The Changing Face of Buying Behaviours and B2B Marketing Strategies in 2022

From sustainability to voice search – changing buying behaviours that will evolve our B2B marketing strategies for good…

B2B marketing has undergone a significant shift change over the last couple of years, partially because of the pressures of the global Covid lockdown and buyer behaviours changing thereof.

Reliance on the traditional telemarketing agencies and sales networking at events and exhibitions have naturally decreased, with more returns being seen from digital marketing campaigns.

As we move into 2022, there are a few buyer behaviours we would like you to consider before you devise a campaign plan for the New Year….

Buyers are now searching for solutions to their problems online and often ask Alexa or voice search devices to do the searches for us. This trend is seen less in B2B searches and more relevant for retail clients, however, it’s only a matter of time before the trend catches up.

What does this mean for you?

We suggest you prepare and optimise your website for voice search, Google snippets and answers to commonly asked questions via website content becomes important.  When it is becoming more important to consumers, the trend will follow in the B2B world as we become more accustomed to these behaviours in our day-to-day life.

• ‘Think With Google’ estimates that some 89% of B2B researchers use the internet in their research process, and 55% search for business information on social media.  So, what does this mean for you?

• Search visibility – Your web presence and visibility for relevant search terms is hugely important. Also, the lines between social media and website content are blurring, so social media planning should really be a critical component of your SEO strategy going into 2022.

• Make your pages informative – The user is looking for unbiased information to be able to make an informed decision and you can only win by adopting a content strategy that fulfils a prospect’s need for information. If for example, a prospect is looking for a software solution, the decision to buy from you will be based on; features of the product, how they can buy from you, will they be supported after they buy from you, transparency of your pricing model and most importantly, has anyone else used your product/service and have they achieved similar goals to this customer.

• References and reviews – References and reviews are helpful in establishing your credibility and convincing a prospect to buy from you.

• We are all conscious buyers – An independent study commissioned by SmartestEnergy reveals that 81% of consumers are increasingly favouring brands with a commitment to environmental sustainability. What does this mean for you?

Whether you are a software provider, a holiday letting website or a business consultancy, please make sustainability part of your marketing strategy. You can create a simple plan of how you pledge to be more sustainable as a workplace and as individuals within the company.  For inspiration, read how we at Predictable Marketing are doing our bit as a business towards sustainability.

Content is everywhere; but not a word to read.

Yes, we are constantly bombarded with content from all sources – email, social and digital platforms.  But rarely do we find a piece of content that is authentic and gives us more information about a topic than we already know. Although content is everywhere the need for authentic content has never been greater.   What does this mean for you?

• Create informative content
• Create content formats that make information easy to digest
• Visual content is important
• Where the content is delivered is important too
• There is also a shift towards digital entertainment which means that gamified content is received a lot better
• More emphasis on digital experiences means website usability and experience will be more important than ever.

As with creating more authentic content, personalisation and approachable tones will become a necessity. Not only is customisable content a must, but crucially as a population, we are at a time in history, where due to the global events over the past two years, we have all been through something at the same time; meaning we are connected in ways we haven’t been before. What does this mean to you?

While topics may be sales or process-based, some humour and shorter, snappier language won’t go amiss with your recipient when their workloads may have increased and the need for lighter content or email marketing is welcomed.

Enterprises are moving away from email as the main communication channel to more collaborative platforms like Teams, Slack, Asana, Trello, Monday.com, Zoom and the likes.

What does this mean for you?

Marketers will need to innovate email campaigns so they render well on these platforms. If you have some downtime in your schedule, we suggest you take that time to familiarise yourself with the platforms you may not have used before – as it’s likely in 2022 you will.