According to Semrush, 93 per cent of marketing professionals achieve success. And as the digital world continues to shift, social media marketing continues to explode as the chief preference of companies to market their products.
Connecting with other businesses, either in a collaborative spirit or as a case study for your digital marketing plans, and using the digital world as a business-to-business marketing platform will allow you to make better, more consistent connections. According to IMA, creating an effective plan is paramount for businesses to keep up with potential customers who are always connected to the internet and your business.
B2B marketing has undergone a seismic shift in its landscape since 2020, with COVID-19 introducing the need for new types of remote payment options and the necessity of businesses to adapt their marketing strategies to reach people almost exclusively online.
This meant adopting mobile-centric marketing strategies for some businesses, including greater social media presence and optimising their websites for mobile navigation and purchases. According to data, 64 per cent of marketers believed mobile optimisation was a successful marketing strategy.
The impact of digital transformation on marketing strategies
Digital transformation is a term that marketing strategists know all too well. It is introducing digital technology into every aspect of your business. Keeping up with the times is critical, and adapting your marketing strategies to suit the digital age is crucial to successfully marketing your products.
Last month, social media marketers were using Instagram Reels and TikTok the most to market their products, capitalising on the popularity of short-form video content among users and the ability to integrate social media trends into marketing their products.
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The use of digital platforms as marketing tools has meant that businesses are having to create YouTube channels for the first time or become more attuned to short-form videos and learning how to craft them effectively for an audience that’s keen to see, buy (or not) and move on within about 60 seconds.
Instagram emerges as a top choice for B2B marketing
Surveys conducted by the trade show Jewel Ads indicate that among social media platforms, 47 per cent of marketing professionals now prefer Instagram as their primary method of marketing their products, with LinkedIn sitting at 40 per cent.
In comparison, Facebook brings up the rear at only 13 per cent. As digital platforms change and morph, so do customers’ marketing plans and choices.
Reasons behind Instagram’s popularity
As you can see, Instagram has become a hugely successful platform for B2B marketing. But why? There are myriad factors behind Instagram’s popularity, generating more than 20 times the engagement of LinkedIn.
Volume of users
A simple first explanation for Instagram’s popularity is that the users’ volume is much higher. Instagram has more than one billion active users per month. Almost half of Instagram’s users post to their Instagram stories each day. For a business, each active user, especially those that utilise the Story feature- is a potential customer.
Instagram users buy via Instagram
The proof is in the proverbial pudding, with a conversion rate of nearly 75 per cent of Instagram’s users spending their money via the platform. Therefore, the marketing potential of Instagram’s Reels and posts has been proven.
Featuring products in posts
The ability to feature actual products in posts on Instagram makes it much easier for the end-user to click and purchase. Featuring easily shoppable products in posts leads to more web traffic and more customer purchases, with 80 per cent of users making purchasing decisions after seeing products on Instagram.
The future of B2B marketing in the digital age
B2B marketing in the digital age is only going to increase as the years roll on, with the role of artificial intelligence and data-driven marketing increasing throughout 2023 and beyond, including the use of chatbots and digital assistants, reducing the need for companies to hire human beings to tackle technical problems or provide helpdesk support to customers with more simple requests.
Utilising data-driven approaches for targeted marketing
Consumer data is now more readily available than ever, thanks to AI data mining and the willingness of consumers to share their location and other information with companies when they purchase their products. This massive volume of data can finally be utilised time-sensitively with artificial intelligence.
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Using AI to data-mine allows companies to use a much more targeted marketing strategy. “Targeted marketing” generates “relatable data” from individuals’ readily available personal information and web use habits. This year 46 per cent of companies used “relatable data” for the first time.
Removing human emotion from this part of marketing to other people allows companies to utilise facts and numbers to make better marketing decisions.
Personalisation and customisation
Making marketing campaigns personal increases the interconnectedness between businesses and their customers. Public Service Announcements, at least those televised that we remember so vividly from the 2000s and 1990s, were so memorable because they connected with the audiences in often brutal and shocking ways.
While you don’t have to rely on a shock factor, getting to know your audience via personalised advertisements and strategies is critical. Over 72 per cent of consumers responded better to marketing that connected them to the company or brand.
AI and automation
As marketing continues to evolve in the digital age, the increase in AI usage will prove pivotal in a company’s scheme success or failure, with over 61 per cent of companies already using artificial intelligence and 88 per cent of companies believing they must use AI more by increasing automation to keep up with the competition and create more positive customer outcomes.
The market is responding positively to the introduction of artificial intelligence and its potential to change the marketing game for businesses drastically. The future of all industries seems bright with the adoption of AI, including the manufacturing industry (to the tune of US$3.78 trillion by 2035), an industry typically associated with hands-on work done by people.
Based on the evidence, artificial intelligence will continue to dominate the space, giving companies a better picture of how their clients receive their campaigns.
The need for businesses to connect with their client’s social media and go where their clients consume content is also increasing. To stay relevant and increase revenues, businesses must develop a solid social media presence and interact increasingly with their ever-connected clientele.
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