What are the Differences in B2B and B2C Marketing

Some people think whether you are marketing to consumers or marketing to businesses, you are still just marketing to people – Wrong! Business-to-business (B2B) and business-to-consumer (B2C) marketing is not the same.

In essence, B2B depends largely on building relationships and your marketing efforts need to reflect this. If you use B2C strategies you may lose customers as well as money.

In many ways they appear to be the same in the programs and channels used - events, direct marketing, internet marketing, advertising, public relations, word of mouth and alliances. It’s in the execution, what is said and the eventual outcome where they diverge.

The first step of any marketing initiative is identical for both sides: identify the customer and find out why they need to hear your message.

Any marketing plan needs to take into account the differences and ensure you are developing the right types of activities for your particular market.

B2C Marketing

• Product driven
• Large target market
• Short sales cycle
• Single step buying process
• Brand identity created through repetition
• Merchandising and point of sales activities
• Emotional buying decision based on status, desire, or price

The goal of B2C marketing is simple - convert shoppers into buyers as aggressively and consistently as possible.  Let’s be honest, B2C companies use solid merchandising activities like coupons, displays, store fronts (real and virtual) and offers to entice the customer to buy.

B2C marketing campaigns, are shorter in time and need to capture the customer’s interest immediately. “Show me the money!” is the chant we hear in the background. Conversion is the be all and end all.

For example, in emailed versions of online marketing, the link takes you directly to a page that will convince you and then allow you to purchase almost immediately. No more than 2 or 3 clicks or you have lost that new customer.

The opposite side of this aggressive, find them and sell them attitude is the concept of loyalty that many companies have now taken to in a big way. Their marketing is based around keeping their customers. For example, anyone who has purchased anything from Amazon will continue to get suggestions on possible new products to buy while educating you at the same time on what is new and upcoming. The same goes for any number of retailers now. Just check you r inbox on a daily basis for solid examples

B2B Marketing

• Relationship driven
• Small, focused target market
• Longer sales cycle
• Multi-step buying process
• Brand identity created on personal relationship
• Educational and awareness building activities
• Rational buying decision based on business value

The goals are the same - convert prospects into customers – but the process can be so much longer and more involved.

A B2B company needs to focus on relationship building using marketing activities that generate leads that can then be nurtured during an often elongated sales cycle.

An effective and solid marketing strategy with B2B companies is the appropriate education of various players in the target audience; the decision to purchase is usually a multi-step process involving more than one person. Content is everything in B2B marketing and white papers, newsletters, and coverage of products and services by the media helps businesses educate their prospects with a view to an eventual sale

Let’s take the example of an email campaign in B2B as compared to its B2C counterpart. The email is designed primarily to drive prospects to the web to learn about the products and services, not to sell immediately. It needs to have sufficient contact information for further discussions and the landing page will show features and benefits, and sometimes, but not always, an indication on pricing although this is often omitted as a way of driving contact. This is only the first, tentative step in a longer campaign that may include direct mail, Webinars and newsletters and a follow up call by a sales representative who will discuss the prospect’s specific business needs in more detail as a way of progressing through the sales cycle.

The B2B Buyer vs. the B2C Buyer

I mentioned that marketing is about people, so we need to look at the buyers in each channel a little more.

The B2B buyer is a more sophisticated animal in many ways. They are more aware of industry trends, technology and sometimes understand your product offering or service better than you do. They need to buy a product that help their company stay in business, be more profitable and more competitive. They are motivated and have a high interest in your product and the problem it solves. Consequently any marketing materials must be more complex and more relevant to make sure that the right information is delivered in the right way.

Conversely the B2C customer is often looking for the best deal, the best price and the latest products. They will research the competition prior to shopping. Trust is an important part of their sales process as even though they can often buy the product cheaper from different sources off the internet, they may stay with a trusted source of supply. B2C marketing needs to assist in building that trust. However much marketing is done to build that trust, customer service becomes critical and can derail all well-intentioned marketing.

Branding

Companies such as Nike, Disney, Prada as just a few examples, spend large sums of money on focused branding campaigns as a strong brand will convince the B2C customer to buy, remain loyal and often pay a much higher price for a product. Although branding does play a part in B2B, it is not the reason to purchase, and its major role lays in helping you be considered not chosen.

A quality brand is needed in any business in order to make a good impression, but putting excessive marketing dollars into building brand awareness in the B2B markets is not what counts in the end.

The Differences

The biggest difference between B2B and B2C marketing ultimately comes down to the perspective and motivation of the buyer. Consumers make decisions based on brand, trust, quality and price. Business buyers make their choices on solid business rationales - increasing profitability, reducing costs and enhancing productivity, essentially solving problems.

So if you are marketing into the B2B channel, spend your marketing dollars on education, information and offering solutions to business problems. Lead prospects to understand how your product or service can directly benefit them and their company.

If you are a B2C business, then figure out what motivates your customer and how to deliver compelling marketing content that appeal to the emotional side of the buying process.