Traditional brand marketing is the historical domain of the largest players in any given vertical. The objective of ubiquitous television ad campaigns has always been to get customers to connect with your brand intellectually and emotionally, and, in the end, to choose you.

More than half (55 percent) of the top 20 brands are business-to-business (B2B). The brand story for these companies must speak to and resonate with B2B buyers and customers.

Big brands know the value of this recognition. It is why they invest millions of dollars every year and some invest inordinate amounts for specific events like sporting championships.

That mental connection people have when they think of an industry and your brand in the same breath has value, but connecting it to the moment a B2B customer picks up the phone to call a sales rep is vague and difficult to measure. What if you could make an investment that not only connects the two, but gathers the data to make a case for significant incremental downstream impact?

Digital brand marketing is the connective tissue between traditional brand marketing and direct response marketing. Consumer brands have embraced this approach for quite some time, but the data shows that the space between a big brand splash and the direct response funnel is where you can gauge ROI for B2B in equal measure. Consider:

  1. B2B customers navigate a purchase journey the same way any shopper does. 
    • 63 percent of researchers begin their journey on the internet.
    • 70 percent of the buyer decision is made before speaking to a salesperson.
    • 60 percent of researchers change the consideration set following the research and browse phase.
  2. Digital branding strategies turn your brand website into one of your most powerful platforms.
    • If a brand was initially under consideration, and the buyer recalls seeing that brand’s digital ads, they are 1.3 times more likely to visit the brand website.
    • If the brand was not under consideration and the buyer recalls seeing one of that brand’s digital ads, they are 3.3 times more likely to visit the brand's website.
  3. When a researcher meets you along the journey and recalls you through your digital ads, that researcher is:
    • 2.7 times more likely to visit your site.
    • 1.7 times more likely to have a positive perception of your brand.
    • 2.9 times more likely to add you to their short list for consideration.
    • 3.7 times more likely to select your brand for purchase.

It is clear the impact digital has on shoppers is significant, undeniable, and getting more powerful over time. This includes buyers of B2B products and services.

Companies who believe their traditional brand marketing efforts are doing the job would be well served by paying attention to the impact of connecting big branding efforts to direct response efforts through digital brand marketing.

The cost benefits to smaller brands are extensive and enable them to compete with the biggest, most established players.

The consideration sets B2B buyers use are changing more than ever before. Even if they don’t recognize how influenced they are by brand tactics, there is an incremental impact to be made, trust to be earned, and customers to be won through digital brand efforts. By making the connection between big brand visibility and direct response engagement, digital brand marketing empowers B2B buyers and delivers an immersive brand experience that drives higher ROI.

Interested in learning more? Download our whitepaper or contact one of the following team members: Jeff Simpson, Rob Bamford, David Kearns.