Common B2B Marketing Mistakes You Should Avoid.

There is so much information on B2C (business-to-consumer) marketing. This is probably because when we talk about customers, we always think about the direct end-users (consumer). We often forget that not all brands focus directly on the consumers; some businesses are targeted towards other businesses, especially businesses that provide services as opposed to selling a product. Although this does not mean all B2B (business-to-business) businesses provide services. 

From the above explanation, I think it is clear that the marketing style for B2B brands will be different from that of B2C brands. So, there is a need for more articles targeted at B2B brands. And while there might be enough information on marketing mistakes to avoid, most are written for B2C brands and not B2B brands. This article, however, will be focused specifically on the common B2B marketing mistakes you should avoid as a B2B brand. 

Without further ado, let’s get to it.

 

Not Identifying Your Target Audience

Expanding on what I already said above, one of the biggest B2B marketing mistakes you can ever make is not identifying your target audience. In fact, whether you are selling to the consumer or another business, it is important you know to identify your target audience. 

However, B2B businesses are more likely to fall into this trap when they tailor their marketing the same way a B2C brand would, forgetting that they have different audiences. The first thing you need to do is remember that you are selling to other businesses and then identify what kind of businesses you should be targetting. 

 

No Marketing Plan

You need to have a marketing plan. As simple as the saying, he who fails to plan plans to fail is, it is true in every facet of life. If as a business, you fail to plan, it simply means you are planning to fail. Pay attention to industry data and your analytics on previous marketing campaigns; it will be a big mistake not to track metrics in the first place. Marketing should have a goal and you need to monitor your campaigns to see if the goal was met. If yes, how do you improve on what you did and if no, what were the errors and how do you work on them? You should also make projections and set goals about what you want to achieve next in your business, and that should influence your marketing campaign as well. 

 

Promoting Your Company

Now, hold on; I know what you are thinking. You are probably asking, “Isn’t promoting my company part of what marketing is about?” You are right but hear me out. Promoting your business at the expense of highlighting what you have to offer will not get you your desired goal. This is because, at the end of the day, nobody really cares whether your company is the best at something or not; they instead, want to know what your company has to offer them. 

Remember that you are talking to other businesses like yourself and they know enough industry story or from their companies to not be fazed by flowery words of company promotion. They are more interested in what you have to offer them; whether you can solve their problem or not. So, make sure your promotions are about what you have to offer and not what you think the position of your company is in your industry.

 

Inexistent or Wrong SEO Tactics

SEO is one of the best ways to establish and increase your visibility online. You should definitely take advantage of it to make your business visible to other businesses online. I’m sure I don’t have to tell you how important having an online presence is; that’s something a business operating in this day should already understand. However, being online is not enough, as there are several other businesses like yours competing for the same customers. It is left to you to lay hold on other features that will give you an edge like SEO. Read more on SEO tactics to apply to increase your business’s visibility online. 

 

Not Paying Attention to Your Website

Your website is like your online office and you need to make sure it portrays the same things you would want a physical office to portray. If you have an unresponsive website or a website that is difficult to navigate or one that is clumsy, you are basically passing across a negative message to your potential customers. In this case, they will judge the book by its cover. Your potential customers don’t have the time to find out why your website is unresponsive or that you are actually competent and your website doesn’t represent you. So, make sure your website is responsive on mobile, tablet and desktop; it is easy to navigate, and it looks good. 

To wrap up, I’m sure you now know the common B2B marketing mistakes to avoid and what to do to avoid them. So, let us know in the comment section if you enjoyed reading this; we love reading from our readers.