If you want to be successful in marketing, whether you are a B2B or B2C business, you need to focus on generating, securing, and converting leads. However, if your business is B2B, you will need to use different marketing strategies than those used by B2C businesses.
The difference between B2B and B2C purchasing is not just limited to the type of products being bought. The process of buying has evolved over time, with sellers initiating and controlling the process in traditional B2B buying.
Some strategies you may want to consider include:
-Developing a thought-leadership platform
-Creating targeted content
-Investing in account-based marketing
-Launching a direct mail campaign
-Developing a lead nurturing program
-Conducting market research
The following are B2B marketing strategy options:
1. The marketing flywheel
The more effort you put into marketing, the more results you will see.
The harder you work within your marketing framework, the more effort you will get in return.
A marketing flywheel that is done correctly will result in compounding returns where you will need less effort to get greater results over time.
In Stratabeat, they have built a marketing flywheel built on:
- Long-form content
- Organic search
- Content promotion
- Organic traffic
- CTAs
- IP detection
- Behavioral analysis
- Continual optimization of the framework
If you want to ensure ongoing traffic, leads, and revenue, you should consider incorporating a marketing flywheel into your strategy.
2. Be the most creative
Marketing that is creative is able to break out of the norm and think outside of what is commonly done. This type of marketing seeks to be unique and different, setting itself apart from others.
The majority of marketing teams are more interested in playing it safe than taking risks. As a result, their marketing campaigns can be boring and unoriginal. Most of the marketing materials produced are very similar to what the competition is putting out there.
While your competitors are focusing on one marketing strategy, you can take a different approach for a more creative solution that will make your business stand out.
You can come up with marketing initiatives that are different from the norm in your industry by using creative thinking.
3. Be the most customer-centric
Some companies want to be the technology leader in their industry, while others want to be the largest company in their industry.
Some people want to be known as the best, some want to be known as the most sophisticated, and some want to be known as the design leader, but none of these approaches focuses on the customer.
A B2B marketing strategy that is always relevant is to focus on the customer more than any other company in your industry.
Being customer-centric means listening to and learning from your customers. This approach essentially includes them in your marketing planning. Everything you do should be based on providing value and excitement for your customers.
4. The market leader
If you are the market leader, it would make sense to develop strategies based on that to maintain your position.
You could boast about the amount of customers you have. Alternatively, you could show off your market share. Or, you could proclaim the number of countries you’re present in.
You build trust with your audience by demonstrating that others trust you.
5. The challenger brand
If you’re not the market leader, a challenger brand strategy can be a good way to approach B2B marketing.
In this case, you would want to focus on how you work harder and show more love to your customers than the leading company in the market.
As a less well-known brand, you have the opportunity to not only advertise the additional benefits you provide customers, but you can also mock your more established competitors.
6. The market disruptor
I have talked about Salesforce earlier. They’re a company that did really well even though they came into a market that was already really crowded. Their success upsets everything that people knew about enterprise CRM before.
As a disruptor, your main goal is to change the way your audience thinks about the problems they have and the solutions they need. You want them to see that there are other ways to solve their problems besides the ones they are used to.
To be a market disruptor, you must be original and leapfrog your competition.
7. Data-driven marketing
Data-driven marketing is a popular B2B marketing strategy
As digital marketing has grown more popular, marketers are increasingly relying on data to make strategic decisions.
When you have data to base your marketing decisions on, you are more likely to make choices that your audience will respond to positively and that will be effective overall.
Marketing should be guided by data, from the channels used and messaging to the content created. Data helps define audience personas and what they’re doing online. It also reliably points to strategies for engagement, conversion and lead generation.
8. Niche marketing
It can be more effective to market to a smaller, more specific group rather than a large, general audience.
In order to be successful in niche marketing, you need to understand what your target audience’s pain points are. Once you have a deep understanding of your audience, you can create content and marketing initiatives that are specifically tailored to them.
You should focus your marketing efforts on the platforms that your target audience is already using. For example, if your target audience is on LinkedIn, you should focus your efforts on that platform.
You might explore a collaboration partnership with an influencer if your audience is attracted to that person.
9. Apply brain science to your marketing
If you want your marketing to be more effective, you should try using brain science. This will help you cut through all the noise and capture people’s attention more easily. Additionally, your marketing will be more likely to stick in people’s minds.
Brain science is the study of the nervous system, which includes the brain, spinal cord, and nerves. It covers a wide range of topics from how the brain works to how it affects behavior.
For example, stories are 22 times more likely to be remembered by the human brain than just straight information, according to psychologist Jerome Bruner.
Similarly, the human brain is wired for emotion.
If you want people to pay attention to your message, try to evoke an emotional response. Content that evokes strong emotions is more likely to be shared and remembered.
The neuroscientist Antonio Damasio found that people who don’t feel any emotion due to brain damage can’t make decisions. He found that this includes purchase decisions.
Your audience is less likely to take any action to engage with your brand if they do not feel strongly enough about any options. Without emotion, people are far less likely to make a decision. This means that if you want your audience to engage with your brand, you need to give them a reason to care.
10. The new B2B funnel
The B2B marketing process has become more complex and less linear, like a roller coaster ride with loops.
This is because buyers often do the same thing multiple times during their journey towards a purchase, especially during their research phase. 9 out of 10 B2B buyers do at least one task multiple times during their purchasing funnel according to CMO by Adobe.
Remember the stages of the modern buyer’s journey as you design your strategies:
Awareness
The buyers learn about the products or services when they have a problem and try to find a solution.
