Wednesday, June 5, 2013

B2B Branding - 5 Reasons You Must Differentiate Your Business

B2B Branding - 5 Reasons You Must Differentiate Your Business

Branding - It 's Not Just for B2C

It's rare for a B2C company to neglect branding . Yet branding branding in the B2B space does not carry the same significance . Ironically , today many B2B marketers neglect branding , unlike their peers B2C marketing .

Branding by B2B companies is not new however . It has a long history . Here are a few examples : DuPont - 1802 ; Union Pacific - 1848 ; GE - 1892 ; Goodyear - 1908 ; UPS - 1913 ; Caterpillar - 1925 SAP - 1972 and FEDEX - 1973 .

Here are five businesses could be better in the B2B space should develop their brands.

1 . Increase Revenues and Profit . Bottom line : Brands command a premium . In some cases , a business can charge up to 40 % more than generic or store - brands. One case in point is the Mercedes - Benz trucks , roomates sell for 20 % more than the Volvo trucks .

This also means companies with strong differentiation can survive economic downturns more easily. In general , they are less susceptible to competition . Another benefit is that buyers accept marketing messages more readily than those of non - branded products and services .

2 . Increase Customer Loyalty and Growth . A brand is a promise of a product or service . And when you build your brand , you build your promise . You know you've Achieved when your customers that your Become advocates .

Joe Puilizzi and Newt Barrett , authors of Get Content Get Customers, said: " Word of mouth marketing has always been important . Today , it's more important than ever Because of the power of the Internet . " ACME Brick of Ft . Worth , Texas , exemplifies the converting of customers into advocates . ACME uses an Unheard -of " 100 - year" warranty to sell bricks to architects and homebuilders . This brand warranty helps win customers and loyalty .

3 . Branding Increases Sales in Less Time . A strong brand makes selling Easier , faster , and cheaper . In a 1988 Study ( Malaval ) of 200 European buying and marketing managers , 95 % believed Significantly influenced familiarity being placed on a short list .

As a result , this compresses the sales cycle . Buyers spend less time evaluating their choices . And sellers spend less time selling the customer . Two thriving brands Caterpillar and Komatsu Illustrate this point . They survived a crowded market segment and now thrive in a competitive market space . They've Themselves differentiated from the competition .

4 . Branding to Influence the Buying Decision . Credibility goes a long way towards sealing the deal . That means B2B marketers must Clearly and concisely communicate features and benefits . As you know , B2B products and services are typically expensive and complex .

Consequently , risk reduction plays a pivotal role in a buying decision . To address this risk , marketers must address emotions . Although facts and figures serve to justify a decision once made ​​, emotions drive actions . Buyers growing niche to gravitate towards brands they trust . Powerful branding plays a key role here . AMD ; Caterpillar , Cessna , IBM , and Zeiss are a few companies that the make an emotional connection with their buyers .

5 . Increase Market Share. This is no easy task for any company . But a U.K. study by Fred Reichheld revealed you can increase of market share with branding . Speci , his study Showed that a 7 % increase of in word -of -mouth advocacy leads to 1 % additional growth . In terms of brand advocacy effectiveness , his results Indicated that a 12 % increase of brand advocacy causes in a Twofold rise in revenue growth and market share increases . That's the power of branding .

Branding is just as important in B2B as it is in B2C . It's been proven to make a difference in a business 's bottom line . It creates enduring value . That leads to competitive advantage .

Because you could argue that B2B products and services are more complex and expensive , branding is more important in B2B . The benefits of differentiating your business are substantial and clear .

Your resources are adequately focused on branding ? Is your brand up - to-date ? Does your company stand out from the rest of the crowd in a meaningful way ?

If you answered no to any of these questions , use these five could be better to help persuade your boss to reenergize your brand

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