If you’re not selling directly to a consumer, it can be tough to figure out how best to market your business. That’s why we asked 12 entrepreneurs from Young Entrepreneur Council (YEC) the following question:
“What are some strategies a founder can implement to make their B2B company more approachable or “human” to prospective customers?”
How to Make Your B2B Business More Approachable
Here’s what YEC community members had to say:
1. Provide Hands-On Customer Support or Account Management
“The best B2B companies have dedicated account managers and customer service to help their customers. Since most B2B business relationships are designed to be long-term services, it makes sense to invest in a strong customer relationship management infrastructure to not only help onboard them but keep them as a long-term business partner.” ~ Andy Karuza, FenSens
2. Abandon B2B
“I think altogether abandoning the concept of B2B, really trying to understand the individual human (the other side of an enterprise transaction) and being empathetic and putting the business speak aside will make any company more approachable. A shorter answer would be: if you want to humanize the transaction, be more human.” ~ Christopher Kelly, Convene
3. Focus on Your Company Vision, Values and Purpose
“In his seminal business books “Good to Great” and “Built to Last,” author Jim Collins stresses that the most successful business have clear vision, values and purpose. Clarity of your company direction and what you stand for will make your B2B business more human and result in admiration.” ~ Kristopher Jones, LSEO.com
4. Produce Video Content
“Using a video to show your current and potential customers who you are as a brand is the best way to make your company more approachable. By showing them who you are instead of just telling them in a standard “About Us” section, your customers will really be able to emotionally connect with your brand.” ~ Stanley Meytin, True Film Production
5. Avoid Overdoing It
“Most of the “human” touches to increase personal connections with potential customers seem robotic and end up driving them away. Phone calls, for instance, might seem like an attempt to put a voice to your company, but they’re just a time-sink if an email would’ve sufficed. I try to strategically limit the amount of outreach to potential customers, because they’re busy people too.” ~ Elle Kaplan, LexION Capital
6. Create a Culture of Humanity
“Often in our business, we talk about how we are selling to people. No matter what “company” you are selling to, ultimately someone is making the decision whether or not to buy. Since every business transaction is ultimately a person-to-person transaction, treat it as such and remember to keep humanity in your everyday discussions and interactions with other companies.” ~ Jay Johnson, Small Lot Wine
7. Put a Face to Your Business
“People like talking to people and not a logo. Establish a face of the business and have that person offer content, speak to media and offer value to prospects and clients on an ongoing basis. From blogging to writing a book to podcasting, company-owned media can be leveraged to build positive community engagement.” ~ Kim Walsh-Phillips, Elite Digital Group
8. Personify Your Product
“Think of Edgar. It’s a social media marketing tool. But when people say they “love Edgar,” their emotions are involved. If your brand is already set up, this may not be possible to do. But it’s one way to make your product more human.” ~ Ismael Wrixen, FE International
9. Be Authentic
“People care about people a lot more than they care about (for example) web hosting. The best way to make customers care about your B2B business is by being authentic – not trying to look like what you think a B2B business ought to look like. Ditch the stock photos of handshakes and publish your name and face instead.” ~ Richard Kershaw, WhoIsHostingThis.com
10. Create Behind-the-Scenes Videos
“Videos can help humanize brands, making them more approachable. Creating videos of what happens behind the scenes allows prospective customers to see not only the business transactions but also the people behind the business: their culture, their hobbies, what they’re like as people.” ~ Diego Orjuela, Cables & Sensors, LLC
11. Empathize
“Our brand isn’t just about assisting customers. We advocate for empowering and encouraging our followers/customers to be the best version of themselves. We have this vision to share life and love to “banish” insecurity and negativity – making the world a better place to live in. My example as the founder made it easy for my team to know what to do.” ~ Daisy Jing, Banish
12. Exceed Expectations
“Great customer support is what separates a ho-hum software company from a great brand. ZipBooks is a B2B platform that benefited early from good word of mouth because of timely in-app chat support that went way beyond what you would expect from a free accounting software program.” ~ Tim Chaves, ZipBooks
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