Marketers’ awareness of the importance of brands in purchasing decisions is growing. A strong brand allows us to avoid price wars and convince buyers through aspects that go beyond the usual product/service purchase criteria. With a strong brand, we can also retain our existing customers and build deeper business relationships. Therefore, the brand is one of the most important assets of a company, supporting sales and renewals and providing further financial benefits through brand licensing, franchising, etc.

For this reason, many companies are working to create a stronger brand. Our global study with B2B decision-makers, the Superpowers Index, shows that in an increasingly intense competition for customers, the brand is more important than ever, and brand building has become the highest priority for B2B marketers.

The brand ladder helps illustrate where brands are in their journey. While most B2B brands are in the recognition stage, we observe that stronger brands manage to position themselves clearly in the market and differentiate from the competition, at least in terms of a clearly differentiated offering. However, a large majority fails in the development of a brand personality.

A strong, engaging, and relevant personality offers many advantages for a company. The personality can help:

• Distinguish the brand from the competition
• Build an emotional connection beyond the primary decision maker
• Make the brand more memorable
• Attract new customers

Before showing the brand’s personality externally, a strategic decision must be made on how a brand wants to be perceived. The personality must:

• Align with the existing company and employee culture
• Consider how the brand may want to evolve in the future
• Be engaging and relevant to current and potential customers
• Be relevant to society, as brands nowadays seek to have significance and influence outside their industry

Further Reading

How Market Research Can Help Enhance Brand Communication in B2B

Read Now

Carl Jung’s framework with twelve ‘Brand Personality Archetypes’ serves as a very good template. The archetypes are derived from four categories defined by their primary motivations:

• Provide structure: Stability, control, and discipline
• Pursue connection: Belonging, enjoyment, and engagement
• Leave legacy: Risk, mastery, reward
• Explore spirituality: Independence, fulfilment, values

While all personality types can be found among B2C brands, B2B brands are more often characterized by the following personality types: Creator, Ruler, Caregiver (all personalities from the ‘Provide structure’ category), as well as Sage (Explore spirituality), Everyman (Pursue connection), and Hero (Leave legacy). The latter is especially visible in industries or product categories related to climate protection.

However, it strongly depends on the product category whether the company dares to choose more ‘courageous’ personality types, such as ‘Lover’. What might be difficult to imagine for medical devices could potentially work well for craftsmen, etc.

It is also important that the framework provides guidelines but does not limit, and it’s entirely possible to claim a mix of two personalities.

Market research can support companies in the process of personality development at different stages:

1. Firstly, in developing a clear personality, in-depth conversations with stakeholders (management, employees, investors) as well as customers or potential customers can help identify which personality types might be considered.

2. If certain brand personalities are considered, they can be tested or evaluated qualitatively (for optimization) or quantitatively (for final selection) at a later stage.

3. Regularly conducted brand studies help measure whether the brand personality strategy has successfully reached and engaged customers, potential customers, employees, and other important target groups. They also help determine where our competition stands, whether we differentiate ourselves sufficiently from them, and whether market expectations of brands have changed.

A strong personality that appeals to the emotional needs of the market not only benefits a company financially but also strategically within its industry and broader society, becoming a highly valuable asset worth protecting and building upon.

To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.

The post Why B2B Companies Should Consider Their Brand Personality appeared first on B2B International.

In the B2B sector, improving brand communication is a common goal of market research. Unlike B2C, where emotional appeal often drives consumer behavior, B2B marketing requires a more nuanced approach that links rational decision-making with emotions. This article highlights the importance of brand communication in B2B marketing and how companies can use market research insights to enhance their brand communication strategy.

Why Brand Communication is Important in B2B

Brand communication in the B2B context includes activities aimed at positioning a brand and communicating with business customers. This encompasses advertising, public relations, social media, and content marketing. Effective communication helps build a strong brand image, increase awareness, and create trust.

Further Reading

How to Determine the Strength of Your B2B Brand

View Playbook

How Market Research Helps to Develop Effective Brand Communication Strategies

Market research is essential as it provides the data and insights needed to make smarter, more informed decisions when developing brand communication strategies. By researching industry trends, the competition, and customer needs, companies can tailor their communication strategies to better resonate with their target audience.

