B2B Marketing Trends That Are Here for the Long Term

Introduction

How does a B2B marketing company stay relevant in an era of rapidly changing digital expectations? This was one of the hottest topics at HubSpot's Inbound 2022 conference, where marketers from across the globe discussed changes in consumer behavior and how it affects their strategies. The answer to this question seems simple: be timely and reflect current consumer trends. However, just as with ad campaigns, there's more to it than simply being "of the moment." With that in mind, here are ten trends that have made their way into the B2B marketing world—and why we think they'll stick around for a while.

Personalized Content

Personalized content is a must. In a world where every person is unique and has different needs, it’s no surprise that personalized content is growing in popularity when it comes to B2B marketing efforts. But there’s more to personalization than just targeting—it’s about creating content that is relevant to the individual.

For example, if you were promoting an ebook on data privacy compliance best practices, an individual based in New York City who works at an ad agency may have different information needs than someone who works at a healthcare company based in Detroit—and even those two may want different types of information than someone working for a large retailer based in Los Angeles.?

To effectively engage your target audience with effective messaging and persuade them to buy from you rather than your competitor, you must create targeted campaigns tailored specifically to them (and their unique needs).

Original Research

If you're new to original research, it's important to understand that this isn't the same thing as conducting a survey or running an ad campaign. In fact, original research is much more hands-on and involves creating a custom study meant to answer particular questions.

There are numerous benefits to using original research in your B2B marketing efforts. First and foremost, it helps you gain new insights into your audience—insights that can lead to better targeting and more effective content creation. Second, if done correctly (and with permission), you may be able to use these insights as case studies or other forms of validation that will help convince other prospects of the value of your products or services. Finally, original research can also help spur widespread adoption across multiple departments within an organization—something no amount of traditional advertising could achieve alone.

Alignment of Marketing and Sales

"Marketing and sales alignment" is a term that's been floating around for some time. It's the idea that marketing teams should be working in concert with sales to set goals, align on the company vision, and provide insight into which products or services to sell.

If you're still unsure of what I'm talking about, let me give you an example: When it comes time for your company to launch a new product, instead of devising an advertising campaign based on assumptions from data collected from your website traffic or customer surveys, you could perform interviews with salespeople that would help inform how best to market your product. This way, marketing would know exactly what features are important for salespeople to highlight when promoting a particular offering.

The importance of aligning these departments cannot be understated. When they work together as one team—rather than playing tug-of-war over who gets credit for closing deals—you'll see better results across the board.

Just look at companies like LinkedIn (which has both a CMO and a president of global sales) or Slack (which recently appointed former Facebook ad exec Jeff Leventhal as its head of global channels). Both are prime examples of companies that have taken steps towards making sure their departments work together toward common goals instead of against each other.

Strategic content

If you’re a B2B marketer, content is your new currency. It’s the new everything: marketing, sales, advertising, and more. Your ability to develop engaging and valuable content will be the key to success in 2022 and beyond.

But how can you make sure that your business is keeping up with all the trends and changes? Well, here are some tips that can help you strategize your content so that it resonates with your customers:

Marketing on social media

Social media marketing is a great way to build brand awareness, establish your company as an industry leader, and gain feedback from your audience. Social media is a way for companies to promote their content, interact with customers, and ask questions.

Social media marketing has been around since the early 2000s and shows no signs of slowing down. It’s one of the most effective ways that businesses can promote themselves online by building a presence on sites like Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram—all channels where companies can share content directly with their target market.

Account-based marketing (ABM)

Account-based marketing (ABM) is a strategy to identify and engage with key accounts. It’s not just about targeting the right person at a company, but also understanding what their goals are and how you can help them achieve those goals. We've seen this trend become more prevalent over time as marketers have realized that it's not enough to just know who your customers are; you need to know which ones matter most to your business.

"That's where ABM comes in," says Brian Balfour, former CDO at HubSpot and now co-founder of ReWork Marketing + Strategy. "It means focusing on the right people first—the ones who will likely be decision-makers or influencers—and then using technology that enables marketers to send content based on each individual’s needs."

Programmatic Advertising

Programmatic advertising is a type of online advertising that uses automated processes to buy and place ads. It relies on data to target ads to specific audiences.

Programmatic buying has grown in popularity over the past few years because it helps marketers reach their target audience more effectively while also saving money by automating manual processes. But there have been many problems with programmatic buying as well, such as fraud and problems with ads not being seen.

Mobile Advertising - Mobile ads are effective, and they're here to stay.

According to a recent study by AdParlor, "mobile is the future of marketing." In fact, it's estimated that by 2020 mobile ad spending will reach $15 billion annually—and this figure doesn't even include mobile video advertising. With so many potential customers using their phones on a daily basis, it's no wonder businesses are working harder than ever before to create strategies that take advantage of this influx in usage. As a result of all this new attention being paid toward mobile devices, we're seeing an increase in companies offering both B2B and B2C services through apps as well as websites designed specifically for mobile users (think: Google Maps).

The Rise Of Account-Based Everything

Account-based marketing (ABM) is a way of marketing to a specific customer. It uses the contact information of that customer to personalize the message so that it's more likely to resonate with them. In other words, if you know what your target audience needs and wants, then you're more likely to have success selling it to them.

The best part? ABM can be used by anyone—not just big companies who have lots of customers in their database! Good old-fashioned marketing will never go out of style.

The Marketplace Is More Crowded Than Ever, So Marketing Is More Important Than Ever.

When you get right down to it, marketing is simply establishing a connection between your brand and your audience that causes them to take action in your favor. It’s about creating a relationship with people that goes beyond mere transactions and into something deeper—something that moves them emotionally and encourages them to follow through on your recommendations.

As B2B marketers, we want our customers to know what they can expect from us (and why they should buy from us). We want them to feel confident in their decision before they even make it—which means we need to position ourselves as experts in our fields by demonstrating our expertise at every turn. The best way for companies like yours (who aren't as big or established yet) to go up against giants like GE or Microsoft is through smart marketing strategies such as content marketing, email marketing campaigns, and social media engagement, among others.

Marketers need to increasingly focus on the "new" in "new marketing." For they are being asked to do more, with less. Budgets have been cut, and resources have become scarce. But that doesn't mean marketers should focus on the "new" in "new marketing" at the expense of all else. Instead, they need to increasingly focus on the "new" in what's really new—that is, those long-term trends that will continue to grow no matter who wins an election or which company becomes a unicorn (the hottest metaphor for startups).

It's not enough anymore to just pay attention to these trends; marketers must incorporate them into their plans and strategies for the years ahead—and prepare themselves for the changes that come along with each new development.

Conclusion

We have a long way to go before B2B marketing aligns fully with the trends we've discussed. But as you can see, we're heading in the right direction. The challenge for us marketers is to keep these trends in mind—and leverage them if and when they prove effective—as they continue to evolve.