7 Business to Business Advertising Examples That Worked Wonders
Business to business (B2B) advertising is the process of promoting products or services to other businesses, rather than individual consumers. B2B advertising can help you reach decision-makers, generate leads, increase brand awareness, and drive sales. But how do you create effective B2B ads that stand out from the crowd and resonate with your target audience? In this article, we will show you seven B2B advertising examples that worked wonders for their brands, and explain why they were successful. Whether you are looking for inspiration for your next B2B campaign, or want to learn from the best practices of others, these examples will give you some valuable insights.
KEY TAKEAWAYS
B2B advertising is the process of promoting products or services to other businesses.
B2B advertising can help you reach decision-makers, generate leads, increase brand awareness, and drive sales.
B2B advertising requires knowing your audience, communicating your value proposition, standing out from the crowd, showcasing your customer success stories, and aligning with your brand identity.
B2B advertising faces challenges such as longer sales cycles, multiple stakeholders, competition, and measurement.
B2B advertising platforms include Google Ads, Facebook Ads, LinkedIn Ads, Twitter Ads, YouTube Ads.
1. Slack: Make Work Better
Slack is a cloud-based collaboration platform that allows teams to communicate, share files, and manage projects. Slack’s B2B advertising campaign, “Make Work Better”, showcases how Slack can help different types of businesses improve their productivity, efficiency, and culture. The campaign features real-life stories of Slack customers, such as Shopify, IBM, and Vodafone, and how they use Slack to solve their specific challenges. The ads use catchy headlines, colorful visuals, and clear benefits to capture the attention and interest of potential buyers.
Why it worked: Slack’s campaign demonstrates how storytelling can be a powerful tool for B2B advertising. By highlighting the real problems and solutions of their customers, Slack builds trust, credibility, and relevance with their audience. The campaign also showcases the versatility and value of Slack’s product, and how it can benefit various industries and use cases.
2. HubSpot: Grow Better
HubSpot is a software company that offers a suite of tools for marketing, sales, and customer service. HubSpot’s B2B advertising campaign, “Grow Better”, focuses on how HubSpot can help businesses grow faster and smarter. The campaign uses simple yet impactful messages, such as “Marketing that’s more human”, “Sales that scales with your business”, and “Customer service that delights”. The ads also feature a distinctive orange color scheme and a friendly tone of voice to convey HubSpot’s brand personality.
Why it worked: HubSpot’s campaign leverages the power of simplicity and clarity for B2B advertising. By using short and catchy phrases, HubSpot communicates their value proposition in a concise and memorable way. The campaign also aligns with HubSpot’s mission and vision of helping businesses grow better, not just bigger.
3. Mailchimp: Do You Mean?
Mailchimp is an email marketing platform that helps businesses create and send newsletters, campaigns, and automated messages. Mailchimp’s B2B advertising campaign, “Do You Mean?”, plays on the common misspellings of their brand name, such as “Mailkimp”, “Mailshrimp”, or “KaleLimp”. The campaign uses humor, creativity, and absurdity to poke fun at themselves and generate curiosity among their audience. The ads also direct viewers to a landing page where they can learn more about Mailchimp’s features and benefits.
Why it worked: Mailchimp’s campaign shows how humor can be an effective way to break through the clutter and noise of B2B advertising. By making fun of their own name, Mailchimp demonstrates their confidence, personality, and self-awareness. The campaign also creates a memorable impression and a positive association with their brand.
4. Shopify Plus: You’re Made for More
Shopify Plus is an e-commerce platform that provides enterprise-level solutions for high-volume merchants. Shopify Plus’ B2B advertising campaign, “You’re Made for More”, targets ambitious entrepreneurs who want to scale their online businesses. The campaign features inspiring stories of successful Shopify Plus customers, such as Gymshark, Allbirds, and Kylie Cosmetics, and how they achieved remarkable growth with Shopify Plus. The ads use bold headlines, stunning visuals, and emotive language to appeal to the aspirations and motivations of their audience.
Why it worked: Shopify Plus’ campaign taps into the power of emotion for B2B advertising. By showcasing the achievements and challenges of their customers, Shopify Plus creates a connection and a resonance with their audience. The campaign also positions Shopify Plus as a partner and an enabler for business growth.
5. Adobe: Creativity for All
Adobe is a software company that offers a range of products for creative professionals, such as Photoshop, Illustrator, and Premiere Pro. Adobe’s B2B advertising campaign, “Creativity for All”, celebrates the diversity and inclusivity of creativity. The campaign features various examples of creative work from different cultures, backgrounds, and perspectives, and how Adobe’s products can help unleash their potential. The ads use vibrant colors, dynamic animations, and uplifting music to showcase the beauty and joy of creativity.
Why it worked: Adobe’s campaign illustrates how diversity and inclusivity can be a strong theme for B2B advertising. By highlighting the different expressions and manifestations of creativity, Adobe appeals to a wide and diverse audience. The campaign also reinforces Adobe’s brand identity and values as a leader and an advocate for creativity.
6. Salesforce: We Bring Companies and Customers Together
Salesforce is a cloud-based platform that offers solutions for customer relationship management (CRM), such as sales, service, marketing, and analytics. Salesforce’s B2B advertising campaign, “We Bring Companies and Customers Together”, emphasizes how Salesforce can help businesses connect and engage with their customers in meaningful ways. The campaign features various scenarios and use cases of how Salesforce’s products can help businesses solve their customer-related challenges, such as acquiring, retaining, and satisfying customers. The ads use clear and compelling messages, such as “Sell faster and smarter”, “Deliver personalized experiences”, and “Drive customer loyalty”.
