Traditional B2B Branding is Dead

It’s time to think differently.
Things have changed.

B2B buyers no longer care, much less pay attention to clever logos, taglines, brand advertising, bold claims, mission statements, stories about good deeds, etc. 
 
Telling a B2B buyer about a brand is a waste of resources. Traditional branding to drive transactional revenue is no longer relevant.
 
Buyers now self-determine a brand based on what they experience. Period.
 
Thank companies like Amazon, Southwest Airlines and Tire Rack for introducing this new way of thinking to consumers. It quickly carried over to B2B buyers.

Don’t tell. Show.

Customer Experience (aka “customer success” combined with path-of-least-resistance) is the new branding. Buyers formulate a brand definition based on a successful, end-to-end experience.
 
Successfully re-engineering “experience” to meet B2B buyers’ expectations is competitive gold that translates into increased revenue, profits and enterprise value. It’s very doable. However, over time it challenges an organization to think and act differently. Everyone’s focus is on ensuring customers are effortlessly successful. New metrics guide decision making. Silos are breached as department boundaries are blurred. Everyone plays on Team Customer Experience.

The Digital Catalyst 

Digital delivers the most positive impact on customer experience and quickest route to return-on-investment. That’s why customer experience and digital transformation go hand in hand. A few examples are:

• Experience begins with being easy to find with search engines.
• Relevant information needed for self-service task accomplishment, including purchase, is transparent and actionable anytime, anywhere.
• Preferences offered from previous interactions.
• High value communications anticipate customer need for information and reassurance.
• Minimum human interaction

Digital customer experience IS NOT merely using technology to help do things the way they have always been done – such as a customer portal or most e-commerce. It becomes a central organizational force and the main channel for customers. It’s also a win-win since the majority of B2B customers now prefer technology-based interactions to human, and those interactions generate more revenue at less cost.

More good news, a company doesn’t have to be an Amazon to afford digital. Customer-facing platforms, linked to existing internal systems, now deliver digital customer experience easily within the reach of most companies.

The highest valued companies in history are digital companies. That’s not because of traditional branding. Regardless of what they sell, they excel at delivering digital customer experience – creating scalable, sustainable revenue and profits.