I am often asked about the differences between business-to-business marketing and business-to-consumer marketing. While BtoB has its nuances: nurturing leads along a pipeline, buying teams vs. individuals, slower sale cycle, and more expensive products there are many more similarities than differences.
At the end of the day, you are trying to move a person to take action... The context of the engagement is different. Getting a consumer to buy a candy bar (often an impulse purchase) is different than trying to influence a buying team (highly considered purchase). In both cases, building a relationship over time can make a difference, but BtoC is often more focused on the product or transaction and BtoB is often focused on the relationship.
Traditionally BtoB marketers were focused on "content marketing", but the reality is a paradigm shift has taken place where both BtoB and BtoC marketers must now act as content creators or publishers. The biggest compliment a buyer can pay your brand is that they share your content. What kind of content gets shared? Content that is funny, educational, inspirational, or just plain creative is most likely to get passed on by buyers.
Also, I am a strong believer in leveraging marketing technologies combined with smart decision making to build relationships with customers. Big data has become a hot buzz phrase, but the reality is that we have always had data, but now we have better tools to analyze and make that data actionable.
What are your thoughts on the differences between BtoB and BtoC marketing? Have marketing technologies changed the way you reach and influence buyers?
