B2B Marketing is becoming more popular as businesses come to realize the untapped potential of the digital space. In order to successfully grow your business and reach your target audience, you need an engaging and effective B2B ad that will entice your viewers to become your client.
Let’s look at some components that make a successful B2B ad in the digital space today.
Address the Pain Point
A common problem when making a B2B ad is that the business is too focused on themselves. The features and offerings they have for their clients, not on the client’s pain point. The video is often very product-centric, leading to an endless list of specifics which does not address the problem. A pain point refers to a problem or issue that your business offering will be able to fix. Targeting the pain point immediately provides focus on the video and draws the attention of the audience easily.
The potential clients you are marketing towards click on your ad because you can solve their problem.
They do not click because of how many features your product has.
Your clients are looking for a solution, so you must address the pain point early in the video. If your ad is mainly focused on the product or services you’re providing, it comes off as being self-serving. Instead, address the problem your client has ASAP and convince them that your service will provide them with a best solution. This will not only help with providing transparency in what you offer but helps with audience retention as well.
This Lenovo B2B ad addresses principle pain points that many employees at the office deal with: clutter, multitasking, mobility, etc. It uses a creative approach to retain the audience and features the laptop hybrid near the end of the video. Though the product appears at the end, the ad conveys solution Lenovo is providing to businesses clearly and early in the video. The incorporation of dongles, cords, and existing older laptops further hammer home the message of the advertisement.
Finding the Right Target Audience
This may seem like a no-brainer, but B2B companies often have a harder time finding their target market in comparison to B2C. This has to do with the complexity of targeting a business versus targeting an individual.
When it comes to B2C marketing, a potential client will only think about their individual needs and whether or not the product in question can address it. B2B, on the other hand, generally has stakeholders and compartments who all play a part in making a decision to become a client. As a result, the value you’re providing to the business needs to reach all the people involved.
In order to find the right target audience, conduct market research, study your existing audience and create a persona for the businesses you’re looking for. Most businesses have landing page and offerings, find your target audience insights from analytics. This will help you find how you can help them with your services. Compile a list of factors and qualities which you believe your business can help with.
This also allows you to narrow down your audience and create a more targeted advertisement.
After learning more about who your target is, it’s time to create a persona for those businesses. A persona is simply the qualities your target audience has: type of business, target demographic, location, advertising budget, etc. Once you narrow down the qualities that your audience has, it will make it that much easier for you to address them in your video.
In this content marketing ad by Fifth Story, the narrator adresses the target audience immediately. Clear terms like “full in-house strategy, creative, production, distribution and measurement services” grab the viewer’s attention. This will ensure the target audience who are seeking these services become intrigued. Notable brands like Cuisinart vizualize their ads to show the experience. The office setting portrays an inviting feeling for new potential clients.
One effective method to increase conversion is outlining parts of a business that is unique to that area. For example, if you’re looking to target a construction business, try to speak their language immediately in the video ad. Use similar jargon and discuss parts of the business that they can relate to. It reassures them that you have a solid grasp of their business, and it further accentuates the personalized service that you can provide to them.
Consistent Messaging
Now that we’ve discussed the pain points and your target audience, we can finally dive more into the production and direction of the ad itself. Most B2B ads aren’t very long, so what makes them an effective tool for your business?
The answer is consistent messaging.
Having a consistent message is what will hold all the moving pieces together in your B2B ad. In the short time span, most businesses feel the urge to promote as many things as possible: their products, numbers, client testimony and much more. In reality, you should only mention aspects of your business which reflects the main message you’re trying to convey to your audience. All other factors of your business should be avoided, and only appear on the landing page afterwards.
When your video begins, address the pain point immediately, following with clear signs to let the audience know they are the target market. The solution that they’re providing to your target market becomes the consistent message that is repeated throughout the video. To clarify, we’re not looking for the constant repetition and the bombardment of “WE CAN HELP YOU WITH _______”, we’re talking about creative ways to convince the viewer that you will be able to provide a solution for the pain point.
Using this methodology, introduce the necessary components from your business in this video that directly relates to the solution. Feel free to use statistical evidence to back your claims and describe your services in detail, but always relate it back to the main message you’re trying to convey to your viewers.
For example, if you’re providing a software solution to a logistical problem, focus on how that solution will help solve the problems in their business. If you choose to discuss the theory and creation of the software instead, you will have gone off-topic and lost the attention of the audience. Stay on track discussing the value you bring to the business by addressing the solution to their problems.
This slack advertisement is the perfect example of clear consistent messaging. A problem is addressed, and Slack is the solution. Animations help illustrate the central issue of too many communication pathways for employees. After starting to use slack, employees feel happier and their work streamlined as well. Features such as the seamless transition between devices, # channels, and drag-and-drop functions are also quickly mentioned. All of these functions directly correlate with the central message.
Videography Factors
Your B2B ad now addresses a clear pain point, targets the right audience, and has consistent messaging throughout the video to keep the audience’s attention. What’s left? With how advanced video editing is today, including some video elements can help your video stand out from other traditional ads. Here are two factors that can take your advertisement from great to amazing at converting views into clicks to your website.
B-roll/Picture in Picture
These edits will always help with maintaining the attention span of your audience. The trick is to know when to use it, and whether to use b-roll or picture in picture. If you’re building a personal brand and providing services with you as the face of the business, picture in picture is the way to go. This allows for maximum face time with the audience and leaves a lasting impression. Meanwhile, if your business is more product-focused and involves IP such as software, apps, or products, B-roll can be just as effective. B-roll will accentuate the strengths and design of your product and keep the viewer’s attention.
On-screen Elements
On screen, elements refer to headers, titles, prompts or any other screen elements that appear throughout a video. The key to having effective on-screen elements is finding a balance. Use too many at once, and you’ll confuse the audience. Use none at all, and the audience may lose track of the main points of the ad. Therefore, on-screen elements must be used with a purpose. It is an effective tool to keep the audience grounded with the message you’re conveying, while still discussing different points. They provide structure to your video and guide your audience along the way.
In this 15 second ad, there is some subtle videography which makes this short video effective. This ad uses on-screen elements to highlight the clear message of Michael celebrating a sale. The color and font used matches the branding of the company VendeSocial. Near the end of the video, the logo and tagline with a clear message appears on screen so that viewers know what they are selling.
Conclusion
Making the right B2B ad may seem complicated, but here are some factors to consider to get started. It requires market research, a thorough understanding of your target audience, and consistent messaging. On top of that, the quality of the video needs to be top-notch to retain the audience’s attention. Contact us to get started on propelling your marketing strategy on the path to success!
