There is no denying that the financial stakes involved in buying and selling products in the B2B world are immense. More so, because buying cycles of B2B organisations are complex. The process of purchasing can be tediously long as it involves approvals from multiple decision makers.
Also, it doesn’t end with purchasing. Enterprises need to get into long term contracts with vendors and if things go wrong, both the buyer’s and seller’s reputation might be at risk. Hence, people say there is no room for emotion-driven marketing campaigns, as emotions, according to marketers, can be manipulative. Well, not always.
Some amount of emotion, if used in the right context can boost your marketing campaigns. It’s a risk worth taking, large businesses have done it in the past.
Emotion does not necessarily mean that you have to give C-suite executives tears or laughter fits. It’s more about finding innovative ways to make your business indelible and unique.
For instance, when selling a cloud solution, you might assume that you are selling it to a business. But after zooming in a little, you will realize that you are actually selling your product to a group of people who are the key decision makers of an organisation. And when it comes to people there is always a certain level of emotion involved.
So, other than just giving a decision maker facts and numbers regarding (which is obviously important) your product, you can also try to adopt means that will compel your customer to feel something about the product.
Imagine this: You have made an e-book about B2B customer satisfaction by partnering with a big research firm. The numbers in the e-book are scary enough to be taken seriously. But while selling and marketing it, instead of just following a mundane B2B e-book design format, you can try and insert some emotions. Using a persona on the cover of the e-book that evokes strong emotions can help grab your customer’s attention quickly. Not only does it increase the chance of getting the e-book downloaded, but owing to its strong emotional quotient, customers will remember your brand as well.
Also, the term customer relationship is extensively used in the B2B space, but then how can any relationship thrive without emotions?
Emotions can strengthen the trust that you have already built with existing customers. It can also help you stay unique in the eyes of your customers.
Marketing campaigns that have emotional value can nourish a company’s brand image. Arecent report claimed that B2B brands that connect with their buyers on an emotional level are more likely to earn twice the impact over marketers who put business before functional value.
Another great way to instill emotion in your marketing campaigns is to perceive your solution as a customer’s journey, not just a product.
For example, while selling an analytics solution, along with focusing on technical details, service level agreements, and rate plans, you can also focus on certain aspects of the product that will help a customer beat off the competition. Convey the feeling of what it means to be on top of the game. That feeling can take your business a long way.
B2B brands that connect with buyers on an emotional level are more likely to earn twice the impact over marketers who are still trying to sell business for functional value.
Now, you must be thinking that all this is good to say but difficult to execute. Here is a real-life example of a B2B marketing campaign that that was driven by emotions.
Here is a B2B campaign driven by fun
Marketing campaigns on data security can be painfully boring. So, Juniper Networks, an IT security provider, managed to make their product engaging by evoking fun with a mobile game called Deception Force
So, why did this campaign work? Firstly games have high emotional value and people love playing games on phones—especially so when it’s free. Secondly, while playing the game, customers get a clear idea of what the company does and how their products can be useful to them. Third, it is an aptly nerdy idea for data security professionals.
Therefore, it is important to have a very different and bold approach for your marketing campaigns. You can take some risks while deciding the type of content. There is no harm in doing something different that evokes fun, nostalgia, curiosity or even excitement.
Now it’s up to you to decide how your marketing campaigns will look like.
