B2B
Branding's Value Conclusively Proven
In a joint study, Google
and CEB Marketing Leadership Council debunk several myths. Their findings were
unexpected and shed new light on the hidden power of B2B branding.
The study conclusively
shows that B2B branding: (1) significantly outperforms B2C branding, (2) greatly
influences purchase decisions, and (3) helps command premiums.
As a B2B marketing
professional, you can leverage this little known fact to your
advantage.
 |
| B2B Branding Impacts the Bottom Line |
Imagine
taking your branding to the next level.
Effective
B2B branding helps you:
- Build trust that
helps build enduring customer loyalty.
- Shorten decision
cycle increasing annual sales and profits.
- Build long-term relationships
that help even out sales cycle.
- Maximize favorable pricing
resulting in higher average profits per sale.
You
can achieve the results listed above by following a proven branding approach.
Let’s
look at the key findings from the Google-CEB study.
Finding
#1: The Impact of B2C Brands Pales Compared to B2B Brands
In
B2C, between 10% and 40% of
consumers connect with B2C brands. Google and CEB studied nine B2B brands. The data revealed that connections to seven
B2B brands were greater than 50%.
What’s
the reason for this high affinity for B2B brands? In a word, risk.
A quote from Napoleon aptly captures the
significance risk plays in B2B purchases:
“There are two levers to set a man in motion, fear
and self-interest”.
In
B2B, purchases represent huge investments running from six to seven figures.
That's why purchase decision are cautious, deliberate and slow in-the-making.
B2B
purchasers have a lot at stake including business and personal value such as
business success and professional reputation. Even one’s job may be at risk.
Finding #2: Personal Value-Linked Brands Impact B2B Buying Decisions
The
Google-CEB study defines personal value as personal, social, and emotional
benefits. Personal value appeals to your
right brain. It appeals to creativity, intuition, and curiosity.
The
study, meanwhile, relates business value to functional benefits and business results. It appeals to your left brain,
which is rational and logical.
When
B2B buyers perceive personal value, they are almost 50% more inclined to buy a product
or service. Business value,
on the other hand, has less of an impact.
In a study of 14 business outcomes, business value influenced only 21.4% of B2B purchasers.
The analysis further revealed that 42.6% of buyers were influenced by emotional considerations.
These
results are not what most of us would expect. However, when you consider that fear and self-interest lead to risk aversion, the outcome doesn't surprise.
Finding #3: B2B Brands that
Convey Personal Value Command Premiums
In
the same study cited above, B2B purchasers are 8 times more likely to
pay a premium for similar products and services when personal value is
present.
With personal capital at stake, buyers look for assurance,
assistance and ways to mitigate risk.
So
logic and reason was about half as important to buyers as emotional
considerations. (Source: CEB/Motista Survey; CEV Analysis.)
As
you can see commonly-held notions of B2B branding are untrue.
- The data show that B2B branding is significantly
more important relative to B2C branding.
- B2B branding that addresses personal value plays
a more important role in influencing purchase decisions than commonly
believed.
- B2B branding that emphasizes personal value
(rather than business value) significantly reduces resistance to paying
premiums.
Remarkably,
most B2B companies focus on business value.
But appeals to
emotion are more powerful than addressing
features and benefits – business value. As surprising as that may be, it
uncovers a veiled opportunity.
Finding #4: People Trust B2B Brands That Mitigate Risk
These findings fly in the face of
conventional thinking. But they make sense when you examine why personal value and
emotions play a major role in decision making. B2B buyers don’t like risk.
That’s understandable given the value and impact of their purchases.
Teddy Roosevelt said, “Risk
is like fire: If controlled it will help you; if uncontrolled it will rise up
and destroy you.”
Therefore, B2B branding must help customers
control risk.
The branding message must consider its customers’
needs, wants and desires on a personal level. When businesses mitigate
risk, they can help drive favorable outcomes and command premiums.
- Will a product or service be easy to use?
- Does a service or software solution require extensive training?
- Will the solution positively affect the bottom line?
- Will accuracy, speed, and visibility really improve?
To connect with customers and close sales, B2B marketers must
address the right brain because its people who make these
weighty decisions.
How to Exploit B2B Branding to Outflank the
Competition
The business outcomes should be addressed in
terms of their personal values. They include career progression, social recognition that comes with a good buy decision,
and personal confidence.
Branding must consider these. Because
as risk increases, the power of emotional connection increases.
Are you missing out on the hidden power of branding?
I'd
be interested in hearing your comments. Just leave a
post to the right. And share this
post with your friends, if you liked it.
Call me if you want to
know more about how to motivate decision makers to buy
your product or service. I’d love to hear from you. My contact information
is below.
You can find the
complete Google-CEB white paper here.
Next week, I'll cover another interesting aspect about B2B
branding.
Alex Milo
B2B Copywriter and Consultant
“Helping Transportation and Logistics
Companies Generate Leads with Compelling Content”
Phone: 256-886-4684
Email: amilo@b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com
Email: amilo@b2bcopywriting-alexmilo.com
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