by Jay Miletsky
Often overlooked in the slick, fast paced world of consumer marketing, brand-building is every bit as important for B2B companies as it is in the B2C world. Granted, nobody graduates college and dreams of working on B2B marketing programs, but that doesn’t mean B2B has to be dry. Just the opposite – it can be an intensely creative and strategic challenge.
There are two fundamental truths that form the basis for B2B brand-building:
- Brands help to build trust, and the importance of trust is proportional to the cost of purchase. The higher the price, the more trust is required.
- B2B means “business to business,” not “bricks to bricks.” Behind every business decision is a real, live person with his or her own unique personality and a life outside of the office. We market to people, not to buildings.
Brand managers and marketing directors often forget that even in a sales environment of negotiated prices, personal relationships, and potentially longer sales cycles, the brand still plays a heightened role in purchasing decisions. The people behind those decisions are real people – and like any demographic, those people often share very similar characteristics. But they shouldn’t be confused with their jobs. For example, if you’re marketing a payroll company and looking to reach HR directors, chances are you’ll be reaching a largely female audience over the age of 45. But just because they run HR departments doesn’t mean they’re boring people or that they love HR as a rule. Just the opposite – they’ve got real feelings, have families, go out with friends, and want to be entertained like anybody else. These are the very same people that Dove Soap tries to reach by strengthening their brand, so why should a payroll company put in any less effort when trying to get them to choose their company as a vendor?
Because of the expense and potential for waste (waste being people the marketer isn’t interested in reaching), B2B brands don’t usually have the luxury of using mass-media tools such as television for marketing purposes. With marketing avenues usually limited to online and offline trade-publication advertising, direct mail, trade shows and a few other vehicles, trust in the brand becomes that much more important and provides that much more of an advantage to the salespeople who actively try to close accounts.
Another important factor is that in the B2B world, decision-makers aren’t spending their own money. They’re spending their company’s money, and will be responsible for explaining how they’ve spent it. That means they won’t necessarily be looking for the lowest price around; they’ll be looking for the smartest buy – the most trustworthy brand. The wrong decision could mean the difference between getting a bonus, a promotion or even remaining employed.
Winning a B2B battle isn’t just by being the low cost provider – it’s won by building and marketing a better brand.
