Most people would assume that businesses only market and advertise towards their customers, but the reality is that businesses have to market to a variety of people. The majority of businesses have customers or clients that they sell products to or provide services for, but there are businesses that provide services to other businesses (known as B2B services).
Businesses also have to market themselves towards potential employees too. Businesses are always trying to attract the attention of someone or some entity. Here are some of the best marketing strategies for businesses based on who they’re trying to market themselves to.
Business to Business (B2B) Marketing
B2B marketing is targeted towards another business or organization, selling products or providing services to them. A good example of a B2B business would be commercial services, such as a cleaning company for businesses. This type of business would market itself to other businesses in need of a cleaning service.
B2B Marketing Strategies
So how does a business market to another business? Well, oftentimes this type of marketing can be done in many of the same ways as B2C (business to consumer) marketing. More than 90% of all businesses use email as a way to market to other businesses because they lead to more conversions
Other digital B2B marketing strategies include content marketing and social media marketing. However, it can be harder to connect with business customers through social media because of the longer buyer’s journey, and social media is known for providing information quickly.
Business to Consumer (B2C) Marketing
B2C marketing is the most well-known type of business marketing because most people are on the receiving end of it, and this is the most common type of marketing that comes with opening up a small business. Entrepreneurs can start B2B businesses as well, but the majority of first-time business owners start a B2C company. The consumers can either be customers or clients.
B2C Marketing Strategies
Again, B2C and B2B use many of the same marketing strategies. B2C companies can also use email marketing when advertising to their customers or clients and can be very successful at it. When it comes to the best type of marketing strategy for B2C companies, it usually depends on the type of business it is— although SEO (search engine optimization) and social media marketing are two very common types of marketing strategies used by B2C companies.
SEO marketing is the process of getting your business website to rank higher on a search engine. All businesses can benefit from having a website, even if they operate 100% in-person. A website helps you build your online presence, as does social media. Social media marketing has been very successful for a lot of small businesses, with the top social media platforms being:
Business to Employee (B2E) Marketing
The last group of people that all businesses can benefit from marketing towards is future employees. B2E marketing is the idea of businesses both attracting and retaining employees. This is a good way to create company loyalty and decrease employee turnover rates. You can also build what’s called a talent pipeline, where you’ll have access to a pool of qualified individuals in the event that you do lose an employee.
B2E Marketing Strategies
When companies hire the right people to work for their business, their business also thrives because engaged employees translate into higher customer satisfaction rates. So how do you market to future employees? One method, known as recruitment marketing, is the process of marketing your business towards employees— which is a little different from marketing your business (products or services) towards consumers. You take things like your company values, work culture, and anything else that promotes your business as an ideal place to work.
Don’t forget that once you attract the best employees for your business that you must also retain them. Just like with consumers, you can’t market one thing and deliver another— this is sure to increase your employee turnover rate. Recruitment marketing can be a little tricky to master, which is why many businesses choose to hire a recruitment marketing agency.
The majority of businesses are either B2B or B2C (although some businesses, like a publishing company, can be considered both), but all businesses that hire help can be considered B2E companies. A B2B/B2C business knows how to market towards potential consumers, and all businesses should also know how to market towards potential employees.
