Business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing may have similar elements, but there are many important differences that need to be considered to create successful campaigns. For example, with B2B marketing, there are often multiple perspectives to consider, and business clients may be more focused on the bottom line than on a unique experience.
Agencies with a varied client base need to be adept and agile at switching focus from B2C to B2B campaigns. Such agility starts with recognizing the key common characteristics that distinguish B2B marketing. Below, 12 Forbes Agency Council experts share their suggestions for building business-focused marketing campaigns.
1. Build Long-Term Relationships
Businesses look for proof that a company can serve as a reliable part of their supply chain or IT organization for the long term. B2B marketing recognizes that there is more than price and product at play in a successful vendor relationship. - Kim Charlton, PMG (Pinnacle Marketing Group)
2. Know The ‘Who’ And The ‘Why’
B2C marketing targets a single decision maker. With B2B, there are on average seven decision makers who are each assessing your solution from a different perspective, like financial, operational, marketing and human resources impact. Step one: Ensure you know who the decision makers are. Step two: Ensure the content of your campaign addresses the perspectives of each stakeholder. - Andrew Au, Intercept Group
3. Offer Rational Reasons
An appeal to emotion typically wins in B2C marketing. In other words, when marketing to consumers, a winning strategy includes developing emotional connections and backing them with rational bits. B2B, on the other hand, goes through a more in-depth screening process. Decision makers in businesses are logic-driven and are trusted to find and defend the best possible solutions. - Ahmad Kareh, Twistlab Marketing
4. Tell Them How You’ll Make Their Business Better
A B2C campaign is very direct in that it shows how a company’s goods or services directly impact the consumer. A B2B campaign’s focus is one company impacting another to make the second company better. The campaign’s value proposition has to be in making it easier for the other company to be more profitable, organized or efficient, and how those attributes will convert into long-term sales and growth. - Henry Kurkowski, One WiFi
5. Remember Business Buyers Have A Lot At Stake
Research proves that emotional factors impact B2B buying decisions more than B2C purchases. Why? When buying a computer for your personal use, your risk is the cost of that computer. When buying an ERP system for your company, you’re risking your job and livelihood. B2B campaigns need to address the emotional components of the buyer’s journey and not simply send stereotypical, rational messages. - Patricia Rioux, Team ODEA
6. Emphasize Solutions, Not Features
One of the biggest differences to keep in mind is that when it comes to B2B marketing, you are trying to provide an overall solution as opposed to a single product. This means that your messaging will often need to be centered around selling the problem you are solving rather than the features of your product. Focus on the problem you solve best, like speed, accuracy or a streamlined process. - Bernard May, National Positions
7. Carefully Consider The Buyer’s Journey
When it comes to B2B and B2C marketing, the approach can be quite similar. However, because B2B purchases can often be a much larger investment, it will take longer to build trust and close the deal. Consider the buyer’s journey of your B2B product and think about all the touch points and questions your audience will need to have answered before even committing to a meeting with your sales team. - Matt Bowman, Thrive Internet Marketing Agency
8. Create A Strong Buyer Persona And Path To Purchase
In the B2C world, nearly everyone is a potential consumer, and driving awareness requires a broad reach. B2B marketers can tightly define and segment their audiences by job titles, pain points and communication channels. Investing in the creation of a strong buyer persona and defining the digital path to purchase is foundational to any successful B2B campaign. - Keri Witman, Cleriti
9. Focus On The Bottom Line
Businesses typically have specific goals that relate to their bottom line, while consumers are seeking an experience, service, education or engagement. Content shared in a B2B format versus B2C is completely different, from the language to the assets and even the length. Consumers want brevity, visual excellence and authentic experiential content, while businesses often seek stats, results and numbers. - Scott Kellner, GPJ Experience Marketing
10. Be Patient—B2B Sales Take Time
While the aim of both B2B and B2C marketing is to make a sale, the time it takes to reach the end of the sales funnel greatly differs. With B2C marketing, a consumer might see a product they like and purchase it on the spot. B2B, however, typically involves buying a service, so fast purchases are less common. B2B marketers should expect weeks of building a relationship with a lead before they convert. - Adam Binder, Creative Click Media
11. Identify And Address Pain Points
The main difference between B2C and B2B marketing is that you’re addressing the pain points of an individual versus a company. The pain points of an organization are multilayered; therefore, when adopting a B2B marketing strategy, you need to be clear about how all the pieces play together and how you can make a difference for that business. - Drew Gerber, Wasabi Publicity, Inc.
12. Find Ways To Make Them Money
A B2C marketing job can be more about cutting through the noise and appealing by some virtue of differentiation. When marketing in the B2B world, the competitive category homework still needs to be done, but we advise looking for ways to make the target audience money, such as providing a superior product or service to resell, streamlining operations or developing a way to help them grow their business. - Patrick Nycz, NewPoint Marketing
