3 Ways to Earn the Trust & Attention of B2B Customers

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Whether your brand has long been established, is getting a refresh, or is a new start-up company, it’s getting harder and harder to stand out in today’s noisy, competitive world. To make our point even clearer, take a moment and scroll through your email inbox. How many of those emails are marketing messages? And, how many have you read or even opened? If you want to stand out in an increasingly noisy world, you must earn the trust and attention of your customers. This isn’t anything new. It’s what Seth Godin outlined nearly two decades ago in his book, Permission Marketing. The difference is this concept has become increasingly more important in today’s world. 

3 Ways to Earn the Trust & Attention of B2B Customers

If you’re a B2B company, here are three specific ways you can earn more trust and attention from today’s customers: 
  1. Create the same kind of personal and relevant experience as the best B2C companies.
If you think about brands that are known for amazing customer experiences like Amazon and Nordstrom, they all provide customers with customized experiences.  One way you can do this is by segmenting your list prospects based on their specific interests, communication preferences, or stage in the buyer’s journey. Instead of acquiring large lists of users to contact, consider building segmented, high-quality groups that can be reached through targeted marketing.
  1. Create an experience that matches your brand promise. 
Every potential customer already has a perception of your brand, whether you like it or not. In order to earn their trust, the experience you create must match the expectations they carry. Every marketing team should focus on building a quality audience and providing them with the resources and information they expect to receive. This is essential for developing a strong relationship with potential customers. 
  1. Leverage transparency as a marketing strategy.
According to a study by Label Insight, 94% of consumers surveyed indicated that they were more likely to be loyal to a brand that offers transparency, while 73% said they were willing to pay more for a product that provides complete transparency.  Companies that hope for long-term success must be open and transparent with their customers. And, for B2B buyers who are often looking to establish long-term working relationships over performing a one-off transaction, a clear understanding of your business, what you stand for, and how you operate have become non-negotiable. It’s a crowded world out there for today’s B2B marketers. If you’re going to be heard above the noise, you have to earn the trust and attention of our potential customers. By embracing these three keys, you’ll put yourself in a better position to get your prospects’ attention, begin to earn their trust, and start building the foundation for relationships that can last a lifetime.

Frustrated by the Fact that Marketing Is Constantly Evolving?

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When it comes to marketing, the only constant is that it’s an industry that’s always changing. Think about it. Less than a decade ago, businesses were thriving because they were posting on Twitter, getting tons of comments on every blog post, and sending a monthly e-newsletter. Today, those tactics aren’t producing nearly as much engagement. 

As the owner of a marketing agency, I understand why it’s easy to get frustrated by the constantly-evolving nature of marketing. I’ve had dozens of discussions with small business owners over the past seven years who tell me their marketing isn’t working. They express that finding a marketing tactic that works and provides the reach or scalability needed to drive results seems impossible. For small businesses with limited resources and budgets, this can be maddening. For everyone else, it makes business development hard to sustain for an extended amount of time.

4 Principles to Remember as Marketing Continually Evolves

Here are some encouraging reminders I share with business leaders or marketing managers who are frustrated by the fact that nothing seems to be working like it once did: 

  1. Embrace the fact that marketing always changes. The reason marketing seems to be evolving so quickly is because customer behaviors are rapidly changing. Today’s customers have an incredibly finite amount of time and attention to give to something. Rather than getting frustrated by this fact, embrace it. Recognizing we only have a few seconds to capture our audience’s attention opens up creativity to solve this new challenge.
  2. Stop looking for the silver bullet. There isn’t a single marketing tactic that is guaranteed to work without fail for the next five years. Just because your competition is trying something doesn’t mean it’ll work for you. Instead, focus on what your customers want. Your customers need solutions to their problems, not more information about your brand.  
  3. Focus on strategy, not tactics. Wondering why your marketing efforts aren’t working like they used to? When most businesses say their marketing strategy isn’t working, what they typically mean is that the tactics aren’t effective. Rather than focusing on tactics, it’s important to recognize the underlying strategies the tactics are built upon—and hold onto those rather than the tactics themselves. 
  4. When all else fails…be human. Certain marketing principles are timeless. Remembering to be human is one of them. What works today—something that has always worked—is grassroots, person-to-person, authentic, transparent actions. Creating personal and meaningful connections with potential customers will always work when it comes to growing your business.

The world of marketing is undergoing a profound evolution. Things that worked yesterday won’t work as well today. But, that’s a good thing because we know there will always be new tactics and strategies we can deploy to appeal to basic human emotions of potential customers.