B2B marketers have a tough year in 2017. They are faced with immense pressure in reaching growth goals and dealing with ROI. Various trends appeared, disappear and might appear soon but those that you should automatically think about are the following.
Focus On Customer Experience
Business growth these days is directly connected to customer experience. It is really important to have a highly balanced approach when customer loyalty is built. The customer-centric approach is no longer the only thing that you have to do. It is important to focus on the entire value of the customer and improve the experience he has. Modern customers are expecting other things and B2B companies need to offer exactly that or other firms will offer it.
Executive Branding
The traditional marketing strategies we refer to as “command and control” were changed by mobility, social media and the internet as a whole. We are moving towards individuals. Basically, consumers are more interested than ever in knowing the people behind the brands. That is why branding at a personal, executive level is much more important than it ever was. Regular digital marketing and company branding efforts no longer work on their own. We can say that executive branding became a necessity.
Visual Content Marketing
B2C marketers are focused on visual content right now and the B2B marketers will need to catch up. The content that is used in marketing needs to be more compelling, shareable and engaging. This practically means that written word is simply not enough anymore. In 2017 the most common of all the visual content forms utilized will surely be video, 360 degrees video, blog images, social media post images and infographics.
Influence Marketing
This is definitely not new but it is still not as mature as it should be. In 2017 we should see this change. Influence marketing will be practical and will really help B2B marketers to get much better results. Serving the audience better is a goal for both the influencer and the company that a bartering deal will be signed with. The main influence focus will be put on Twitter, YouTube, LinkedIn, Facebook and other niche social networks.
Native Advertising
The last 2017 B2B marketing trend that we have to focus on is native advertising. This practically relates to the materials that appear in various online publications as editorial content, even if it is paid by an advertiser with the main purpose of promoting a service or a product. Traditional interstitial and banner advertising is something that is no longer as effective as it used to be. The native advertising alternative is definitely one option you want to take into account. 2017 will be filled with such options.
The great thing about native advertising is that it has a much lower intrusive level. It is capable of offering educational benefits and will have a higher possibility of being shared. The advertisers want to consider the option since it is highly cost effective. Various big B2B companies already take advantage of native advertising. This includes Intel, Dell and IBM.