Questions to Ask a B2B Branding Firm Before Hiring Them

When you’re looking for a B2B branding firm, you need to find a team that understands the challenges of marketing B2B companies. While some aspects are shared between B2C and B2B - like the need to connect with your market, to effectively communicate your differentiators in messaging and visuals, and to build brand recognition - other things are vastly different. We’ve made a list of a few questions we suggest you ask as you look for a marketing and branding firm to help you raise brand awareness and drive sales.

Can the branding team think creatively?

B2B branding and marketing can be challenging because various stakeholders can influence or gatekeep a purchase. Most of the time, a buyer does not have complete autonomy in the purchase decision and either actively looks for stakeholder buy-in or is influenced by it. Your marketing team has to find ways to deliver messaging that connects to the various pain points of each stakeholder and build brand messaging, visuals, and content that speak to their different needs.

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Building a brand that resonates with the myriad target audiences can be a challenge and is best handled by a team that has successfully met this type of project goal previously.

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Do the B2B marketers understand your product?

B2B products can be complex. From SaaS solutions to IoT technologies to value-add services, if your marketing team has yet to be entrenched in various industries, these things can be difficult to understand, and therefore market.

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While a B2B branding firm doesn’t have to have experience in your exact industry, some parallel expertise is beneficial. For example, if you have an industrial technology product, you may want to ask potential branding and marketing firms if they understand the Internet of Things. You may inquire about their understanding of certain regulatory requirements that your market will have top-of-mind. You may raise questions about the firm’s familiarity with manufacturing processes. Gauging a marketing team’s ability to understand and communicate complex differentiators or product benefits is vital.

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Do the branding and marketing teams track KPIs?

Marketing is a blend of art and science. Crafting brand messages, assets and content that elicit a reaction, whether it is excitement, interest, curiosity, concern, or another emotion, demands creativity. But without measurement - statistics that tell a story - artful marketing and branding can still be ineffective.

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A B2B Branding firm should be asking you for your Key Performance Indicators (KPIs). They should ask what your goals are - are they web inquiries, social media followers, brand awareness metrics, web visitors, or form fills? How are those KPIs tracked, communicated and acted upon?

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Our team leverages Databox, a customizable dashboard that aggregates data from sources like GA4, social platforms, your website and more. Our clients can check these dashboards at any time to see their KPI data and we regularly use this data to optimize campaigns and branding activities.

Does the B2B branding firm understand complex sales cycles?

B2B businesses can have sales cycles that are long and complex. Some require buy-in from multiple stakeholders, while others need nurturing for months or even years to bring a sale to fruition. B2C branding and marketing tend to focus on activities that drive spontaneous sales. B2B marketing can require lead nurturing and brand building for long periods. It often calls upon your branding team to consistently stay in front of your target audience to reinforce your brand messaging, continually position you as the right choice, and ensure that you’re readily available when they are ready to buy.

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B2B branding and marketing is an exciting endeavor, but it requires special skills and experience to be successful. The team at View Marketing & Creative is uniquely experienced in the challenges that face B2B marketing directors. If you’d like to learn more, please click here.

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