, from someone who can give them | A booked meeting at the conference, a small briefing |
| User | Training, roadmap and other users | User conference, workshop, happy hour |
The pairings in the table are our suggestion. No study we found measures which roles attend which formats, so check them against your own registration data from past events.
Invite the person you have never met before inviting the champion a third time.
How to plan a dinner for the decision-makers is in the executive dinner playbook.
How do you find the roles missing from your guest list?
Write down the buying group for each key account's open deal, mark who is invited, and the empty roles are your gap.
Definition
The role gap is the list of buying-group roles at a key account that nobody on your guest list fills. You close it with invitations, an introduction from the champion or a host who seeks that person out on the day.
- List each key account with an open deal, or a renewal coming up.
- Under each, write the five roles and the person who holds each one, if you know. Ask the account owner, who often knows names the CRM lacks.
- Mark who is already registered or invited.
- For each empty role, decide who asks: your champion, the AE or one of your executives.
- Give each invited guest a host from your team before the event.
Both CRMs have a place for this. HubSpot's buying groups, a beta in Sales Hub Professional and Enterprise, draw an org chart on the company record, with a buying role per contact and an activity heatmap. They also take people you have not added yet:
“for when you know a stakeholder exists, but you don't have their contact record in your CRM”
In Salesforce the same map is the opportunity's contact roles. Salesforce Help says "Examples of contact roles include decision maker, business user, and executive sponsor."
Why does the buying group matter after the event?
The CRM credits your event only for guests who are attached to the deal. Salesforce influence models look for campaign members "who are also assigned a contact role on an open opportunity" (Salesforce Help), and HubSpot says "For attribution, the deal must be associated with at least one influenced contact" (HubSpot Knowledge Base).
So the map you built for invitations also decides what your report shows. If the procurement lead came to your dinner but was never added to the deal, the dinner earns nothing for that deal. Add each attending member of the buying group to the open deal, with their role, the same week.
The guest list and the deal's contact roles should name the same people.
Why reports still show no event influence is in why your CRM shows no event influence, and how to count the result by account is in how to prove event ROI at account level.
Frequently asked questions
Is a buying group the same as a buying committee?
In practice, yes. Both mean the people at one company who shape a purchase. Forrester and HubSpot both use buying group, and Forrester adds the buying network for outside voices such as peers and analysts. Pick one term and use it in your CRM and your reports.
How many people are in a buying group?
Forrester's 2026 State Of Business Buying reports 13 internal stakeholders and nine external participants on average, from a survey of nearly 18,000 buyers. Groups are larger for expensive or complex purchases. Count the people at each of your own accounts instead of planning around an average.
Should I invite more than one person per account?
Yes, when they hold different roles. Two champions from the same team add little. A champion and the decision-maker they report to give your team two conversations about the same deal. Ask the champion to bring the colleague, which is often the easiest invitation to land.
Should procurement be on an event invite list?
Sometimes. Forrester reports procurement acting as a decision-maker 53% of the time. They rarely come for a keynote. Offer a booked half hour at your conference with someone who can answer questions on security and terms, and invite them through the champion or the AE.
Where do I record buying roles in the CRM?
In HubSpot, on the buying group org chart on the company record, where each contact gets a buying role. In Salesforce, as contact roles on the opportunity. Use the same role names in both places, and add every attending guest to the open deal so the event gets credit.
Sources
Every number in this guide comes from the sources below, checked against the source itself on the date shown. Cordially has no customer outcome data yet, so none is used.
- The State Of Business Buying: Risk-Averse Buyers Demand Proof, Not PromisesForrester, January 21, 2026Used for: 13 internal stakeholders and nine external participants on average; procurement a decision-maker 53% of the time; genAI purchases 14 members against seven; nearly 18,000 buyers surveyedChecked November 11, 2026
- Three Realities About B2B Buying NetworksForrester, February 23, 2026Used for: The buying network: 13 people inside the buyer's organization and nine from outside; the network continues after purchaseChecked November 11, 2026
- The Verdict Is In: It’s Buying Groups For The WinForrester, April 23, 2025Used for: The five roles: decision-maker, champion, influencer, ratifier and userChecked November 11, 2026
- Review stakeholders with buying groupsHubSpot Knowledge Base, October 27, 2026Used for: Buying group org charts on company records (beta, Sales Hub Professional and Enterprise), buying roles, placeholder contacts, activity heatmapChecked November 11, 2026
- Considerations for Using Contact RolesSalesforce HelpUsed for: Examples of contact roles include decision maker, business user, and executive sponsor (the page shows no date)Checked November 11, 2026
- How Customizable Campaign Influence WorksSalesforce HelpUsed for: Influence models identify campaign members who are also assigned a contact role on an open opportunity (the page shows no date)Checked November 11, 2026
- Analyze individual campaign performanceHubSpot Knowledge Base, August 3, 2026Used for: For attribution, the deal must be associated with at least one influenced contactChecked November 11, 2026
Revision history
- : First published.