Secrets for B to B Marketing

A few years back, I advised one of my clients, "Get up, dress up, and show up."

He had suddenly lost all his business due to the pandemic when he approached me to help him grow his brand. It was courageous of him in that situation to invest in building his brand when all income had stopped.

This client was a coach for senior corporate leaders. He took my advice, and we worked on building his brand. That year turned out to be one of his best.

My team at CrowTales helped him produce over 80 thought leadership videos. He was active on LinkedIn every week, had 30 conversation videos with CXOs, and launched his book online.

Every prospect he met from then on had a recall of having seen him earlier.

We helped him build his tribe through a community and open up a new vertical of open programs, which he loved to do. We helped him play to his potential by working on his brand strategy.

As a team at CrowTales, we love to help solopreneurs, organizations, and nonprofits tap into their potential and build their tribe.

We do this by asking the right questions and guiding our clients to focus their efforts. So, what are the secrets to our client's success?

1. Passion: Without fail, I find that this is the quality every business leader needs to succeed. How strong is your urge to "get up" every morning? How strongly do you believe in your idea? And how committed are you to spreading it?

2. Clarity: "What problem are you solving in the world?" Can you write this in one line? Is it easily understood? Is it a real problem?

Working without clarity creates confusion for your clients. Clarity needs to be reflected on your website, LinkedIn profile, and in every communication.

Being clever is not the same as being different. Are you clear and effectively communicating the problem you solve for your clients?

3. Patience: Building a brand is a long-term game, and one needs to commit for the long haul, as this client did. The first challenge is inertia and the temptation to give up quickly.

I have also seen clients who become impatient. Unfortunately, we are so fixated on performance marketing because the results are immediate and measurable that we put all our marketing investments into performance.

4. Brand Building: What is often ignored is investing in brand marketing, and a brand cannot be built overnight. Unfortunately, brand marketing is not as measurable and can be a bit fuzzy, so it is often overlooked.

Paid marketing on platforms may seem tempting, but it does not guarantee results and can be a drain for business owners and solopreneurs.

Brand marketing is an investment in future demand. That is why, as a brand, you need to consistently dress up and show up. You need to build an emotional connection even when your prospective clients are not yet in need.

This is investing in the brand. I use a term with my clients, "sow the seeds and have patience." Unfortunately, I have seen clients who start panicking very soon and expect a tree to sprout as soon as they have planted the seeds.

This is science; this is how nature works, and I have seen it time and again. It works 100%.

When the clients are ready, will they remember you? Will you get called to the table? These are the questions to be asked.

5. Point of View: Another question I ask my clients is, "What is your point of view?" Do you have a unique perspective? If you're just like everyone else, you will get lost in the noise.

Point of view, also known as thought leadership, is crucial for B2B marketers. Clients need to trust that you are the right person who can solve their problem.

6. Add value: "Show up" is a key phrase. One of the things I tell all my clients is to think every morning, "How can I add value to the world today?" And "give."

Drop your agenda of what you will get and give freely, without worrying if your competition will pick up your secrets. In a digital world, there are no secrets.

7. Tell a Story: I have been told, "But Sanjay, we are in a B2B market." Whether you are in a B2B or B2C market, you ultimately deal with a human being on the other side.

Don't tell your story, as no one is interested. Instead, tell them their story. The journey from "here" to "there" is the most powerful story ever told.

Highlight the conflict in the lives of your clients (remind them of their conflict) and how their lives will improve once you solve this problem.

To be a good storyteller, you need empathy and to feel the pain of your clients.

8. Be authentic: "Better than" does not build a category, but "different than" does. Don't be a copy; be an original. Have your own voice.

Some clients get so obsessed with looking at the competition that they start looking like the competition. Look at the competition to learn, but follow your own path and be authentic to your voice.

In the wellness space in India, I see a personal brand, Rujuta Diwakar, who has become very popular and built a huge tribe. She records knowledge videos using a mobile phone—raw, spontaneous, unpolished, but authentic. And she shares daily.

She doesn't charge for giving away knowledge freely. Only 1% of those who watch her videos become her clients, but they have helped her build her brand.

She has built a large following by giving freely and being consistent.

People like to see authenticity in brands. A brand can be vulnerable, have flaws, make mistakes, and own up to them, but it should be real.

9. Call to Action: "What should I do?" The client is convinced and ready to buy, so what should they do?

It's a waste to make clients walk the journey and then not guide them to take action.

You can't expect immediate decisions, but you can move your prospects a step forward in the journey to build trust and start the conversation.

So, get up, dress up, show up, and don't forget to have your point of view. These are the ingredients to build a strong B2B brand.