Last night we hosted an interactive evening of B2B Excellence. Our very own B2B Ambassador, Caroline Taylor, IBM’s vice president of marketing, communications and citizenship, chaired the evening, joined by some key B2B industry leaders.
The line-up included Richard Robinson, Google, Vince Kerr, Fujitsu, and Tricia Weener, HSBC. Members of The Marketing Society discussed their unique B2B challenges around our streams: Digital, Customer, Growth and Green. The evening offered a chance for us to step back and think again. Here’s a summary of the tips on how brands can achieve excellence in B2B marketing.
Top Tips for Growth, led by Vince Kerr, Fujitsu
1) Market to your customer’s customer
2) Power to your people: train and enable your team to be brand ambassadors
3) Power of advocacy: build communities
Top Tips for Customer, led by Tricia Weener, HSBC
1) Build peer to peer communities
2) Add value to your customers through thought leadership
3) Always be the voice of your customer
Top Tips for Digital, led by Richard Robinson, Google
1) Define what a sales or marketing lead looks like
2) Be brave: test and learn
3) Use brand ambassadors
Top Tips for Green, led by Caroline Taylor, IBM
1) Be honest about communicating your green credentials
2) Talk to the customer like an adult
3) Make money out of your sustainability
Our members awarded the evening a feedback score of 4.5 out of 5. One member appreciated the “very interesting and different look at B2B marketing challenges and opportunities” and another “loved the involving format”.
With thanks to Omobono, our Business to Business sponsor and Engine for hosting the evening.