Differences In B2b Vs B2c Marketing

Differences in B2B Marketing vs B2C

In the following paper differences in marketing techniques that focus on B2B customers as opposed to marketing to B2C customers will be examined. The different goals and approaches used in marketing to these different business types will also be examined.

In the Business to Business (B2B) marketing as well as Business to Consumer (B2C) marketing, many of the same techniques and methods of marketing are utilized. For example internet advertising, television, mailings, hosted events, print media and word of mouth are some of the popular methods of marketing that will be utilized regardless of rather the end customer is a business or consumer. What will be different is the message that is contained in theses forms of advertising not the methods of delivering the advertising. B2B marketing will be more relationship driven since the goal is to build a longer-term relationship with that business that will yield business on a ongoing basis. B2C marketing is usually more products driven that is appealing to the immediate sale of the product with appeals to the emotional side of the consumer that will result in that immediate sale. Price is also a prevalent part of the marketing information since that is a large factor in the buying decision of the consumer (Murphy D. 2007).

Internet marketing, which is increasingly being utilized in both of these types of companies, can show these content differences in the marketing methods utilized by both the B2B and B2C companies. The B2B internet marketing is conducted to drive the business customer to the business website in order to receive more in-depth understanding of the business provider's abilities. The B2B sale is generally a longer cycle sale so it is important to educate the customer in more depth. The marketing in the B2B company can also help to generate leads that may be followed up by the sales operation. The B2B sale is usually a multi-step process with the customer and may involve multiple approvals in order to complete the transaction. This means that a broad range of benefits and specifications may be needed on the B2B websites with contact information being an important requirement (Warholic J. 2007).

B2C internet marketing is designed to aggressively move the consumer to the purchase step using a variety of methods to accomplish this goal. The use of coupons that can be redeemed, price discounts, bundling techniques, and purchase add-ons are some popular methods that are used on in internet marketing just as they have been utilized in sales for years. E-mail advertising starts with the subject line and attempts to drive that consumer to a purchasing website where the benefits of that product can quickly be demonstrated and priced so that the consumer quickly decides to purchase. The B2C sales process is a much shorter single step transaction as opposed to the long-term sale seen in the B2B internet marketing (Murphy , 2007).

The buyer from both the B2B and B2C methods needs to be examined in order to better understand why the marketing content is so different. Typically the B2B buyer is more sophisticated because it is typically their business in which they already have an in-depth understanding. The marketing of the sales company needs to show this educated buyer why the service or product they offer will truly benefit customer's business in an educated way. The B2B buyer is primarily looking to make their operations more profitable. Therefore the marketing of the sales company must be geared for how the customer will improve their operations for their long-term benefit(Murphy, 2007).

The buyer in a B2C relationship is typically looking for price and information on the product. However an issue that must be overcome in the internet sale is if the consumer is comfortable in trusting the sales website. This presents a challenge in how the sales company, through their website, will convince a consumer to trust that their site to deliver on its promises.