The power of the ‘big idea’ in B2B marketing campaigns
Why big ideas are important in B2B
In an increasingly AI-driven world, human creativity and the power of a big creative idea is more important than ever. While AI technologies are seemingly beginning to replace a lot of things, they still can’t think creatively, outside the box, like a real person (yet).
We are becoming ever more information rich and time poor, so using creativity to cut through the clutter and grab attention is essential in B2B. Having a big idea that can make a big impact, engage with your target audience, and help your B2B brand be remembered is what it’s all about.
These days, B2B decision-makers are constantly being bombarded with marketing messages. So, in a crowded and highly competitive market, grabbing their attention with a distinctive big idea that differentiates your offering from the competition, is an important ingredient that can help your brand stand out from everyone else in your sector.
An adage that I often say is that ‘the squeaky wheel gets the grease’ and in an increasingly bland, machine-driven marketing environment, it’s never been truer. Now is the time to zag and be noticed.A memorable big idea can help potential customers understand what makes your product or service special and why they should choose you over alternatives. A good example of this is our recent campaign for CHEP, the world’s largest pallet business.
What makes CHEP different to most other pallet providers is how they collect, maintain, and reuse every single one of their iconic blue pallets – leading the way in sustainable business. Unfortunately, too many customers are unaware that they need to return CHEP pallets. So, we developed a friendly, fun campaign that serves to educate consumers about the need to and business benefits of returning CHEP pallets.
Our big idea, ‘Pass it on’, centred around a dynamic video that uses a clever visual technique to show customers from all kinds of industries passing a CHEP pallet out of the frame into the hands of CHEP colleagues and other customers.
This simple visual treatment was then used to great effect across a suite of digital and social formats, giving CHEP a versatile and eye-catching way to encourage customers to play their part in helping to keep global supply chains running smoothly. Much more impactful in communicating the message than a standard email request
Another reason why a big idea is important is that B2B products or services can often be pretty complex and technical. So, distilling a complicated offering into a simple and memorable idea can make it easier for your prospects to understand top level product benefits and engage with your product.
Take our work for Reaxys. The world-leading academic publishing organisation, Elsevier, wanted a creative campaign that could convince chemists to switch from the current global market leader to the fastest growing chemistry platform in the world, Reaxys.
To create a compelling point of difference in a market that’s often saturated by statistics, we knew we had to think differently. So rather than focusing purely on facts and stats, we concentrated on the people behind the chemistry instead. Our big idea, ‘Break through with Reaxys’ positioned the product as the platform for real-life chemists with multiple demands on their role. We developed a visually striking campaign that used multiple exposure photography to highlight how Reaxys enables chemists to become so much more efficient that they are almost able to split themselves into multiple versions of themselves.
This idea was brought to life with headline copy that references real-life scenarios and the various ways that Reaxys makes chemists’ lives easier. B2B big ideas, like ‘Break through with Reaxys’, can succeed in taking on an established market leader and smashing your marketing KPIs
The third and final area I want to talk about is how a big idea can help you build an emotional connection with an audience. While B2B marketing typically involves rational decision-making, emotions play a really important role too. A big idea that uses storytelling and humour can not only humanise your brand but also can help build long-term relationships with customers.
A campaign idea we came up with for DHL Supply Chain was simple – but big. To be successful in times like these, businesses need experts by their side. And DHL has the size, scale, and expertise to help businesses around the world take on any challenge. The customer is always the hero, but DHL is their #ULTIMATESIDEKICK.
Taking influence from incredibly popular cinematic comic book universes, we created eye-catching videos and photography that framed DHL colleagues as superpowered protagonists. We showed off their unique skills as extraordinary abilities that would benefit any business.
We were also able to segment our #ULTIMATESIDEKICK big idea, for multiple audiences and verticals too, whilst retaining a consistent and cohesive look and feel. All the campaign touchpoints worked together and reinforced the same core message that DHL Supply Chain was their trusted partner. This consistency enhanced their brand recognition and strengthened their positioning in the market, as well as picking up a few marketing awards along the way.
Read more about the performance of this campaign in our client’s words here.
So, the good news is that the big idea is very much alive and breathing in B2B marketing. Artificial Intelligence can help inform us with insight and data to support our creative thinking, but human intelligence is still where the real thinking happens. We wouldn’t dream of giving a robot a sharpie and asking it to come up with some big ideas…just yet!
If you’d like to chat with us to see how we can help you build your next successful B2B brand marketing or lead generation campaign, please drop us a line:
hello@uppb2b.co.uk