Consideration
Many people do a lot of research before making a purchase, looking at different options and talking to others for their opinion. They don’t talk to sales representatives until they are already quite far into the process.
Purchase
Buyers may be convinced and converted, but this is only the beginning of the journey.
Post-Purchase
Buyers want great customer service and support. If they’re happy with what they get, they’ll keep coming back to you. That’s what loyalty looks like.
You’ll need different types of strategies for each stage. Strategies can be divided into three categories (although many fit into more than one category, or even cover all three):
Demand generation
The goal of demand generation is to get people interested in your product or service. This is done through a variety of strategies that create awareness and interest.
Revealing buyer problems and how your brand is the solution helps to create awareness and brand consideration.
Lead generation/conversion
B2B lead generation strategies typically involve activities that move buyers from the consideration phase into taking action – like submitting their contact information, scheduling a call with a representative, or making a purchase.
When developing lead generation strategies, be sure to utilize B2B lead generation software to help you capture and convert leads.
Retention and satisfaction
These strategies are created to remind customers to keep buying from the same store or brand. The goal is to keep customers returning.
In addition to the new B2B buyer’s journey, there are many other evolving elements of the B2B landscape that you’ll need to consider when developing B2B marketing strategies. Here are the main elements to consider:
Increasingly digital, with younger buyers
Approximately 50% of business-to-business (B2B) decision-makers are younger than 35 years old. These individuals tend to not respond well to aggressive sales tactics, such as paid advertisements, unsolicited phone calls, and other methods of being continuously bombarded with information from a company.
Instead of going to a store and talking to a salesperson, digital natives are starting the process online and researching what they want.
The decisions of important stakeholders are influenced greatly by a company’s online presence, with the website being a very important factor. These stakeholders consult reviews and recommendations when making their decisions.
The website is the first salesperson, so it must be able to provide information to buyers as quickly as possible. It is important to do extensive research in order to understand what buyers need and to come up with a strategy that meets those needs.
B2B buyers usually look up information about a company and its products online before talking to anyone from the company.
They use several methods and sources of media, such as websites, social media, online videos, and peer reviews and recommendations.
Your average buyer has already done extensive research on their own before they even talk to someone on your team. They have done an average of 12 online searches before they visit your website.
Offer a personalized buying experience
Even though business-to-business buying may not seem similar to business-to-consumer buying at first, there are actually some similarities between the two. For example, both types of buyers want a personalized experience throughout the entire sales journey.
Customers want to know that a product or service will address their specific needs, that they will be able to get help and support from customer service across all channels, and that they will have a personalized experience all the way through the sales process.
Expect several decision-makers
B2Bs are increasingly consulting multiple stakeholders before making a purchase, and the number of decision-makers involved is also increasing.
There are typically 6-10 stakeholders involved in a B2B buying decision, each with their own unique perspective. People who are not in the C-suite are becoming more involved in the process.
Long, multi-step sales journey
B2B marketplaces have a long and complicated decision-making process, which can include demos and periods of questioning, before making a purchase. This is in contrast to the instant transactions that take place in the B2C market.
Large, long-term deals
Vendors who are selling to businesses (B2B) typically want a contract that will last for several years and be worth a large amount of money. This is in contrast to when consumers (B2C) are making a purchase, where they usually make a decision quickly that has low consequences.
What are some strategies that can be used to capture and nurture leads, drive conversions, and keep existing customers satisfied?
11. Prepare to personalize
B2B buyers want the same levels of personalization as B2C buyers.
According to Salesforce, 83% of business buyers say that being treated like a person, not a number, is very important to winning their business. This is the same as the 84% of B2C customers who feel the same way.
What is the best way to provide a personalized experience for each buyer?
First, you should create your ideal customer personas. Second, you should research specific buyers and collect data on their needs and preferences. There are many ways to collect this data, so there is no excuse not to do it.
Then, consider the four factors of personalization:
Channels
Play to your strengths and target your prospective customers through the channels they prefer. If you’re good at Facebook, target them there. If you excel at in-person communication, focus your efforts on events or personal interactions.
Intent
What is the best way to target high intent prospective customers who are most likely to purchase and fit your ideal persona profiles?
Messages
Which calls-to-action, messages, and content pieces will best motivate each buyer to move forward in the funnel?
Real-Time
How can you deliver solutions almost instantly to each buyer as they move through the funnel? Will you offer real-time human assistance, use chatbots, or employ both?
Making sure your website, content, paid ads, landing pages, and more are up to par will help you deliver high levels of personalization to your users.
12. Create a mobile-optimized experience
Make sure that your website works well on mobile devices as well as on desktop computers.
And make sure that other kinds of content, such as emails and whitepapers, can be easily viewed on a mobile device.
B2B stakeholders, of all ages, are increasingly going mobile at work, which includes the research needed to make purchasing decisions. These statistics offer plenty of proof:
- 80% of B2B buyers use mobile devices at work, and 60% of B2B buyers report that “mobile played a significant role in a recent purchase.”
- Around 42% of B2B researchers make purchases on mobile, both at home and in the office.
- More than half of B2B-related online searches happen on smartphones.
- And over 90% of B2B buyers say they’re “likely to buy again from a vendor that had a superior mobile experience,” versus only 50% of those who report a poor mobile experience.
Automate B2B marketing processes
B2B marketing strategies need to be implemented for all parts of the sales funnel, and their success tracked, in order to see results.
This is true if you want to do everything yourself. However, if you automate these processes it will be much easier and save your business a lot of time and energy.
When choosing tools to automate your B2B marketing processes, be sure to do your research to ensure that they will be effective.