B2B Marketing Tactics—My Personal Guide and Resources
Marcelo Flores
B2B Marketing Strategist | Driving Sales and Pipeline Expansion | Build, Measure, Learn
As the demand for B2B marketing increases, understanding its intricacies can set you apart from most other marketers. However, while you'll find numerous B2B marketing strategies online, not many go into the nitty gritty.
But that's what I'm here to change for you. Having been in the game for some time now, I can confidently say I know what can make or break a B2B marketing campaign.
So, sit tight as I take you through the top brand marketing examples and tactics you should focus on to generate better results for clients.
What Is B2B Marketing
In simple terms, B2B marketing is the use of marketing strategies, tactics, and content designed to market services or products to other businesses. Unlike consumer-focused marketing, the target audience in B2B includes high-ranking professionals at the c-suite or directorial levels within other companies.
B2B Marketing Strategies vs. Tactics
While the terms strategies and tactics are often used interchangeably, there's a slight distinction. Strategies are the big-picture, long-term plans that outline what a business aims to achieve. On the other hand, B2B digital marketing tactics are the concrete actions taken to implement those plans.
Best B2B Marketing Tactics
When it comes to B2B marketing tactics, there are plenty of options to choose from. Here are my top picks:
1. Content Marketing Tactics
As the cornerstone of B2B marketing, it's no surprise that 82% of companies use content marketing. If used well, content marketing tactics boost not only sales but also brand reputation.
Blogging is super versatile. You can create blog posts about anything under the sun, from tips and tricks in your industry to behind-the-scenes of your company. This flexibility allows you to connect with your audience in a personal and genuine way.
Another cool thing about blogging is that it helps you establish yourself as an expert in your field. When you consistently put out high-quality content that provides value to your audience, they start to see you as someone who really knows their stuff.
Let's face it, humans are visual creatures. Infographics grab attention with colorful graphics, icons, and charts that make information more engaging than plain text alone. They are typically best for delivering complex information in a visually appealing and easy-to-digest format.
By breaking down information into bite-sized chunks and using visual aids, it's easier for audiences to grasp concepts quickly.
Podcasts are an awesome content marketing tactic because they're like having a conversation with your audience while they're doing other things-like driving, cooking, or working out. It's like being a fly on the wall, but a fly with a microphone.
Hearing someone's voice creates a personal connection that written content often can't match. When listeners hear the passion and enthusiasm in your voice, they're more likely to connect with your brand on a deeper level.
Whether it's discussing industry trends, sharing success stories, or offering expert tips, podcasts allow you to showcase your expertise in a relaxed, conversational format.
2. Paid marketing Tactics
Ultimately, you'll want most of your traffic coming from organic methods. Considering this is a long-term approach, leveraging paid marketing is one of the best ways to achieve short-term marketing goals.
With search engine advertising, you can precisely target your audience based on their search queries. This means your ads are shown to people actively looking for solutions or information related to your industry or products. It's like fishing in a pond where you know the fish are biting!
Unlike organic search engine optimization (SEO), which can take time to see results, search engine advertising offers immediate visibility. As soon as your ads are approved, they can start appearing at the top of search engine results pages.
When it comes to generating sales, you have a greater chance of success with clients who already know you than those you're introducing your brand to. This is why retargeting is an essential component of B2B marketing.
With retargeting, you can display your ads to people who have already interacted with your website or content. This constant exposure helps you stay on their radar. Making it more likely they'll remember you when they're ready to make a purchase decision.
One of the biggest perks is the ability to target your audience with precision. This means your message reaches the right people, increasing the likelihood of conversion.
Compared to traditional B2B marketing channels like trade shows or print ads, social media advertising can be incredibly cost-effective. You can set your budget and bid for ad placements, ensuring you get the most out of every dollar spent.
And with 5 billion+ social media users across the globe, you can't afford to not incorporate this tactic into your B2B marketing strategies.
3. ABM Marketing Tactics
If you're like me, you'll instinctively want to pay for ads and reach a wide audience. But something I've discovered with B2B marketing is that account-based marketing tactics can be an equally potent approach.
Personalization allows you to connect with potential clients on a deeper level. By showing you understand their specific challenges and goals, you can start building a relationship based on trust and mutual understanding.
When content speaks directly to the recipient's pain points or interests, they're more likely to engage with it. In turn, this can lead to higher click-through rates, longer page visits, and more meaningful interactions.
When existing customers speak positively about you, it adds a layer of authenticity and credibility to your brand. Potential clients are more likely to trust recommendations from people who have actually used our products or services.
Since the goal is to target specific high-value accounts, having advocates within those organizations can be a game-changer. They can influence decision-makers and help smooth the path towards closing deals.
4. Event Marketing Tactics
In the world of B2B, events open doors to unparalleled opportunities for engagement and brand exposure.
When I'm not hosting an event, I try to find someone to attend. While at events, the tactic is simple: have as many meaningful interactions as possible to build relationships that will outlive the event.
Some of the methods I use include:
- Researching attendees
- Creating interesting business cards
- Make eye contact
- Ensuring conversations are meaningful
- Following up after the event
领英推荐
Partnership marketing is an excellent tactic for promoting B2B events because it allows you to leverage the strengths and networks of other businesses to expand your reach and credibility.
