Don’t End Up With a KC Agency That Doesn’t Know B2B
We’ve heard the “hot take” on LinkedIn, too: “Every B2B is really a B2C.”
True … -ish?
Sure, B2Bs should adopt marketing strategies that work for B2Cs, like imagining their customers’ psychology and directly appealing to their needs.
Yet we both know that B2B is a different animal. If you wind up with a Kansas City advertising agency that doesn’t get it and locks you into a B2C marketing plan, two things will invariably happen:
- You’ll stare in disbelief as their team talks in circles about why they haven’t delivered.
- You’ll start looking for the fine print on that marketing contract you signed.
Instead, choose a B2B advertising agency with expertise in serving businesses like yours. Here’s what agencies like iFOCUS understand — and what they can do — to help you hit those ambitious sales goals.
Your Ideal KC Advertising Agency Will Understand Your Sales Cycle
The B2B sales cycle is different from the B2C world. That’s obvious. You know that. We know that. However, a Kansas City advertising agency without significant B2B experience won’t. They also won’t know the primary reason for this difference: the complex decision-making process required to purchase your services or products.
To win business, you have to pass through a gauntlet of tests and assurances before your customer signs on the dotted line. In B2B sales, there’s no such thing as an impulse buy, a Black Friday steal, or emotional spending.
An experienced B2B advertising agency’s first move involves identifying your sales cycle and choosing effective marketing strategies to connect with your customer at every touch point on the journey to a closed deal.
Your B2B Advertising Agency Must Choose the Right Marketing Channels
Where do your customers go to learn, consider, and make decisions? What online and in-person resources do they use? A Kansas City advertising agency that isn’t asking these questions can’t choose the best channels to get you in front of your ideal customers.
Your marketing strategy should include a robust investment for each part of the customer’s journey toward partnering with you.
When they’re following industry news, they should see your name.
When they’re walking through the trade show, they should have a chance to pick up your takeaway.
When they’re checking their inbox or mailbox, your business pitch should be waiting for them.
Whatever your specific strategy looks like, it should position you in the right place at the right time to stay on your customers’ radar, while your agency collects data, identifies qualified leads, and carefully urges those prospects toward the finish line.
Your Chosen B2B Advertising Agency Must Collaborate With Your Business Development Team
A highly skilled advertising agency knows the value of your business development and sales team. This team provides valuable insights to help your agency develop a plan that moves your customers through your funnel.
Without this collaboration, your Kansas City advertising agency may generate traffic to your website, but they’ll lack the punch that turns prospects into leads that convert into customers.
A seasoned marketing team understands how to gather intelligence based on sales feedback, reviewing call data, and in-depth conversations with your sales team to continually improve and refine their approach for maximum success.
Thought Leadership Takes Resources You Don’t Have. But Your Advertising Agency Does.
Your business has perspectives and insights to share with your entire industry. Your team is full of smart individuals whose voices could make an impact. However, those talented individuals are busy doing their daily work (or cramming two days’ work into one). They don’t have time for social media, becoming online personalities, or writing articles for your website. Even sitting them down for a simple interview takes a scheduling miracle.
An experienced B2B advertising agency in Kansas City understands this dilemma, and we know a solution that works: relying on an agency to manage your thought leadership efforts.
An advertising agency with thought leadership and content marketing chops can:
- Create your thought leadership content calendar.
- Become fluent in your industry.
- Schedule and interview key talent.
- Create fully designed digital content for social media, your website, newsletters, slide decks, and other marketing materials.
- Upload, post, publish, and mail your thought leadership content for you.
Hiring a five-star KC advertising agency for your B2B efforts makes a challenging yet necessary thought leadership strategy a successful component of your overall marketing plan.
Meet iFOCUS, a B2B Advertising Agency with Proven Results
In a plot twist you probably never saw coming, we’re the KC advertising agency that can deliver the marketing success that your B2B business is looking for. We serve a range of complex B2B industries that require real-world experience to close a deal.
Our B2B services include:
- Identifying effective growth strategies that align with your priorities and sales cycle.
- Selecting the best platforms to send clients from pipeline to signed contract.
- Close collaboration with your business development or sales team.
- First-class content marketing that speaks your customers’ language.
A Kansas City advertising agency that doesn’t see the critical difference between B2C and B2B marketing can’t help you meet your goals. You’ll know you’re in good hands once you see what we have planned for your business. Get your custom growth strategy today.
Peter Mishler is a senior copywriter. He enjoys learning everything he can about your business to help build your authority and web presence. Peter is the author of three internationally published books, for which he has received critical acclaim and national writing awards. He loves spending time with his wife and two children.
