In my most recent Monday Mash-Up, I mentioned an article about B2B marketing that I hated.
The article was a collection of quick-tips from different “experts.” Here’s the first tip that annoyed me:
An appeal to emotion typically wins in B2C marketing. In other words, when marketing to consumers, a winning strategy includes developing emotional connections and backing them with rational bits. B2B, on the other hand, goes through a more in-depth screening process. Decision makers in businesses are logic-driven and are trusted to find and defend the best possible solutions.
I think this is B.S.
Yes, selling to consumers (B2C) is different than selling to businesses (B2B). And yes, businesses go through a more thorough logic-driven process of vetting a purchase.
But emotional triggers almost always lead a buyer to consider a purchase. That’s true with consumers. That’s true with the buyer in a business.
The best B2B marketers understand this. Appeal to the emotions. Trigger desire and interest. Then prove the case with proof, data and other bits of logic to close the deal.
The article got worse. Here’s the tip that really got my blood boiling:
Tell Them How You’ll Make Their Business Better. A B2C campaign is very direct in that it shows how a company’s goods or services directly impact the consumer. A B2B campaign’s focus is one company impacting another to make the second company better. The campaign’s value proposition has to be in making it easier for the other company to be more profitable, organized or efficient, and how those attributes will convert into long-term sales and growth.
So here’s a dirty little secret about lots of people who work in lots of businesses: They’re not worrying about how to make the business better. They’re worrying about how to make their own life better, how to succeed in their own little bubble.
That doesn’t mean their selfish. That doesn’t mean they don’t care about the company’s bottom line. It just means they focus on their lives, first.
Of course, their job is part of their life. So they may be very concerned with how to perform their job more efficiently, with less headache and hassle. But that’s not the same as worrying about the company’s bottom line and overall performance.
Here’s an example:
Our sales vice-president Pat Hawn once met with a prospect who handled email marketing for a B2B firm. The firm had 12 sales reps each with their own list of contacts.
The email marketer sent 12 separate copies of her newsletter each month — one each for every sales rep. Each email was “From” the sales rep. Each reply address was that sales rep’s address. Twelve emails for 12 reps.
Pat nodded. “That’s a hassle,” he said.
“I hate it,” she said. “It’s the worst part of my job. I wish I didn’t have to do it.”
Pat showed her how MarketVolt can automate the process, how she could send a single email with a list that combines all 12 reps’ contacts, and have the reps’ names and email addresses automatically merge into the “From” and “Reply” emails.
“One email for 12 sales reps,” Pat said. “Easy.”
The rep hugged him and signed up for our service.
Pat didn’t say a word about the company’s bottom line. He didn’t pitch how MarketVolt will make the company better.
He recognized the marketers emotional turmoil.
She hates the process. Can’t stand it. She craves an easier way. That’s all about emotion.
That’s all about helping her.
Sure, creating greater efficiency can help the company’s bottom line. But that’s not how Pat sold it, and that’s not why she was buying.
B2B buyers are driven by selfish desires and emotion. They want a more comfortable life. They want recognition and glory. They fear looking foolish or failing. That’s all emotion.
Understanding what motivates your prospects is key. If you assume emotion doesn’t matter, if you assume that the company’s bottom line is the driving motivator, you’re probably misreading your prospects.
Tom
MarketVolt
p.s. We help businesses figure out what they sell. Then we help them identify and connect with their target markets so people will listen to what you’re saying. If you want to discuss how to make it happen for your business, email me at tom@marketvolt.com. For no charge and no strings attached, we’ll discuss with you how you’re building email lists, generating new leads and generally finding and connecting with prospects.
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