The B2B industry has money to throw around. According to a study, $405,000 is the average B2B content marketing budget, so you can probably imagine how much they’re spending elsewhere. But, this money is often misused if B2B fails to understand the demand funnel.
What is the B2B Demand Funnel?
The B2B demand funnel is a marketing process that helps companies identify potential customers and convert them into loyal buyers. As explained by Leadfeeder, B2B demand generation funnels differ from traditional lead generation funnels and include more steps.
Traditional demand funnels include three steps:
- Awareness: In this stage, your goal is to make potential customers aware that your product or service exists. You can achieve this with targeted marketing campaigns.
- Consideration: Once potential customers are aware of your product or service, they move onto the consideration stage, where they evaluate whether it meets their needs.
- Conversion: The final stage is conversion, where prospects decide to purchase from you instead of another vendor offering similar products or services.
However, a B2B demand funnel added two more steps: creating demand and capturing demand. Creating demand sits in between awareness and consideration, whereas capturing demand comes after the consideration stage. This funnel focuses on education buyers.
By educating buyers, you’re improving the chance they’ll become warm leads. Too much time is spent on attracting as many leads as possible when they’re unlikely to convert in the end.
How B2B Companies Can Generate Demand For Their Products
Now that you understand the B2B demand funnel, you can appropriately use marketing tactics that support it. Here are 7 different ways B2B companies can create demand for their products.
1. Offer Special Deals & Discounts
Offering discounts or special deals greatly increases demand and attracts new customers to your business. Make sure the discounts don’t undercut the value of your products. Find a price that’s irresistible to your buyers and healthy for your wallet, as that will help you make a profit.
2. Leverage Social Media Platforms
Social media platforms are excellent tools for reaching out to buyers in a cost-effective manner, so make sure you’re creating content for popular sites! Posting interesting content regularly will keep people engaged with your brand and create more interest in your products and services.
3. Develop Influencer Partnerships
Influencers can generate demand if you find the right people. The influencers you hire should be popular in your business niche and have a close connection with their audience. Typically, micro-influencers are the best option, as they likely have a following that trusts their opinion.
4. Run Competitions and Giveaways
People love free stuff, so running competitions or giveaways is one of the most effective ways of generating interest in your company and your products. Make sure the prizes being offered reflect the values of your brand, and convince your followers to hand over their email addresses.
5. Leverage Email Marketing Strategies
Email marketing campaigns should never be underestimated. Building an email list is crucial because it helps you build relationships with potential customers. If you build an email list before you launch your product, you’ll already have thousands of people desperately waiting to buy.
6. Put On Events and Seminars
Hosting events or seminars related to topics related to topics in your industry can generate buzz for your products. Seminars, whether they’re in-person or online, allow you to personally interact with your customer base. You may even be able to network with non-competitive businesses.
7. Create Content That Educates Your Audience
Creating educational content such as white papers, blog posts, and videos will position you and your brand as topic experts. In the B2B space, customers are swayed by facts, statistics, and social proof. As another positive, content can help people find you through search engines.
Interesting Related Article: “B2B Customer Acquisition: 5 Strategies to Succeed in 2023“