B2B companies often misidentify their operational challenges as marketing problems. It becomes a red herring, distracting from the real problem. However, the truth is that b2b doesn’t have a marketing problem. It has a culture problem.
A culture that hasn’t kept up with the changing tides.
Historically (cough, today), B2B marketing was viewed as an on-demand collateral center for sales. Marketing’s role was relegated to creating PowerPoints, slide decks, logos, and landing pages to meet sales requests.
Hey, we need a new logo.
Can we create a landing page?
Can you please design an ad? We need it for the trade show magazine.
But the modern buyer’s journey has dramatically shifted.
Today, customers no longer buy through sales as their primary source of information; they arrive at sales after an extensive research phase.
According to a Forrester study, up to 90% of the buying decision process is already complete before a customer reaches out to sales.
The historical B2B model was built on the age of information, where knowledge equated to power. However, this model is no longer effective in the age of influence, where customer perceptions and actions carry more weight than raw data.
Traditional approaches are outdated in this new landscape, where customers are discerning, informed, and often overwhelmed with noise and too many options.
Another common misconception is that B2B and B2C are all just “selling to humans.” Surely, we can agree that we aren’t selling to AI…just yet. But, this selling-to-humans argument dismisses a core truth. While B2C customers seek to avoid regret in their purchasing decisions, B2B customers are looking to “cover their ass.” They must ensure that the solutions they propose to their stakeholders are trustworthy and reliable. The stakes are higher, and trust is a critical factor that often gets overlooked.
This misunderstanding also isn’t a result of a lack of technology or tools. In fact, there’s an oversupply of these resources. The problem lies in leadership, or rather, the lack thereof. Many B2B companies have junior marketers who lack mentorship and a C-suite that fails to appreciate the value of marketing. There is a gaping chasm in strategic planning and execution, making it difficult for marketing to take the lead and deliver tangible results.
The reality is, in this era, influence is power. Your brand’s impact on your prospects, reputation in the industry, and relationship with your customers all define your success. The focus should no longer be merely on generating leads but on nurturing relationships and influencing perceptions.
Success in B2B is not about accumulating email addresses; it’s about meaningful engagement, creating valuable experiences, and aligning with how buyers buy today.
Compared to B2C, B2B marketing budgets are often a joke, reflecting an outdated model where sales started, led, and finished the buyer’s journey for them. However, in today’s environment, marketing needs to take the lead. It’s crucial to invest in strong leadership and mentorship for marketers to effectively guide this transition.
Heck, kill the marketing department entirely. Just call it all sales if that feels better…because it is.
The cultural problem in B2B is the resistance to change and the adherence to outdated models of sales and marketing. The solution? It’s time to adapt, prioritize marketing in the new light, and to recognize the power of influence over mere information. After all, it’s not magic! It’s marketing.