Insights-Driven Strategies for Effective Brand Communication in B2B

1. Identify Your Target Audience and Competitors: Understand who your customers are, their pain points, and their needs. This allows you to create tailored communications that set you apart from the competition. Studying competitors provides valuable insights into the competitive landscape and helps identify what makes your brand stand out. Creating personas is a useful method to understand your target audience.

2. Maintain Consistent Messaging Across All Channels: Ensure your company’s communication is consistent across all key channels. This strengthens the brand image and reduces confusion for potential buyers.

3. Combine Emotional and Rational Appeal: While rational factors such as cost and timelines play a big part in B2B decision-making, building emotional appeal can show your target audience why your business makes a unique and positive impact on their day-to-day work life and on the wider industry.

4. Implement a Multichannel Strategy: Use a mix of different channels to reach your target audience. This can include social media, industry publications and events, third party partnerships, and email marketing. Analyze what combination works best for your company.

A Brand Communication Research Case Study

A great example of using market research to enhance brand communication in the B2B sector is GEALAN, a leading supplier of window profiles in Europe. By conducting market research with B2B International, GEALAN was able to better understand its brand position and create more differentiated customer communications and services tailored to their customers.

Case Study

Helping GEALAN Understand and Strengthen Its Brand Position

View Case Study

Summary

Effective brand communication is essential for a successful B2B brand strategy. By combining market research insights with creative and unique communication strategies, companies can deliver their brand messages effectively and build strong relationships with their customers. Understanding the needs and preferences of your target audience and incorporating these insights into your brand communication is key to achieving long-lasting success.

To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.

The post How Market Research Can Help Enhance Brand Communication in B2B appeared first on B2B International.

When we ask B2B customers about the reasons they choose the brands they work with, we hear similar themes crop up across various sectors: price, service, and product availability, to name just a few. We also hear similar themes raised as pain points related to working with chosen brands.

B2B decision-making on brands is a balance of a range of different factors. While customers may perceive the price offered by one brand to be high, excellent benefits and its industry-leading technology offering can justify what they’re asked to pay. Equally, customers may choose to forfeit added-value benefits offered by more premium providers, like additional training or resources, if the price point of another brand with a less sophisticated offering is too competitive to overlook.

Further Reading

3 B2B Pricing Challenges and How to Overcome Them

Read now

The Value Equivalence Framework

To evaluate the perception of brands within this ecosystem of different decision-making factors, we often use a simple questioning technique that asks research respondents to think in relative terms. This technique is called the value equivalence framework and consists of two very simple questions:

• How would you rate [BRAND]’s benefits versus other similar brands? Answered using a 5-point rating scale from ‘Significantly better’ to ‘Significantly worse’

• How would you rate [BRAND]’s price versus other similar brands? Answered using a 5-point rating scale from ‘Significantly more expensive’ to ‘Significantly cheaper’

The variables in bold are not always set in stone and can be tweaked to suit the brand in question. For example, you may want to measure quality and price if your brand is more product-focused (or even a different product-focused attribute). That said, it is recommended to include one attribute that is price or value-related, as this framework focuses on determining whether a brand’s value is justified by other parts of its offer.

Analyzing the Data

We tend to analyze the feedback from these two questions together, plotting the results on two different axes.

Taking the average score for both questions for the brand that is being rated, you will get your two data points for your two axes. This will give you your plot point for your brands, and you will be able to see how they are positioned against each other. As a general rule, your brand wants to be positioned on the right of the line; brands on the left of the line are more at risk of losing market share based on lack of perceived value.

To understand the feedback here, consider where the brands are positioned. Brand A is perceived as a more expensive provider, but its benefits are said to be significantly better than other brands, so it is in a comfortable position of a justified premium. You could even argue that Brand A has scope to increase its premiums further to get closer to the value equivalence line. By contrast, Brand B is perceived as having worse benefits, but its prices are also very low compared to others in the market, so its position is relatively balanced. You can add as many brands as you have data for to this chart so you can build a picture of the market landscape and see where your brand is positioned on value equivalence against other providers.

Further Reading

Competitive Landscape Analysis with Porter’s Five Forces Framework

Read now

When and How to Use the Value Equivalence Framework

The value equivalence framework is commonly seen in studies that touch on the market landscape a brand operates in and is a useful gauge for understanding how it’s perceived against competitors. To do this, you would need to make sure you ask respondents not just about your primary brand, but also about competitor brands. These should be brands that the respondents use so that they can give them a fair rating. You can play around with the results and compare data by segments within your sample to see if the perceived value of brands differs by group.

A final note: be careful of any potential bias in your sample and how this may impact the results. If you are interviewing your customers who you know are loyal supporters of your brand, don’t be surprised to see yours performing better than the competition – a representative market sample will give you a less biased view of this topic.

To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.

The post The Value Equivalence Framework: A Simple but Powerful Questioning Technique appeared first on B2B International.

As B2B market researchers, we spend a lot of time thinking about branding. From our own research, we know that building a powerful brand is a key strategy for B2B marketers, and we have helped countless clients develop, assess, and track their brand positioning.

It is fair to say that the majority of the conversation about branding focuses on the perspective of the buyer – the (potential) customer. There are a wealth of measures and metrics that help us understand the link between the strength of a brand and its performance, and evidence shows that a strong brand is more likely to be preferred and purchased.

However, buyers are not the only important group to be influenced by a brand. In this article, we will explore the topic of the ‘Employer Brand’ – the way in which the brand is conveyed and known in the job market, and what it has to offer to (prospective) employees. We are seeing organizations place increasing focus on how they are perceived as an employer. For example, CIPD research in the UK found that 81% of employers have taken action to improve their Employer Brand in the last year.

Further Reading

5 Key Benefits of Internal Stakeholder Research (And 3 Tips for Running Successful Internal Interviews)

Read now

Why is a Strong Employer Brand Important?

• A strong Employer Brand helps to attract and retain talented, high-quality staff, making it easier to compete with other organizations for top talent.

• It also appeals to talent who feel a personal commitment to the company values, leading to employees who are more engaged and motivated.

• A strong Employer Brand also reflects positively on your brand as a whole – a congruent brand experience across employees and customers is highly compelling.

Further Reading

The DEI Advantage: Driving Business, People, and Society

Read now

What Does a Strong Employer Brand Look Like?

A strong Employer Brand is the perception or reputation of an organization as a desirable place to work. The Harvard Business Review defines three components of an Employer Brand:

• Reputation – This encompasses the potential impact on an employee’s future career, the day-to-day work environment, and the impact on broader society.

• Proposition – The employer-employee relationship, including expectations of employees and rewards for meeting or exceeding these expectations.

• Experience – Reflects the organization’s ability to deliver on their Employee Value Proposition, assessed through reviews and endorsements from current and former employees.

This analysis from the Harvard Business Review aligns with the widely held observation that employees today prioritize not only salary and job descriptions, but also company culture, values, social impact, and work-life balance. Indeed, the Employer Value Proposition (EVP) encompasses ‘the set of offerings, associations, and values that employers provide to employees in return for their contributions’.

Salary is no longer the key differentiator between employers competing for talent. Instead, organizations are carving out diverse propositions and ‘personalities’ around differentiating topics such as flexible working, social impact, and DEI initiatives. Research by LinkedIn revealed a significant increase in job advertisements in which the employer showcased their company values, demonstrating a clear rise in the importance of such criteria.

Further Reading

How to Measure Brand Performance with the Brand Health Wheel

Read now

How Can You Enhance Your Employer Brand?

• This starts with developing a strong EVP. Michael Page recommends several questions that can help organizations arrive at their unique EVP. For example: Why are potential employees attracted to the company? What do existing employees value most about working there? Why do they leave? It is crucial that your organization is able to live up to the EVP, as a disconnect between EVP and reality can be a key reason for poor employee experience.

• Employee research can be utilized – through surveys, focus groups, and feedback from former employees and applicants – to help understand the employee experience and develop a realistic EVP. Ensuring that employees can provide open and honest feedback, possibly through external independent research companies, is important for gaining accurate insights.

To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.

The post Employer Branding: Why It’s Important and What It Takes to Build a Strong Employer Brand appeared first on B2B International.

