B2B Communications: Build Messaging That Positions You as an Industry Leader

‍It’s no secret that communication is vital to life. Life in the wild, as well as in the modern city, depends on how good your communication skills are. The same is true for businesses, especially those that work in the B2B space, as they require a special approach.

‍If you look at any big-name B2B company, you’ll see that they’ve mastered the science and art of B2B communication. Yet, no matter how small or big you are, you, too, can be in this group.

‍On the flip side, most businesses are still struggling with figuring out how this works.

‍That’s exactly why we’ve created this guide. Today, we’ll share some of our best tips to level up your communication strategy and create better relationships with your target audience.

‍B2B companies are focused on helping other businesses see the value of their products and services. “Other businesses” is key here, which will determine your messaging, making it more serious and result-driven.

‍Here, you are talking to decision-makers, not the end buyer. So, you don’t want your messaging to be just about emotionally charged brand ads and funny posts.

‍This is just one of the things that makes B2B special. In the next section, we will look at more of those differences.

‍Unlike B2C, which is designed to appeal to an individual, B2B content marketing is more complex. Why? Primarily because your product/service might be designed for one group of people, but the ones who approve budgets are entirely different individuals.

‍So, even if your target audience understands the value of your products/services, decision makers might not.

‍As a result, these are the main differences you can expect when it comes to B2B vs. B2C messaging:

• Tone. B2B buyers are humans, so yes, you will still need memorable storytelling that will resonate with your audience. But more than that, you need persuasive facts and value-driven messaging.

‍So, it’s more about the benefits and value, and less about tear-jerking commercials.

• Platforms. You will need to do a lot more convincing. That’s why tailored whitepapers, webinars, and case studies are more likely to work for you. Sure, you could make a lot of noise with your ads, but more direct, personal channels work much better for B2B.
• Influence matters. The more influence you have, the more power you hold to convince the decision makers to buy from you. So, your message must highlight how reliable and influential you are.

‍This is why many B2B businesses buy backlinks, publish guest posts, and write press releases. The idea is to position themselves as industry experts and spread their influence.

‍A B2B communication strategy needs a persuasive value proposition and the right target personas. It also needs clearly defined key messages. But as you understand, that’s not all. Let’s go through the main components of a good strategy.

#1 Buyer Persona

‍Every well-prepared communication B2B strategy should have a well-thought-out buyer persona. It is the first step to actually understand your audience.

‍You can include some basic details (like their age and role), but what you really need here is to dig deeper into what they are ready to pay for. It could be a problem that makes their eye twitch or a motivation to look “better” in front of their boss.

‍The more detailed you can manage to make it, the better.

‍To get all this information, speak with everyone on your team who talks to clients and, of course, contact your customers directly. But even if you don’t go that deep, you’ll already find tons of insights by doing basic research. Then, just use it in your messaging.

‍For example, if you are targeting people who are worried about budgets, you’ll want to emphasize great value at affordable rates.

‍The same thing applies if your target audience is people focused on cybersecurity. Then, your messaging will highlight how secure your product/service is, and so on.

‍Source: Markempa

#2 Goals and Value Propositions

‍Chances are, you’re not the only B2B business with the same (or similar) offer in your niche. So, you’re going to need to be clear about your value proposition:

• Why should these businesses choose you over your competitors?
• What makes you special?
• How will you help them achieve their goals?

‍These are the questions your value proposition should answer.

‍Not sure what a value proposition is? It is a simple statement that highlights your promise to your target customers.

‍If everyone on your team remembers what your value proposition is and uses it in their everyday interactions (both internally and externally), your B2B messages will be intentional. And this is what you need to have an efficient content marketing strategy.

‍And, of course, to make your communication successful, you need to clearly define your goals. This one doesn’t really require an explanation.

‍But to make your objectives realistic, make sure that each of them has a timeline, a responsible person, and a couple of smaller milestones (if needed).

#3 Content

‍Content had to be on the list of the main components of a good communication strategy. Of course, some things you publish might be unplanned (hey, real-time marketing), but every single post has to have an idea behind it. This idea is your company’s message.

