B2B Buyer Trends for 2023 & Our Predictions for 2024

As we dive into 2024, it's time to start thinking about your B2B buyer journey strategy for next year. The first step is understanding what your customers want and need from you. With that in mind, let's take a look at some of the key trends that will shape B2B buyer journeys in 2024.

1. Increased Focus On the Customer Experience

One of the biggest trends we're seeing is an increased focus on the customer experience. In order to win over today's discerning buyers, you need to provide them with a seamless, personalized experience at every touchpoint. This means going above and beyond to meet their needs and solve their problems.

With so much competition out there, businesses need to find ways to set themselves apart and make sure that their customers have the best possible experience with their brand. One of the best ways to do this is through content creation. By creating high-quality, engaging, and relevant content, businesses can improve the customer experience in several ways. Let's take a look at four of them.

Build Awareness Through Content

One of the first steps in improving the customer experience is building an online relationship between your target audience and your brand. Content can help with this by increasing your visibility online and drawing attention to your business. When potential customers see your content pop up in their search results or social media feeds, they'll start to become more familiar with your brand and what you have to offer.

Educating Your Audience

Another way that content can improve the customer experience is by educating your audience about your product or service. By providing helpful information and answering common questions, you can show your customers that you're an expert in your field and that you're there to help them. This type of content can also build trust between you and your audience, which is essential for developing a strong relationship. 

Engaging With Your Customers

Content can also be used to engage directly with your customers. Whether it's through comments, likes, or shares, interacting with customers through content shows that you care about their feedback and that you're interested in hearing what they have to say. This interaction also gives you a chance to learn more about your audience and what they're looking for so that you can create even better content in the future. 

Building Loyalty and Advocacy 

Finally, one of the most important ways that content can improve the customer experience is by building loyalty and advocacy among your audience. If you're able to produce content that truly resonates with your target audience, they'll be more likely to stick with you through thick and thin (and recommend you to their friends). This type of customer loyalty is invaluable for any business, so it's worth striving for! 

As we can see, there are many ways in which content can improve the customer experience. From increasing awareness to building loyalty, good content is essential for creating a positive relationship with your target audience. So if you're looking for ways to set your business apart from the competition, make sure that you're putting a focus on creating high-quality content!

2.The Evolution of B2B Video Marketing

Amid a deluge of text-based content in the B2B sphere, video content has stood out as the beacon to cut through the noise. The question remains: Will video content maintain its sway in 2024? The answer is unequivocal—absolutely.

B2B Video offers a powerful medium for conveying complex (and, sometimes - let’s face it - boring) information in an engaging and understandable way. Today’s consumers watch an average of 17 hours of online video content weekly, with 89% admitting that videos have influenced their purchase decisions. B2B buyers are no different, as 95% say videos play crucial role in their purchase decisions

As 2024 draws near, we expect the emergence of pioneering video tactics that transcend conventional promotional content, forging unprecedented connections and fueling engagement.

Need help creating your B2B video marketing strategy for 2024? Bookmark this blog for further reading.

3. More Use of Account-Based Marketing

Another big trend we're seeing is the increased use of B2B account-based marketing (ABM). ABM is a highly targeted approach that focuses on selecting key accounts rather than casting a wide net. This approach allows you to better nurture your relationships with key decision-makers and move them through the buyer journey more effectively. ABM focuses on key accounts rather than individual leads. This approach can be very effective in B2B markets, where the sale cycle is long and complex. However, it can also be used in B2C markets. 

ABM involves developing relationships with specific companies or organizations that are more likely to buy your product or service. Once you've identified your target accounts, you need to create personalized messages and campaigns that are relevant to each one. This approach is much more effective than traditional lead-generation strategies because it allows you to focus your resources on accounts that are more likely to convert. 

ABM can be very beneficial for content creators and strategists because it gives them a framework for developing targeted content that will resonate with their audience. It can also help marketers create more customized campaigns, which are often more effective than generic ones. If you're looking for a way to improve your marketing ROI, then ABM might be the right solution for you. 

How Does ABM Work? 

ABM involves identifying key accounts that are more likely to buy your product or service and then developing personalized messages and campaigns for each one. This approach is much more effective than traditional lead-generation strategies because it allows you to focus your resources on accounts that are more likely to convert. 

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To be successful with ABM, content creators and strategists need to develop targeted content that resonates with their audience. They also need to create customized campaigns that are specifically designed for each account. This type of tailor-made approach is much more likely to succeed than generic campaigns because it shows that you understand the needs of your customer base. 

Why Is ABM Effective? 

ABM is an effective marketing strategy because it allows you to focus your resources on key accounts that are more likely to result in a sale. By personalizing your messages and campaigns, you're more likely to create content that resonates with your audience. If you're looking for a way to improve your marketing ROI, then ABM might be the right solution for you. 

