Say Good-Bye to B2B vs B2C Marketing. Say Hello to a New Marketing Paradigm!
Recently, a student at the Wolff Center for Entrepreneurship asked me…
“How do you move a mechanical mentor relationship into a personal mentor relationship?”
My answer was simple…. Be human.
You see… People want to connect with other people. That’s how we were designed. We weren’t designed to be isolated and unconnected.
The same goes in our business environment. We look at our clients as businesses or consumers. But in the end, every client you deal with is human.
That’s why I want to say good-bye to the terms B2B vs B2C marketing!
It’s time to welcome in this new term H2H.
Say Hello to H2H: The New Marketing Paradigm
In business writing, we’re often told to write from a business point of view to another business or a consumer. And while that’s dandy, it takes the personal touch out of the relationship.
And copywriting is basically building a relationship between you (i.e. the writer) and your reader (i.e. your prospect)!
When I meet with entrepreneurs every day, their “why” and purpose for why their business exists isn’t to make money (although that’s part of the motivation). The purpose is so much deeper than that, and may include:
- Creating full conversion campaigns so that you can take care of your sick family member
- Designing jewelry that female entrepreneurs can feel confident wearing because you didn’t have that sense of confidence when you were younger
- Documenting client’s processes because you know what’s it’s like when the founder of the company dies and left no documentation
- Advising clients on their finances because you came from an impoverished country
- Coaching spouses who co-own a business because you battled with your own spouse to get on the same page
This list goes on and on… And those are examples from just this past month!
B2B vs B2C Marketing
Business to business or B2B marketing is in the name itself. It’s businesses marketing their services to other businesses with the hope of solving their client’s problems, or at least making themselves appear more desirable.
The marketing style that most people are familiar with is typically business to consumer. Ads sporting a B2C style look similar to catchy fast food billboards, quippy sparkling water ads, or even eye-catching electronic commercials. While they all may fall under different industries, they all have one thing in common in that they are designed for you – the likely consumer.
Take a look at this chart below to compare key differences between both marketing strategies:
| B2B | B2C |
| Targets Other Businesses | Targets Consumers |
| Has Fewer Customers | Has a Larger Number of Customers |
| Effort is Often Put into Speaking to a Smaller Group(s) | Effort is Put into Speaking to a Wide Variety of People |
| Have High-Value Orders | Have Lower-Value Orders |
| Decisions to Buy Take Longer | Decisions to Buy Can Be Immediate |
| Produce Longer Lasting Relationships | Produce Shorter Term Relationships |
While this chart may not apply to every single business out there, it’s the typical pattern that we see when comparing B2B vs B2C marketing.
Why There’s Room for Change to H2H
The problem companies are running into with these two channels of marketing is that at the end of it all, there is a human behind the curtain making the important decisions. And unless you have robots for employees, there is a natural desire for copywriters to want to connect on a human-to-human basis with their audience.
Let’s put it this way… Customers can only hear the same auto reply responses and receive the same corporate-structured interactions so many times before they start to become frustrated with your intentions. And you may not even know it!
Consider if you were your own customer…
Do you think your business would be tackling the true pain points of your buyer in a meaningful way?
If not, there are a few things you can do to shake up the copy so that it relays a more relatable message.
Changing Your B2B Copy
The idea behind bringing up your potential customers’ pain points is to offer them a tangible solution. For businesses, pain points may look like this:
“I’m tired of using the management software I have because I feel it takes away from everyone’s productivity.”
Instead of responding or advertising something that immediately talks about your own business, think about why their problem may be frustrating to them. The reasons could include they:
- Want their employees to feel productive and valuable
- Would like to reduce the stress their employees feel using a malfunctioning software system
- Would like to use a software that offers real-time human interaction when there are problems
- Want to buy from a company they can trust because they’ve been burned before
If you truly feel that your business can give them what they’re looking for based on their pain points, feel free to tell them that rather than burying your value in the copy.
Changing Your B2C Copy
For consumers, pain points may look like this:
“I’m bored of my morning beverage, and I’m looking for new coffee blends to try that aren’t Starbucks.”
Again instead of diving into your own business right away, reflect on the customer’s feelings and attempt to get to the root of the issue.
- They’re bored! Maybe their morning cup of coffee gives them the jolt they need to get through the day, no matter what that looks like
- Deep down, they may feel guilty by not supporting local brands
- They might also want to buy from a supplier who they can connect with
- They may want to consider eco-friendly and ethical businesses to buy from
It’s important to connect to the human who is having these problems, acknowledge their concerns, and then offer solutions if you have them.
Be honest. Nobody enjoys being swindled.
Let’s Chat About Your Copy
As a business owner, do me a favor, take a step back and ask yourself these 2 questions.
“How am I connecting with my clients? Is it working?”
If the answer you came up with is unclear or you’ve come to realize it isn’t working for you, then it may be time to turn to the experts. There’s nothing wrong with needing help writing for your business. In fact, we’re happy to do it! Contact us, and we’ll work together at connecting with your clients in the new way to write — the H2H way.
