Personalisation in the B2B Buying Process

Personalisation is the process of delivering relevant and customised experiences to customers based on their needs, preferences, and behaviour. Personalisation is not a new concept in marketing, but it has become more important and challenging in the B2B context, where customers have more complex and diverse needs, expectations, and decision-making processes than individual consumers.

Personalisation plays a crucial role in creating a tailored buying experience for B2B customers, as it can:

Meet customer expectations. B2B customers expect a high level of personalisation from their providers, as they are used to receiving personalised experiences in their personal lives as consumers. According to a report by Salesforce, 73% of B2B customers expect vendors to personalise communications to their needs.

Create value propositions. B2B customers have specific and varied needs and preferences, and they want to find the best solutions that can solve their problems, achieve their goals, or improve their situations. By personalising the communication and offers to each customer's needs and preferences, businesses can create value propositions that highlight the benefits, value, and competitive advantages of their products or services.

Build trust and credibility. B2B customers have longer and more complex buying cycles, and they involve multiple stakeholders and influencers in their purchase decisions. By personalising the communication and offers to each stakeholder's role, perspective, and interest, vendors can build trust and credibility with their customers, and demonstrate their expertise and understanding of their customers' needs and challenges.

Foster long-term relationships. B2B customers have higher expectations and demands for post-purchase support and service, as they want to ensure the success and performance of their solutions. By personalising the communication and offers to each customer's feedback, behaviour and satisfaction, vendors can foster long-term relationships with their customers, and provide them with ongoing value, support, and engagement.

Achieving the type of personalisation required to deliver these benefits involves substantial data integration and analysis, such as with customer relationship management systems. Wired In are experts at this kind of integration, so contact us if you would like to discuss how we can help.

To deliver personalised experiences to B2B customers, businesses need to segment their customers and deliver customised content based on their characteristics and behaviour. Some of the strategies for doing this are:

Use data and analytics. Data and analytics are the foundation of personalisation, as they provide insights into customer characteristics, behaviour, needs, preferences, and feedback. Companies can use various sources and methods of data collection and analysis, such as CRM, web analytics, surveys, interviews, or social media, to understand their customers and create customer profiles, personas, and segments.

See our article on understanding B2B customer needs and expectations for more on personas and segmentation.

Use AI and machine learning. AI and machine learning are the enablers of personalisation, as they provide the ability to process large amounts of data, identify patterns and trends, and generate recommendations and predictions. Businesses can use AI and machine learning tools, such as natural language processing, sentiment analysis, or recommendation engines, to create personalised content, offers, and experiences for their customers.

Use omnichannel marketing. Omnichannel marketing is the delivery of personalised content, offers, and experiences across multiple channels and devices, such as websites, email, video or social media. Businesses can use omnichannel marketing tools, such as marketing automation, content management, or personalisation platforms, to create and manage consistent and seamless customer journeys across all touchpoints.

Wired In are experts with automation and content management systems, such as Contentful. Talk to us today to see how we can help improve your omnichannel activity.

Personalisation can have a significant impact on customer satisfaction, loyalty, and revenue in B2B eCommerce, as it can increase customer engagement, conversion, retention, and advocacy. Some of the examples of successful personalisation tactics in B2B eCommerce are:

Personalised product recommendations. Personalised product recommendations are suggestions of products or services that are relevant and useful to each customer, based on their needs, preferences, or behaviour. For example, Amazon Business uses AI and machine learning to provide personalised product recommendations to its B2B customers, based on their browsing history, purchase history, or ratings and reviews. This can increase customer satisfaction, as they can find the products or services they need more easily and quickly, and increase revenue, as they can discover and buy more products or services that they may not have considered before.

Personalised pricing and discounts. Personalised pricing and discounts are offers of prices or discounts that are tailored to each customer, based on their characteristics, behaviour, or value. For example, Staples uses dynamic pricing to provide personalised pricing to its B2B customers, based on their location, purchase frequency, order size, or loyalty status. This can increase customer loyalty, as they can feel valued and rewarded for their relationship with the vendor, and increase revenue, as they can be incentivised to buy more or more often.

Personalised landing pages and content. Personalised landing pages and content are web pages and content that are customised to each customer, based on their characteristics, behaviour, or intent. For example, HubSpot uses IP tracking and cookies to provide personalised landing pages and content to its B2B customers, based on their industry, company size, or stage in the buying cycle. This can increase customer conversion, as they can see the most relevant and compelling messages and offers that match their needs and interests, and increase customer retention, as they can see the most relevant and useful content that helps them achieve their goals and solve their problems.

If you have ideas about using personalisation in your B2B ecommerce operation, or would like to discuss opportunities we can suggest, contact Wired In today.