B2B marketing is evolving at a breakneck pace. Fortunately, the digital landscape makes it easy to spot emerging trends and develop strategies to capitalize on them. Take demand generation, for example. Discussions about content marketing and inbound marketing have left B2B marketers collectively discussing how they can implement these concepts within their organizations. In addition to these widely debated topics, there are many other lesser-discussed but equally important trends that B2B marketers need to be aware of to remain effective. This article will explore some of the most impactful B2B demand gen tactics, techniques, and technologies available today.
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What is B2B Demand Generation?
Demand generation refers to the process of increasing your company’s demand or visibility within the marketplace. Demand generation is often associated with a focus on acquisition but includes retention and expansion. B2B demand generation campaigns typically include lead generation, lead nurturing, and demand conversion.
Demand Generation Campaign Examples
- Social Media Campaigns – Social media is one of the best ways to reach an audience and generate new demand. A successful social media campaign will require a plan of action and dedicated resources. A campaign should include paid advertisements, relevant hashtags, and organic posts.
- Content Marketing Campaigns – Content marketing is a valuable way to attract attention to your brand and generate demand. Content marketing campaigns include blog posts, video content, e-books, and other assets.
- Email Campaigns – Email campaigns can consist of automated or manually sent emails. You can trigger automated campaigns based on criteria, such as a lead completing a form or specified time intervals. Whether automated or manual, the emails should be relevant and valuable to your readers.
Demand Generation vs. Lead Generation
The terms demand generation and lead generation are often used interchangeably. While there is some overlap between the two terms, lead generation is typically the first step in the demand generation process. You can break down a demand generation campaign into three stages: lead generation, lead nurturing, and demand conversion. Lead generation refers to the process of collecting information from prospective customers. Lead generation can be done in person, via email, or online. Once a lead has been generated, the information will be entered into a database and given a unique lead identifier.
Lead nurturing actively engages individuals who have shown interest in your brand by consuming your content. Lead nurturing typically involves sending emails (and possibly texts and voicemails) with content relevant to your product or service. The goal of lead nurturing is to keep your company at the forefront of your leads’ minds so that when they are ready to purchase, they choose you.
B2B Demand Generation Benefits
- Increased revenue – The most obvious benefit of a strong demand generation campaign is increased revenue. A demand generation strategy can help acquire new customers and retain your existing customer base through lead nurturing activities such as customer loyalty programs.
- Reduced acquisition costs – Another benefit of a well-executed demand generation campaign is reduced acquisition costs. When you can organically attract customers to your brand, you save the money you would have spent on paid advertisements.
- Improved customer experience – Another benefit of a well-executed demand generation campaign is an improved customer experience. You can easily streamline your production and delivery processes when you have enough customers to support high demand levels.
- Increased brand visibility – Finally, a well-executed demand generation campaign will increase your brand’s visibility. A popular way to gauge brand visibility is to look at the number of times your brand is searched on Google. When you have a strong demand generation campaign, potential clients will search for your brand more often, and you will become more visible to your target audience.
How to improve your B2B demand generation campaign strategy
- Choose a goal – The first step in improving your demand generation campaign strategy is to choose a goal. What do you want your campaign to achieve? You may want to generate leads, increase brand visibility, or drive customer purchases.
- Define your target audience – The next step in improving your demand generation campaign strategy is to define your target audience. You can create personas based on your best customers, measure their behaviors, and then extrapolate that data to the rest of your audience.
- Develop a strategy – Once you have chosen a goal and defined your target audience, it’s time to develop a plan. Your strategy should include tactics like those listed in this article.
What Are the Best Demand Generation Tools?
- Google Analytics – Google Analytics is one of digital marketers’ most important and widely used tools. Not only will it help you measure your marketing efforts, but it will also help you identify areas for improvement.
- Social media management tools – If you are managing social media campaigns, you will need social media management tools. Tools such as Sprout Social and Hootsuite allow you to manage your campaigns across multiple social media platforms from a single dashboard.
- SEO tools – SEO is crucial for brand visibility, and many SEO tools are available to B2B marketers. A great SEO tool will allow you to identify keywords your customers use to find your brand and see their website rankings.
- E-commerce automation tools – E-commerce automation tools such as Shopify help B2B companies manage their online store and direct customers toward their purchase pages.
Conclusion
A strong demand generation campaign can help boost your company’s revenue and reduce acquisition costs. To achieve these results, identify your campaign goals and audiences, then develop an appropriate strategy. Next, invest in the tools your team needs to succeed and encourage your employees to put in the effort required to see results.
