B2B isn’t like B2C. Things work differently round here.
You’ll hear this a lot from B2B marketers. And, on the surface, it seems to make sense. After all, what could buying loo roll for your house possibly have in common with procuring a CRM platform for your employer?
Putting aside gags about your CRM resembling a steaming pile of…the answer, of course, is that both are decisions made by humans.
And yet us B2B marketers seem to forget this.
We’ve somehow bought into the notion that B2B buyers are simply ‘relational robots’ – dystopian AI creatures that mimic human behaviour but are actually pre-programmed machines (think Westworld…but for marketing).
Here are 3 falsehoods that help to sustain the ‘relational robot’ myth:
1) B2B buyers are rational decision-makers (who keep a lid on those emotions)
This is simply nonsense. B2B purchases may be considered, but they aren’t emotionless. A recent study by Google and the CEB Marketing Leadership Council found that “B2B customers are significantly more emotionally connected to their vendors and service providers than consumers”.
The reality is B2B and B2C buying is more alike than we thought. As consumers, we now know that up to 90% of our decisions are driven by emotion. It’s a truth B2C marketers have known (and played on) for years. Maybe it’s time us B2B marketers accepted that our world isn’t really all that different.
2) B2B buyers aren’t interested in ‘soft stuff’ (like purpose and values)
Wrong again. Behind the scenes, B2B marketers are starting to take a leaf out of the B2C playbook. According to a recent report on the state of B2B brand building, 76% of those brands already take a public stance on social issues (or intend to in the near future).
Couple that with research which shows 86% of B2B marketers agree that communicating their purpose has led to deeper customer relationships, and it’s clear a shift is taking place. B2B buyers are showing they are human after all – and will respond to the ‘soft stuff’ that B2B marketers have traditionally been told to shy away from.
3) B2B buyers will ultimately buy from a sales rep (not an impersonal brand)
Consider this: 77% of B2B buyers want to do their own research before speaking to a sales rep. Put another way, it’s awareness of your brand (not contact with your sales team) that will determine whether you are in the ‘consideration set’ or not.
Add that to the fact that 90% of B2B buyers choose a brand they already had in mind at the beginning of the sales process, and a clear picture emerges: your customers may buy through your sales reps, but they buy because of your brand.
Free your mind, and your brand will follow
The result of buying into this nonsense? Most B2B brands struggle to be meaningful and memorable. They shuffle along, rarely fulfilling their potential to truly connect with prospective buyers and influence the sale.
So, if you’re a B2B business that’s serious about growth, it’s probably time you stopped treating your audience like ‘relational robots’ and more like, well… real humans.
The kind who are driven more by unconscious emotion, and rationalise their decision after the fact. The kind who are switched on by purpose, good causes and doing the right thing. The kind who will forge a connection with a brand long before they pick up the phone to chat with a sales rep.
The truth is that B2B brands can, and should, be meaningful and memorable. But that will only happen when marketing leaders realise their audience is human after all.
