The consumerization of B2B marketing

Debal Dutt, CMO, Intellect Design Arena, shares his insights on what marketing consumerization of B2B brands means.

The world of B2B purchasing is changing. B2B buyers are increasingly relying on online research, social media, review sites, peer communities - and forming opinions well before the sales person knocks on their door! There is this entire process of what I call ‘screen mirroring’ happening with a B2B customer - he is simply mirroring his experiences from his B2C world and slapping it on to his B2B purchase. For a marketer, our competition might not be other technology providers, but brands like Amazon, Apple, Netflix, Zomato, etc who are ‘queering’ the pitch for B2B tech marketers and providing seamless experiences, digitally.

I define the Consumerization of B2B marketing as “a shift in focus on the individual consumer rather than the organisation as a whole.” In the B2B technology sector it means “individuals are asserting more influence and control of their company’s technology needs.” They are in the driver’s seat and are getting into the ‘marketing’ aspects of their brand of choice rather than the product specifications and outcomes only. Therefore, the loyalty-experience matrix becomes key in this relationship.

Consumerization also means that the channels used to ‘service’ a client, the traditional face to face sales model, have undergone a change and digital interactions have increased substantially. The consumer interaction of a ‘sale’ for a B2B tech product starts much before the first meeting happens as we traverse the experience journey with our customers!

How did we arrive at this crosspoint with Consumerization? Today’s customers have greater access than ever to information. There are plenty of offerings, other new entrants to choose from, innovative and interesting ways to solve complex tech problems and pricing transparency. Customers are highly empowered and informed with high expectations - as their needs are being met across other industries like OTT, retail, consumer goods, leisure, sports etc. Best in class in these other verticals are putting the customer first, creating the most desirable experience possible to keep buyers coming back - and this is the demand that customers are having from marketers in the B2B tech space too.

How does one ride the wave of Consumerization? The B2B decision maker is not dealing with your brand only. In the classic model of ‘a day in the life of’ your customer, he interacts with various brands (mostly B2C) and then as he makes his way to work, his interactions with B2B brands begin. Behind the target audience of a B2B organisation is a person - who follows the tenets of ‘human marketing’. Therefore, the most important aspect is to state the obvious: have a single brand with laser focus and consistency. However, given that the ‘relationship’ with a brand starts much before a physical interaction with the organisation, I feel that greatly improved digital relationships is the key. One of the aspects of Consumerization is technology - in the hands of the customer and also in the hands of the marketer. It has become very easy (and prudent) through the use of tech to understand the customer better - be it with intent based targeting, social listening, lookalike audience, chatbots, DeFi technology, etc.

Looking forward

The consumerization of B2B marketing is not a passing trend, it is a reality that is staring at us and represents a fundamental shift in how marketers approach B2B customers. For marketers it means relooking at the investments to align to this permanent shift (as it is not a trend, a wave but a reality). We need to meet our buyers where they are: social, video, peer review sites, communities, physical & hybrid events and in this journey keep one aspect firmly entrenched: building relationships and unforgettable experiences that start during the digital interaction of a buyer and not when the sales person goes for his first meeting.