While the same strategies and channels can be used for both B2C marketing (business to consumer) and B2B marketing (business to business), it’s important to understand that there are a few key differences between the two. In this post, we’ll be taking a brief look at the differences between B2B and B2C marketing, as well as a recent case study where we worked with Certis Cisco in Singapore on the launch of their latest security product.
Understanding the differences between B2B and B2C marketing and learning how to leverage them based on the type of audience you’ll be marketing to is vital to a successful marketing campaign. The following is a brief explanation of the key differences between B2B and B2C marketing.
Motivation: Naturally, personal and business purchase motivations differ. While both types of customers base their purchases on the potential benefits they’ll gain, B2B customers tend to purchase with specific business goals in mind - particularly how their purchase will affect their bottom line.
Decision-makers and the decision-making process: B2B purchases are determined by who controls the money. This means that an effort needs to be made to ensure that they’re the ones being targeted; whereas, in B2C, the decision-maker may not necessarily be the one who ultimately benefits from the purchase. In turn, this may lead to comparatively longer research stages in B2B than in B2C due to the additional factors that need to be considered.
Conversion time: B2C customers are more likely to make an impulse purchase than B2B customers, meaning that B2B customers typically have longer conversion times. This is directly related to the additional research mentioned above and needs to be taken into consideration when developing an effective B2B marketing strategy.
With the launch of their latest product, Certis Singapore aimed to revolutionize security in the pharmaceutical and food industries by being the first to offer advanced blockchain technology to industry clients. Their main challenge was conveying blockchain technology and its benefits to a target audience that might not necessarily have an understanding of how the technology works, it’s benefits, or how it applies to the ecosystem. Naturally, this also brought along the additional challenge of explaining blockchain in a way that captured and retained an unfamiliar audience’s attention on an otherwise complex topic.
For the launch, Certis had two primary objectives: to illustrate the benefits of blockchain technology to its B2B audience and to establish the brand’s credibility in the eyes of its consumers and partners – opening the door to security solutions that could be applied in the real world.
Untitled Project’s solution to Certis Cisco’s challenges and objectives was to develop a custom B2B marketing strategy that incorporated the use of cutting-edge immersive technologies like Virtual Reality to deliver B2B audiences present at the launch with a story-based, immersive presentation that cut through the technical jargon of blockchain, broke down their pre-existing perceptions of the technology, and conveyed how blockchain technology fit into the overall supply chain. Furthermore, Untitled developed a high-tech digital marketing strategy to generate a buzz in the social media sphere for Certis while leveraging mainstream media for mass product launch coverage.
As a result of the successful implementation of their B2B marketing campaign, Certis Cisco was able to secure several deals and partnerships both during and after the launch, cementing their reputation as one of Singapore’s leading digital security providers. The B2B marketing strategy also produced impressive results in terms of brand awareness, with over 400,000 media impressions garnered from the launch, including media features by leading online publications such as The Straits Times, and Lianhe Zaobao.
Get in touch with Untitled Project today to find out more about our award-winning B2B marketing services.
