How to use a B2C approach to stimulate your B2B campaign

We work with a mix of B2B and B2C clients and while generally the approaches are very different, there can be advantages in applying some creative, consumer-facing techniques to all sorts of B2B propositions. After all, we are all consumers!This is something we have been doing successfully for clients for many years, most recently for gesture recognition brand eyeSight. So we’ve pulled together some top reasons to give it a try:

• Accessible messaging: PR is about reaching key decision makers and while it is not suitable for all, a B2C approach does simplify your proposition for the average consumer, so why not use this to your advantage for high-level decision makers who may not have the technical knowledge to understand your B2B sell.
• Reigniting the spark: When you know your proposition inside out there is a danger that your message can become stagnant. Trying to explain your proposition in a completely different way can rekindle the passion and enthusiasm of key spokespeople.
• Increase your visibility: Simply put, national and consumer publications tend to have pretty high readerships and digital footprints. More often than not your key targets will also read these as well as their industry titles. If you have a B2C message that you’re happy with and that delivers value, you can increase your on and offline visibility by diversifying your media targets.
• Cut out the middleman: Lots of B2B technology propositions still ultimately centre around the end-user. If it's a chip to increase the quality of a smartphone or improve communications software, it is designed for the benefit of an end-user so let them sell your product for you. If end-users see the value in your product, partners and distributors will too, so demonstrate the appeal.

How can we think B2C?Obviously we are not suggesting you completely reinvent your existing campaigns, but here are a few tips to help you demonstrate your proposition in a different way to reach a broader audience:

• Simplify: This sounds obvious, but it works, and so often we get caught up trying to make our proposition sound cleverer than the competition, which confuses your audience. Explain your proposition in less than 30 words. Then explain it to your mum or to a five-year-old child. You’ll end up with a jargon-free message that strips down your message to its very core.
• Use-cases: Think about how your service helps the end-user, not your customer. End-users don’t care if it’s cost-effective, efficient or scalable. They want to know how it makes their life easier rather than the business sell.
• Creative thinking: Bring in completely different influences to your brainstorms or even run a focus group. This will help you decide whether your proposed B2C campaign really makes sense. You can find more tips on creative thinking here.
• Build partnerships: Remember, your B2B customers are selling to end-users too. Use your existing partnerships to raise awareness of the real world benefits your technology provides to their product and why it makes their product better than alternatives without your technology.

Image credit: lphr