What B2B Marketing Channels Are the Best for Lead Generation?

The financial growth goals of an organization should ultimately determine its marketing investment. Depending on the industry, each B2B marketing strategy and channel may differ in its effectiveness with your target audience. Some B2B channels may work better than others for your industry, but that’s where optimization and testing come into play.

However, because the number of B2B marketing channels continues to grow year after year, so it’s easy to see how any B2B marketer would get overwhelmed. In this guide, we unpack the expanding spectrum of B2B channels, the growing emphasis on digital marketing channels compared to traditional marketing efforts, and how each channel can help your lead generation strategies.

Ready to dive in? Let’s get started.

What Makes a B2B Marketing Channel “The Best”?

No two B2B companies are the same, so what works well for one company may not provide the same results for another. That’s why there is no one B2B marketing channel that is truly better than the rest.

The best B2B marketing channel for your company is ultimately any channel that is repeatable, scalable, and delivers a profitable return on marketing spend. In order to grow revenues profitably, you will need to invest in multiple marketing channels at the right rate and at the right return on marketing spend.

From there, it’s important to regularly test your active marketing channels to be sure that they’re continuing to provide the right return on marketing spend. This will allow you to adjust your campaigns as needed if you notice any performance issues after testing.

Marketing Channels for B2B Companies

B2B marketing refers to a market where businesses are the purchasers of goods and services from other businesses. In order to attract interest in those goods and services, B2B marketers use a slew of channels to maximize returns.

Here is a list of the most common B2B marketing tools and channels at your disposal for 2022 and beyond:

• Account Based Marketing
• Conferences/Trade Shows
• Content Marketing
• Direct Mail
• Display/Retargeting
• Email Marketing
• Field Marketing
• Paid Search/PPC
• Partner Marketing
• SEO (Search Engine Optimization)
• Social Media
• Traditional Media
• Webinars
• Word-of-Mouth/Referrals

It can be difficult to decide where to begin in utilizing B2B marketing channels for your company. The best place to start is generally in a channel that you believe is most likely to win quickly with the lowest amount of risk, while also reaching the greatest audience.

Building a Qualified Sales Pipeline Using B2B Marketing Channels

When you look at it from an individual business’ perspective, each will have specific dynamics and distinctive requirements for their sales process. That’s why one cannot duplicate another’s marketing strategy and expect it to work.

The goal of any B2B marketing strategy is ultimately to attract qualified prospects and leads that your sales team can turn into customers. This can be achieved by allocating your marketing budget to areas that consistently provide you with high success rates. 

According to the chart above, roughly 72% of marketing funds are allocated to digital channels. This is because digital channels are among the most effective ways to drive relevant leads and create a qualified sales pipeline.

Account Based Marketing (ABM), in particular, is a channel that helps B2B companies fill their sales pipelines by locating and engaging with accounts that they deem to be of high value. With ABM, you can keep your sales and marketing teams on the same page and provide them with the resources that they need in order to close on high-value accounts and prospects.

The Use of Digital B2B Marketing Channels Is Growing: Here’s Why

We’re not suggesting traditional media, events and postcards are dead. In fact, it’s far from it. The traditional marketing efforts of print, broadcast, billboards, and direct mail still have effectiveness in today’s marketing mix.

There are, however, several reasons why B2B companies need to shift their attention to other B2B marketing strategies. Digital B2B marketing channels are:

COST-EFFICIENT

Compared to traditional advertising or field marketing efforts, you can see a larger return on your marketing spend by focusing on digital B2B marketing channels. You can easily monitor your investment and return on marketing spend to ensure that you’re getting the most out of your B2B marketing strategy.

TRACKABLE

You can track clicks, visits, conversions, and leads all the way through your CRM to help determine the B2B marketing channels that are best for your business This puts you in the driver’s seat to optimize your budget and campaigns for a higher return on marketing spend.

HIGH-QUALITY

The beauty of using digital marketing channels is it allows you to reach prospects who are already kicking your tires online. Rather than banking on broad general awareness strategies to convert, put your money towards people actively looking for your services or products.

QUICK RETURNS

If you’re looking to boost web traffic, MQLs and revenue quickly, digital marketing channels can help. PPC campaigns, for example, can quickly be customized and optimized to hone in on potential customers and see data immediately for effectiveness.

It’s important to remember that any B2B marketing strategy should continually be tested to ensure that it’s still providing the results that you expect. You need to find the right mix of channels, usage, and budget for your strategy in order to hit your revenue goals.

Contact Valve+Meter for B2B Marketing Services

At Valve+Meter, we understand how difficult it can be to find the best B2B marketing channel for your company’s needs. We help many B2B businesses find the right mix for success. As a performance marketing agency, we build, test, and maintain different strategies using a multitude of channels on a daily basis for our clients to ensure they generate as much recurring revenue as possible.

The marketing team at Valve+Meter uses a unique testing strategy to uncover the campaigns that deliver the results that either meet or beat your cost-per-acquisition goals. From email marketing and PPC to SEO and content marketing services, our team is equipped with the knowledge and experience to help your B2B company experience repeatable, scalable, and profitable results. 

Get in contact with Valve+Meter today to create a unique customer acquisition strategy for your B2B business today.