Precise knowledge of B2B target groups is having an increasingly strong influence on online success. B2B online marketing requires reliable information about specific user behavior, needs, acceptance of various online channels and social media platforms, as well as industry-specific characteristics in the purchasing process.
Benefit communication has been moving to the forefront for years
While product communication has taken a loan database back seat. Due to this fundamental development, more knowledge about the target groups and their needs is necessary than was the case a few years ago. But the dilemma is that many B2B companies simply don’t know enough details about their target groups. Marketing, sales and product management will have to work together even more closely in the future than before in order to be able to communicate better online.
This situation leads to 5 trends that will affect B2B online marketing, especially in 2014 and 2015. Briefly presented here, all trends for online marketing in the B2B environment are describe in detail in the current trend paper from creative360 .
Building and expanding knowledge of target groups
B2B marketers know too little about their target groups. This knowledge and the interaction between product management, sales and marketing how to create detailed buyer personas for your business will be crucial for success in B2B online marketing.
Trend 2: Target group-base B2B websites and content
Websites of the future will be geare towards target groups and individual target persons. To do this, B2B marketers need a clear idea of the information needs and a content marketing strategy.
Trend 3: Implementation of data-driven online campaigns
The days of trial and error are over. Today’s B2B campaigns on the web are base on data, multi-stage, multi-dimensional and, above all, align along the customer journey of the B2B target groups.
Trend 4: Using retargeting in B2B online advertising
Addressing B2B target groups with the right content at the right moment in the buying process is an art that needs to be learn. Retargeting helps B2B marketers improve the ROI of their online campaigns.
Using monitoring for target group insights
The use of monitoring tools enables B2B frist database marketers to implement online marketing more effectively. However, there is still some catching up to do on the part of providers to improve such monitoring tools for B2B requirements.
The annual B2B trend paper highlights current trends in online marketing. Market observations and external studies are include, as are our own analyses, experiences from numerous projects and insights from discussions with leading B2B marketers.
Conclusion: For marketers in the B2B sector, knowledge of target groups is becoming a decisive factor for success. The change in B2B communication that has been ongoing for years requires a rethink in how target groups are addressed. And this can only succee if clear facts about the target groups are available. Without appropriate market research, analyses, interviews and intensive insights into the target groups, future B2B online marketing will be missing a building block for success.
