Running a business today goes beyond brick and mortar. You also need to claim your space in the digital marketplace.

Post-COVID-19, many businesses transitioned online and look for partners in the same space. So, if you want to reach these customers, you need to be where they are.

The transition also exposed brands to untapped markets, granting them access to new clients, and opportunities to diversify, grow, and, hey, increase profits.

But then, having an online presence is one thing, and monetizing it another.

Digital Marketing Strategies for Present

You’ll need solid digital marketing strategies for that. Strategies like the ones we’ve covered below:

1. Understand Buyer Intent Marketing

Intent data provides insights into a prospect’s buying signals enabling you to position your products/services as the best options for them.

With the internet according more agency to B2B buyers who research products/services, understanding intent is crucial to capturing their attention early on.

Here, you intentionally analyze data to know who is actively looking for the kind of solutions you offer so you can create timely and informed campaigns.

Is it really necessary?

Yes. It’s highly likely that only a fraction of the companies in your target market will be actively researching solutions at any one time. Without insights from buyer intent data, it may be tough to maximize marketing activities.

When can you find buyer intent data?

Intent data comes mainly from two sources – internal data & third-party data.

Internal data comes from within your organization captured by marketing automation platforms and other analytical tools.

Third-party data comes from external providers who provide insights into buyer intent crosswise websites that don’t belong to you. The wider perspective into an account’s intent throughout the web may help you fine-tune campaigns to suit their needs and interests.

If combined, these data sources can provide a comprehensive feel of what accounts are researching and their inclination to buy.

2. Cold Calling

Up to 62 percent, of B2B buyers surveyed by RAIN Group look forward to hearing from vendors when actively researching solutions to fix their problems.

With the help of marketing intelligence (like buyer intent data), you can spot these opportunities and tailor messages that showcase your ability to solve the problems.

Not only does this boost your cold calling success rate but also ensures you’re targeting the right prospects.

Best practices include:

• Qualify your leads. Use data and other marketing intelligence tools to identify real prospects worth spending time and resources on.
• Set your objectives beforehand. What do you want out of this call? To schedule a meeting or a second call with your manager? To sign them up for a demo, perhaps? Let your conversations steer the listener towards this objective.
• Use a script. Having key selling points, useful statistics, and meaningful questions for your listener ahead of you helps make the most of the call. Remember to include industry-relevant objections and answers.
• Evaluate the quality of the call. Following the call, check whether you’ve collected sufficient information to evaluate the prospect’s overall quality. How did the call go? Did you achieve your objective? If not, why not?

3. Search Engine Marketing

In a competitive space where you and thousands of others are vying for the same customers, how do you stand out?

Search engine marketing encompasses the organic and paid techniques a brand uses to promote its online visibility and generate visitor traffic.

While the goal is to enhance brand awareness, which then promotes lead generation and generates sales, that’s not all there is.

You can also put together highly valuable informational content that visitors won’t find elsewhere, elevating your authority and credibility.

Best practices include:

• Knowing your audience. An in-depth understanding of your target market, their needs, motivations, expectations, and purchase behavior allows you to create messages they can resonate with. Persuasive messages that show how your solutions can improve their lives.
• Research your keywords. Consider the phrases customers use when referring to your products/services and keywords your target market uses optimally that the competition isn’t using.
• Look at what highly ranked competitors are doing. What keywords are they using in their ads and content? What content do they share and how is it performing? It will give you an idea of what you can tweak to improve your strategy.

4. Improve Customer Experiences

For many people, pinpointing the value of providing good customer experiences isn’t easy, but here are some statistics that show the absolute necessity of it.

According to Forbes, 84 percent of brands that strive to improve customer experiences see an increase in revenues. 73 percent of those that offer above-average experiences outdo their competitors financially.

Customer-centricity is key to rising above the sea of sameness businesses find themselves in and here are some ways to do it.

• Put together your customer experience vision. A set of statements that clearly define what “wow” experience comprise of, can act as guiding principles for your team. The team should embed these principles into all areas of their work
• Value your team’s opinions. Undertake employee pulse surveys to understand what blocks employees from offering great customer experiences and use the feedback to review your processes. Similarly, customer-facing employees perceive customer needs and expectations uniquely and should be encouraged to share suggestions to improve service delivery.
• Use technology to scale up experiences. Optimize your website, automate processes, incorporate chatbots, voice searches, and omnichannel marketing to offer seamless experiences.

5. Video Marketing

As per research by Wyzowl, 81 percent of the marketers surveyed said that video directly boosted their sales.

Many B2Bs are now creating engaging and meaningful videos to establish connections with audiences, educate them, and drive sales.

Besides long-form content, they are also developing memorable, snack-sized videos for their audiences to consume.

What’s in it for the customer?

The same research shows that 96 percent of the people who watch explainer videos do so to educate themselves about the products/services. A further 88 percent were convinced to buy up something after watching brand videos.

Here are examples of video formats that attract B2B audiences:

• Explainer videos. These are perfect for attracting and educating audiences. They speak of your brand promise, what you offer, and how prospects stand to benefit should they partner with you.
• Promo videos. As the name suggests, these videos promote products/services. They are entertaining and appeal to audiences’ emotions. Effective promo videos pique audience curiosity and include a strong CTA to move them to action.
• Case study videos. Relaying a customer’s journey detailing their pain points and how you helped them achieve their goals is pure gold. Potential customers can relate to that customer’s problems and visualize how you can help solve their troubles as well.
• Personalized videos. These videos help build personal connections with the viewers. You can refer to the viewer by name, introduce yourself and your brand, and quickly highlight the services you can offer them.