{"id":578,"date":"2018-08-31T07:03:37","date_gmt":"2018-08-31T14:03:37","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/2018\/08\/31\/b2b-gets-personal\/"},"modified":"2018-08-31T07:03:37","modified_gmt":"2018-08-31T14:03:37","slug":"b2b-gets-personal","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/news\/b2b-gets-personal\/","title":{"rendered":"B2B gets personal"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Today\u2019s customers expect to be engaged directly. In the past, B2B companies have typically lacked the warmth and personality that connect FMCG brands to their consumers.<\/p>

It\u2019s customary for FMCG companies to put their brand first to create a personal relationship with consumers. This level of consumer engagement has made it increasingly necessary for B2B companies to tap into similar emotional purchase drivers. The result has been a blurring of the lines between B2B companies and FMCG brands.<\/p>

For more on how FMCG brands continually elevate their consumer engagement, take a look at CBA New York\u2019s Creative Director, Rutger Thiellier, explanation on how Packaging is Alive.<\/a><\/em><\/p>

So, how do traditionally cold and functional B2B companies cut through all the clutter? Well, it all starts with YOU, the customers.<\/p>

B2B marketers that take the time to know and listen to their customers are best equipped to engage directly with them. And the best of them do it in a way that humanizes their message.<\/p>

Today\u2019s purchasing drivers go beyond selection based on functional needs, even within the B2B environment. Identifying with a business on a more emotive, personal, and human level promotes an intangible connection that ultimately drives sales. Imagine selecting a contractor for your home \u2013 you\u2019ll ultimately select the one that you can have a direct conversation with, who you feel has heard you, and can demystify complex problems in a way that you understand.<\/p>

As most B2B marketing is digital and lacking in one-on-one interaction, it\u2019s interesting to note that studies show a significant 19% increase in sales when businesses personalize their web experience<\/a>. Simply put, customers are responding to the brands that sound, feel, and behave more human. People, after-all, hold board positions, approve budgets, and ultimately make the decisions. So, connecting with the decision makers on a personal level goes a long way.<\/p>

Take a look at these three B2B marketing campaigns that contextualize their products and services, honing in on the intangible factors that drive purchase, and establish a clear and true emotional bond.<\/p>

3M<\/a> claims its products are never more than three meters away from its customers. The whimsical and lighthearted campaign humanizes the brand and puts a face to its customers. Through contextualizing 3M products within the everyday lives of customers, the brand achieves a new level of connection with its target market.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
<\/div>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Freelance networking channel, Upwork<\/a>, breaks the fourth wall of B2B marketing. The \u201cHey World\u201d campaign directly engages B2B employees through traditionally FMCG channels. I saw the vibrant and playful campaigns on the subways from work and during a commercial break from my weekly Handmaid\u2019s Tale viewing on Hulu. A colleague saw the ads in San Francisco on her commute in as well. We both were independently struck at the humor, timeliness, and personality of the campaign.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
<\/div>\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

Collaboration hub, Slack<\/a>, ran into some connectivity issues recently<\/a>\u2026did you notice, too?! The company\u2019s Twitter account was on top of it; responding to its customers in real-time and still maintaining their personal touch. Slack not only sympathized with their customer’s complaints, but responded on a human-level.<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t

\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\"\"\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t
\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t

3M, Upwork, and Slack demonstrate how B2B companies are listening and behaving more like FMCG brands. Personalizing messages, engaging in unexpected mediums, and contextualizing services within a customer\u2019s everyday lives have elevated B2B marketing expectations.<\/p>

For emerging B2B companies to cut through the clutter and for existing B2B powerhouses to stay relevant, B2B companies will have to keep YOU, the customer, close to heart.<\/p>


<\/p>

Authored by Senior Account Manager, Cliff Horowitz.<\/em>
<\/p>\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t<\/section>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"tags":[],"blog_categorie":[41],"class_list":["post-578","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","blog_categorie-insight"],"acf":[],"lang":"en","translations":{"en":578},"pll_sync_post":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/578","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=578"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/578\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=578"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=578"},{"taxonomy":"blog_categorie","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/cba-design.com\/united-states\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/blog_categorie?post=578"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}