The consumerisation of the B2B marketing landscape is having a profound effect on the way organisations engage a business audience. So how is this shift manifesting itself and why should B2B brands care? Alex Blyth investigates
It used to be easy to tell a business marketing campaign from a consumer marketing campaign, and all too often the comparison was not flattering to the world of B2B marketing. In recent years, however, we have seen the distinction become more and more blurred, as B2B marketers shake off their inferiority complex and adopt bolder approaches to fresh ideas.
For example, BT’s Business’ ‘gremlins’ campaign from RKCR/Y&R showed gremlins plaguing Dragons’ Den star Peter Jones. It brought together high profile figures with a funny take on the somewhat dry subject of IT continuity
in business.
More recently, Powwownow has consciously sought to emulate the cult status of Comparethemarket.com’s ubiquitous Meerkat with its ‘Don’t be a Cecil’ campaign. It worked with agency Gyro to devise its Cecil character – a business person who was too stuck in the past to recognise the benefits of telephone conferencing – and it has put significant media spend behind it to try and embed it into the popular consciousness.
James Withey, head of brand insight at Precise offers more examples, “IBM is famous for its consumerised campaigns aimed at business technology decision makers. Chemical company BASF also uses consumer techniques, but has a clearly B2B-led customer base. The poster campaigns for CBS use beautifully crafted consumer techniques too, yet its purpose in the UK is to attract the attention of media buyers.”
There are many more examples. In fact, Gyro has even gone so far as to proclaim the death of B2B marketing. It argues that marketing is just marketing, regardless of the audience. So, is this truly the case? If it is, then what has caused this dramatic change? And most importantly what does it all mean for B2B marketers?
Consumers in suits
“People who run businesses are still people,” says Simon McEvoy, planning director at Tangent Snowball. “In their personal lives they are used to carefully considered marketing campaigns, websites that know who they are and respond accordingly, messaging that appeals to the emotional, as well as the rational. So, it should be little surprise that they are unreceptive to low-quality, unimaginative B2B marketing campaigns that rely on deals or offers to encourage a callback response.”
Many observers believe that marketers and agencies are beginning to realise this fundamental fact about B2B marketing. McEvoy continues, “A new generation of business buyer expects to see the sort of high impact marketing they see outside of work. And what is more, a new breed of agencies are encouraging B2B marketers to try it.”
Indeed, Lee Powney, chief commercial officer at agency KAE argues that we have witnessed a seismic shift in the expectation of B2B buyers and that most B2B marketers are only now beginning to catch up. “Led by pioneers, such as Apple, LinkedIn and Salesforce, B2B buyers expect to engage with products and services that appeal to them, not as businesses, but as people,” he explains. “They expect beauty in the design of products and they expect the hardware and software experience to have an emotional resonance. They also
expect choice and unlimited customisation options.”
He adds, “I recently heard a very senior buyer say that the aesthetic of a laptop is now as important as its build quality. When asked why, he simply said that his company’s executives expect to see something stunning.”
Yet, not everyone is so sure that B2B marketing is, in essence, like consumer marketing. Janson Harrison, head of strategy and insight at McDonald Butler Associates, says, “The simple fact is we don’t get as caught up with our work lives as we do with our personal lives. The decisions we make about our business dispatch service are always going to matter less than decisions about our children’s food. So, I think we need to be careful when we say B2B marketing is becoming consumerised.”
The fact is, however, some but not all, of B2B marketing is like consumer marketing. If you are promoting a simple product to a large number of business buyers then you have scope to make your marketing more akin to consumer marketing. If, however, you are promoting a complex product to a small number of people then you probably will always need the features-led, reason-orientated lead generation techniques that have served B2B marketers for so long.
The impact of democratisation
The democratisation of information that has taken place over the past few years has meant many more B2B products are bought using an ever simpler process, and so their marketing can take a more consumer-style treatment.
This is partly a result of device proliferation and the fact that business buyers are able to access information about a potential service or product almost anytime anywhere. Kate Cox, managing director at marketing agency Bray Leino, says, “Traditionally, the divide between work and leisure was black and white; when people were away from the office they didn’t receive information about work. Now people go home to their iPads, social media, latest Sky technology, and so on, and as a result are continually receiving B2B marketing messages.”
However, the real shift has been in the sheer volume of information now available online about potential products or services. Julian Heerdegen, CRM evangelist at software provider SugarCRM, says, “When prospects – B2B or B2C – approach your sales reps these days, they are already two thirds down the traditional sales cycle without ever having talked to you. They have already researched your company and products online. Companies must offer customers as much information as possible on their websites – or they will live in oblivion in the age of search and content marketing.”
Cox points to Intel Stars as an example of this. “B2B marketing messages aren’t changing, but the channels and times at which businesses communicate are now more closely aligned to that of the B2C world,” she says. “Just look at Intel Stars, a consumer-style gaming platform that Intel designed to help businesses learn more about the Intel chips in the computers they sell.”
