What can B2B Marketers learn from B2C
B2B marketing and B2C marketing are always seen as two different animals.
B2B Marketing is about creating value to other businesses and their owners, and directors, through informational communication that adds value to their lives.
B2C Marketing has so many facets – from price, emotion, brand, personality and more that need to be tied in.
As someone who handles B2B and B2C marketing, here is what B2B marketers can learn from B2C marketing.
B2B Marketing can be Emotional
By far, the biggest focus when it comes to B2B marketing is focusing on sharing a dearth of information to position your brand as a thought leader. You share information that will be read by a decision-maker, who will then consider your brand when they are ready to shift services.
B2C brands focus so much on what the brand makes people feel.
The famous Apple Ad is exactly that. It evokes emotions of breaking free.
Unify Facility Management is a B2B business that focuses on managing facilities. Their digital communication brings out the emotion of the people that are part of their workforce.
Omni-channel marketing in B2B
Omni-channel marketing is quite common for B2C brands. The aim here is to hit the customers on all channels to ensure they complete their journey to conversion.
B2B marketing can also have omni-channel marketing. And while obviously not on the scale of B2C – it can still be done.
If you are a B2B brand, here are channels you can use to build omni-channel marketing:
- Industry magazines
- Industry Reports
- Thought-leadership content
- LinkedIn platform
- Email marketing
- SEO
Turn B2B brands into personalities
If your B2B brand was a personality, what would it be?
Many of the B2C brands have their own personality.
- Nike: Empowering, Bold, Innovative
- Apple: Elegant, Revolutionary, Simplified
- Amul Butter: Fun, Trustworthy, Nutritious
Each and every communication from Nike, Apple and Amul Butter imbibes their brand personality.
Spacebar may be a B2B brand, but our personality is – Seriously Fun.
The content that Spacebar puts out is a mixed bag of fun, serious and informative – truly taking on the personality of Seriously Fun.
So, if your brand was to have a personality, what would it be?
Tie in Data to Storytelling
B2C marketers use data to assess whether their communication is working or not. When you push out your marketing, look at the data to answer the question of whether the communication resonates with your audience.
There are a lot of metrics and data points that you can look at.
Yes, B2B marketing and B2C marketing are different, but there is a lot you can learn from it. If you want to grow as a B2B marketer, you need to look beyond just B2B and learn from B2C too.
