Studies reveal that about 71% of buyers begin with a generic Internet search when making a business purchase.
This means you need a comprehensive B2B digital marketing strategy for your company.
Selling to companies is different than selling to consumers.
Read on for information about creating a great B2B digital marketing strategy.
Defining B2B Marketing
B2B is business-to-business. B2B marketing is a strategy of marketing that targets businesses, not individual consumers.
An example is this company. The company website has a clearly-defined target market. That market is the commercial kitchen business.
Your company probably has a different target market. But the basic B2B marketing strategy is the same for most businesses.
So what’s a good B2B marketing strategy?
1. Start with a Website
Starting with a website is crucial. Many small businesses are lagging when it comes to getting a website up and running. But in today’s environment, a website is a must.
Your website is often the first impression your audience has of your business. The minute a customer lands on your home page, he should know what your product or service is. It’s surprising how many businesses have a vague home page.
If the customer doesn’t know what you’re selling, they’ll go right to another website.
Use simple site navigation and easy-to-find contact information.
2. Know Your Target Audience
You must know your target audience. Don’t try to be all things to all people because if you’re selling to everyone, you’ll end up selling to no one.
Once you’ve identified your target audience, stop pushing your product or service. Instead, sell solutions. Hone your strategy around the solution your product offers.
Do you sell plumbing supplies?
Focus on the solutions the supplies offer, not on the supplies themselves. Your obvious market is plumbers and building maintenance companies. Target those buyers.
3. Search Engine Optimization
Search engine optimization (SEO) is paramount. Your website can look better than anyone else’s but if the SEO is poor, organic search traffic won’t come.
Use relevant title tags and meta descriptions. Use keywords buyers put in the search bar when looking for the type of products you sell. The better your SEO the more people find your website.
Don’t leave out small details such as ALT tags and image descriptions. Putting the right keywords in an image description helps the search engines identify what’s on your site.
One of the most important things for your website is content marketing.
4. Content Marketing
Content marketing is where you identify customer’s problems and offer them solutions. The best content marketing for your website is through a blog.
Update the blog at least weekly with information that’s attractive to your target audience.
Include information that buyers find valuable. Give away a short free eBook. People visiting your blog will think of your company first when they’re ready to buy.
5. Email Marketing
Email is another great B2B digital marketing strategy. But how do you get email addresses? Through your website.
Have a place on your website where people can sign up for a newsletter. Then send an email newsletter once a month.
Include the first paragraph of that week’s blog post and then a link to the actual blog post on your website.
You can put coupons or other discounted offers in the newsletter too.
And don’t forget a Call to Action (CTA) at the end. That’s one or two sentences asking the customer to click on a link.
The link takes them to the company website. The CTA is simple like, “Click here to buy the latest product.”
6. Social Media Marketing
Whether you love it or hate it, social media isn’t going away any time soon. If your business isn’t on social media, you’re missing a lot of potential customers.
Facebook has over 1.5 billion active users per day!
Only a tiny fraction of these users are your customers. But once you’ve identified your target audience, Facebook is the perfect place to find them.
Instagram is another social media opportunity you don’t want to miss. Instagram is a photo-centric social media platform. There are over one billion Instagram accounts worldwide.
Don’t stop at posting your content. Social media platforms also offer targeted advertising opportunities for a reasonable cost.
7. Video Marketing Campaigns
Consumers love videos. You don’t need a fancy camera or a production crew. If all you have is a smartphone video recorder, that’ll work.
Make short, informative videos and post them to your blog. Like your blog content, make the videos a value add. Show the customer how best to use your products.
A combination of videos and written blog posts with relevant keywords and valuable content drives people to your website.
8. Pay-Per-Click Campaigns
Also called PPC, pay-per-click is when you pay an advertiser each time someone clicks on your ad.
Do you know those sponsored ad links that come up at the top of the search page? Those are PPC ad campaigns.
If you make $500 dollars from a $5 dollar click, that’s money well spent.
Keywords and content are crucial when it comes to PPC campaigns. You want to show up on the right results page or you won’t get many clicks.
If your ad campaign results in high user satisfaction, Google charges less for the clicks.
B2B Digital Marketing Strategies
Stay on top of your marketing with a solid B2B digital marketing strategy.
If you don’t understand technology, hire someone who does. Without a B2B digital marketing strategy, you’re missing out on a lot of potential customers.
Start with a simple, clean website that offers easy navigation. Make sure your product or service is obvious on every page.
Identify and understand your target audience and design your website for them. Encourage organic traffic through good SEO.
Write a weekly blog post with content valuable to your target customer. Include video when possible.
Don’t forget email marketing. Integrate a few social media platforms into your B2B digital marketing strategy.
When you’re comfortable with your digital presence, use a PPC campaign.
Looking for additional marketing advice and info? Keep reading our blog.
