Dove Direct Print & Marketing Blog - “Why Reviews Matter for B2B”

Welcome to the Dove Direct Print and Marketing Blog. Today's post, "Why Reviews Matter for B2B" reexamines the value of online reviews as they have rapidly gained relevance in the B2B sector. For years the B2C sector has been inundated with having to handle online customer reviews, both positive as well as negative review entries. As a result, while the B2C sector was being force fed to develop expertise in the handling of online customer reviews, the B2B sector had little reason to invest in online reviews management…until now.

In fact, it was commonplace for B2B strategies to exclude investing in online customer review management since the B2B sales cycle is much longer than the B2C sales funnels. What has changed is human behavior which is heavily influenced by and dependent upon online engagements.

Thus, B2B buyers by default are also part of the behavioral evolution brought about by advanced online technologies. You can bet B2B buyers are adept at online purchasing from channels such as Amazon, Home Depot, Apple's App store, including family member and co-worker purchases in the online arena. It would also make sense that B2B people read online reviews of products and services they are interested in purchasing for their home, office, and notable events such as birthdays, holidays and special deals.

Social Media's Fleeting Moments

The day to day, moment to moment social media uploads and comments become a distant memory just as quickly as those posts are generated. These transitory social media moments often become lost in our mind space as there are so many online instances to decipher, log and remember that it truly boggles the brain. Neuroscience which has long determined that the most effective way to remember something is to write it down.

That's why it's so important to take notes from a professor's lecture, or any event where learning is the main focal point. Further, author Ray Kurzwell's book, "How to Create a Mind" cements that note taking logic in that the most effective manner to "memorialize a brand experience" is to put that in writing.

Marketers, both B2C and B2B are well aware of the challenges they face when it comes to creating mindshare for their respective brands. A leading marketing trait behind mindshare creation is recall. Brand recall is the most important ingredient that in turn creates mindshare.

Therefore, according to Mr. Kurzwell's book, he explains that by placing a brand experience into a written statement, that exercise is captured in a part of the brain that can recall that instance or moment. Social media posts for the most part consist of sets of fleeing moments that float away from brain recall.

The Challenges of Case Studies

B2B has relied on case studies and customer testimonials as an integral component of marketing strategies for years. In fact, case studies were lauded as a core tactic among the B2B marketing community, and further, continues to be a focus of the B2B community. Both the B2B and B2C sectors heavily rely on testimonials and case studies, however, questions are now arising to suggest that case studies may be losing its position as an effective marketing tool, particularly within the B2B universe.

For starters, case studies have a time limit on them, and will need to be updated or replaced as time marches forward. Another aspect that case studies are up against is the fact that case studies are prepared in a light that puts the brand's best foot forward.

Similar to data reports, it's quite effortless to create a case study that actually resonates as a "too good to be true" invocation. Most prospects are also well aware that case studies are created with a specific itinerary for the brand, and care should be taken to avoid placing too much weight behind them.

That said, case studies will most likely remain an important marketing tool for B2B brands and marketers. However, with the advent of influencers and micro influencers, including customer online reviews, case studies will take a backseat in the importance of lead conversions.

Here's why… Testimonials and case studies fail to provide brands with a competitive advantage and conversely customer reviews actually do provide brands with a competitive superiority. And if that's not enough, recent surveys and reports indicate that reviews are the difference makers being the most significant method of sealing new business deals.

Lead Generation and Reviews

Reviews track record on generating successes in lead generation is seldom at best and under the radar at worst. However, due to the nature of online review postings, there is a longevity factor that permeates the online vault so to speak. Customer reviews stay up in perpetuity, and never require the need to be updated. The most important, tangible aspect to remember about customer reviews is the reasoning behind them.

Customer reviews are written and posted for two reasons, either a customer is very pleased about the product and the brand, or a customer had a negative experience with the brand, product, price or even customer service.

The B2B sales cycle is typically thought of as being much longer than that of the B2C sales funnel. B2B decision making generally takes longer due to the fact that in many cases there are a number of decision makers at the table. However, during the sales funnel discovery process, the outlier or inflection point are the customer reviews. Customer reviews can sway a decision because real people who are very satisfied with the brand, product or service are posting their unbiased sentiments based on real experiences with the brand.

That said, while reviews are not associated with lead generation in and of themselves, they serve as a balancing point in the sales funnel process that can deliver or sway an outcome, and due to their nature, are always available for review.

Why B2B Brands Need to Invest in a Review Platform

As stated earlier in this post, social media posts are fleeting and should be understood as such. If there is any marketing strategy or tactic that can memorialize a brand over time, it is the customer review. These reviews are timeless in that they can be accessed for years, long after the original post. Customer reviews also provide the capability to invoke more meaningful customer connections and thus better cement relationships with the brand.

In addition, customer reviews can serve multiple purposes. For example, when a customer writes a stellar review, marketers can use these statements within marketing communications and messaging. Customer reviews also provide deeper insight into the brand's products, services and overall customer experiences, and can be utilized as data for the state of the brand and/or product, thus engaging customers on a level that could impact future R&D.

Brands such as Amazon place a high priority on customer reviews which help shape Amazon's customer service strategies, and moreover, identifies product lines that are ranked highest among customer reviews.

On the other hand, negative customer reviews should also be encouraged by the brand, as it provides the brand an excellent opportunity to engage and respond to the customer in a way that elevates the brand to a higher level that says, "we care about our customers and their experiences." Therefore it makes good sense to implore customers to write a review, positive or negative, and then respond with rewards for the positive reviews and great responses to fix a negative customer review or concern.

That said, brands need to invest in a review platform where CRM and CMS systems can be integrated into the automation tools to ensure quick responses to all customer reviews. And as a marketing tool, brands should be thinking about a program that rewards customers for taking the time to write a review.

The Net-Net

As we move into 2019, B2B brands and marketers can take a page from the B2C marketing efforts that historically place high value on customer review programs. Regardless of shortened or extended sales cycle funnels, people are communicating with people, and that is where the rubber meets the road.

What people think about a brand matters; their experiences, their wish lists, their highs and lows, and most of all, the valuable insights that can be gleaned from their reviews. Reviews are the best kept, most efficient secret method of maintaining a forever posted marketing competitive advantage. Thank you for reading "Why Reviews Matter for B2B."

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