By Shreyas Achar
The B2B marketing landscape is not the same today as it was even a decade ago, nor as it was at the dawn of the 21st century. The terrain has changed dramatically, as have the tools available to navigate it. I have observed and experienced this shift intimately, especially in the aftermath of the funding winter.
The events of the last few years have forced us to reevaluate our spending and strategies, challenging our notions of balance between in-house teams and agencies, demand generation and brand-building. Like many B2B companies, we have had to make difficult choices. In making those choices, we have acknowledged that the old ways of doing things are no longer sufficient.
In the current environment, while mid-market and enterprise-focused B2B organisations can still rely on high-touch engagements like roundtables and webinars, SME-focused firms are feeling the pressure of an increasingly competitive landscape. In this new reality, low-budget, scrappy and creative campaigns have become a lifeline, the only viable means of achieving strong brand recall.
The days when we could simply create lead magnets like calculators, or publish ebooks and whitepapers, and consider our marketing duties fulfilled, are long gone. Not to say these methods are irrelevant. They still hold importance, but building a brand today demands more, especially for startups striving to be financially prudent.
Interestingly, the new B2B marketing landscape bears a strong resemblance to the classic advertising era of yesteryears. Then, as now, creative messaging and narrative building trumped all else. Creativity, it seems, is back in vogue – and it is not limited to brand campaigns. It pervades everything we do, from direct response ads, email marketing, social media campaigns, and more. We are in a phase of introspection, fundamentally reevaluating how to instill delight and recall in our audience.
With this shift, the metrics and practices of yesteryear are under scrutiny. A relatively poor understanding of the ‘dark funnel’, the futility of obsessive attribution modeling, the less-than-optimal execution of moment marketing campaigns – these have all propelled marketing from a predictable, repeatable box into a more creative, and frankly, intriguing realm.
The push to embed the brand across the funnel, from the brand elements all the way to product and customer marketing, presents a new challenge for marketing leaders at B2B companies. The prevailing predicament is that we can no longer outsource our most critical creative efforts to agencies. This means, the real skill of a leader in these tough times is to build a highly effective and creative marketing function in-house.
We have taken these changes in stride and found innovative ways to navigate this complex landscape. We have harnessed the power of pop culture, tapping into references from WWE to Heavy Metal, in our efforts to simplify the complex world of insurance. We have also launched ‘Humanise,’ a unique publication where guest authors discuss the intersection of work and life, adding a fresh dimension to our content strategy. And in a playful, yet strategic move, we introduced ‘Cards Against Work’, a card game that has sparked an exciting response and further strengthened our brand. Since last year, these initiatives have helped us generate significant pipeline growth while optimising costs.
The shifting landscape of B2B marketing has been a test of resilience, a journey of discovery, and a treasure trove of learning. As spending on growth for acquisition has been limited, we are now looking for more levers or waterholes where we can discover potential customers and they can discover us. As we move forward, we remain committed to bringing creativity, agility, and authenticity to our marketing initiatives, aligning our tactics with our overall business goals and, most importantly, with the needs and expectations of our customers. This, we believe, is the way forward in the new era of B2B marketing and brand development.
The author is head of marketing at Plum