Posted by: Meg Archer, Marketing Coordinator

When it comes to B2B marketing, it’s easy to forget that even though your customers are from another business, they still go through the same buying cycle as B2C prospects. However, there are differences in how to reach the B2B consumer. The key differences include:  more than one decision maker, who obtains purchase information and how, and the best language for communicating with the audience.

In this blog I am going to focus on the Technical B2B buyer. Let’s look at some of the current trends in B2B search:

• The Engines: According to Enquiro Search Solutions, search engines are the top online influencers for the purchase decision of a technical buyer, followed by IT blogs and wikis. And Google is still the preferred search engine among technical buyers. That makes your keyword strategy and messaging for search engine optimization (SEO) and pay-per-click (PPC) advertising extremely important.
• Vendor Websites: Where do B2B searchers land after a search? Hopefully your website. It should be a great source of information for buyers. I recommended offering an e-newsletter subscription, case studies, and white papers for download. Business consumers require detailed information that can be passed along to the ultimate decision maker.
• White Papers:  Many tech buyers are just researching when looking for information online, so forcing sales language right off the bat can push them away. Sending searchers to landing pages with white papers is a good idea, as they are the top type of content for getting passed along to friends and colleagues, according to Marketing Sherpa. Track all conversions, so that you can measure the success of your search program.
• Vertical Searches: They’re becoming more popular in the research as well as the purchase phases. Not familiar with vertical search? Check out this blog entry. Because vertical search engines are built for niche markets, B2B sellers can fine tune their marketing with vernacular used in a specific industry.
• Social Marketing: B2B searchers are also looking for information on social media sites. These channels offer a great way for companies to stay connected with customers. Open discussions and feedback can be an invaluable resource gain too. If you’re overwhelmed by the amount of social media out there, and how you can leverage it for added exposure, check out How B2B companies can dive into social media.

It’s important to remember to balance your marketing efforts among different platforms based on your customers’ behavior as well as your company strategy. But hopefully this blog has provided some helpful reminders that can inform your next search program. Please post a comment if you have any questions!