Recent data from MarketingProfs and the Content Marketing Institute showed that the primary objectives for B2B companies who are investing in content marketing are raising brand awareness, generating leads, and boosting engagement.
Businesses want to work with brands that are top dogs in their field. Consequently, B2B brands should aim to create content that informs and educates, that demonstrates they are one of the best, if not the best, at what they do.
As a B2B marketer you must identify the issues that your target audiences are facing so that you can provide content that addresses their pain points.
B2B transactions frequently have a much higher “ticket value” than B2C transactions. There’s also a greater likelihood of repeat purchases, simply because it makes sense, from a time and practicality point of view, for companies to complete recurring purchases with the same retailer. B2B transactions are also more likely to entail the completion of a contractual agreement and such 'deals' are often completed after a long, multi-stage sales process.
If you want to win this type of business, it really helps to have a background as a thought leader and innovator in your industry. Not only will this help generate leads, but it should help to speed up the sales process, too.
The stats show that on the surface, the goals for marketers in B2C industries aren’t all that different than those set out by B2B marketers. While their number one goal differed, both B2B and B2C brands think building brand awareness and getting consumers to engage with their content are important.
However, while B2B companies lean towards building brand awareness by showcasing their knowledge and industry expertise, if you are marketing a B2C product, you need to understand user behaviour to gauge the aspirations of the target users, to understand what connects with them on an emotional level.
And so B2C brands are more likely to be concerned with creating excitement around their products. About pushing their products as “aspirational”.
And so where are the key areas that require a different approach to the generation of content when segmenting B2B / B2C?