Five B2B Marketing Strategies For Technology Companies
On the contrary to popular belief, B2B marketing does differ from B2C marketing. B2B marketing is about convincing an organisation (meaning a large group of people), on the other hand, B2C is simply about catering directly to consumer’s needs. Therefore, B2B marketing is vastly about creating positive relationships and being detail oriented about the product being sold. Conversely, B2C marketing focuses on fixing customer’s problems and simple words should be used (no industry jargon). Hence, B2B and B2C marketing have distinctive problems and B2B requires a lot more two-way communication and trust.
What are Technology Companies’ Interests?
When it comes to marketing, technology companies are demanding more. According to research, technology brands want to see value propositions that surround the actual value of the company rather than the product being sold. Another interest that technology companies have is having an experiential buying experience. This gives them the opportunity to learn more about the product that they might sell to their own consumers.
1. Designing a Value Proposition for your Brand
Most B2B companies like to use their product as a base for their value proposition. However, this is something that technology companies are starting to feel a bored by. Technology companies are starting to want to get to know the company better and to do that, businesses should start using value propositions that represent their business rather than their product. For example, ‘Keeping you safe while surfing the internet’ would be better than ‘Security software for your business’. They both give off the same intention but the first sounds more personal and would make the business consumer feel that it is less of a marketing gimmick.
2. Video Marketing via YouTube
B2B consumers love to be able to envision what they will be purchasing, and video marketing can help with that. It initially cost a lot to implement video marketing strategies. However, it is now one of the most affordable ways to effectively market a product. Due to the nature of B2B sales, business consumers are more particular when looking for a product because the product they purchase will eventually be sold to their own consumers. Video marketing assists with nature as it allows for the business consumer to see the product’s features from every angle and its best functions.
3. Using Artificial Intelligence and Augmented Reality
Like video marketing, artificial intelligence and augmented reality helps the business consumer to envision what the product would be like in their own space. For example, if a business was selling industrial cookware such as ovens and dishwashers, augmented reality and artificial intelligence would allow for the business consumer to visualise how the machinery would look in the kitchen and determine if it’s functional. Apart from that, it would also be enlightening to the business consumer to know that a tech company is tech savvy by using AR and AI.
4. Social Listening
Social listening is another strategy that technology companies should adopt. Just like B2C marketing, the B2B audience also prefers when their sellers follow trends and have a social presence. Being a social listener is especially important for technology companies because to progress further, they need to keep on top of trends. The last thing a technology company would want is to have a question from a consumer about a popular innovation that the company hasn’t heard about. Therefore, this is something that B2B technology companies can add to their marketing strategies and can be done via content curation.
5. B2B Email Marketing
Lastly, B2B email marketing is also a strategy that technology companies should adopt. According to statistics, 64% of B2B marketers say their email marketing strategy was effective for meeting business goals. This could be because the nature of B2B communication is far more professional as compared to B2C and email is a medium that is viewed as professional.
To sum up, marketing to B2B is always more meticulous than marketing B2C. B2B technology companies should always try to look out for updated statistics and latest trends to stay on top. Nevertheless, they should always keep in mind that their target audience are ultimately businesses, and it requires much more detail when marketing to them.
By: Tiffany Tan
