B2B Marketing Excellence Blog

What is B2G Marketing?

As we note in "What is B2B Marketing ?” selling to an organization such as a business or government agency presents the marketer with challenges which are distinct from the consumer sale; however, marketing to a government agency (Business-to-Government, or B2G marketing) is also different than selling to a business customer.

 

Unlike a government agency, a business is tasked with turning a profit for the benefit of its shareholders. Private companies may have more flexibility in how they prioritize profit with other objectives, but in the end, making money is their top priority. Government agencies have fiscal constraints and requirements also, of course, but actually making money is never at the top of their priority list. They exist because they are tasked by the people they serve to achieve a specific mission. These objectives, and how they are to be met, are set out in complicated combinations of laws, regulations, policies and operating directives and are influenced heavily by their political environment, which shifts constantly.

 

These dynamics are just as true at the local level as they are at the state, federal and international levels and the business that sells to these agencies must understand the unique political, legal/procedural and practical factors at play around each government department they serve. They must also understand the “business ecosystem” of companies which commonly partner to win large government contracts in any specific government market. This article is a brief look at how the “Six Ps + Branding” marketing mix is affected by the B2G uniqueness. All these themes will be explored in greater depth in this blog and the B2B Expert’s Forum as well, so sign up for them, contribute your experience and together we’ll all be smarter!

Read on to see how Branding and the 6 Ps apply to B2G Marketing.

What Is B2B Marketing?

Marketing to a business trying to make a profit (Business-to-Business marketing) as opposed to an individual for personal use (Business-to-Consumer, or B2C marketing) is similar in terms of the fundamental principals of marketing. In B2C, B2B and B2G marketing situations, the professional must always:

• successfully match the product/service strengths with the needs of a definable target market; 
• position and price to align the product/service with its market, often an intricate balance; and 
• communicate and sell it in the fashion that demonstrates its value effectively to the target market.

Voila! Easy? Well, no. If it were that easy, we wouldn’t have dedicated our careers to understanding the nuances of marketing. So what are the meaningful differences between B2B and B2C marketing?

A B2C sale is to an individual. That individual may be influenced by other factors such as family members or friends, but ultimately it’s a single person that pulls out their wallet. A B2B sale is to an organization. And in that simple distinction lies a web of complications that differ because of the organizational nature of the sale and which vary widely by firmographic (i.e., “demographic” for segmenting businesses) such as business size, location, industry and revenue base. This article is a brief look at how the “Six P’s + Branding” marketing mix is affected by the B2B uniqueness. All these themes will be explored in greater depth in this blog and the B2B Expert’s Forum as well, so sign up for them, contribute your experience and together we’ll all be smarter!

Read on to see how Branding and the 6 Ps apply to B2B Marketing.

Announcing - B2B Marketing Excellence

Marybeth Fraser and Dana Theus, executive marketing consultants and adjunct professors at George Mason University’s School of Management,  have joined forces to launch B2B Marketing Excellence.

The new company will target a growing deficit in professional development opportunities and resources available to B2B and B2G marketers in today's fast-moving knowledge economy. "Many marketing training resources do a solid job at addressing the demographic and psychographic challenges of consumer marketing," said Marybeth Fraser, Principal. "However, marketing to a business or government agency requires understanding the special dynamics of the organizational sale. Branding and positioning are just as critical in B2B marketing as they are in B2C, but the techniques and nuances of being effective can be dramatically different."

The company will offer courses in the core marketing disciplines: branding, product marketing, marketing communications and sales enablement. In addition to covering the specific B2B and B2G requirements in each of these functional areas, B2B Marketing Excellence will also address the unique challenges facing business marketers in Web 2.0 and social media environments, which are becoming critical to communications and promotion.  Taking a practical approach to staying on top of these rapidly developing opportunities, the company will launch the  B2B Expert's Forum, a social networking community and knowledge based wiki for business marketers to share best practices and business case information.

"Social media marketing opportunities are developing more rapidly than most organizations realize," noted Dana Theus, Principal. "The implications for branding, product development, promotion and even sales are evolving as we speak and we are taking a 'learn-by-doing' approach with our social network, B2B Expert's Forum." The B2B Expert's Forum will be available in April, 2008.

About B2B Marketing Excellence
B2B Marketing Excellence is the business marketer’s professional development advantage. Lively training courses, experience-based methodologies, our B2B/B2G focused blog and the B2B Expert's Forum social networking community, all provide marketing executives and up-and-comers the strategic edge. Join our expert’s community and distinguish yourself in the knowledge economy. B2B Marketing Excellence is based in Arlington, Virginia. To learn more please visit www.B2BMarketingExcellence.com.

B2B Marketing Course Schedule (2008-2009)

B2B Marketing Excellence is excited to announce its professional development seminar series for career business marketers in Arlington, Virginia (One block from the Ballston Metro).

• Strategic Branding  (May 8, 2008)
• Strategic Product Marketing (September 18, 2008)
• Integrated Marketing Communications (November 6, 2008)
• Strategic Sales for Non Sales-People (January 29, 2009)

Enroll early to receive $100 off all classes.