‍Still, when planning content, you also have to consider your customers’ needs because only sharing something aligned with your brand’s values is useless. It simply won’t lead to conversions. So, try to align your content with the buyer’s journey as much as you can.

‍Source: Top Dog

‍For example, someone at the awareness stage is more likely to be interested in informational guides.

‍As they learn more about what your product/service is about, they move on to the next stage (consideration). This is the point where product comparisons, webinars, and explainer videos will begin to make more sense.

‍One more thing — regardless of what stage the buyer is at, you need to make sure that while highlighting your message, you speak human language and not technical jargon.

‍Let your results and features speak for themselves, and you won’t need to cloak them in fancy terms that most people don’t understand.

#4 Channels

‍Back in the ye olde days, B2B businesses relied on traditional channels for communication. These were mainly brochures, catalogues, and boardrooms.

‍But today, thanks to technology, the landscape has changed. You have more channels at your disposal now. In fact, almost every platform can become your marketing channel, from LinkedIn and your website to your Instagram feed and newsletter.

‍This means B2B marketing communication is now multi-channel and usually tends to be more personalized. So your strategy has to use all the opportunities in a smart way.

‍Test as many platforms as you can to see what works better, but don’t try to be everywhere at once, especially if your resources are limited.

‍Besides, if you want to create an immersive marketing strategy, you definitely need to consider using the omnichannel approach instead of the multi-channel one. But that’s the topic for a whole different guide.

‍Source: Sinch

#5 KPIs

‍KPIs are an integral part of your strategy simply because they allow you to see whether your business-to-business communication is working at all. Not having clear metrics is the road to nowhere.

‍That’s why you have to not only establish some KPIs but also decide how and when to track them and who will be responsible for this.

‍But whatever you do, don’t try to measure everything and anything. The idea of all these metrics is to help you make better progress, not overwhelm everyone with some useless Excel spreadsheets.

#6 Team Alignment

‍Every B2B messaging framework needs a great team to work on it. That means making sure you have the right talents on board.

‍First, each member of your team should be bringing the right expertise, insight, and experience. Next, everyone has to get a clear picture of where you are headed with your communications strategy. Besides, you must make sure that your team members know who your customers are.

‍It’s also important that people communicate within your company. This means keeping everyone in the loop of the major brand-related things (whether it’s your marketing team, sales dep, or your leadership).

‍When you maintain consistency across every department, your business will be able to strengthen its brand voice, and your messages will have a unified focus.

#7 Positioning Statements

‍Another thing which might be useful in your communications strategy is a positioning statement.

‍Sure, it’s mainly for your internal use, as it’s designed to help your team understand how you want the public to perceive your company. That’s why it’s different from your value proposition, which is designed for your customer.

‍Yet, it is still a crucial part of your communications strategy because your team should be your very first cheerleader. If they don’t know where you’re heading or what you want your company to be, they can’t go on and share that with the world.

‍Only this way can your people deliver a proper B2B message to your clients (even if they don’t interact with them directly).

‍Okay, now that you know what components make up your strategy, it’s time to learn all the tips for getting it just right. This is where the best practices come in. These include making sure that you:

#1 Prioritize Relationship

‍Typically, in the B2B niche, you have a smaller playing field compared to the B2C sector. On top of that, the competition is also tougher.

‍That’s why much of your success will depend on how good you are at building relationships with your prospects. The issue is that it takes more time to build trust and inspire brand loyalty. So, you are less likely to be successful if you treat everyone like they’re just another client.

‍And if you know anything, you understand that losing even one client in the B2B niche can be a big blow to your revenue, especially if everyone knows everyone in your niche.

‍So, how do you make sure that this never happens (or at least reduce the chances of it happening)? Make sure to interact with your clients more directly. Invite them to your company parties, send complimentary messages during their anniversaries, and so on.

‍The more you show you care and value them, the better your relationship with them will be.

#2 Do Your Research

‍Even if you have fewer customers compared to your competitors, you can still maximize your profit. How? By simply taking the time to know your clients better. What does that even mean?

‍You need to track your customers’ behaviors, their needs, and any changes in those. You can even keep an eye on new possibilities for services/products that you can provide in the future.