Why it worked: Salesforce’s campaign showcases how customer-centricity can be a key differentiator for B2B advertising. By focusing on the benefits and outcomes for the customers, rather than the features and functions of the products, Salesforce demonstrates their understanding and empathy for their audience. The campaign also highlights the breadth and depth of Salesforce’s offerings, and how they can address various customer needs.
7. LinkedIn: In It Together
LinkedIn is a social networking platform that connects professionals and enables them to share their skills, experiences, and opportunities. LinkedIn’s B2B advertising campaign, “In It Together”, explores the different meanings and motivations of success for different people. The campaign features real stories of LinkedIn members, such as entrepreneurs, freelancers, veterans, and immigrants, and how they use LinkedIn to achieve their goals. The ads use authentic and relatable voices, black-and-white visuals, and inspirational messages to convey the diversity and community of LinkedIn.
Why it worked: LinkedIn’s campaign demonstrates how authenticity and relatability can be a winning formula for B2B advertising. By featuring real people and real stories, LinkedIn creates a sense of trust, credibility, and belonging with their audience. The campaign also reflects LinkedIn’s brand purpose and vision of creating economic opportunity for every member of the global workforce.
TIP
One of the most important tips for B2B advertising is to test and optimize your campaign continuously. By using data and analytics, you can measure your performance, identify what works and what doesn’t, and make improvements accordingly.
Business to Business Advertising Examples: A Statistical Report
Business to business (B2B) advertising is a form of marketing that targets other businesses or organizations as potential customers, rather than individual consumers. B2B advertising can take various forms, such as digital marketing, social media, video, email, creative, and out-of-home marketing. The purpose of B2B advertising is to generate awareness, leads, and sales for the advertiser’s products or services.
In this report, we will examine some examples of B2B advertising campaigns from different industries and channels, and analyze their impact on the global demand for B2B advertising services. We will also provide some trustworthy hyperlinks as references for further information.
Digital Marketing / Social Media
One of the most popular and effective ways of B2B advertising is through digital marketing and social media platforms. According to a report by TechRadar , digital marketing spending by B2B companies is expected to reach $120 billion by 2023, up from $83 billion in 2020. This indicates a high and growing demand for digital marketing services among B2B advertisers.
One example of a successful B2B digital marketing campaign is by Adobe, a software company that provides creative and business solutions. Adobe used TikTok, a social media app that allows users to create and share short videos, to showcase its products and features in a fun and engaging way. Adobe partnered with popular TikTok creators and influencers to produce videos that demonstrate how they use Adobe products to create stunning content. The campaign generated over 60 million views and 4 million likes on TikTok, as well as increased brand awareness and product interest among the target audience .
Video Marketing
Another effective form of B2B advertising is video marketing, which involves creating and distributing video content that showcases the value proposition, benefits, and testimonials of the advertiser’s products or services. According to a report by HubSpot , 86% of video marketers say video has increased traffic to their website, 83% say video has helped them generate leads, and 80% say video has increased sales.
One example of a successful B2B video marketing campaign is by Slack, a cloud-based collaboration platform that enables teams to communicate and work together. Slack created a series of videos that feature real customers from different industries and sizes, who share how Slack has helped them improve their productivity, efficiency, and collaboration. The videos are short, authentic, and relatable, and highlight the key features and benefits of Slack. The campaign resulted in over 10 million views on YouTube, as well as increased brand awareness and customer loyalty .
B2B advertising is a vital and growing sector of the marketing industry, as more businesses seek to reach and persuade other businesses or organizations to buy their products or services. B2B advertising can take various forms, such as digital marketing, social media, video, email, creative, and out-of-home marketing. Some examples of successful B2B advertising campaigns are by Adobe, Slack, Shopify, Mailchimp, Venngage, TravelPerk, IBM, Zendesk, and Salesforce.
FREQUENTLY QUESTIONS:
Q1: What is B2B advertising?
A: B2B advertising is the process of promoting products or services to other businesses, rather than individual consumers.
Q2: What are the benefits of B2B advertising?
A: B2B advertising can help you reach decision-makers, generate leads, increase brand awareness, and drive sales.
Q3: What are the best practices for B2B advertising?
A: Some of the best practices for B2B advertising are:
- Know your audience and their pain points
- Communicate your value proposition clearly and concisely
- Use storytelling, emotion, humor, or creativity to stand out
- Showcase your customer success stories and testimonials
- Align your campaign with your brand identity and values
Q4: What are the challenges of B2B advertising?
A: Some of the challenges of B2B advertising are:
- Dealing with longer and more complex sales cycles
- Convincing multiple stakeholders and influencers
- Differentiating yourself from competitors
- Measuring the effectiveness and ROI of your campaign
Q5: What are some examples of B2B advertising platforms?
A: Some of the examples of B2B advertising platforms are:
- Google Ads
- Facebook Ads
- LinkedIn Ads
- Twitter Ads
- YouTube Ads
References:
https://www.infosys.com/about/knowledge-institute/insights/Documents/future-customer-engagement.pdf
https://whatis.techtarget.com/definition/B2B2C-business-to-business-to-consumer
https://www.techradar.com/news/5-best-b2b-marketing-examples-of-all-time
https://blog.hubspot.com/marketing/b2b-marketing
https://blog.hubspot.com/agency/b2c-campaigns-b2b-marketers-learn
https://www.marion.com/best-b2b-marketing-strategies-examples-how-to-do/
https://www.newbreedrevenue.com/blog/best-b2b-advertising-campaigns
https://www.wordstream.com/blog/ws/2019/02/05/best-b2b-advertising-campaigns
https://www.singlegrain.com/best-b2b-advertising-campaigns/
Essential Topics You Should Be Familiar With:
