For more than 100 years, scientists and philosophers have been asserting that if a tree falls in a forest, and no one is there to hear it, then it does not make a sound.
The lesson for marketers is resounding: If your brand is not resonating in its preferred landscape, it is likely that your most desired buyers will never be there to hear what you have to say.
Experts say that it takes almost seven brand impressions for you to become memorable with your prime prospect—and of course, that means it needs to land each time where your prospect will see it. This boosts my theory that building a brand for both strength and endurance requires that we find and claim the best open “real estate” on which to do it – and then do it, again and again.
When I work with B2B companies who need help with their brand positioning, this is job No. 1 – identifying the brand space in which to target B2B buyers, partners, or channels. Invariably, this “real estate” encompasses buyers who have identifiable needs, spaces where your competition isn’t showing up, and neighborhoods where your company is well suited to move into.
Let me explain with an example from a recent project: I helped a B2B2C Insurtech company develop its B2B brand positioning. Before we met, the company had set its sights on establishing an effective direct-to-consumer positioning for its B2B partners to leverage. But without a cohesive brand positioning strategy in hand, the company found it had little brand recognition among its desired partners — and a lot of internal assumptions about what was most important to those partners. The leadership wanted to be more top of mind and to grow its partner pipeline, and it needed to distinguish itself from a growing pack of competition.
To solve this challenge, I implemented a quick-paced process to:
1. Identify those internal assumptions: We needed to sift through what we did and didn’t already know about the B2B partners’ top needs and perceptions, and determine how those assumed needs aligned with the firm’s strengths and capabilities.2. Conduct research to test those assumptions: We had to gain insights directly from a representative sample of B2B partners about their top needs and pain points, as well as how effectively they perceived the firm’s performance in those areas.
3. Translate those needs and pain points into brand attributes: Using our findings from Step No. 2, we ranked the strength of the firm’s brand perception for each attribute.
4. Research the brand positioning communicated by competitors: This was a key insight that allowed us to map these back to the brand attributes identified in Step No. 3 (and others that emerged).
5. Home in on the open real estate that the firm could rightfully claim: These were the partner-prized attributes where:
- The competition never or rarely showed up, and
- The firm provided value and had strong brand perception, or satisfactory perception and high potential to further strengthen it.
Step No. 6 represents the ready moment – the point when enough insights were in hand to allow us to finally stake a claim to the real estate. Only then could the company take steps to truly own that space: We had to test it with the desired B2B audience, refine it as needed, design its brand marketing strategy and messages from that foundation, and communicate it internally to build effective brand advocates and spokespeople.
For the Insurtech firm, the new positioning immediately upended some false assumptions and shaped the creative for its first B2B digital ad campaign. And that’s just the beginning.
How have you zeroed in on the real estate that your B2B company can own? If I can be of assistance to you in claiming your open fields of opportunity, please reach out.
Topics: Business Growth Strategy, Brand Management, B2B Marketing, Value Proposition
Wed, Sep 14, 2022
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