My previous column discussed
dealing with increasing amounts of competition in
the B2B world. It is no secret that B2B companies are facing increasing amounts
of online competition. Many times competing for the prime real estate means
dealing with category killers and competition that can be considered direct (a
distinct industry competitor) or indirect (those sites that are vying for the
same real estate on a SERP but are not necessarily a true competitor that
provides a similar solution). Indirect online competition can also come in the
form of .gov or .edu sites. B2B sites that are ranking well in the search
engines and have a proven solution are effective in dealing with indirect
competition due to the relevancy factor. No matter which search engine people
use, they are always looking for relevant results. The organizations that do
well in the online space do so because they have a strong web presence and as a
result are able to intercept their target markets earlier and at more crucial
stages of the buying process. Having this strong presence in the search engines
allows these B2B sites to generate “Top of Mind Awareness” and is a great
advantage in being selected as the vendor of choice for the company looking for
that specific solution.
Just One of the Rungs
You have no doubt heard of the expression “keeping up with the Jones’”. Well
this holds true in the
B2B marketing world as well. Within the buying funnel
there is a research and a consideration phase. Creating top of mind awareness is
critical for B2B vendors to ensure that you are one of the “rungs on the
ladder”. This means making the potential client aware of you during the research
phase and making a good enough impression on them so that you are still one of
the “rungs on the ladder” as they proceed to the consideration phase. To do this
you need to understand how they think and how they search. Which key words are
they searching for? What are their current pains and dilemmas? If you have a
grasp of understanding your target market then being able to intercept them at
the research and consideration intervals is all that much easier. The key here is to
ensure that you remain as one of the “rungs” throughout your target market’s
buying funnel.
Longer Buying Cycles
More often than not, B2B companies offer higher ticket items and solutions. As a
result in the B2B world, it is not uncommon to have longer sales cycle. This
means that the companies that are seeking these solutions spend more time
researching for an ideal solution for their organization. In turn this causes
the buying cycle for that company to become more drawn out. The longer the
buying cycle, the greater the number of online interactions you will find.
Further as the buying cycle is extended you will find that the nature of these
online interactions change. The company researching the solution will have
already mapped out the landscape so the interactions now become more
navigational in nature. They will have already compiled a short-list of vendors
and will now use a search engine to get to a specific page or section of a site.
If they have in fact bookmarked the site, then upon returning they will want to
navigate to a specific section of the site such as to product description or
spec pages. From a search engine marketing point of view, this means that you
will want to have your internal product and information pages well optimized
with proper keyword density so that:
A). The researcher/visitor can find the proper page from your site
and
B). The information on this page is relevant and useful to help them proceed
through the
buying funnel.
As B2B marketers, in order to intercept your target market you
need to establish top of mind awareness. This can be accomplished with a well
optimized website that has proper keyword density for the phrases that speak the
language of your target market. Further, the messaging on your site needs to
speak
to your target market and to ensure that your site is treated as an authority
by the search engines. If your site can satisfy these conditions then you should
receive favorable rankings in the engines where you will intercept your target
client that culminates in the forming of a successful
relationship and
ultimately a conversion for your site.
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SEO
Jody Nimetz