Making a shift from B2C to B2B?

[ShayB]

Most of my clients are B2C. I love the niche (Christian authors), but Business clients pay more and they can usually pay all up front (instead of needing a payment plan). 

 

I would only need 2 or 3 clients a month if they were business clients.

 

I don't want to leave B2C publishing, of course, but would love to do more for business people.

 

One issue I have, though, is that most of my business clients don't want to give referrals because they don't want to admit they had help with their book. 

 

I know I must be approaching it the wrong way or something, because my B2C clients have no problem giving me referrals.

 

Any suggestions?

[Terra]

Shay,

 

Are your Christian clients churches? If so, maybe you could go with B2CB. I know a lot of Christians are business owners and if they are great at giving referrals, then that route might work. The Christian businessman/women may not need the payment plan either. You could let them know upfront that the payment plan is only for nonprofits.

 

Ha! But not non-prophets, hee, hee,

 

 

Terra

[Jason K]

B2B, you could make it a part of your sales process..."Here's a question...some of the business clients who hire me want to keep it a secret that I helped them write their book. But then they can't refer me anyone. I don't suppose that's the case here, is it?" (nicely).

 

You could make options at different price levels for open and secret work. $X for those who help you with referrals, and $2X for those who want to keep it secret. Give them the options and let them decide.

[ShayB]

B2B, you could make it a part of your sales process..."Here's a question...some of the business clients who hire me want to keep it a secret that I helped them write their book. But then they can't refer me anyone. I don't suppose that's the case here, is it?" (nicely).

 

You could make options at different price levels for open and secret work. $X for those who help you with referrals, and $2X for those who want to keep it secret. Give them the options and let them decide.

 

I'd been thinking about something along those lines, so it's reassuring to see I was on the right track. Thank you.  

[Jack Gordon]

I have a similar problem, in that while my business clients love me (for the most part), they don't like to admit publicly that they use/need my service.

 

I got around that by soliciting and publishing testimonials with names redacted, and then separately soliciting those clients who would be willing to be referrals for vetted prospects. This way, their name is not plastered on the web as using me, but when I need them I can share their contact info discreetly with prospects.

 

As it turns out, I rarely need to do that - the redacted testimonials on the site (plus my good reputation in my industry) do a pretty good job on their own.

[LukasHuels]

As per my experience the important transition  that comes out from B2C to B2B marketing are as follows:

• Social media strategy changes drastically
• Lead nurturing is key
• B2B marketer needs to inform
• You need to deal with small marketers

[MikeTucker]

1. "Now I promise not to say it was you who told, but who do you know that could use my service?  Promise, I will never tell it was you."

2. "A mutual friend, who asked not to be named, referred me to you, said that you need my help also."

3. "No, I won't say who it was, I understand, but would rather lose your business than break my word."

After the sale:

4. "No, still can't tell you, but aren't you glad they recommended me?  Now, who are you going to recommend, with my same vow of silence?"

 

....Something like that.

Not my original idea, but I've used it with great success for many, many years....  Forgot where I learned it, probably a book or an old Closer...  Claude?

[mallennig]

The distinction between B2B and B2C digital marketing has all but disappeared. The key is the ability to understand the customer journey and finding the right touchpoints and tools to influence the decision points. Those skills are universal.

[Krisvertelo]

The moment you enter the B2B market, it’s a totally different feeling from the B2C market. Instead of selling to anyone with an impulse and a wallet, now you are selling to specific decision-makers with an exact list of what they need for their company. The relationship is quite different when you’re selling with the intent to build a relationship rather than satisfy momentary demand, and while it can be the right path to take, it isn’t for every business. 

[dons]

On 4/30/2021 at 8:50 AM, Krisvertelo said:

The moment you enter the B2B market, it’s a totally different feeling from the B2C market. Instead of selling to anyone with an impulse and a wallet, now you are selling to specific decision-makers with an exact list of what they need for their company. The relationship is quite different when you’re selling with the intent to build a relationship rather than satisfy momentary demand, and while it can be the right path to take, it isn’t for every business. 

I totally agree.

Side note: I read the book Pitch Anything by Oren Klaff, very interesting read considering he was pitching Ideas, not a service of a physical product to the top decision makers. Really interesting on the psychological factors that Walmart buyers use to get sellers to lower their prices, from the colour scheme to  layout of the office space.

My experience with B2B was selling my SEO services to small business owners, for me it was maddening. I got tired of trying to educate people with A.D.D as to why SEO was important for their business. I suppose more knowledgeable small business owners with a bigger budget that understood the value would have been easier. People that wanted to rank #1 organically for a KW that had a CPC value of $35 and wanted to spend $400 a month to do it were the most fun to waste my time with.

Another thing to consider is that the B2C has different levels of needs vs wants.

Selling something like a garage door repair to someone is totally different than trying to sell someone an Apple watch or the latest kitchen gadget.