Business-to-business markets are complex places. There are all sorts of stakeholders in a decision to buy your product or service, each with different motivations and influences. Using specialist B2B research to find out who they are and how they relate to each other is the basis of any successful campaign.
Impulse versus consideration
There isn't an awful lot riding on a consumer purchase. You make
a decision and go for it. But the stakes are far higher in
business, where purchases affect profit, jobs and even lives. For
this reason, there's often more than one person who affects the
decision to purchase. We call them stakeholders, and each and every
one is a potential target for your brand.
Mapping your market opportunity
At IAS we use a tool called the Web of Influence to identify
your targets and map the market opportunity. It starts with the
relevant job roles in the businesses that will make the purchase
and flows out to the other businesses, groups and organisations
that will influence the decisions taken by your purchasers.
Guiding your brand planning and channel planning
The Web of Influence will inform much of your marketing effort.
It helps define the content and tone of your brand messages during
the planning process (read more about B2B brand planning). We can also use
it to determine people's channel preferences and, therefore, the
marketing tools you should use (read more about channel
planning).