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Market Smart: How to Gain Customers and Increase Profits with B2B Marketing

because of the lack of mentorship, opportunities for promotion,
and the chance to constantly develop their skills. As a result,
turnover of marketing personnel is high in B2B companies,
which leads to gaps between marketing initiatives and too
much time spent training new people.

And finally, there is confusion around tactics. It’s common
for one type of marketing to become the ‘flavor of the month’
(e.g. social media, search engine optimization, videos).
Someone in a company will get excited about the potential
of a tactic and will invest time or money in it. The trouble is
that no single B2B marketing tactic can deliver maximum
results. Making a video doesn’t do anything unless the video
is effectively promoted and shared with prospects. Improving
search engine optimization won’t help land new business if
your website doesn’t enable prospects to take the next step
in learning more about the company. It’s dangerous for B2B
companies to jump on a tactic without integrating it into a
cohesive marketing plan and considering if it’s the right tactic
for the company. For example, social media may be a hot
topic, but if your industry is barely online, does it make sense
for your company? You’d be surprised how many marketers
fail to ask this question before “going social”.

Despite these challenges, there is every reason for B2B
companies to put marketing to work for them. Effective
marketing builds awareness and a positive perception of the
company, generates leads, and helps grow revenue. B2B
companies that effectively use marketing work less to get
leads and secure new business. They travel less and maintain
full pricing more often. Marketing enables them to make the
leap from a relatively successful company to a tremendously
successful one.

So let’s take the first step and talk about B2B marketing strategy.

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© 2012 Lisa Shepherd