The B2C marketer works hard to build a brand, creating a positive brand image that may not yield immediate sales, but will bring in long-term benefits. Customers in need of a product would rather trust the brand they have established a relationship with rather than an unknown product. B2B marketers may need to emulate their B2C counterparts in branding to improve lead generation and resonate better with customers. B2B marketers seeking to increase brand recognition may want to consider the following tips:
- Create brand messages, logos and campaigns that potential buyers will recall when they make their purchasing decisions. The use of images, videos and interactive ads helps as well.
- Ensure consistency across all marketing efforts and campaigns, be it social media, paid ads, educational content, or anything else.
- Go overboard in creating brand ambassadors or encouraging existing customers to recommend the “brand” to their peers who may be prospects.
- Make sure to create a brand story and have a human touch to it.
Unlike a B2C marketer who targets individual and independent end users, the B2B marketer targets smart, well-informed and knowledgeable influencers who have the power to make purchasing decisions in their organizations. Moreover, B2B buyers have definite budgets and objectives. This makes the task of branding more challenging for the B2B marketer. By understanding what influences the person with the power or authority to make the purchase decision and targeting those people effectively, B2B marketers also need to understand the key elements of a purchase decision at the buyer’s firm and address those elements effectively. The B2B marketer may also need to monitor and tweak their branding strategy on a continuous basis, as the key influences in the B2B buyer firm may change, as may company policies and purchasing decisions.
For B2C marketers, branding may be a purely lead generation activity, but the B2B marketer has to co-opt branding in lead nurturing as well.
