Business to Business (B2B) Marketing Mix

Organization A sells office files, notepads, and all sorts of office stationery to organization B, C and D.

Organization A does not deal with Peter — an end-user who would like to buy two pencils for his son Tom.

Business to business marketing refers to the transaction of goods and services between businesses.

Marketing mix helps to determine the unique selling points (USPs) of a brand.

Marketing mix goes a long way in determining how an organization’s products and services are different from the competitors.

Marketing mix is synonymous with four Ps

• Price
• Place
• Promotion
• Product

Business marketing is not everyone’s cup of tea. One needs to understand that there is absolutely no room for emotions in business buying. Keep yourself in the client’s shoes. He has all the rights of being choosy and selective; after all he would be investing in your organization.

Product

Offer something of value to your client.

If you want to purchase a laptop for one of your family members, would you simply go and pick up any brand available in the market? The answer is NO. Infact nobody does that. Similarly business buyers also invest in something which would yield higher profits.

The products must have right features and should stand out. Never under estimate your client. Your client will definitely find out what your competitors are offering.

Your product must look good and function as per the requirements of the buyer.

Organization Z sells bulk SMS service to Organization X (An educational institute) which further uses the service to send text messages to existing students and also to potential admissions.

Organization X has a database of around 50,000 students (including existing and new students) where as the bulk SMS service by Organization Z can send text messages to only 10,000 students and not more than that.

Do you think Organization X would invest in Organization Z’S Services? Obviously NO.

Every organization must take into consideration the following two points:

1. Appearance of the product (Packaging, how the product looks?)

2. Function of the product (must cater to the needs of the client)

Price

Business buyers generally pay more prices than individual consumers as they purchase in bulk. Business marketers must know how to structure their pricing, provided their brand is strong.

Promotion

Promotion refers to methods of communication, a business marketer uses to promote his brand among his clients.

Remember your brand must stand apart from the rest. You really need to interact with your clients well. Promoting one’s brand successfully increases the sales and eventually earns profits for the organization.

Brands can be promoted through business meetings, web meetings, e-mails, circulating newsletters, brochures, pamphlets and so on.

Organize trade shows and invite all your potential and existing clients on a common platform. Give a nice demonstration of your products and services. Interact with your clients as much as you can. Don’t let them go with a single doubt in their mind. Do not forget to collect their business cards. You will definitely need their contact details later for follow ups.

Place

It always pays to provide the products and services at the right place which is convenient and easily accessible for the client.

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