Business-to Business or B2B transactions are those that take place between businesses.

Providing products and services to other businesses for further processing, reselling or facilitating their operations is considered a B2B transaction.

B2B-Marketing unterscheidet sich stark vom B2C-Marketing (Business-to-Consumer). Wenn Unternehmen ihre Produkte an andere Unternehmen vermarkten und verkaufen, kann die Dynamik ihrer Marketingstrategie völlig anders sein als bei einer Verkaufsstrategie für Verbraucher.

Unterschiede zwischen Verbraucher- und B2B-Märkten

Im Gegensatz zum B2C-Einkauf, bei dem der Verbraucher in der Regel der einzige Entscheidungsträger ist, kann der B2B-Einkauf komplexer sein und beinhaltet in der Regel eine Gruppenaktivität. Dies kann bedeuten, dass mehrere unterschiedliche, aber integrierte Botschaften erstellt werden müssen, die von Personen auf verschiedenen Organisationsebenen und in verschiedenen Disziplinen verstanden werden.

Kaufzyklus

The buying cycle of B2B transactions can be well defined with certain strategic levels and takes time to progress. Because of the nature of the transaction, stakeholders and high financial risks involved, research and evaluation process takes up most of the purchase process and is quite substantial.

Treiber

Another dynamic in B2B industries is the high risk involved in each transaction, both financially and timely.  B2B transactions often unfold by building trust, relationships and reliability. Relationship marketing is an important aspect that marketers often work on when catering to other businesses.

Vertriebsprozesse

Another challenge in B2B marketing can be referrals and lead generation.  In today’s competitive marketplace, the concept of partnership has emerged between most B2B buyers and sellers.  Business purchases take time and accountability, and hence trust can be an important part of the transaction.  Because there tends to be fewer chances of winning over a loyal customer in the B2B space companies leads and specialization can be important in B2B marketing strategy. Other challenges can exist.  Retaining buyers or clients for the long-term can be key because repeat customers tend to be highly profitable for you and your business.

Informationslücken

In B2B marketing, information and communication play important roles in the transaction.  Sellers often spend in-depth amounts of time educating buyers about the use of their product and emphasizing the benefits for their company.

Überlegungen

In B2B industries, networking, procurement programs and referral marketing are often considered to be major factors in the lead generation process.  Other factors that are considered in B2B purchases include order time, lead time, reliability, quality, flexibility, and importantly… customer service support.