Good B2B marketing isn't just about having the loudest voice; it's about understanding what your customers want, and that's not as straightforward as it sounds. To begin with, notice I say want, not need. People are for more motivated to buy what want than they are to listen to a lecture on logical choice.
That may mean looking again at your proposition. I've found many times that a change in the offering, often accompanied by minor changes to the product, can shift a business into competitor-free territory. It's even resulted, more than a few times, in competitors becoming customers. Often it's just a case of being clear about what you do for people; what's the big persuader that marks you out from your competitors? Is that at the forefront of your messaging - and is it different from what your competitors are saying? And is it what your customers want?
Most projects begin this way. We get round a table and swap ideas. I may come up with a few ideas you haven't thought of, but you'll probably come up with several of your own. It's amazing how often my clients realises they already know what they need, they just didn't know they knew it.
It's not enough to say you're a leading company that does so-and-so. Everyone else does that. Often I find that just a small tweak to the offering can make a world of difference. Between us we can develop highly targeted propositions that tick the boxes for specific types of customer.
Technology marketing is a biggie, and I've worked with big names like HSBC and IBM on speccing and project managing retail and B2B systems to deliver competitive edge. I've hand-coded complex prototypes - complex enough that some of which have ended up as the live product.
This is definitely one of the fun parts of marketing. It's not just a cool logo - yes, of course I can do that, but B2B marketing isn't a case of atrtracting attention on the shelf. it's about creating the right perception in your customers' minds. You're setting your customers' expectations And how you fulfil them is part of your brand.
If you're looking for power beyond the point, I'm your man. My productions have glowed on 30 metre screens in Canada, in vast conference centres in China, and in small serviced offices in Stoke on Trent. They all get the same creativity and attention. From your next pitch to a global roadshow, I'm there to script, produce, and even make PowerPoint behave itself.
If your answer was an instant yes, you probably don't. The right answer is that it depends on the customer. Even if you operate in a tightly defined, vertical market, you'll come across different goals. A finance director is likely to focus on return on investment, savings and other such factors, while a head of production is more interested in productivity and may be resistant to a disruptive change. Meanwhile, the sales director isn't all that interested unless you're going to improve their results.
And let's be honest, an awful lot of people in business are most focused on an easy life and continued participation in the salary continuation scheme.
One of my clients operated in international remittances, where rates and fees constantly restrict profitability. We shifted the emphasis to the community effect of helping families abroad and doubled their market penetration. Another operated in retail fashion ticketing, where price per thousand ruled the buying decision.
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