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![]() Cracking the Code on B2B Marketing
By Brian Hart and Clayton Marsh, Hart Consulting Services
For any graphic communications company seeking new relationships with retailers & brands, keep this top of mind. The first two-thirds of the B2B buying cycle is where the relationship begins; it's where credibility starts. At this stage, content rules.
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B2B selling is now content driven, regardless of industry. If you sell to other businesses, you face a rapidly shifting landscape as you try to reach out to new audiences in new ways. In spite of these changes, certain principles still hold true. You must still prove yourself in an ever more competitive environment. And you still need a coherent brand voice and a simple, clear and differentiating message. At Hart Consulting Services (HCS) - A B2B Consultancy and digital marketing agency partnering with retailers OEMs and GCCs for the past five years, we describe the way that B2B buyers now interact with vendors and sellers as The New B2B Buying Cycle. Below, we describe a fascinating Buyer's Journey that we have segmented into thirds. To make the case simply, we are now living in a two-thirds/one-third buying cycle. The first two thirds of this journey are extremely important and for many organizations, this will feel like new territory. The last third of the journey is equally as important as the first two-thirds and will seem like coming home again.
Traveling Along the Buyer's Journey You're helping them to determine whether your organization is a good fit. At various points along the way, researchers and decision makers are at different levels of understanding. Each person, researcher or decision maker, has different information needs as they piece together who you are and what value you can deliver. This opening gambit, this first two-thirds of the cycle, is critical. For any graphic communications company seeking new relationships with retailers & brands, keep this top of mind. The first two-thirds of the B2B buying cycle is where the relationship begins; it's where credibility starts. At this stage, content rules. This, frankly speaking, is what has turned selling upside down and shattered the previous model.
We Are All Publishers Now In the final third comes engagement. The buyer is ready to finally begin to connect with you directly and something more familiar, closer to the traditional sales model, falls into place. Your content has done its work; your buyer has done the research, read your newsletters, received your offerings, read your white papers. Now comes a direct conversation with your organization and with it comes the opportunity to close new business.
Creating Branded Content, Consistently The content development specialist assumes responsibility for building awareness through continuous, branded marketing efforts, pushing out fresh content daily, weekly or monthly. Ideally, this process is fully integrated with your marketing assets, databases and customer relationship management (CRM) to achieve the response, customer retention and conversation you're looking for. The key aim is to create relevant content and to put that content in front of existing and potential buyers. Examples of the types of content and the various platforms where that content can live are below.
Blogs YouTube Website Content Case studies Competitive comparisons eBook Email campaigns "How To" stories, blog posts Insider tips Newsletters Podcasts Success Stories Video Web content Whitepapers A wide range of factors influences the decision making process, some more esoteric than others. "Cognitive fluency" is a psychological term. It measures how easy it is to think about something. Not surprisingly, most people prefer to think about things that are easy to think about. And it turns out that fluency, the name you give a product or a service, the choice of fonts in your e-mail messages, the simplicity of your message, whether your communications feel familiar or not, all can have a significant impact on persuasion, on your ability to influence buying decisions. "Cultural fluency" is a term we use to describe that sense of alignment between your company and your prospect. You have cultural fluency when your prospect can honestly say, "They understand us, and they see the world in similar ways. They get who we are and what we are doing."
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The Different Buyer Roles
Personas
Identifying Retail Personas New research has identified seven major profile types.
Understanding Why We Think, Feel and Behave as We Do Now to briefly return to some of the issues around persuasion and decision-making. Real benefits can be gained by approaching purchasing from a psychological standpoint. Clayton Marsh, HCS's Retail Design Strategist & Marketing Consultant is also a licensed psychotherapist. Clay's unique experiences and insights bring HCS and our customers real value. Clay helps clients shape new pathways for change and growth and he's had many opportunities to learn what works. As you gain a greater understanding about your customers and prospects, about the buyer's journey, about cognitive and cultural fluency, new discoveries emerge. You can reframe and simplify your messaging. You can employ different methods of communication at different times for different audiences. You can change fonts. Or you can decide to take specific actions, free trial offers, purchasing discounts, the use of testimonials. The possibilities are endless. The more that you understand, the more you can overcome obstacles, gain greater influence and grow your business. Note: This article is an excerpt from Brian Hart and Clayton Marsh's recently published book, "Way to Grow 2.0: Leading Edge Marketing Strategies and Tactics for the Graphic Communications Industry."
Brian Hart's 30 years of experience in the custom manufacturing, graphic communications, and retail marketplace have positioned him as a highly regarded industry specialist. During his professional career he has been involved with start-ups, privately held companies, and small and medium private equity-based firms. Hart was an early advocate for sustainable business practices, and was one of the first business leaders to recognize the power of marketing automation. Over the last decade, he has focused on facilitating and optimizing support teams and execution prerogatives within the In-Store marketplace. Hart introduces OEM and material manufactures to the retail and graphics community, helping them evaluate the road ahead.
Clayton Marsh offers over 22 years of experience in the retail marketplace as a legacy brand designer. He has assisted both nationally and internationally recognized brands to message, shape and execute In-Store. Marsh works with graphic communications and OEM product companies to message and visualize strategies that resonate at retail. His familiarity with retail environments, campaign design and campaign rollouts allow him to quickly identify core-messaging value based on real world experiences. Marsh focuses on the balance between creativity and visually sophisticated messaging and marketing tools for effective communication, leading to more powerful ideas and visual impact for retailers and for graphic producers and In-Store retailers. This article appeared in the SGIA Journal, January/February 2014 Issue and is reprinted with permission. Copyright 2014 Specialty Graphic Imaging Association (www.sgia.org). All Rights Reserved.
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