A quirky look at some differences between B2B and B2C Social Marketing, and opportunities to enhance touch-points along the Customer Decision Journey. Presented at Social Media Marketing in Feb/2012.

1. Social Marketing to
Business vs Consumers:
What’s the difference?
Ruth Bastedo
Group Head, Director,
Client Strategy and Innovation
r uth.bastedo@socialmediagroup.com

2. What is the overlap between a B2B
approach and B2C approach to social
marketing ?
Is it as simple as LinkedIn vs Facebook?
What about influencer outreach ?
Why is content marketing so hot?
And what is “out of the park” going to
look like in the near future?

3. B2B vs B2C
Circa 2012
What does this
shoe symbolize to
you- fashion
or power?
Check out shoe on Bluefly

4. Is it fish or fowl?
“Many firms you'd typically
think of as B2C actually have
B2B efforts in place as well…
running in parallel, using many
of the same tools and
capabilities they have in place
for their B2C efforts.”
Paul’s Post

5. B2B Marketing B2C Marketing
Tend to be smaller, more Tend to be larger target
specialized target markets markets
Complex solution- more More product oriented, less
“consultative” selling “consultative”
Generally smaller above the Larger “above the line”
line advertising/marketing advertising budgets= more
budgets= well known brands
Less well known brands
Longer sales cycle Shorter sales cycle
Can be very relationship Relationship tends to be with
oriented- longstanding sales the product- not sales person!
relationships
Less personal, more “value Very personal, ties into
driven” personal ideas of status, self
image, peer group etc.

6. B2B vs B2C
What is the same?
Both B2B and
B2C customers
go through a
tough decision
journey

7. This might look like this…
Harvard Business Review, Spotlight on Social Media and The New Rules of
Branding: “Branding in a Digital Age” by David C. Edeleman

8. Both B2B and B2C Customers
Consider/Buy
Evaluate/Advocate
Bond

9. The fact is,
A Customer
Is Always A
Person

10. This is what is going to work
best with a “Person”:
To market to him or her, in
accordance with his/her own
worldview, tastes, interests,
life stage, unique set of needs
and life experiences.

11. Example
This is a green stove that I “like”,
among other things…

12. How would I use this
information, if I were
marketing a B2B product?
Some B2B companies are
starting to actively segment
customers. Check out this
women’s business event
hosted by Dell- I attended last
week…

14. There are more potential
touch-points than ever before
along the Customer Decision
Journey.
And ways to deliver an almost
1:1 marketing message, offer
and customer experience.

15. So what does this mean to
ALL social marketers?

16. Point 1
Emerging Reality: It’s going to be
increasingly helpful to understand
your Customer Decision Journey.
And how it is expressed in the
digital environment.
A map will be a valuable tool.

17. quaero.csgi.com/writable/files/mapping_customer_journey.pdf
http://experiencematters.wordpress.com/2009/03/03/legos-building-block-for-good experiences/

18. Point 2
Understand who your customers
are as people: Invest in tools that
will help you deeply understand
your customer segments.
http://microstrategy.com/Social-Intelligence/Enterprise/

19. Point 3
Focus on relevant touch-points:
Where will they emerge?
Facebook? LinkedIn? Google Plus?
Twitter? Microblogs?
Will the touch points be on paid
channels? Blogs?
Try to understand this.

20. Point 4
Develop a content marketing
strategy: Base this on the right mix
of touch-points, content
types, formats and channels.
And develop great content assets.

21. http://www.marketingprofs.com/charts/2011/4972/content-fuels-social-media-
interaction#ixzz1ajFMDisA

22. Point 5
Make it a point this year to try and
understand what Google is doing:
Remember, if your customer can’t
find it, it doesn’t exist.

23. “Google is insisting
upon making its new
social layer a
pervasive, personaliz
ed filter for the
whole Google
experience”
Jon Mitchell, ReadWriteWeb.com
http://www.readwriteweb.com/archives/google_adds_more_social_seo_with_1d_new
s_articles.php

24. So what is “out of
the park” going to
look like for Social
Marketers in the
future?

25. It’s going to mean
really, truly
understanding the
language and
mindset of your
audience.

26. It’s going to mean
figuring out what
this shoe means to
each of the women
in your target
audience.
Check out shoe on Bluefly

27. And using that
knowledge to sell
each of those
women, your
product.
And have them feel
good about it.

28. To me, the Power thing
trumps the Fashion thing.
Just for the record.
But it is also just a great
shoe.

29. Thank you!
Social Marketing to
Business vs Consumers:
What’s the difference?
Ruth Bastedo
Group Head, Director,
Client Strategy and Innovation
r uth.bastedo@socialmediagroup.com