The Art and Science of B2B2C Marketing

Traditionally, businesses have to choose one or the other: B2B or B2C. But in the new online landscape, ever-changing consumer preferences have made this two-pronged marketing strategy a thing of the past. Specifically, the B2B approach has seen major changes in the last couple of years, with B2B buyers evolving to look very similar to any other customer. This demographic is younger and more influenced by day-to-day channels such as social media, pop-up shops, forum threads, and more. In support of this digital migration, McKinsey found that over “three quarters of buyers and sellers now prefer digital self-serve and remote human engagement over face to face interactions” with video and live chat as the predominant means of B2B sales. The current milieu has placed emphasis on smart humanized marketing, which involves a more transparent, progressive, holistic, and risky approach that prioritizes mobile offerings and a solution-oriented approach. The B2B2C marketing approach is one way to prioritize humanization and connections without losing out on essential B2B customers.

B2B2C is a marketing approach that combines B2B and B2C sales in a way that eliminates the “middleman.” B2B2C can encompass multiple approaches but typically involves the manufacturer reaching the consumer by partnering with a B2B customer or selling directly to the consumer. In a B2B2C model, companies can also sell to an enterprise, with the knowledge that the enterprise will then sell to the final consumer. For many companies, the B2B2C model is the best of both worlds as it creates strong relationships with both the “B” and “C” arms of its sales and marketing chains. In terms of the B2B part of B2B2C, companies will benefit from maintaining their loyal B2B base, making bulk sales, and having low customer acquisition costs. B2B2C also brings benefits to the B2C arm by eliminating logistics, offering a range of products, and attracting loyal customers to e-commerce offerings. 

With these benefits, it’s no wonder that many companies have seen success with the B2B2C model. For example, Lammes Candies’ B2B2C system allows for half of its revenue to come from wholesale and half from its online B2C ordering system. Similarly, UPLIFT Desk sells its ergonomic chairs and office supplies to consumers as well as businesses. While B2B2C can bring many benefits, there are some challenges that come with this model. For startups especially, the B2B2C model may be too complex to implement right away as it can slow sales cycles, can be more expensive and can be difficult to create a cohesive marketing plan around. For example, DoorDash operates a B2B2C model in which it sells to restaurants and restaurants sell to consumers. This makes the relationship between DoorDash and its partners particularly tricky; neither can benefit alone but both can only profit and prosper when working together towards a common goal.

Despite the benefits and downsides of B2B2C, this approach allows companies to have more control over the shopping experience, which is needed as eCommerce continues to grow. To keep up with the growth and competition companies will need to be sure to offer personalization and humanization in their marketing, which B2B consumers yearn for and a B2B2C approach allows for. While the pandemic makes creating vital connections more difficult, it falls on companies to ensure that these connections last both through this tough time and beyond. Even if your company cannot implement B2B2C right away, it’s important to focus on your consumers and humanizing your marketing, no matter which approach you take. Gooten’s Very Important Merchant (VIM) loyalty program rewards the partners who consistently engage with our services. This is a unique program in the PoD industry that will help our clients get early access to new Gooten features and more personalized customer service. At the end of the day, it’s with this constant focus on the customer where you’ll see the most marketing and sales ROI. B2B2C just might help you achieve your goals a little faster.