The impostor syndrome is strong in most of us.

 

Not because we are all actually fraudulent braggarts.

 

But rather because we are human beings who simply cannot know everything and do not have an answer to every question.

 

Most of us work in a culture where a response like “I don't know that yet, but I will inform myself about it and then give my assessment“ is at least latently interpreted as a sign of weakness. The next person you ask might be perfectly knowledgeable about exactly this topic, and shouldn't I have perhaps learned that a long time ago?

 

This is a new kind of marketing FOMO. "Am I really the only one not on TikTok yet?“

 

This leads to us being very receptive to cheat sheets, proven programs, and methods that promise us a leap forward in the race for the attention of potential customers and stakeholders.

 

Perhaps that is also the reason why the same simple mistakes are copied a little too often or not thought through properly. B2B marketing in particular is not free of these mistakes …

 

Here are my top 5 of the small sins of B2B marketing (most of which I have also touched upon or committed at some point):

 

1. Treat subscribers and downloads as prospects

Just because someone is interested in my content doesn't mean they're ready for a call from the sales department. Of course, none of us want to create large quantities of articles and whitepapers that only result in unattributable attention. Yet very few B2B companies have a truly intelligent process to guide their audience from a first touch to a closed deal. Often, the colleagues from the "small B2B department" (coaches, online program providers, targeted niche offerings) are ahead of the game here.

 

2. Carelessly mixing data together

Surprisingly few B2B companies have adopted a modern approach to handling the data they collect in the course of their campaigns. Either they ask for far too much data (a problem not only for data protection reasons) or far too little (sometimes more than just an email would be helpful). But the crux often lies in the systems behind it – and I don't mean that in a technical sense. If CRM and B2B marketing automation don't enable me to address at least the most important target groups selectively, then I have a fundamental flaw in my digital marketing approach.

 

3. Searching for the sake of searching

In many companies that are discovering organic search, a kind of keyword spamming occurs – instead of carefully and deliberately working toward specific, relevant topics, voluminous search terms without real transactional relevance are targeted, or the few fiercely contested ones are bought at a high price without delivering a genuine, compelling added value for them. I am a big fan of search engine marketing for B2B companies – but sometimes you need to be patient and you stand in your own way with the longing for quick successes.

 

4. Underestimating the "Rule of 7"

There are differing opinions on how much contact a buyer typically has had with a brand beforehand. However, it is probably uncontroversial that initial contact building is required to gradually turn hasty rejection into trust. This is sometimes summarized as the “Rule of 7“ – namely, the assumption or observation that, on average, seven interactions with a brand are needed before a purchase occurs. Many B2B companies, however, expect new measures to lead to a significantly faster transaction and thus lack the patience for strategic development.

 

5. Mixing demand and lead generation

Normally, I have to explain to clients why they need my offer – or why they should cover a known need specifically with me. In most cases, it is difficult to place both messages at the same time. And yet we have often experienced it – before the new landing page goes live, "more product“ is quickly demanded.
 

Often the journey begins with a single, concrete challenge. Do you currently have a marketing challenge you are stuck on?

 

Write to me – I guarantee a first, non-binding thought on it: stefan.epler@epos-marketing.com.