A B2B marketing strategy is a carefully selected set of techniques a firm uses to reach, nurture, and sell its products and services to its target audience. Buyers are often C-suite or director-level professionals at other companies. This makes B2B marketing different from other types of marketing.
One key difference is that when businesses buy from other businesses the sales cycle is long – often weeks or months, and sometimes years. Buyers are trying to solve complex business challenges, and solutions can be expensive, often requiring a lot of time and customization to complete. As a result, many companies approach the selection process with care and deliberation. A B2B marketing strategy therefore needs to address all stages of the buyer’s journey. Let’s explore how this looks in practical terms with some examples.
At the top level of the marketing funnel you have a potential universe of buyers who are generally unaware of your product and service offerings. B2B marketing activity at this top level uses techniques that broaden your brand’s visibility and attract the right kind of leads to further engage with your brand. These leads can be potential buyers, referral sources, or other influences who can increase your visibility.
How B2B Marketing works
An example of B2B marketing at the top of the funnel might be to have one or more experts from your firm attend, network, and speak at a top industry conference where your firm’s potential buyers gather. Another example is to present a series of articles in an online publication that is widely read by your target audience. Remember, the goal of B2B marketing at the top of the funnel is not to start closing deals! It’s to increase your visibility, introduce new people to your expertise, and provide a path for leads to take the next step of engagement.
When it comes to engaging your potential buyers, this is where the middle of the B2B marketing funnel is! If there’s one part of the funnel that’s underutilized, it’s this one. Marketers may be tempted to nudge potential buyers toward a sale. But not all buyers are ready to make a purchasing decision today – in fact, many will do so months or years later. That’s why the middle of the funnel is where B2B marketers focus on engaging and nurturing their audience for the long haul.
A common middle-of-funnel B2B marketing approach is to provide practical and insightful educational content to interested parties. Webinars are a great example of middle of funnel B2B marketing. In a live webinar, a potential buyer can experience your firm’s leading experts in a no-pressure environment where they can learn and ask questions. If they’re ready to take the next step, it’s easy to get in touch and speak to someone from your team. Another common middle-of-funnel strategy is email marketing. To demonstrate your thought leadership and nurture your contacts over time, you can send them relevant educational content – topical e-newsletters, blog posts, white papers and guides. If you’re able to segment your list by industry or area of interest, this technique becomes even more powerful. Most people are more receptive to this kind of helpful information than to a daunting offer (although there’s a time and place for that, too).
Finally, a buyer reaches the bottom of the B2B marketing funnel when they’re ready to buy – though not necessarily from you! In most cases, they’re evaluating a variety of options. Often they raise their hand and indicate that they’re ready to talk to a representative from your firm about one or more of your services. We consider this moment a true B2B marketing lead. At this stage of the funnel, B2B marketers are responsible for preparing the people who close business deals in their organization with the materials they need to communicate to the buyer in a clear and persuasive way. Examples of these materials might include pitch decks, qualification packages, and case studies.
Now that we’ve defined what B2B marketing is and how a B2B marketer should consider all three levels of the funnel, let’s explore ten essential B2B marketing strategies you can implement to help your firm get ahead of the competition.
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