There are two huge marketing myths that tend to hold some companies back from considering inbound marketing strategies. Those companies who consider themselves to be B2B (business-to-business) frequently think that inbound marketing and social media aren’t for them.
I think there are two reasons that they’re wrong. First, my contention is that there is no such thing as business-to-business. It’s a complete misnomer. Second, there is plenty of data to suggest that their assumptions about blogs and social media are wrong.
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[ismember]Person-to-Person Marketing
When we use the term “business to business” marketing, I understand the concept but think that it’s a deeply flawed term. I seriously doubt that automated robots or magical pens are signing purchase orders and making purchases. In every case, there is a person making the decision. In truth, marketing is always person-to-person, not business-to-business.
Now that we’ve established that it’s people who make those buying decisions, it’s probably worth looking at how they do so. The Marketing Leadership Council published a report in partnership with Google titled The Digital Evolution in B2B Marketing. The title itself is noteworthy. It uses the “evolution” but in many of my observations, B2B marketing strategies haven’t changed all that much. According to this report, customers are choosing to delay commercial conversations with suppliers until they’ve progressed approximately 60% of the way through the buying process. The report warns: “The fundamental implication is clear: companies that fail to “show up strong” in this context are underserving potential customers and at risk of losing mindshare and, ultimately, sales opportunities.”
Where the Buyers Are
I spend a lot of time with engineers and with people who sell to engineers. I have had many a debate about social media and buying habits. There seems to be a perception that social media marketing doesn’t work on them. Some say it’s because they don’t use it very much. Others say that they’re too logical and data-driven in their decisions and that this touchy-feely social stuff isn’t effective.
LinkedIn commissioned Research Now to conduct a study of IT purchasing. The results were published in a report titled IT Purchasing Goes Social. That’s right, the same group of guys feverishly working to block you from using Facebook and YouTube are “using social networks to inform their purchase decisions.” Some notable figures from the report include:
- 78% of IT decision makers use at least one social network for business purposes
- 68% of them have engaged with a vendor on social media
- More of them (68%) are influenced by social media than by online media publications (53%)
- The top reason for using social networks is to learn from trusted peers (68%)
- 49% of them used personal social networks for business
OK, but that’s just one slice of the B2B market. What about those pocket-protector-wearing engineers? Surely they wouldn’t rely on something as frivolous as social media for their jobs?
Cal Galvin conducted a social media survey of engineers last year. Overall, 61% of engineers surveyed used social media for work related activities. The top 5 reasons they gave for using these social networks are (in order):
- Learning
- Finding products
- White papers
- News
- Recommendations
Myths Busted
Businesses don’t really do business with each other – people do. They do 60% of their buying homework before they ever contact your company. And they’re using social media to do that homework.
Explain to me again: Why aren’t you using social media for B2B marketing?[/ismember]
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