B2B marketing is a powerful tool for companies looking to increase sales and generate new business. There is no doubt that the process of digital transformation of companies is accelerating.
New consumption habits have given birth to countless business consumers (B2B leads), characterized by a new generation of buyers from the world of e-commerce.
To attract, deliver and retain these new consumers, it is becoming increasingly important to understand the key role of B2B marketing and how the B2B model can be a powerful ally for your business.
How big is the B2B market? B2B e-commerce drives a large part of the market and is a strong ally for companies that want to stay up to date on sales technology.
According to estimates by the Brazilian Electronic Commerce Association (ABCOMM), in 2020, B2B channels are expected to generate more than 106 billion reais in sales from activities in Brazil, increasing the demand for digital marketing, technology and logistics professionals. This figure represented 1.51% of the country’s expected GDP for the year.
Another study, forecasting from 2020 to 2024 and carried out by consulting firm Kearney and published by the Market and Consumption Portal, shows a promising future for the Brazilian digital sales market. According to experts, new consumption habits after the coronavirus pandemic could bring an additional 69 billion reais in sales to e-commerce in the country. For the US market, which is more mature than the Brazilian market, the main study on financial data for the B2B market comes from Forrester Research. According to the study, in 2019, US companies made a total of $1.083 billion in sales to other companies through B2B e-commerce. This amount was equivalent to 5% of the American GDP that year. Forecasts for 2021 assume that these companies will generate $1.184 billion in B2B sales.
Therefore, we can conclude that the future of the B2B market and marketing is promising and is increasingly gaining space, driven mainly by lessons learned from the pandemic, which has made many companies aware of the digital transformation. Characteristics and benefits of the B2B model
Like business-to-consumer (B2C) e-commerce, the B2B model has its own characteristics.
The B2B model must take into account the company’s specific trade policies and tax issues, offer different prices to customer groups (clusters), avoid competitive advantages, and ensure integrated communication with the company’s other systems.
The objective of B2B sales is to increase business-to-business sales, generate new leads, and strengthen the business. Therefore, it is more about relationships and added value, not the point of sale.
It is worth noting that B2B relationships, being a more complex model, must be adapted appropriately and, above all, sustained. Key Benefits of B2B Marketing
The key benefits of B2B marketing are:
Expanding product offerings.
Extending sales to smaller customer companies.
Convenience for consumers to buy at any time.
Greater system integration and time savings in processes that affect the order cycle.
Optimizing the sales team to qualify and acquire new customers.
Increasing brand awareness.
Selling to large and niche retailers.
Digital standardization of the sales process.
Main Models of Digital B2B Sales
The main B2B sales models that are being digitized include:
Selling for business-to-business consumption.
Selling for resale.
Selling to franchise companies.
Sales MRO (Maintenance, Repair, and Operations)
B2B Marketing: Should I choose direct sales or existing sales channels? When B2B companies decide to sell their products and services digitally, a common problem is deciding whether to use direct sales or existing sales channels.
The first temptation in any industry is to sell to the end customer (or open a B2C sales channel) and keep all the sales margins for yourself. But the path with less friction between the parties is for the industry to build an integrated digital distribution chain where distributors and wholesalers sell to retailers in the same environment.
From there, the industry can centralize branding, marketing, and customer acquisition; however, keep in mind that inventory, invoicing, and delivery still happen through the distribution channel.
An integrated B2B sales model is the best option for companies in the industry because it augments the entire sales channel built over the past decades, consolidating all the expertise and synergies of the parties into one channel.
How do I get started with B2B marketing? To enter the B2B business environment, you need to consider several points.
Research the market your business wants to reach with e-commerce.
Define the rules and business partners.
Choose the platform technology that best suits your business needs.
Hire a good platform designer, secure payment methods and a good platform ERP interface developer.
Test, adapt and validate which platform best suits your company’s goals.
Test with the channel’s target audience.
Plan and execute the expansion across markets.
Monitor operations closely and continuously.
How can a B2B digital marketing consultancy help my business? Usually, the team involved spends a lot of time on all the above points. Therefore, it is very worthwhile to rely on the professional assistance of a digital marketing consultancy company specialized in the B2B market to coordinate the work, ensure the quality of the supplier selection and comply with the project deadlines and costs.
With many years of experience in the B2B market, NextNew, a consulting and B2B digital marketing agency, innovates every day to solve multinational marketing challenges and meet market demands. Combining expertise, technology and creativity, our mission is to contribute to growth and deliver positive results for our clients by designing, executing and measuring strategic projects aligned to each brand’s offering.
Contact our experts to find out how we can help you stand out and promote your business in the B2B market.
