B2B Marketing recently joined forces with Google to analyse the digital strategy of B2B businesses, and the results were rather eye-opening. 80% of B2B organisations agree that a quality online presence is essential for their business to succeed. However, 85% of respondents rated their online presence as less than 8 out of 10. This means that the majority of companies in the B2B realm believe they have work to do.
The report discovered that the three most important factors for B2B marketers’ digital strategies are content, website quality and search performance. So, they know they need to improve and they know which areas they need to focus on, so what is preventing B2B companies implementing change?
The barriers
The 5 key barriers to success identified in the report were lack of strategic planning, lack of content, skills shortage, poor brand recognition and lack of internal buy-in.
One of these factors is a great deal more important than the others and ultimately capable of solving almost all other issues. The answer is the strategic planning of a digital presence. In the world of B2B marketing, it’s unsurprising to find that activities must be meticulously planned, implemented, measured and reviewed in order to generate the best results. And, only by achieving the best results or effectively predicting positive results will senior management buy-in to an idea.
The process
The process of implementing a digital strategy is based on expertise and clear metrics. To measure and improve results such as website visits/conversions, content downloads and search engine results position, there needs to be numeric goals and objectives. SEO grading, landing page visits, call to action clicks, return website visits and social media shares are just a few measurements that must be examined in order to begin improvement. Through analysis of the existing data and conservative estimates about future numbers, it’s possible to create an outline plan and digital strategy. A comprehensive plan will ultimately solve the three issues uncovered in the B2B Marketing and Google report; and overcome many of the barriers to success.
The enablers
The expertise needed to plan and implement a digital strategy may not be available within your business. Some or all of the required skills may be lacking, but this does not mean that digital business success is out of your reach. Experienced marketing agencies with a clear understanding of your metrics and a keen eye for ROI will be able to assist you in improving your online presence (amongst other things).
To find out how your business could grow, not just digitally, but also via multiple channels…