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How To Build a Data-Driven An ABM Strategy

The key to building a data-driven strategy is to first ensure you are able to collect the necessary data to act on. Starting first with your website, it’s important to have: 

• Google Analytics - To better understand your website traffic.
• Google Search Console - To better understand what keywords are driving traffic to which pages.
• HotJar - A tool that generates heatmaps and user recordings to better understand what users are doing on each specific page.

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These tools help us better understand our visitors before they convert. Once they’ve converted, we can start getting more granular with our marketing activities from here. To achieve this, you’ll likely need the tracking of a CRM (Customer Relationship Management) tracking code snippet.

If either you don’t have a CRM but are trying to pick one; or have one that doesn't offer this level of tracking, drop us a line and we’ll help you pick out the right now. 

Now back to business. From here, let’s review some specific data points and what we could do with this information: 

• Get notified is a prospect/customer is engaging with our social media content. 
• Clearly, they are a super-fan and are big promoters of us!
• Treat this evangelist properly and see what we could do to make their affinity for us even larger! Perhaps a free month of service or discount on their next order.. This is someone we want to stay on good graces with.
• Get notified if a prospect is/isn’t opening our emails. 
• If they are opening every marketing/newsletter email, this shows they are actively engaged! 
• Let’s reach out and see if there is anything we can do to support their decision… or see why they don’t like our emails and perhaps we can ask marketing to inject more value into them. 
• Get notified if a prospect/customer visits our website more than 3 times in a week. 
• This tells us they are actively browsing! 
• Maybe we reach out with a personal email or phone call to make sure they don’t need any more support.

For a full, in-depth explanation on B2B account based marketing, be sure to check out our 2024 guide here. 

4. A Shift Toward Digital-First Channels

As buyers become more comfortable researching and completing purchase decisions online, we have seen a shift toward digital-first channels such as websites, social media, and email. This presents both challenges and opportunities for B2B marketers. On one hand, you need to make sure you're present where your buyers are spending their time. On the other hand, you need to stand out in a crowded online landscape.

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There is no doubt that we are living in a digital age. Consumers are increasingly turning to the internet for their news, entertainment, and shopping needs and businesses are finding instant success on social media. Digital-first channels offer a number of advantages for businesses, including lower costs, more targeted reach, and the ability to generate data about consumers. 

5. Greater Use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning

In recent years, there has been a lot of talk about the role of artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning in marketing. Some believe that AI and machine learning will completely transform marketing as we know it. Others believe that AI and machine learning are overhyped and that their impact on marketing will be minimal. 

So, what's the truth? Well, both sides have a point. There is no doubt that 2023 witnessed AI and machine learning having a transformative effect on marketing. But it's also true that we are only just beginning to scratch the surface of what these technologies can do.

Some of the ways AI and machine learning are currently being used in marketing include: 

• Generating personalized recommendations: AI and machine learning can be used to analyze customer data and generate recommendations for other products or services that they might be interested in. For example, Amazon's famous "customers who bought this also bought" feature is powered by AI and machine learning.
• Predicting customer behavior: AI and machine learning can be used to predict when customers are likely to purchase a product or service, how much they are likely to spend, etc. This information can then be used to tailor marketing campaigns accordingly. 
• Optimizing ad campaigns: AI and machine learning can be used to analyze data from past ad campaigns and determine which factors were most successful in driving conversions. This information can then be used to optimize future ad campaigns for better results. 
• Building chatbots: Chatbots are computer programs that simulate human conversation. They are powered by natural language processing (NLP), a branch of AI that deals with understanding human language. Chatbots can be used for a variety of purposes, such as providing customer support or promoting products and services. 
• Detecting fraud: With the help of AI and machine learning, businesses can detect fraudulent activity more easily and quickly. This is especially important for businesses that deal with sensitive customer data, such as financial institutions. 
• Creating content: Tools such as ChatGPT, WriteSonic, and Jasper AI has facilitates marketers in creating all kinds of content, from website copy to social media captions. What’s more, 58% of marketers whose companies use generative AI for content creation said increased performance is the top benefit.

In the coming years, we can expect to see even more innovative applications of AI and machine learning in marketing as businesses strive to stay ahead of the competition.

The Future of B2B Buyer Journey Strategies

As you can see, there are several key trends that will shape the B2B buyer journey in 2024. By keeping these trends top of mind as you create your strategy, you can ensure that you're providing your buyers with the seamless, personalized experience they crave—and that you're setting your business up for success in the years to come.

At Steel Croissant, we specialize in helping businesses map out their buyer journeys. We start by conducting research to gain an understanding of your target market and what they're looking for at each stage of the journey. We then work with you to create targeted content that speaks directly to your buyers' needs. Finally, we analyze your data and track your results so that we can continue to optimize your buyer journey strategy over time. 

If you're looking for help with your buyer journey strategy, look no further than Steel Croissant. Our team of experts will work with you to map out the buyer journey and create targeted content that speaks directly to your buyers' needs. Contact us today to learn more about our services!