Digital marketing refers to the promotion of a brand online, via digital communication. It aims to reach customers via search engines, social media, websites, emails, and other channels. Aaron Rodriguez, an expert in using digital marketing to optimize business, talks about digital marketing strategies for B2B businesses. 

A digital marketing strategy is the planning of certain steps to reach defined goals through online means. It entails aspects such as the creation and dissemination of content through websites and social networks, email, and blog management, among others. 

“Attracting new customers is the goal of all digital marketing actions,” Rodriguez assures. “So, it's not just about getting your company to have a digital presence, but that the marketing and sales strategies are aligned, to offer a good experience in the process of recognition and consideration, which will give the customer the security to make the decision to buy from you.”

B2B (business to business) marketing is oriented to the sale of products and services between companies and not directly to the final consumer, as it is in the case of B2C. In other words, it is the companies themselves that sell products or services to other companies and not to individual consumers.

First and foremost, the needs of companies are not the same as those of a consumer, since they are motivated by more objective factors, such as profitability or productivity. Companies buy a product or service with the objective that it will help them function better, be more efficient, and get a return.

“We should know that in B2B, it can be more complicated to get the message to our potential customers, since they are usually fewer in number than consumers, and because they belong to a much more segmented niche. They are generally professionals in a specific sector, so it is not as easy to maintain communications with them through more general channels such as social networks,” Rodriguez explains. 

In this sense, email marketing can be very effective if it targets the right contacts and takes into account aspects such as the specific needs of the customer (in this case, companies) and knowledge of the buying cycle of our product or service. Another point to highlight is that nowadays, companies are aware that the image projected by their business associates has a significant impact on their own image, and on what they want to convey to their customers. 

B2B customers are a more informed audience, who are clear about the type of product and service they need. Therefore, they're going to check out other options besides your company, either through a computer or even a mobile device, so it's critical that you maintain a digital presence. “In B2B it can be more complicated to get the message to our potential customers since it is usually a smaller number than consumers, and because they belong to a much more segmented niche,” adds Rodriguez. 

One of the great advantages of digital marketing is that you can create a defined audience that fits with the target audience that your product or service can really interest. Instead of sitting back and waiting to see if your direct marketing, radio, or print efforts work, with digital marketing, you can be sure that you are targeting the right audience through the channels where they spend most of their time. Before launching an ad or campaign, you can enter key information about your audience to better target them. This makes it easier for you to generate the desired impact and gives you more opportunities to increase your sales.

90% of the research and decision-making that makes customers become buyers is done online. If your company has a good digital presence and reputation you will be one step ahead in the selection process. Digital marketing is very important for businesses as it allows you to have a much better control of the quality of your campaigns. 

You can easily track your campaigns and make the necessary adjustments on the fly without making them more expensive. This helps you adapt and optimize your strategies as they are being implemented to achieve better results. 

“Ultimately, a good digital strategy will help you drive your company's long-term growth,” Rodriguez concludes. “For this to happen, marketing must be aligned with business objectives, as it will help your marketing team understand the intent, interactions, and signals that drive long-term growth.” 

About Aaron Rodriguez 

Aaron Rodriguez is an expert eCommerce consultant in Latin America. He helps businesses throughout the region optimize all of their eCommerce operations to increase sales and retain customers, and also has extensive experience in the development of strategic and external alliances to promote departmental and organizational objectives. He has traveled extensively throughout Latin America to assist a number of companies and, when he's not traveling, he dedicates all of his available time to his wife and children.

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