B2B marketing trends in 2021

With the onset of the pandemic, the B2B business strategies have changed drastically. Gone are the days when traditional marketing was the only means to find clients. Now, digital strategies are the fundamental tactics that can help you grow your business. To keep up on the business ladder, marketers must adapt to various marketing trends ruling the market.

Well, why not? Let’s say you want to purchase a product in this challenging time. Where are you most likely to purchase it? Will you go to traditional stores or look for them online? The latter, right? Similarly, innovations such as TikTok and reels are ruling the digital platforms, which did not exist a few years ago. The right thing you can do for your business is to implement innovative and new methods to rule your industry.

Why should you invest in B2B marketing trends?

2020 was the turning point for all businesses. The existing approaches failed to meet the demands of the customers. 50% of the buyers had to hold on to the purchases due to the uncertainty and lack of preparation. The unpredictability caused considerable losses in business, and some industries could not make it to 2021.

However, amidst all the chaos, B2B verticals witnessed 80% or more sales through digital tactics that changed the outlook of B2B marketing strategies. Not to miss, the tech and telecom were less affected by the uncertainty, which indicates that you must always understand the market and their current approach to thrive in the market.

Here are some of the top B2B marketing trends of 2021 that can make you stand out:

Content Marketing

Business to business content marketing is of the top B2B marketing trends to revolutionize your industry. A recent study by Hubspot states that B2B business with blogs generates 67%more leads than those without blogs. Not only this, the study revealed that having pages on your website can drive 48% more traffic to your business, thereby generating more sales.

You might believe that content marketing can be time-consuming. But, it is always the other way round. Implementing the B2B marketing strategies can be challenging if you do not know who your audience is. But if you can figure out your demographic, you can use pre-recorded sessions or content pillars to market. Besides, platforms like Linkedin is a mine full of possibilities. Curating content for your industry can open you up to various opportunities.

The 49-page report of 2021, released by the Content Marketing Institute, states that 60% of the marketers from the top B2B businesses have already documented a content strategy. So focusing on creating content and following the social media marketing trends won’t hurt your business. Instead, it can skyrocket your brand’s success and generate more conversions.

Agile Marketing

Agile marketing can change the whole outlook of your business if done correctly. Unlike traditional approaches, Agile marketing encourages better performances and engagement providing better transparency in your B2B business. Proper B2B agile marketing can be challenging to carry out, but the immense results make it worthwhile.

Agile marketing replaces the traditional marketing campaigns with the C’s of Robert F. Laterborn’s model, i.e., Cost, Convenience, Communication, and Customer Experience. This marketing streamlines better teamwork and the company’s performance without following linear buying tactics.

As per the Forbes and Aprimo’s survey, B2B agile marketing campaigns showed 27% faster results, and 23% of the Marketers believe that Agile marketing delivers efficient and higher metrics. Looking at the metrics,85% of the B2B marketers will invest in Agile marketing campaigns in the upcoming years. So it is high to invest in these B2B marketing trends 2021 to improve efficiency.

3.Email marketing

While many of you might believe that email marketing is dead, it generates leads when executed correctly. As per the Smart insights study, 84% of the email marketing campaigns combined with storytelling and personalization showed excellent results. This study indicates that, unlike sales offers, personalization and storytelling can soar your business higher. Not only this, other statistics reveal that 99% of the consumers check their email every day. Suffice to say, if you can attract the buyers to open your emails- half of your work is done. If you want to generate more leads, investing in email marketing can be the right thing to do.

4. AI and chatbot automation

With the growing restlessness across the globe, people are looking for building connections and engagements. Eighty per cent of the buyers are more likely to convert if the websites have human-like engagements. To meet the customers’ demands, B2B marketers are looking forward to shifting to Artificial Intelligence.

Well, why not? Besides engaging with the buyers on the website, AI can predict analytical data campaigns and efficiently increase your sales. AI and Chatbots can collect data from various sites and help you target them to get better leads. As per the NewVintage report 2020, 91.5 per cent of the leading B2B businesses are willing to invest in artificial intelligence. The number of AI automation is likely to increase to 8 billion by 2023. It is high time you should invest and implement the latest marketing trends to generate quality leads for your business.

5. ABM marketing

ABM marketing has always been in trend. It has always been in the top list of marketing tactics followed by successful businesses. But, it gained momentum in 2020. A statistic provided by Altera group states that ABM has increased the ROI of their businesses by 91%. ABM is a result-driven approach that requires proper strategy. Without proper strategies, the ABM tactics are more likely to fail. So you must know who your ideal audience is and focus on personalization and creating ABM centric content. ABM is the go-to marketing trend of 46% B2B marketers, and it should be your priority.

B2B marketing tactics that never goes out of style

Brand trust

Brand trust is one of the leading factors for a business to flourish. It builds a genuine connection between the consumer and the business. According to the Edelman Trust Barometer study, brand trust should be our priority at this precarious time. As per the study, 86 per cent of the CEOs are vocal about their challenges and are transparent to their buyers on social media. This approach has resulted in better outcomes and build trust with their consumers.

Experience

How many of you are likely to revisit a website that was complex to use? Let’s not even get into broken websites and poor loading websites. No one, right? The same goes for your customers too. Three out of five people had an unfriendly user experience during their B2B purchase last year. And the metric is enormous. So, it is essential to have a properly optimized website that enables a better user experience for your customers.

Emotions and personalization

Emotions never get out of style. With the uncertainty around us, businesses need to infuse emotions and empathy in their marketing to build trust with their buyers. According to Forbes, infusing human touch and emotions is the need of the hour, and without it, businesses cannot grow. So, it is a must for B2B marketers to implement empathy and genuine emotions in their digital marketing strategies for better outcomes.

Conclusion

During this precarious time, everything around us is evolving. Similarly, the Business world is changing every day. The best way to adapt to the current situation is to keep upgrading and shifting to the various marketing trends. The B2B marketing trends 2021 mentioned above are some of the best strategies you can implement this year. But brand trust and genuine connections always stay. So, focus on building trust and enable a better experience to attract your potential customers to your business. No matter what strategy you implement, it might do more harm than good if not done correctly. So, work on creating a proper plan and execution tactics to get the best out of them.