Marketing to businesses is very different than marketing to consumers. It’s an entirely different approach which is why B2B marketing exists.
Here is a quick breakdown, from our friends at HubSpot before we jump into our tips.
B2B: B2B marketing targets the needs, interests, and challenges of individuals who are making purchases on behalf of, or for, their organization (rather than for themselves), thus making the organization the customer.
B2C: B2C marketing targets the needs, interests, and challenges of individual consumers who are making purchases on behalf of, or for, themselves, thus making the individual the customer.
Now onto the reason you’re reading this compelling blog, you want to know how the hell to do it. It’s pretty easy, you call us. However, if you’d like to flounder around a bit before reaching out, follow these tips.
What’s your story?
We talk about this a lot, so if you haven’t been listening, check out this blog and this blog. Humans run businesses and even though you’re selling to a business, you need to define the target audience at the businesses you’re trying to reach. Who is the decision-maker? Is it the owner? HR? Finance manager?
What messaging will resonate with them? Cost savings? Your stellar company reputation? Your stellar good looks?
Be relatable, nobody wants to do business with a robot. Unless it’s that robot from the Will Smith movie…what was that called?
Be findable
You could have the best messaging out there, award winning even, but if no one can find you then it’s completely useless.
Are you creating compelling content and pushing it out through your various marketing channels. If you’re confused, it’s social media, online advertising, email marketing, blogging, public relations, community engagement, etc.
Also, go back to your market research; it will tell you where your audience is and what they’re reading or listening to.
Wash. Rinse. Repeat.
Not every idea is a good idea. Your marketing team needs to constantly be monitoring how everything is performing, which is why it is critical to set up your metrics prior to launching a campaign. Tiny changes to messaging, targeting or creative can eke out 1-2% more ROI.
A MarketingProfs author said her team tested a confirmation email versus a confirmation page with a calendar embed. The page with the calendar availability tool ended up increasing meetings booked for our sales team by 124%.
These are just a few tips, we’re not giving away the entire cow for free, or is it milk? You also need to determine metrics for success—think KPIs, engaging your employees and testing out different messaging and tactics.
