Today’s market is booming with opportunities. An effective marketing strategy relies on multiple factors. However, one of the most important ones is customer experience. Furthermore, the type of customer also defines your business plan and strategies. Today, we will take a look at B2B customers and the essential steps to creating a winning B2B marketing strategy.
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B2B Marketing Strategy Pain Points:
B2B market looks a lot different than B2C. Even though both types of buyers are bombarded with choices and options and endless lines of products, it is a lot easier to make a sale to a B2C consumer. They usually buy smaller amounts and make purchases more frequently. When it comes to B2B customers, it is quite the opposite. They buy larger quantities in advance, to get the discount benefits. That’s why B2B companies have to deal with a couple of tedious pain points:
- understanding the market;
- doing the analytics and the math behind the business;
- targeting the correct audience and doing it at the right moment;
- knowing what the customer buying power is;
- tackling the customer acquisition cost;
- dealing with the lack of time to get things done;
- making a memorable, lasting impression.
Let’s look at these pain points from a different angle and see why they are important.
Your Market Defines Your Business:
Developing a marketing strategy is one of the most crucial steps of a B2B marketing campaign. However, you cannot work on the marketing strategy unless you understand the market.
First of all, you need to focus on the customer. What are their demands? How can your company solve customer problems? If you cannot answer those questions, you might be in the wrong market.
Second, analyze your company and what it can offer to the B2B market. Are you planning any new projects or releasing new products? Are there any structural changes happening in the company? What marketing strategies have worked so far? Also, what is your business goal? These questions will help you to understand your business better.
The next step is to look at your competitors. If you were a customer choosing between your business and theirs, where would you go and why? Do you think they are offering better deals or have better products? Are there any advantages or disadvantages for your business? What channels are they using to market their products? Are they making any mistakes you could profit from? What is the main difference between your company and the competitors?
And finally, take a look at the overall market climate. What are the current sales trends? Is there anything impacting your business negatively or positively? What are the current opportunities on the market?
Answering these questions will help you better understand the current situation and create an efficient marketing strategy.
Doing The Analytics:
One of the best systems for collecting and analyzing customer data is a CRM. The analytics and the reporting will drive your business forward. Once you analyze the market, your business, the competition, and the customers, you need to store the data and make use of it.
Figure out what reports and analytics are the most critical for your business. Some of the most important metrics are:
- CVR – lead-to-close conversion rate metrics;
- CAC – initial customer acquisition cost;
- marketing originated customers;
- marketing influenced customers.
Who Owns The Market?
When we talk about a B2B market in any industry, there is always someone who holds the monopoly over other companies. They have the most substantial buying power, and they can even influence the market price in a way.
If you are trying to build a strong network of customers, you need to think about this. If a single company purchases everything, it will push away other potential customers. While it is true that, as long as you are selling, you are making money, it is far better to have a network of customers than a single customer that buys everything. Once they are out, you have no client.
Your marketing campaign needs to create compelling marketing content that targets multiple areas of interest. This way, you will create a little bit of security for your business.
Customer Acquisition Cost:
Marketing costs money. We have already mentioned that initial customer acquisition cost is one of the crucial metrics for your business. You need to understand how much money is required to obtain one customer. Whatever you invest in, your business needs to profit from it. If the CAC goes up, your profit goes down. Handling CAC is one of the biggest challenges of any B2B marketer.
The Lack Of Time In Marketing:
The main reason the lack of time in marketing is such a huge problem is that the market changes quickly. Creating and testing a marketing campaign and finally launching it takes a lot of time. However, the market situation can change rapidly. If a significant factor of your campaign is not relevant anymore, you need to adjust. That costs more money and requires more time. That’s why marketers always need more time.
Making A Lasting Impression:
To leave a memorable impression on your customers, you need to deliver 100% during the entire customer journey. A customer journey includes every step from reaching out to a customer or getting discovered by a customer to making a sale and following up with the client.
A company that cares about clients even after they make a purchase will build a trustworthy relationship.
Creating A Winning B2B Marketing Strategy:
You will see that solving these major pain points of B2B marketing will help with creating a winning B2B marketing strategy. Remember that this takes time. There are no shortcuts to success. As long as you focus on setting goals, defining your market and the customer, creating a memorable customer journey, and tracking KPIs, you are on the right path.
About the Author:Jonah Jackson is a marketing expert and a financial advisor. He often writes for MoversTech CRM and runs a marketing blog where he explores new marketing trends and strategies for both B2B and B2C industries.
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