Create a Better B2B Ad Strategy by Focusing on The Buyer’s Journey

Advertising

Jul 24

Buying advertising won’t automatically produce amazing results. To drive meaningful results from B2B ads, we recommend building a strategic advertising plan that pairs with the buyer’s journey.

Breaking Down the Buyer’s Journey

The buyer’s journey refers to the process customers go through as they research, evaluate, and make purchasing decisions. Unlike the B2C journey, which is often shorter and more impulsive, the B2B journey is typically more complex, involving multiple stakeholders, longer timelines, and greater emphasis on rational decision-making.

Creating an ad strategy that aligns with the buyer’s journey is effective because it puts the right message in front of the right people at the right time. It allows you to reach buyers at every stage of their journey.

Awareness: The buyer becomes aware of a need or problem and begins researching potential solutions. At this stage, advertising should focus on creating brand awareness, providing educational content, and establishing thought leadership to capture the attention of potential buyers.
Consideration: The buyer narrows down the list of potential solutions and evaluates different vendors or service providers. Advertising efforts should highlight the unique value proposition, showcase case studies and testimonials, and address specific pain points to differentiate from competitors.
Purchase: The buyer is ready to make a final decision and chooses a vendor or service provider. Advertising should focus on building trust and human connection, offering proof of ROI, and emphasizing post-sale support to close the deal successfully.
Post-Purchase: The buyer has made their purchase and is now a paying customer, but advertising efforts don’t end here. Turn the buyer into a repeat, long-term customer by using remarketing advertising that re-engages the buyer and drives them to make additional purchases. Your greatest customers are your brand’s greatest advocates.

Using the Buyer’s Journey to Build an Ad Strategy

Once you understand the buyer’s journey, you can match your advertising efforts to reach customers at every stage. Here are a few things to think about as you create ads for each step of the buyer’s journey.

Buyer Personas: Who is on the journey?

The journey is just as important as the person going on it. Make sure you know the buyer embarking on a journey with your brand. Develop buyer personas so you understand your buyer’s demographics and psychographics as well as their pain points, motivations, influences, and buying process.

Messaging: What information does the buyer need in each stage?

Look at each stage of the buyer’s journey and think about the questions, thoughts, and problems the buyer has during each step. Craft content and messaging that provides what the buyer needs to move to the next stage.

Awareness: Focus on educating and creating awareness
Consideration: Highlight differentiators and build credibility
Purchase: Emphasize the value proposition and provide reassurance
Post-purchase: Remind customers why they love your brand, provide customer support, and offer incentives to return again

Platforms: Where is the buyer spending time on their journey?

You have a variety of advertising distribution channels to choose from. To find the best platforms to showcase your ads, think about your ideal buyer and how they spend time. What digital platforms do they use? How do they consume media and information?

You don’t have to be on every platform. Select advertising channels and social media platforms your audience uses most, and go there. For example, B2B businesses may have more effective social media advertising on Linkedin instead of Facebook.

Use targeting to get your ads in front of the right people. Use search engine advertising and Google Ads to target specific keywords and reach customers looking for information related to your brand. And use audience targeting features on social media to promote your ad to the people most likely to be interested in your messaging.

Content Types: How is the buyer consuming information on their journey?

Buyers consume different types of media and information in each stage of their journey. Promote the type of content that will be most useful to the buyer in their current state.

Awareness: Blog posts, infographics, podcasts, short-form social media videos, and cheat sheets
Consideration: Case studies, demo videos, webinars, long-form videos, and whitepapers
Purchase: Free trials, consultations, live demos, testimonials, comparison sheets, and coupons
Post-purchase: Online chat, loyalty rewards, customer support, email follow-ups, thank you notes, relationship communication for birthdays and customer anniversaries, and referral rewards.

Personalization: How can you customize the journey?

Use what you know about individual buyers to reach them on a deeper level. Collect information about your buyers and use it to customize the buyer’s journey. Leverage personalization techniques and account-based marketing strategies to cater to the specific needs and preferences of target accounts.

Tailor content, messaging, and offers based on industry, company size, pain points, and individual roles within the organization. Using a sophisticated CRM, like HubSpot can make your buyer journey communication and advertising targeting that much easier.

Taking It One Step Further: Improving Over Time

To drive the best results from your ad campaigns, you need to be strategic about your initial approach — and your future iterations of ads. Continue to improve your ads by measuring results and using A/B testing.

Track & Measure Success. Use analytics to track key metrics such as click-through rates, conversion rates, cost per acquisition, and customer lifetime value. Analyze the data and insights to identify areas for improvement and optimization. Continuously refine your advertising strategies based on performance metrics and customer feedback.

Test, Test, Test: Use A/B testing to try different approaches in your ad strategy. Test two options to see which improves engagement and conversion rates throughout the buyer journey. Try different variations of:

Copy
Graphics and design
Messaging and positioning
Audience targeting
Platforms
Delivery times
Call-to-actions

Drive More Success with B2B Advertising

B2B advertising plays an increasingly vital role in capturing the attention and influencing the decision-making of potential buyers. But to get the best results from ad campaigns, you need a strong strategy that guides the initial process and tweaks your efforts along the way.

If you need help with crafting a B2B advertising plan that aligns with the buyer’s journey, let’s talk.

At SpotOn, we plan and implement search and display advertising strategies to get clients the qualified leads and customers they are looking for. Contact us today to get started.

Robyn Spoto