It is said that until now, BtoB companies’ marketing measures have been more analog-oriented. Specific methods include exhibitions and direct mail.
However, currently, BtoB marketing measures are becoming more and more digital. Exhibitions and seminars are increasingly being held online.
It is predicted that digitalization will continue to advance and the influence of digital marketing will grow. Therefore, it may be important for BtoB companies to develop strategies that take digital marketing into consideration.
Medix Co., Ltd. conducted a survey of marketing personnel at BtoB companies to find out the actual state of BtoB marketing.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
The number of people and budget allocated to marketing operations are proportional to the size of sales.
It was found that the number of people and budget allocated to marketing operations are basically proportional to the size of a company’s sales. First, let’s check the results of the survey on the number of people.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
Overall, the percentage of respondents who answered “Nothing in particular/undecided” was relatively high, but while it was 20% for companies with sales of less than 10 billion yen, it was less than 10% for companies with sales of 10 billion yen or more.
Among companies with sales of 100 billion yen or more, 48.6%, nearly half, said they had 26 or more employees.
Next, take a look at your annual marketing budget.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
For companies with sales of less than 100 million yen, the most common answer was “less than 500,000 yen” at 38.1%. In contrast, among companies with sales of 100 billion yen or more, 29.5% said “100 million yen or more”. It can be seen that budgets tend to be proportional to sales.
Next, let’s take a look at the proportion of the web marketing budget in the annual marketing budget.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
The most common response was “less than 25%”, accounting for 35.7% of the total. The percentage was particularly high at 52.4% for companies with sales of less than 100 million yen.
Next, the graph below shows the results of a survey regarding evaluation criteria for marketing operations.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
Basically, all companies had the highest orders received through marketing measures in order of amount, number of orders, and number of projects. It was also found that companies with sales of 1 billion yen or more answered “ROI (return on investment)” more often than companies with sales of less than 1 billion yen.
What marketing measures are you currently implementing?
So, what kind of marketing measures are actually being carried out? The survey results are shown in the graph below.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
Companies with sales of less than 10 billion yen use “web advertising,” companies with sales of 10 billion yen to less than 100 billion yen use “exhibition/event exhibitions,” and companies with sales of 100 billion yen or more use “TV commercials.” It became.
Next, the graph below shows the results of a survey regarding the web marketing measures being implemented.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
Regarding “listing advertisements,” “video advertisements,” “expansion of case studies,” and “holding seminars,” there were more companies implementing them in proportion to the size of their sales.
The most common response to the issue was “It’s hard to see the cost-effectiveness.”
The results of the survey regarding issues with overall marketing measures are shown in the graph below.
Reference source:
What are the actual conditions and challenges of marketing activities in BtoB companies? [BtoB marketing research report]
Overall, the most common response was that it was difficult to see the cost-effectiveness. Companies with sales of 1 billion yen to less than 100 billion yen have multiple items that are 10 points or more higher than companies with other sales scales (“sales follow-up is often overlooked”, “internal collaboration is not possible”, “strategic planning/planning”) ).
Medix Co., Ltd. offers a “full survey version” for download that includes more detailed survey results.
Reference source:
https://btob.medix-inc.co.jp/blog/btob-marketing-problem