‍This type of customer insight gives you both analytic and predictive data. After all, the more information you have about your customers, the easier your job will be. You can then align your B2B brand messaging much better.

‍Plus, it becomes easier to deliver a service that fits their unique needs. So, how do you get hold of such data?

‍You will need a lot of resources to do both qualitative and quantitative research if you want to get accurate customer insights. That’s why you probably need to invest in customer relationship management (CRM) software in order to pull that off (more on that later).

#3 Collaborate to Build Powerful Relationships With Other Relevant Brands

‍The idea of this one is simple — you have clients, and another business somehow related to you (not your competitor) also has clients. If you collaborate, you can exchange some of those customers. Sounds good, right?

‍Ideally, you want to choose a complementary service or product that can actually add some value to your buyers.

‍For example, Amazon partnered with Amex to create a special card for small businesses. As a result, both have pages with this information on each other’s websites, which leads to more potential customers for both.

‍Source: Amazon

‍Source: American Express

‍Of course, you don’t need to be a giant corporation for this. It’s just one of the collaborative B2B messaging examples, but you can also find some inspiration in your niche.

‍Still, whatever you choose to do, make sure that you and your partners share similar values and complement each other’s offerings. This is the best way for your partnership to make sense.

#4 Keep the Communication Line Open

‍As a B2B business owner, you can’t afford to be the last brand to share vital information with your clients. Especially in this day and age where passing information is not only easier but often can be done cheaply too.

‍So, you’ll need to keep your customers in the loop with the latest updates, news, offers, etc. Besides, ensure that your support team is always available to answer any questions and help troubleshoot issues promptly.

#5 Show, Don’t Tell

‍This one is true for everyone, whether you’re in the B2B or B2C niche. The idea is simply to back up every claim with tangible proof — verifiable data. So, recall when we said stories could get people to buy from you in B2C but not B2B? That’s what we mean here.

‍More than emotions and stories, case studies are such a big deal in the B2B world. When done well, they serve as powerful testimonies of your value and social proof. This makes them incredible for building credibility.

‍Apart from case studies, you also want to publish white papers. Basically, any other content that highlights your expertise and experience. This means going beyond information that is only useful for the sales process.

‍You could be the first to share some groundbreaking research in your industry or conduct a survey on an unexplored topic.

‍Besides, try to publish some actually expert content — maybe your copywriter can interview one of your tech specialists. This way, your blogs will be much more valuable.

#6 Simplicity Over Complexity

‍The most effective messaging strategies are those that focus on making even the most complex things accessible.

‍This doesn’t mean that you have to sound like you are writing to kids. The idea is to explain your process in a straightforward and clear way. All while still retaining professionalism.

‍This especially includes how your product or service works. The less technical jargon you use, the better. After all, no one is as involved in your product/service as you are. So, things that are obvious to you are likely unclear to most of your readers.

‍Also, remember what we said about people in B2B businesses also being humans? Infuse a bit of storytelling to create that emotional connection and build trust without going overboard.

‍No matter how you tell your stories, make sure they highlight how your products or services solve real-world problems.

‍Your B2B marketing should be less about technical specifications and more about adding human value and solving issues your prospects deal with.

‍This is easier to do when you actually understand the ecosystem of your niche. So, take time to do your research beforehand.

#7 Get More Feedback From Your Clients

‍Whether we’re talking about B2B or B2C messaging, you have to listen to your customers first to communicate something relevant afterward. How do you do that? Well, there are hundreds (probably more) tools and platforms for this, so the choice is yours.

‍But the easiest way to start is by talking to your clients directly. Just ask them when you get a chance. Most people will gladly share their impressions and opinions.

‍Still, don’t just listen and nod. Use all the information you get to improve both your product/service and your messaging. Often, you can find out that people don’t even know about some of your visions, plans, features, etc.

‍Source: Yellow AI

‍At this point, you should be able to do more than just define messaging in marketing. You should also be able to create a working strategy.

‍Communicating in B2B is easy once you understand how businesses work. The main idea is to find those points where you can connect with your audience — these will be different for every brand.

‍But when you master this, you’ll just know how your buyers react to diverse messages and what they want from you.