B2B Messaging: Why it Matters More in Times of Crisis

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Businesses are being forced to rethink B2B messaging. There is a whole new work-from-home culture that is now present.

What lessons can be learned from the global economy to help marketers deploy new B2B messaging in this current climate?

In our third episode of Oktopost’s original discussion series, “The Globalization of Social Media”, Scott Vaughan, Chief Growth Officer at Integrate, Inc.,and best known for finding organization’s “secret sauces” for growth, joins Oktopost’s Managing Director of EMEA, Colin Day, to explain the importance of taking action and being proactive in your marketing strategy during a crisis.

Join the conversation by searching for B2B Marketing Now and subscribing wherever you listen to podcasts. Stay tuned for our next episode.

Key Takeaways from Scott Vaughan:

Get on your Front Foot:

Now is not the time, as a B2B marketer, to sit back and wait for things to happen.

B2B marketers today need to be proactive in communicating with their customers, prospects and partners, as well as getting creative about pivoting their current brand messaging.

There are many ways to do this. One way is to bring people together to brainstorm and listen to one another. Be there and be present. But whatever action you take, Scott emphasizes,

“Do not just sit and stew, do!”

Get on the phone with prospects and customers. Invite CEOs and CMOs into the discussion. Lock arms with partners. Speak to prospects and use current suppliers to guide you. Ask them what they want to hear from your brand and if your current B2B messaging is on point.

In these brainstorming sessions and conversations, consider how to position messaging in a way that feels more appropriate for the moment.

Put Yourself in the Chair of Your B2B Buyer:

At the moment, everyone is being flooded with information.

Having empathy for your customers, prospects and partners on how you communicate with them will help appropriately re-strategize B2B messaging.

While it’s important to keep everyone in the loop about important updates, the vast amount of information people are receiving is through email.

Brands are using email to stay connected with good intentions, however, buyers are hearing from brands they do not hear from on a regular basis. This is not okay.

During these times, marketing teams must resist the urge to mass email people letting them know they care.

Instead, put yourself in the chairs of your buyers and tighten your digital strategy. Incorporate social media data. Now is the time to be an auditor and inspector of current messaging across:

• Email nurturing campaigns
• Social Media channels
• Website pages and blogs

Explore personalized messaging over mass communication. If you have not been segmenting previously, now is the time.

Communicate with key customers about continuity planning. Put out inspirational messages. Show the community the brand cares and be authentic. Being human right now is everything.

The more human your brand can stay, your customers and prospects will remember your brand, your company and their experience during these unprecedented times which is better for the long run.

Look to the Other Side:

Right now, many B2B marketers are in the eye of the storm. Companies are on a difficult course to navigate and adapt quickly to a new world order. But when the dust does settle, what will the new reality look like?

In creative meetings, conversations with customers and moments you find yourself brainstorming, take moments to close your eyes and look to the other side.

Rethink how to bring people together. Envision what the world will look like three months from now. Then six months from now, and then 9 months from now. Picture the future and work backwards.

Future mapping, which is the innovative process for creative strategic thinking and decision-making, plays a big role. This tactic can help ensure B2B messaging for the brand is successful.

The world economy has certainly been through other crises (the dot-com crash, September 11th and the 2008 recession). B2B marketers can learn from them.

Future mapping will unlock the right things to do now, that will help provide the insights you need to move forward in the best way possible.