B2B is Not Your Basic Marketing: 3 Truths That Might Hurt a Little

 

From digital marketing trends to rising ad spend, Marketing as a sector is more vital than ever. But not all marketing disciplines are created equal.

B2B Marketing stands apart.
It comes with its own unique set of rules, rhythms, and realities. Unlike B2C, it’s not about mass reach or virality it’s about precision, relationships, and long-term value.

In this article, we’ll explore three characteristics that set B2B marketing apart from the rest. Beyond the familiar differences like a narrower audience, longer sales cycles, and a focus on relationships, B2B demands a different mindset when it comes to measuring impact and driving value.

We’ll cover:  

• CLV as MTM
• Companies are people too
• Road to buying

CLV as MTM

Let’s say I am selling branded T-shirts to companies in my neighborhood, I have an excel sheet to track sales, and I stress the value of customer service. 

End of each month I look at T-shirts sold and attribute slow sales cycles to seasonality, while some of that could be true. 

This approach is deeply flawed, it ignores corporate culture shifts (my customers in that scenario), changes to the area I am in, businesses might be moving out

CLV as a metric can be debated, factors like value cycle, events and technology can dilute the attribution of CLV.

Having said that when it comes to B2B, if we look at churn, CAC, APV, ACL, can provide a clearer image and a nudge towards pain points. 

In fact, we have an equation for it
CLV = (APV * ACL) – CAC

Companies Are People Too

Behind every B2B deal are real people making decisions each with their own goals, pressures, and career ambitions. It’s not just about selling to a company; it’s about connecting with individuals who want to make smart choices that reflect well on them, simplify their work, or even support their next promotion.

That’s why personalization in B2B isn’t just about relevance, it’s about empathy. When you show that you understand both the business need and the personal stakes, you build trust and stand out.

In fact, according to Gartner, 77% of B2B buyers say their last purchase was complex or difficult largely because of internal alignment and individual accountability.

The more you tailor your approach to the person behind the decision, the more you become a partner in their success, not just a vendor.

Road to Buying

The B2B buying journey isn’t a straight line—it’s often a mix of back-and-forth research, internal discussions, and multiple approvals.

According to Gartner, the average B2B buying group includes 6 to 10 decision-makers, each with their own opinions and information. That makes the process more complex and slower than many expect.

Making it easier for buyers to move forward—with helpful content, clear messaging, and timely support—can make a big difference

Published first here 
https://thebrandberries.com/b2b-is-not-your-basic-marketing-3-truths-that-might-hurt-a-little/

Takeaways from Unreasonable Hospitality.

73% of consumers say that CX is a deciding factor when making purchase decisions.

Between Nudging, Choice architecture, Neuromarketing and straight up old fashion “buy this now, you need it” strategies, the average person sees between 4,000 and 10,000 ads in a single day. That’s up from 500 to 1,600 ads per day in the 1970’s.

The thin line for brands to walk then is, how to balance between providing an exceptional CXM or CX that the customers wants, yet stand out as the signal among the advertising sea of noise that the customers are swimming in.

While there are resources and tactics for brands to adapt like customer journey mapping, attribution modeling, customer funnels..etc.

Reading Will Guida’s book Unreasonable Hospitality, provided me with these 3 takeaways that I think adds to the brands toolbox and helps deliver a better CX.

1- Memorable Moments are not factory default settings.

As a customer think about the last time an experience really stood out to you. was it the business policies and standards? Or was it specific, personalized and unique to your own experience?

If the brand or business is saying to their customers, you are special just like everyone else, that’s their way of saying no one is special and all customers are the same. Which don’t get me wrong is vital for a brand or a business to have a standard of excellence that they operate under.

yet those memorable moments of unreasonable hospitality has to be unique, specific and dare I say above and beyond those standards.

2- Great Customer experience doesn't have to break the bank.

One of the examples that stayed with me after reading the book, that a waiter at a fine dinning restaurants in NYC, heard the customer on a table he was serving saying that they will regret not having street hotdog while they are in NYC.

Their schedule seemed tight and they had to travel back with that wish unfulfilled, so his extra mile here was he just ordered the hotdogs for them.

while this gesture is not going to break the bank for the restaurant, it defiantly will be memorable for this specific group of NY tourists.

3- Think in Moments

While unreasonable hospitality cannot be like factory work or standardized, every business has the potential situations to create these moments.

Every hospital has the patient that is there for the first health check, every restaurant has the customer that has been a recurring customer for a year, first car purchase, be proactive in thinking of these recurring yet unique to the customers situations.

These are my main three takeaways from the unreasonable hospitality book I highly encourage reading the book, for more context and to gain more insight.

Take Five. (Books, Podcasts, Series and Films). 2022 Review

When the world faded away,
fiction crystalized its justification for existence. 

To comfort, create and escape,
to imagination that sometimes feels real. 

Movies are the totality of art.
It includes music, fashion, theater, Photography.

Or to put it as Calque of French septième art,
which was coined by Italian film theoretician
Ricciotto Canudo around 1921.
Considering filmmaking to be a new art,
combining the six previous arts,
of architecture, sculpture,
painting, music, poetry and dance. 

Books are the ultimate friend,
whatever the problem,
the emotion or the situation is.
Someone somewhere thought of it,
came up with a solution or went through it.
And wrote a book about it. 

Books are the friends who are always there,
who understand and are here to help. 

Podcasts are the voices in our heads.
For the past couple of years,
in the age of short attention spans,
a victory to the long art-form.
podcasts provided company,
conversations and on occasion a window,
to new thought process and innovative ideas 

And every year as a tradition I am sharing a list of 5.
To take five minutes break
and maybe discuss over coffee. 

• Film: 
  
  

NOPE
Why watch?
For the fixation & fascination with the spectacle.

Raymond and Ray
Why watch? Because we contain multitudes

The Banshees of Inisherin
Why watch? Because friendship matters

TAR
Why watch? Because time is the maestro

Three Thousand Years of Longing
Why watch? For the love of storytelling

• Books:
  
  Taste: My Life Through Food
  by Stanley Tucci
  
  

Infinity in the palm of your hand
by Marcus Chown

A hopeful history of mankind
by Rutger Bregman

The comfort book
by Matt Haig

The book of minds
by Philip Ball

• Podcasts:

   

  Daily Stoic
  With Ryan Holiday
  
  

            Smartless
With Jason Bateman, Sean Hayes, & Will Arnett

            The watch 
With Andy Greenwald & Chris Ryan

            This job is history
With Chris Parnell

            Strong song
With Kirk Hamilton

• Series:
   

Sandman
Why watch?
Because Dreams rule all realms.

The Bear
Why watch?
Because grief and food is a pairing.

Severance
Why watch?
Because work life balance is not a thing, its all life.

The Peripheral
Why watch?
Because it's all a simulation.

Outer Range
Why watch?
Because there is a mystery between two worlds.