Recently, we talked about the vital importance of being a thought leader within your industry. Today, we’d like to share one of our recent thought leadership pieces developed last year for dentsu on the topic of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) – what does it mean to organizations, how do they develop it, and how can it transform brands?​

In our interconnected world, DEI is no longer just a set of ideals, they are essential for driving innovation and sustainable growth. Organizations that truly embrace DEI see far-reaching benefits, from driving employee engagement and loyalty to boosting customer advocacy and market growth.​

Whether you’re striving to attract top talent, connect with diverse communities, or outpace competitors, DEI is your gateway to innovation, relevance, and impact. Discover in our summary below how prioritizing DEI isn’t just the right thing to do—it’s the smart thing to do for your people, your business, and society.

Background information

Research Aims​

• Gain insights to advise our clients on their DEI journey​
• Guide and effectively shape clients’ communications and strategy​
• Guide them both on internal and external aspects of communication and strategy

Research Scope​

The primary research was conducted across the UK, Germany, France, Spain, Italy, and Poland.​

Both consumers and b2b decision-makers expect brands to promote diversity and inclusion across a range of categories​

Some of these are currently rarely embraced by organizations, such as physical and mental disabilities. There is therefore an opportunity for brands to lead and differentiate.​

Both amongst consumers and b2b decision makers, brands performing well on DEI enjoy a significant advantage in terms of consumer advocacy (see below), loyalty, and emotional connection. The NPS advantage is:​

And yet, movement is slow. Only 17% of business decision makers self-report that their organizations are DEI leaders, while 30% say their organizations have not yet taken any action on DEI.​

So, what makes a leader?​

We found that a leading organization shows long-term commitment to continuous change management with a focus on its holistic organizational culture.

For example, leading organizations – as reported by their employees – are more likely to consider less obvious and visible layers of DEI including sexual orientation, socioeconomic and marital status, and physical disabilities.​

To become a leader, one should especially think about creating transparent, equal pay structures, a safe employee complaints system, and inclusive hiring practices.​

Externally, to be an authentic leader you should:

1. Show what you stand for​

More than half of customers struggle to form an opinion about a brand’s commitment to DEI. By weaving an authentic narrative into your marketing from the get-go, you’re not just building trust but also laying the groundwork for lasting loyalty.​ Primary thought leadership is one great way of building those levels of trust.

2. Be real​

Be genuine, be transparent. When it comes to DEI, honesty is the best policy. Being upfront about your progress and challenges deepens customer attachment, which can drive tangible business success. It’s about being real with your audience​ and reaping the rewards. The best way to this is through transparent data, trackable KPIs, talent pipeline analysis, and industry-wide development programs.​

3. Don’t fall on your values​

Stay true to your values because these can be your superpower and give you a competitive advantage. Create messaging that resonates with customers, employees, and society as a whole. But remember – actions speak louder than words.

​

Further Reading

To dive deeper into our findings, read the full report.

View full report

​

The post The DEI Advantage: Driving Business, People, and Society appeared first on B2B International.

A deep dive into the latest Superpowers Index reveals what’s important to professional services buyers, the top priorities for professional services marketers, and the key trends impacting the professional services sector in 2025.

The landscape of professional services marketing is evolving at an unprecedented pace. The Superpowers Index provides a comprehensive analysis of the critical factors influencing professional services buyers, highlighting their priorities and preferences.

This report delves into the essential insights from the research, offering marketers a strategic roadmap to navigate the complexities of the sector. By understanding the top priorities for professional services marketers and identifying the key trends shaping the industry, this report equips you with the knowledge and tools needed to excel in 2025.

The post What Marketers in the Professional Services Sector Need to Know to Win in 2025 appeared first on B2B International.

A deep dive into the latest Superpowers Index reveals what’s important to tech buyers, the top priorities for tech marketers, and the key trends impacting the tech sector in 2025.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of the technology sector, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for marketers aiming to make a significant impact.

This report delves into the findings of the Superpowers Index, offering invaluable insights into the preferences and priorities of tech buyers. This comprehensive analysis highlights the top priorities for tech marketers and identifies the key trends that will shape the industry in 2025.

The post What Marketers in the Technology Sector Need to Know to Win in 2025 appeared first on B2B International.

A deep dive into the latest Superpowers Index reveals what’s important to financial services buyers, the top priorities for financial services marketers, and the key trends impacting the financial services sector in 2025.

