B2B marketing is coming of age. Once the poor relation of consumer marketing, business brands are now adopting increasingly sophisticated B2B marketing strategies driven by research and insights and spun out across multiple channels.
Where once the sum total of a company’s B2B marketing efforts might have been a quarterly or even half yearly printed newsletter, a growing number of businesses are recognising that to stand out from their competitors and grow their market share, they need to exploit every opportunity and every channel possible. In the last few years the number of opportunities in B2B Marketing that can really help businesses to engage the right people has expanded.
Here are some of the opportunities and approaches businesses should consider integrating into their B2B marketing activity:
1. Positioning and planning - it’s essential to pin-point your USPs and be able to articulate them consistently to the right audience. This is usually the first step in any effective B2B marketing campaign.
2. Identifying your target market is one thing, but identifying your exact audience can be more of an art than a science: procurement, legal, finance, sales, marketing, facilities, logistics, manufacturing, IT and the CEO can all get involved in a B2B purchasing decision and will all have an opinion. Good B2B marketing campaigns will be based on a clear understanding of the varying involvement of different decision makers.
3. Website and email marketing is now a key element in B2B marketing. These days your website is your shop window, or office foyer. It is the very first thing any customer will see if they are going to consider doing business with you. An effective and efficient website that reflects your business and what you do is essential. But a great website is only of use if your potential customers can find it. It is worth considering implementing search optimisation on your site. Search engine optimisation (SEO), is a process which will help you reach the top of relevant Google pages by engineering content and systems on your website.
4. B2B PR has now become a central element in most businesses' B2B marketing campaigns. The old saying that no one ever got fired for hiring IBM still holds true in many cases. Business buyers tend to be highly averse to risk, and so look for reliable vendors who have an established reputation in the market; a reputation built and reinforced by PR. It’s perhaps no surprise then, that Bill Gates famously said: “If I was down to my last Dollar, I would spend it on PR.”
5. Integrate your B2B marketing with Digital PR. Traditional routes to your audience such as sales, networking, brochures and direct mail, should be matched with a robust online presence. Social networking for example is for business not just swapping holiday snaps. LinkedIn for example is playing an increasingly prominent role in B2B marketing as is the concept of sharing your business thinking and services online through, for example sites like SlideShare.
Carefully conceived, consistent and bold B2B marketing can deliver huge competitive advantage, taking your customer on a journey, from discovery through to advocacy. Whether it is done through online or offline channels, good B2B marketing can help take your business to the next level.