With this strategy, you can pool resources such as marketing materials, email lists, and social media channels. This shared effort amplifies promotional activities and maximizes impact.
5. SEO Marketing Tactics
Generating tons of content is great. But without optimizing it for search engines, your reach will be limited.
As you align your content with the target audience's intent, don't forget keyword optimization to make it discoverable. For greater reach and more consistent success, you should also capitalize on combining long-tail keywords and semantic search.
When determining whether to display your content to users, search engines also consider whether you're an authority in the niche. You can enhance this by investing and learning how to get high-quality backlinks to your site.
6. Social Media Marketing Tactics
Modern consumers value regular engagement with the brands they work with. B2B is no exception. However, you need to be strategic about the demand generation tactics used on these platforms.
Contests and giveaways spark interaction with your brand. Whether it's through entering the contest, sharing it with others, or engaging with content on social media. It creates valuable interactions that keep your brand top of mind.
Communities provide invaluable insights into the pain points, challenges, and desires of your target audience. By actively participating in discussions and listening to feedback, you can gain a deeper understanding of what your potential clients need.
Community building also cultivates long-term brand loyalty. When people feel a sense of belonging and gain value from a community, they're more likely to remain loyal to the brand over time. This means not only repeat business but also advocates who stick with you through thick and thin.
7. Brand Marketing Tactics
Enhancing brand perception is one of the best ways to stand out. You can achieve this through:
Infuse your brand with personality by leveraging storytelling to not only showcase your B2B offering but also establish an emotional connection with your audience. In turn, this will translate to greater lifetime value with each client.
Visual recognition is an instrumental part of branding. From logos to color schemes, ensure that you deliver a memorable and consistent brand aesthetic to instill a sense of trust and familiarity.
8. Email Marketing Tactics
While email may seem a bit old-fashioned, it remains one of the most powerful marketing tactics I've used in my career. Unlike traditional marketing methods like print ads or direct mail, sending emails doesn't require a big budget.
You can divide your email list into smaller segments based on factors like demographics, interests, behavior, or past purchases. That way you can send targeted and personalized emails that are more relevant to each recipient, increasing engagement and conversion rates.
Plus, with email automation tools, you can set up sequences and workflows to nurture leads and guide them through the sales funnel without constantly being hands-on.
9. Lead-Generation Tactics
Mastering lead generation is one of the best sales marketing tactics. Here's how you can use it to attract, nurture, and convert high-quality prospects.
You can offer valuable resources such as ebooks, guides, templates, or free trials to prospects in exchange for their contact information. This can help you capture leads and initiate the lead nurturing process.
Quizzes are interactive and engaging, capturing the attention of your audience and encouraging them to participate. People enjoy quizzes because they are fun and provide instant feedback or results.
Chatbots or live chat allow you to engage with visitors in real-time, answer their questions, and guide them through the sales process. This can improve user experience and capture leads who might otherwise leave your site.
10. Influencer Marketing Tactics
Due to its effectiveness, influencer marketing is worth over $21 billion. Here are some tactics that I've seen work throughout my career.
Engage with niche experts and thought leaders within your industry, leveraging their credibility to connect with a targeted B2B audience. Micro-influencers can bring authenticity and a focused reach to your influencer marketing efforts.
This involves influencers showcasing or mentioning your brand's product or service in their content. This could be in the form of a dedicated post, story, video review, or simply incorporating the product into their daily activities.
Encourage influencers and their followers to create and share content featuring your brand's products or services. This can include challenges, hashtags, or prompts that inspire user-generated content while increasing community engagement.
B2B Marketing Tactics Examples
Each B2B marketing tactic offers something unique and is ideal for certain objectives or types of offerings. Here are two B2B marketing examples from popular brands.
Slack incentivizes businesses to refer other businesses to their platform through their referral program. They offer credits or discounts to both the referring business and the new sign-up, encouraging word-of-mouth marketing and customer acquisition.
Dropbox offers a freemium model where businesses can use the platform for free up to a certain storage limit. They attract users through this free tier and then upsell premium features and storage options to businesses that require more robust solutions for file storage and collaboration.
B2B Marketing Trends
With the wealth of data now accessible, more businesses are turning to analytics to guide their marketing choices. This involves employing tools to monitor, evaluate, and refine campaigns according to their effectiveness.
Another significant development in B2B marketing is the increasing use of AI. AI goes beyond simply creating content and advertisements. It also makes it easier for marketers to make decisions based on data.
Another trend that's also on the rise is the phase-out of third-party cookies. As these cookies become obsolete, we must adapt our PPC tactics to maintain effective targeting and personalization.
Regional Marketing Director at Foundever & Head of EMEA Communications | University Lecturer
7 个月Great article Marcelo Flores!! Very useful and insightful!
Commercial chez OUTSOURCIA FRANCE | BPO & Customer Experience | Sales
7 个月It could have been easily a 400 bucks tutorial, but Marcelo Flores is just to pure for this world ! We owe you a big thank you for this generous gift ! Incredible work ??