In the rapidly evolving landscape of financial services, staying ahead of the curve is crucial for marketers aiming to capture and retain customer interest.

This report offers a comprehensive analysis based on insights from the Superpowers Index. It delves into the core values and priorities of financial services buyers, highlights the top strategies for marketers, and identifies the key trends that will shape the sector in the coming year.

The post What Marketers in the Financial Services Sector Need to Know to Win in 2025 appeared first on B2B International.

A deep dive into the latest Superpowers Index reveals what’s important to manufacturing buyers, the top priorities for manufacturing marketers, and the key trends impacting the manufacturing and industrial sector in 2025.

As the manufacturing and industrial landscape continues to evolve, marketers within this sector must stay ahead of emerging trends and shifting buyer priorities to maintain a competitive edge.

This report delves into the critical insights from the manufacturing cut of the Superpowers Index, highlighting what matters most to buyers, the top priorities for marketers, and the key trends shaping the sector.

The post What Marketers in the Manufacturing & Industrial Sector Need to Know to Win in 2025 appeared first on B2B International.

B2B International’s Superpowers Index research, an annual study into the dynamics of B2B buying behavior, has revealed a significant trend: the growing importance of active thought leadership.

Each year, the study examines 30 decision drivers, covering both professional and personal factors, to uncover what truly differentiates winning brands from their competitors. In 2024, “being an active thought leader in the category/sector” jumped from 20th to 3rd place globally, a clear sign of its growing relevance as a key tool in the B2B marketer’s toolbox.

For Gen Z and Millennial B2B buyers, thought leadership holds even greater weight, ranking as the #2 decision driver. This signals a generational shift in expectations and priorities for B2B brands.

Top Decision Drivers in 2024

The top factors that set winning brands apart:

1. I feel safe signing a contract with them
2. Is known as being a good employer
3. Active thought leaders in their category/sector
4. Comply with regulations, law, industry standards & ethical practices
5. Takes care of its suppliers, business partners, and communities

A Gap in Thought Leadership Performance

Despite its growing importance, few B2B brands are excelling at thought leadership. Only 25% of B2B buyers believe the brands they engage with are doing it well—a statistic showing no signs of improvement from 2023.

Encouragingly, B2B marketers recognize this gap, with just 30% rating their brand’s content creation efforts as strong. This presents an opportunity for B2B brands to meet the demand for compelling thought leadership. However, to create compelling content, brands must understand what makes effective thought leadership.

Further Reading

The 2024 Superpowers Index: Full Report

Download now

What Makes Effective B2B Thought Leadership?

Our research identified areas where B2B brands are succeeding and falling short when it comes to thought leadership:

The Basics – Doing Well

These are the foundations, where brands are performing effectively:

• Identifying topics that your target audience needs to know in response to trends
• Keeping your audience up to date on trending topics

Neglected Areas – Room for Improvement

These are the areas critical to buyers but where brands are underperforming:

• Communicating on industry-specific topics and trends
• Exploring unique angles on topics others overlook
• Conducting original research on trending issues
• Offering an interesting point of view on trends

Low-Impact Areas – Deprioritize

These are less important to buyers and therefore may not be worth the focus:

• Being the first to talk about topics later adopted by others
• Communicating on trends specific to individual job roles

Further reading

4 Reasons to Use Thought Leadership Research to Inform Your Content Marketing Strategy

Read now

Summary

Interestingly, the focus is on the quality of content that adds value to the buyer, rather than being the first to discuss a topic. As thought leadership grows in importance, B2B marketers need to ask:

• Are we focusing on what really matters to our audience?
• Are we offering unique insights and perspectives?

By addressing neglected areas and elevating the quality of their content, B2B brands can position themselves as trusted thought leaders, ultimately building greater trust in their brand overall.

At B2B International, we conduct primary research that empowers brands to create impactful, evidence-based content. As part of dentsu B2B, our team of copywriters, creatives, and strategists is here to help you make the most of your unique insights. Learn more about our thought leadership research.

To discuss how our tailored insights programs can help solve your specific business challenges, get in touch and one of the team will be happy to help.

The post B2B Thought Leadership: Why It’s Important & How to Do It Well appeared first on B2B International.