Elsewhere, Shawn Cabral, marketing director at Sitecore UK points to the new website from law firm Lewis Silkin. “Its website is now open and engaging, while the firm’s partners are actively involved in social media and blogging,” he explains. “They’ve thrown open the doors of the business to show they are friendly and approachable, yet always professional.”
It’s all going social
Indeed, the rise of social media as a B2B marketing platform is another factor in it becoming more consumerised.
For Stuart McRae, social business evangelist at IBM, it is a significant shift in the world of B2B marketing. “When procuring services, businesses are increasingly using social networks to research and evaluate suppliers,” he says. “So suppliers that want to compete effectively have little choice but to engage in those conversations.”
He continues, “Many organisations are now providing support for their business customers via Twitter and mobile apps; that is hardly optional any more.
Savvy B2B customers increasingly demand it and, due to its visibility and the trust it can generate, companies are increasingly using their best people to service social channels.”
Adam Weinroth, executive director of vendor marketing at online IT community Spiceworks, gives an example of how this is working, “After one of its ads was criticised in the Spiceworks community, business data recovery firm Unitrends encouraged community members to develop their own Unitrends ad. This not only addressed the immediate issue but also engaged users and potential customers in a dialogue about the company’s products and services. It is an example of B2B marketers beginning to act in a way that has been second nature to consumer marketers for some time.”
Looking ahead
So, what does this mean for the future? Ellen Valentine, product strategist at Silverpop foresees the rise of B2C-style predictive modelling in B2B. She explains, “This allows companies to predict who will need their product, and begin to market to them before they realise they have a need.”
She believes that in the medium term we will start to see B2B marketers use these sophisticated techniques. In the short term, however, there is still much for B2B marketers to do firstly to recognise these shifts in business buyer attitudes, purchasing processes, and communication platforms, and then secondly to adapt their work to make the most of the change.
As McEvoy concludes, “Businesses that are able to get the tone right will see greater engagement, improved acquisition rates and increased loyalty – that’s what happens for B2C businesses that get this right. I think it’s an exciting time for the B2B marketing sector, but to capitalise B2B marketers have to think more like humans. They need to be a bit more emotional, have a sense of humour, and above all else be authentic.”
Case study
It’s not rocket science: Business data and broadband provider Avanti Communications launched a down-to-earth campaign to engage its audience
Avanti Communications already has the HYLAS 1 satellite in orbit around the Earth, providing businesses in Europe with high speed data and broadband access. On 2 August, it launched HYLAS 2, which provides the same services to businesses in Africa and the Middle East. It appointed design agency The College to design and develop a microsite to promote the launch.
“We needed something that would capture the imagination of our potential customers and investors,” says Chris Georgeson, Avanti Communications’ global marketing director. “Our existing site was functional and focused on addressing our customers. It delivered breadth of content as opposed to depth.”
Desiree Collier, head of digital at The College, says, “The pitch line we developed for this site was ‘whether we are scientists or business people, we are humans first of all and like a bit of fun during our boring working days’, and this thinking was reflected in the design of the site.”
The microsite focuses on the benefits to business people in these regions of ubiquitous internet coverage. It conveys the information in a simple, direct way, and the overall look and feel is of an event that is relevant to ordinary people, not just to rocket scientists.
The results have been impressive, with a doubling of the average visit time to more than three minutes and some positive comments on investor forums. Georgeson concludes, “Crucially, we are telling a human story that resonates with people. This is an approach we will be rolling out through the rest of our marketing communications work.”
Rules of engagement: Five tips to tap into consumerisation techniques
1. Add humour. Many consumer campaigns rely on humour to convey the benefits of everyday products. Use the same approach to draw attention to the selling points of dry business products and services. At work or at play people like to laugh, so find a funny angle for your campaign and you will reap the benefits.
2. Invent a character. No matter how revolutionary or compelling the concept or product benefits, people do not get excited by concepts or products; they get excited by other people. Consider creating a character who can bring your ideas and products to life and tell your stories for you.
3. Ditch the ‘stock’ image. B2B campaigns have a tendency to used the same, clichéd business imagery. Break free from these constraints and introduce striking, original and consumer-style imagery into your campaigns.
4. Make it a game. Gamification is the word of the moment in consumer marketing and it’s been shown to work in B2B too. If you can invent a game that people want to play, then you buy time to convey your selling points. You also stand a good chance of them telling their friends and colleagues about your game and brand.
5. It’s okay to be chatty. B2B marketers are switched on to the need to use social media, but too many still are stilted, formal and awkward in their delivery. As consumer marketers show, see it as an opportunity for a two-way conversation with your customers. Listen to what they have to say and don’t be afraid to convey brand personality.
