Business parson are finally
starting to sit up and analysis or observe the B2B marketing strategy. Number of organizations are turn out to
consult B2B companies for technique tricks, marketing concept and innovative
services to arrive and woo C-suite customers.
In Asia, the distinction
between consumer marketing and B2B marketing is less clear. Many marketing
directors and corporate communications managers are still outsourcing various
marketing support projects on a piecemeal basis to advertising, event or public
relations agencies for example, instead of seeking the services of dedicated
full-service B2B agencies.
Is it surprising then that
these companies feel their marketing needs are not optimally met? Many
traditional agencies have their roots in consumer marketing and do not have the
experience needed to develop comprehensive B2B marketing programmers. A few
important characteristics distinguish B2B marketing from mass marketing, and
can make all the difference to any B2B marketing effort.
1. The power of many
In consumer marketing, your
target is an individual. In B2B marketing, you could be targeting any number of
people along the decision-making chain, some of whom may not even be located in
the same country as you! It is always useful to find out who is the 'real'
decision maker. Is the purchasing or sourcing manager as important as the
business-planning manager or the chief financial officer? In some companies,
the human resources manager commissions services that have traditionally been
the mandate of the office manager and vice versa.
Many B2B marketing
professionals simply target the 'C-suite' but fail to realise that sometimes,
it's the CEO's secretary who makes the ultimate decision on whether or not they
should order products or services from your company. Either that, or he/she
could be the 'gatekeeper' who foils any number of your marketing and sales
attempts.
When the buying decision
affects several departments such as IT, operations and finance for example, you
should be looking at different ways to present your company's credentials to a
group of people, each with different concerns and expectations!
Being able to identify
different groups and their interests, and combining them with tailored
communications and a powerful database system, can result in a much higher rate
of return.
2. The power of one
Every one of your employees
that comes in contact with your customer is your "brand", whether you
are selling multi-million dollar commercial warehouses or consultancy services.
So it is crucial that your walking-talking brand ambassadors believe in your
corporate values and what you are selling. Get your agency to give them
customer-centric brand messages and sales tools to use, and ensure they are
trained to make each customer feel as if they are the most important customer
ever.
On the flip side, B2B companies
must ensure that their corporate brands are strong enough that their customers
don't leave when their brand ambassadors do.
3. Target the head, not the
heart
Validating and even quantifying
one's value proposition is crucial for any B2B company. Unlike B2C marketing,
it is always about appealing to the head, and not to the heart (or eyes or
ears, for that matter). Your B2B marketing companies should offer you answer complicate
client asks such as, "Tell me why I should select your agency over your
competitor? What value can you add to my bottom line or business schemes? How
much do you understand about my company's requires? How will your products or
services help our agency get ahead?"
In mature B2B sectors, where
the offering from company to company is almost homogeneous or 'commoditized',
the value proposition is less about the core product or service and more about
the 'value-add' or enhancements. The challenges are different, because the
central question is often, "Can you do this at a better price than your
competitor?"
4. Corporate brand, product
brand or CEO brand
I often advise against building
personality brands in any company, unless it is the founder. It is important
not to let personal egos get in the way of building corporate persona, which
will certainly outlive the former.
I also advise that B2B
companies focus on building and protecting their corporate brands versus their
product brands. Vista can fail for instance, but Microsoft should not.
Corporate brand building
certainly comes in handy when closing new business deals for B2B companies -
people are more comfortable recommending a new supplier, vendor or consultant
that their bosses have heard about, versus one that is relatively unknown.
That is not to say that the
lesser known brands will lose out on all opportunities, as long as they can
prove that they can deliver. They are less likely to be considered however, if
the risk of failure is too high i.e. when the products and services affect the
company's viability (productivity, legal standing, reputation etc.), if the
value of the contract is very large, or if the ultimate decision maker is a
good friend of your competitor (it does happen!) for instance.
5. Make me look good in front
of my boss
This may seem like an odd
suggestion but I sometimes ask clients how they can make their target customers
look good in front of their bosses.
For example;
a. Can you package your
products or services in a way that helps your contact's business and shows him
or her to be making a positive contribution to their employers? The closer you
do this to the bonus period or your contract renewal time, the better.
b. Do you need to provide tools
that help your contact/s present the validations for their recommended vendor i.e.
your company?
c. Should you prepare documents
that demonstrate the value that your company can bring to other departments at
your contact's organization?
d. Should you offer to help
integrate your products or services into your customer's organization?
e. Are your 'green credentials'
in line with your customer's business sustainability efforts as a B2B vendor?
6. It's not showing on TV
B2B customers don't
automatically turn on the television when they want to find a supplier. Often,
one of the first sources of information they turn to is a search engine.
Increasingly, B2B marketing is very much about Internet marketing and helping
to raise a company's profile and search engine rankings. The Internet instantly
makes your competitive pool global. A company in India could offer business
secretarial services that are almost identical to yours, only cheaper.
It is critical to constantly
think of new ways of creating credible customer-driven content, online
distribution channels, search terms, Internet links etc. in B2B marketing.
Traditional mass media has little or no relevance. That is why the B2B channel
mix will look very different and may comprise:
* Search engines
* Niche websites such as
LinkedIn
* Industry related online
marketing
* Industry listings or online
forums
* Accreditation with respected organizations
* Industry endorsements
* Case studies
* Client referrals and
testimonials
* Thought leadership articles
* Awards
* Certifications
* Media relations and press
mentions
* White papers and research
studies
* Customized demonstrations
* Low-risk pilot tests
* Trade shows
* Trade directories
* Industry spokesmen
* Industry rankings and awards
* Industry publications
* Customer events
* Corporate videos and podcasts
* Executive bios etc.
Often, B2B communications
output is best tailored to each target customer. Make sure your agency can also
create great PowerPoint decks inhouse, so you can customise them for your
corporate presentations.
7. There is a season for
everything
Always gear your B2B marketing
towards your customers' planning cycles.
There are different financial
year-ends in different countries, and it is important to make your business
pitch at least three to four months before your customer's year-end, to ensure
your company has a chance of making the vendor shortlist for next year!
8. The grey line
Unlike consumer marketing,
where you can offer seasonal sales and gifts in exchange for certain purchases,
such tactics are not always viewed as 'ethical' in B2B marketing.
A token of customer
appreciation worth 200 US dollars to someone who just signed a multi-million
dollar contract may seem trivial in comparison, but it may be hastily returned
if the customer's corporate policy limits 'lavish' gifts beyond say, 100 US
dollars. Don't risk embarrassing your customers by forgetting to do a bit of
discreet checking first.
What I have listed are just
some important aspects of B2B marketing. Ultimately, it really helps to work
with a B2B marketing agency that understands your B2B decision makers, decision
influences, business needs, stakeholders, sources of information and available
channels, and that is also able to add a good dose of creative thinking!
Read more - How To Create A Successful B2B Marketing Strategy
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