B2B marketing - everything you need to know

At first glance, business-to-business (B2B) marketing may appear to be no different from marketing directly to individual customers. Despite similarities in some aspects, these strategies require a completely different mindset to be effective. B2B marketing targets the needs, interests and challenges of people who are buying on behalf of or for their organisation (rather than for themselves individually). Read our guide to B2B marketing and find out how to plan an effective campaign.

B2B, B2B, D2C sectors - definitions

B2B stands for Business to Business Transaction; businesses. Such cooperation is most often based on supplier-customer, manufacturer-distributor relationships. When talking about B2B cooperation, two models of cooperation should be distinguished: vertical and horizontal. We speak of the former when transactions take place between companies representing a single industry. When companies produce or provide services from different industries, we are dealing with a horizontal market. The simplest example of how the B2B model works is the automotive industry. A car, i.e. the final product, is the result of cooperation between many companies. The manufacturer buys components such as tyres or batteries from them.

In addition to the B2B model, B2C and D2C are also distinguished. B2C (Business to Consumer)Business-to-consumer is the relationship between a company and its individual customers. It involves the sale of services or products, and the characteristic of this model is the short path from message to purchase. Unlike the message in a B2B relationship, it does not have to pass through the technical department, finance, management, etc. 

It is also increasingly common to see the term D2C (Direct to Consumer). It is a sales model that involves selling without any intermediaries. In D2C, it is the manufacturer who is in contact with the customer, which is why this model is also popular for online sales - not only on e-commerce platforms, but also on social media. In D2C, only the communication channel acts as an intermediary.

B2B marketing - basic principles

The primary objective of B2B marketing is to acquire business contacts (leads). It is a multi-level process that includes marketing activities such as email marketing, social media marketing or relationship management. Of course, the basis of these is understanding your target audience in order to be able to create a personalised message for them. You can make it easier for yourself by creating an ideal customer profile along the lines of the persona you know from the B2C model. 

What do you need to specify?

• the sector in which the company operates
• the size of the company
• revenues
• number of divisions
• locations (markets) served
• products/services sold

Thanks to this analysis, you will know what conditions the company must meet to be your ideal client.

B2B and B2C marketing - the differences

If you are thinking about choosing the most effective marketing strategy for your business, it is essential to consider the sector in which you operate. Many companies fail to do this, resulting in wasted time and money. See the key differences between B2B and B2C.

Market

B2C markets represent thousands even up to millions of sales prospects! B2C markets, on the other hand, tend to be smaller, niche, less flexible and more targeted.

The buying and selling process

Typically, the purchasing process in the B2B model is complex and takes up to several months and sales is based on building a relationship with the customer. In the case of B2C, we are often dealing with so-called impulse buying, which lasts from a few minutes to a maximum of a few days. 

Motivation behind the purchase

The final decision to buy in B2B is the result of an often multi-stage process. Therefore, marketing communication should not be based on emotions (as is often the case in B2C), but on logic and rational arguments. Customers in B2B make their decisions based on price and potential profits. For this reason, invoking emotional considerations in advertising to them is not effective.

Campaign planning - the most effective channels to reach the business customer

B2B e-mail marketing

Email marketing is a proven and effective method of reaching both individual and business consumers. Mailing campaigns lead to engagement, which turns subscribers into leads... and then into customers. 

Unlike B2C customers, who respond best to emotion and entertainment, B2B customers are looking for an answer to a question: How can your company help mine grow? For this reason, your emails must focus on the things that are important to your business customers - such as time, money and resources.

B2B content marketing

You have already read about how B2B customers are knowledge-focused, logic-driven and desire to educate. What better tool to satisfy these priorities than content marketing?

While the traditional marketing strategy "interrupts" the consumer's daily life with promotional material, strategy content marketing should provide valuable information to the consumer - This is what B2B customers are looking for. In fact 80% business decision-makers prefer to get their information from an article rather than an advertisement. Knowing this, you should devote as much (if not more) resources to your content marketing as to your traditional advertising strategy.

B2B social media marketing

The role of social media in business is growing by the day. For many businesses, they are the main channel for acquiring contacts. Until recently, there was a widespread opinion that (with the exception of LinkedIn) social media only fit the B2C model. However, this type of thinking is changing, and this is due in part to the following. the increase in the number of millenials in office responsible for B2B procurement.

Apart from LinkedIn, which social channels to bet on for B2B communication? Experts and statistics unanimously point to Twitter, Facebook and Youtube. Interestingly, as many as 74% people use Facebook for professional purposes and 75% B2B brands are active on Twitter. In principle, each channel can be adapted to the needs of a particular industry, but the ones mentioned above are proving to be the most effective in achieving business goals in the B2B segment.

B2B marketing - bet on valuable content

What you should focus on above all when working on your marketing strategy is content - it plays a key role in promoting the business. Content in B2B marketing should be primarily characterised by being more informative and less emotionally charged than it is in B2C marketing. This is quite logical - buying decisions in B2B are made within formalised business units. Provide top-quality content regardless of whether you create newsletter, a blog article, a case study or a social media post, and you will notice an increase in interest in your business.