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Scott LoSasso (00:00)
We have that saying here that you move hearts, minds and market share in that order. And it's never been more true and it's never been more exciting for B2B.
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Scott LoSasso (00:20)
Hey David.
David Fabbri (00:21)
Hey Scott.
Scott LoSasso (00:22)
So the topic today is how B2B is taking a page out of the B2C marketing playbook and why it matters.
David Fabbri (00:31)
Love that. Uhm. Why does it matter?
Scott LoSasso (00:35)
Well, I mean, I think it really speaks to what the new opportunity is and how B2B has different ways it can really stand out versus what was traditionally known as B2B marketing.
You know, it feels like there's just a sea change that we're experiencing because of the number of ways you can reach a target audience versus what it used to be, which was much more traditional. And therefore a lot of B2B brands really focused on specifications and engineering information and the things that you typically find in trade magazines.
David Fabbri (01:12)
Yeah, I mean to me I think the ability now to bring that story forward in a lot of different ways, unique ways, does allow good brand storytelling to happen. I don't think B2B was really thinking about that anyway.
I think people were very focused on performance and specs and I think you still have that fight in a lot of places. But when you think of any of the B2B brands who are really leaders in their industries, they're always strong brands with a good brand story that they invest in.
Scott LoSasso (01:46)
Yep. I would agree with that. And the other thing that I think is worth thinking about is that when you think of massive consumer campaigns, you know that when Budweiser or an insurance company or any of the big spenders run a campaign, you typically see it on TV, in magazines, on billboards, you know, you hear it on the radio. Of course you see it online.
That really was never even a possibility for B2Bs, but because of the way digital media can be bought and delivered across all forms of media, you really have that same opportunity to elevate your brand and do some really impactful, brilliant creative and reach people in your traditional places, but also, get in front of them through podcasts and on TV and on even, you know, digital billboards.
David Fabbri (02:41)
Well, it's been now in development a couple of years where you could do some of those targeting on high-end TV placements, but it's still a huge impact. I think that there's still not enough of it happening that when somebody sees a B2B brand on a college football game, for instance, they're like, wow, like this brand is a player, you know.
Scott LoSasso (03:04)
There’s a huge novelty impact to that and I'm not suggesting that that's sort of the lead dog, but it really does change the way you can think about “how do you build your brand story” and how do you really separate from everybody in your segment.
David Fabbri (03:20)
Yeah, and if you're doing something like that, it's part of a mix, right? But it's a powerful piece that if you're going to be doing, you know, that sort of, TV level storytelling, you want to make sure that you're doing something that's well thought out, well polished, well executed, really, you know, tells your story in a way that's impactful and resonates.
Scott LoSasso (03:45)
Yeah, I think the other thing that B2B actually started early on to get good at was using things like webinars and long form videos to convey technical information and educational information. And the way you can use that now is so much greater and so much more impactful, because of the changes in buyer behavior, right?
So you can just think about those things fundamentally differently because you can take them as short form, long form, you can get sort of influencers or subject matter experts that are good on camera involved.
And we as consumers, we're just much more used to taking in long form content from, you know, a podcast… or who doesn't go to YouTube to try and solve whatever it is they're trying to fix when something breaks in their house, or follow their passion from some of the people that really do a good job using, you know, YouTube, Instagram, or whatever your feed of choice is.
David Fabbri (04:51)
The other great thing about being able to be a little more granular is the reality is in B2B that the buyer's journey is longer, more complex, you're often talking to a buying committee versus a single person.
You've got to educate somebody through being aware of a product, from understanding it, to driving that interest in conversion in a way that you still need to do more detailed, informative content than you would on a B2C side. So in that way, B2B was more complex and remains more complex, but in a way, these tools really allow you to do that.
Scott LoSasso (05:28)
No doubt. I Mean, I think B2B has always been harder than B2C. You know, like, of course I'm biased because that's our thing, but you're right, you really have to get people to make a decision that's based on need, not want.
There's no impulse B2B buying. And then you have buyers, influencers, and people that really are participating in that decision that have to buy in as a group. So when we led this off and started talking about B2B taking a page out of the book of B2C, I guess what we were really talking about was just elevating impact and thinking more broadly in terms of how your campaign hits, right?
