Business to Business Advertising

Submitted By:-
Ritesh Mehta
PGDM-III (Marketing)
Roll No. MB71
Case Study
• A few days ago, my company met with a business-to-business
client that had hired us to help position its firm as a leader in a
category it had recently entered.
• We presented a handful of concepts that were different,
compelling, and that would stand out among all the bland ads in
their targeted trade publications.
• Usually, when an ad agency is presenting new ideas, you can pretty
much tell how the meeting is going by the looks on the clients'
faces. This one wasn't going so well.
• . When we finished our presentation, the room was uncomfortably
silent until one of the representatives of the client team spoke up.
• He was the one who gave us the assignment, and he could see how
the campaign would accomplish the objectives set out for us.
• He thought it was different. He thought it was breakthrough. He
thought it was smart.
• But it wasn't long before one of his colleagues weighed in.
• He, too, thought we had something to work with but "suggested"
a few changes.
• He didn't want the campaign to be too attention-getting. He
thought it should look more like those that were already in the
magazines.
• He was afraid that a captivating appeal like the one we were
suggesting wouldn't be direct enough. And he wanted to include
more copy points and product shots. In other words, he wanted a
typical B2B ad
 Time to Debunk
• This is a common occurrence that happens in
conference rooms across the country every day.
• It's not that there's anything inherently wrong with
copy points and product shots, but there seems to
be a powerful gravitational pull towards the bland in
business-to-business advertising.
• The reasons, I believe, are because of a handful of
persistent myths that permeate the industry's
thinking.
Of Business To Business Advertising
 Myth 1: B2B is different
• This is probably the most common misunderstanding—that
somehow the rules of everyday marketing don't apply in a
business-to-business context.
• Sure, selling to a company is different than selling to a
consumer. But it's no more different than selling toothpaste is
to selling paint, or even than selling wine is to selling beer.
• In each case, you're trying to win over a unique group of
people with an existing array of preconceptions and a distinct
set of needs.
• No two marketing assignments are alike, yet every marketing
assignment is subject to the same fundamental and
unchanging principles
 Myth 2: Information trumps emotion
• Anybody who has spent time working in business-to-business
advertising will hear this refrain: "Make the product the hero," or "Get
right to the point," or "Just make sure it has a strong call to action."
• It's as if the people who read B2B ads don't buy Nike shoes, attend
Cirque du Soleil, or shop at Target on the weekends. Or if they do, they
somehow disengage the right sides of their brains Monday through
Friday.
• That's not to say that information isn't important, and especially so
when you're dealing with purchases that can run into the thousands or
millions of dollars.
• But the bigger the purchase, the longer the sales cycle. This affects the
role that an ad can be expected to play
 Contd.
• In most advertising—consumer as well as B2B—it's the job
of the ad to open the sale, not close it.
• And just because you want your prospects to know
something doesn't mean they want to hear it. At least not
at first.
• There's a saying that people don't care how much you
know until they know how much you care, and there's
truth to that even in advertising.
• First you must demonstrate that you understand the
challenging world in which your prospects live, and then
perhaps they will be willing to listen.
 Myth 3: Creativity isn't important
• This myth is less likely to be articulated but still widely held.
It's why ads in trade magazines tend to be riddled with bullet
points.
• There's nothing wrong with making advertising for even the
most mundane products tasteful and aesthetically appealing.
• Even people who wear pocket protectors enjoy a good wine,
a well-crafted movie, or a beautiful piece of art.
• With apologies to ad great David Ogilvy ("The consumer isn't
a moron; she is your wife."), the prospect isn't a robot; he is
your neighbour.
 Myth 4: Companies buy things
• Companies don't buy things, people do.
• True, a committee may need to approve your
purchase, but even committees are composed of
people.
• And in all but the rarest of cases, there's one person
on that committee who holds the key—someone
with thoughts and feelings and likes and dislikes and
hopes and dreams.
• Someone who can be captivated and motivated to
move your request along.
 Contd.
• But what about the "second sale" that's often
required in business-to-business transactions? It's
true that once you win one person over you may still
have a lot of work to do.
• However, this real and challenging complexity
doesn't change the fundamental equation. And B2B
marketers aren't alone in facing it.
• Ask a breakfast-cereal maker who's more important
to win over—junior or Mom—and the answer you'll
get is: "both."
 Myth 5: You are your target
• One of the most common mistakes all of us make is
projecting our own attitudes, perceptions, and
behaviours on other people.
• I don't have a MySpace page, and I don't watch Grey's
Anatomy, but I'm pretty sure a whole lot of other people
do.
• You probably have a lot in common with those in your
industry, but you have many differences as well. Just
because you respond to an ad in a certain way doesn't
mean other people will do the same. Especially since
you're already sold on what your company sells.
 The New Role of PR in B2B Marketing
• Strategies in the marketing mix must be quantified, compared and
validated against other options to escape budget cuts
• Since customer-facing activities are mission-critical to the B2B
marketing plan, only data can prove their readership, attendance or
influence.
• PR being hard to measure. It’s just not true. Before and after
perception data, unaided recall, brand consideration and intent to
purchase metrics, and influencers in behaviour and choice are all
measurable deliverables that PR can and should produce.
• CRM system has proven that exactly five touch points with the
customer are required by sales and marketing before a contract lands
 Contd.
• The touch points statistically proven to garner the results
are:
– direct mail,
– Seminars,
– Channel promotions
– Phone calls.
• Now, insert specific PR tactics into the mix of touch points -
it might be

“read product review," “referred by customer," "mailed a

news release," “analyst recommended,”
 Contd.
• It’s not easy to reach a business buyer- they have
– the least time,
– their careers are at stake,
– they do not appreciate interruptions.
• PR is the polite way to
– invite them in to learn,
– grow their business,
– establish relationships of lasting value.
 Contd.
• Since business customers do their homework, scrutinize,
read reviews, ask peers, and test value propositions, the
new B2C customer is starting to look quite similar.
• We’re finding that most of the tried and true practices in
B2B PR are extremely effective in the B2C mix.
• Product performance reviews, third party endorsements,
channel relationships, case studies, and learning
environments are now critical, given the growing mistrust
of advertising and marketing.
 Contd.
• We find that the touch points required to
close a sale reduce to two,
• The cost per lead is reduced by 40 percent
• every marketing rupee can be spent more
effectively with PR’s insertion into the
marketing model
 Conclusion
• Over the years, companies has struggled with the creativity-limiting
effects of myths like these many times.
• But some companies have also enjoyed breakthroughs with forward-
thinking clients who overcome their pull.
• What I have learned is that people are people, and whether they're
making a purchase for themselves, their families, their companies, or
even their government, their decision-making processes aren't
entirely rational.
• Even when they're thumbing through the trades , they're attracted to
appeals that are unique, interesting, and compelling.
• When everybody's zinging, it's a good time to zap. Discard the myths
that hold most B2B advertising back, and win your company the
attention it deserves.