“Data in B2B has many unique characteristics, but with common sense and by following the basic rules, you can achieve excellent results with minimal investment. The key is to make decisions based on data, not assumptions,” says our Account Director Daniel Musil.
Come and be inspired by Dan’s practical tips on how to obtain and then make smart use of the data available in B2B marketing. You can start applying his ideas straight away.
3 key questions:
Before we get to work with your B2B data at AITOM, we first identify three key pieces of information.
- What are your company’s goals and business processes?
Are you looking to increase revenue? Or expand abroad? Do you have hundreds of small customers, or three large ones? Do you sell your products or services directly, or through sales representatives?
- How does the online channel fit into your business process?
Does the customer see you on the website first and then contact you? Or do sales representatives approach them, and the customer only visits the website after meeting with them? Or does the website play no role in the decision-making process and serve only as support or a document repository?
- What is the goal of your online activities?
How many new enquiries do you want to generate? How many newsletter subscriptions?… This includes anything that supports your sales process and leads to growth.
Only then is it time to ask where to look for the necessary data. In B2C, you would probably use Google Analytics or perhaps Hotjar – tools that require a relatively large amount of data to process. In B2B, we take a different approach.
Once again, it’s time for questions!
What is important to your customers when making a decision? Why did they choose you and not the competition?
The answers to these key questions will lead you straight to your goal. It sounds simple, but believe me, 90% of companies never ask their customers! Yet the secret to success lies in ordinary human communication. All you need to do is ask the people who decide on the purchase of your service or product the question you defined at the start:
“What is important to you when choosing a supplier?” Or: “Why did you choose us rather than the competition?” The vast majority of customers will be happy to answer, and you’ll gain data that’s worth its weight in gold.
How to use data in practice
Finally, you need to devise a specific online strategy that makes the most of the data you’ve gathered. For every industry and every customer, a different solution leads to the goal. This was also the case with three of our B2B clients. Take a look at the key question we asked at the start of our collaboration and the online solution it ultimately led to:
Atlas Copco
- Industry: Industrial compressors
- Objective: A new microsite to generate new leads for the sales department.
- Key question: What is key for you when deciding to buy a compressor?
- Answer: Low noise levels. Brand. Reliable service.
- Online solution: We listed the selling points on the new website in order of frequency, as mentioned by end customers. We started with the quiet operation of the compressors, which was the biggest surprise for the client. We also programmed an online calculator that generates specific quotes.
- Result: The conversion rate rose above 2.5%. The website generates dozens of new leads every month.
Isover
- Industry: Insulation
- Objective: Increase in turnover and market share
- Key question: What factors influence the end customer’s (e.g. a tradesperson’s) decision when purchasing insulation?
- Answer (simplified): Based on the recommendation of a shop assistant.
- Online solution: Introduction of regular e-learning training courses, which shop staff enjoy using and which help them build a closer relationship with the brand.
- Result: 2.5 times more sales staff are trained annually than before the introduction of e-learning. Increase in sales.
Česká zbrojovka
- Industry: Firearms
- Objective: Increase in sales and market share
- Key question: How can we generate demand for our product among end customers?
- Answer (simplified): Give the customer the chance to ‘play with the product’. Offer something unique.
- Online solution: Online configurator
- Result: Within a month of launch, sales increased by hundreds of thousands of crowns.
Would you also like help processing data for your B2B business?