Connecting B2B Customers

11-02-2014Tags: Strategy

We all know that branding works well within the B2C environment, but what about B2B?

According to a recent report by the executiveboard.com 'strong B2B branding drives customers willingness to consider, purchase and pay a premium for a supplier'. So, what are the core values which businesses must incorporate into their brand? The answer across the board appears to be customer-centric branding. This means focusing the brand messages on customer business outcomes, to convey the business value of your product or service.

A business brand is just as important as consumer brand. Buyers who see a supplier's business value are four times more likely to consider the brand in the future. Price is still an important driver, but the 'value' will win 9/10 times. Although business purchasing decisions are normally by committee i.e. you have multiple people signing off costs, a consistent and trustworthy brand breaks down barriers and reassures a business they are in good hands. In short, it takes the worry away when they can work with a brand with a proven track record.

Marketing and selling is very much about tapping into the psychology of people, not businesses. Without going into too much detail about psychographic and ethnographic research, there are multiple ways to tap into the emotions of peoples to understand why they act and buy the way they do. The core message is to listen and understand your customers. Although there will be cost associated to customer research, the money you will save in marketing will pay for itself. By truly understanding your customers, you are able to articulate and effectively sell your point of difference through your marketing.

In a nutshell a brand is a promise. By understanding your customers you can create a brand proposition which strikes at the heart of why to choose your business over others. Without it you are left in a sea of competition and price wars which is no fun at all.

This article is a snap shot of how businesses can connect with their customers.