I mean, what's the reality there? What do B2B marketers need to do differently today than they did two years ago, let's just say?
David Fabbri (06:23)
I do think from a big picture perspective, you know, that emotional connection to the passions and pain points of a B2B buyer: What do I care about and why, and what's really going to connect?
I think the thing that sometimes is lost when people think about B2B is that a lot of these things are really big picture world changing things. We have clients who are working on evolving the electric grid with renewables or solving water problems.
So like these are things that people in these industries who are very technical and in the weeds are also super passionate about. So being able to connect the practical technical stuff with that big picture sort of emotional impact, is an opportunity in B2B that sometimes people don't fully take advantage of.
Scott LoSasso (07:10)
Yeah, I think that's right. I also think that you can be very specific with the messaging and who it's reaching because of your ability to use data. So, you know, if you have some very compelling things for one industry segment, but not another, you can actually channel that messaging across many different platforms and channels to specifically put message A in front of audience A and message B in front of audience B.
David Fabbri (07:38)
Right, and in a lot of ways, with a B2B buyer, you've got different messaging for different industries or you've got different content for different parts of the funnel, for instance. So having that ability to get more granular with that targeting and having the content that aligns with that has never been easier than it is today.
Scott LoSasso (08:00)
Right, and I suppose that's a big difference too, right? The funnel, you know, is a little bit different in B2B, right? Because it's just, there's more engagement, more depth of message.
But it is kind of the same in that, you know, if you're selling an expensive consumer product, like a car, for example, someone might think about that for, you know, months or even years before they pull the trigger on it. And all of those marketing exposures, you know, they make people fall in love with the brand and feel aspirational about their desire to own one, so that emotional connection and that expectation that you set through really good, creative and impactful messaging really is kind of part of the same idea.
David Fabbri (08:44)
Sure. Now you mentioned something before when you kind of flew past it, but I wanted to circle back and that's influencers, right? I mean, you talk about B2C moving to B2B. I mean, early on, you know, influencers were very much more on the B2C side, but we have seen for the past number of years, continuing elevation and activation of B2B influencers.
Scott LoSasso (09:08)
Yeah, I also think that in B2B, a big difference there is that people who we might call influencers or content creators. But in B2B, they're really people who know the trade or the craft: They're subject matter experts. And there's, like I said, kind of no impulse buying.
I think with the erosion of trust in whatever, government, institutions, media, et cetera, you know, as humans, we trust people. So if you build a brand as a content creator or an influencer and you have high trust, brands can now align with that and speak to and through that in a way that I think really adds a layer of credibility and extends what brands can do. It also has its risks, right? Because people are people.
David Fabbri (10:02)
You know, for sure. But I do think that a lot of times when you see these B2B influencers too, they're really leaning in with their expert POV, and so that influencer content is even more valuable than on the consumer side where it's a little bit more, you know, emotional lifestyle appeal, versus, you know, somebody who's got experience in this thing that I'm trying, that I'm associated with or trying to figure out more about and they're sharing content and information.
It's just going to be more valuable, I think.
Scott LoSasso (10:32)
Yeah, very interesting times for B2B.
David Fabbri (10:35)
Things are moving fast now and it's exciting and, you know, just important to keep a finger on the pulse of that change and really lean into new opportunities. And we do a lot of work with B2B and industrial and manufacturing and related, it's great to be doing more and more with those kinds of companies and seeing these things really bloom and come into full fruition and in new ways.
Scott LoSasso (10:58)
Yeah, I totally agree. So the net of it, think really is that a lot of B2Bs are being asked to do more with less, and it's hard to think outside the box, but there are really important new opportunities for B2B brands to leverage their data, think a little bit more creatively about how they can go to market, and make their marketing dollars work a lot harder.
So there's a lift involved in sort of making the change, but It is the way to do more with less because it's more effective, it's more efficient, it's more targeted, and ultimately it's going to be more profitable and impactful to market share.
Yeah, I mean, we have that saying here that you move hearts, minds and market share in that order. And it's never been more true and it's never been more exciting for B2B.
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