January 10, 2025 • 10 min read

Emerging B2B Marketing Tactics to Keep You Ahead

The “best” way to market to your prospects? Depends on the prospect!

After all, every potential client for your business has unique pain points, needs, and desires from a new partnership. They’re also likely to take plenty of time to research new vendors or solutions to ensure they pick the perfect fit. In many ways, marketing to a B2B audience requires a very high level of specificity and precision.

That all said, there are certain B2B marketing trends and tactics worth noting and adopting – and some of them may help you resonate with your clients more deeply than ever. Let’s explore some of those key trends right now.

Content is (still) king in B2B marketing

Content marketing has been a cornerstone of a B2B strategy for years, but its importance has only grown as time has gone on. These days, businesses are looking for even more value-driven content across multiple channels – and there are plenty of good reasons for that.

Content establishes authority, builds trust, and increases brand awareness: in effect, content is the key to communicating effectively to any B2B audience, and 52% of B2B buyers say they are more likely to make a purchase after reading content from a vendor.

Of course, there’s content, and then there’s good content. B2B prospects want to see the latter from their partners, not just the former. When it comes to crafting content tailored to your audience, there’s one big thing to keep in mind.

More creativity, not less, is ideal

Previous B2B content marketing wisdom said that dry, formal blogs or papers were ideal. However, recent data suggests that creativity can be a significant differentiator, even in the business space, and a resulting driver of interest in your brand.

A study by LinkedIn and Magna revealed that B2B ads with creative spins or elements generated a 40% higher purchase consideration among audiences compared to less innovative alternatives. The same study indicated that creative ads can boost brand favorability by 9% and purchase consideration by 12%!

This B2B marketing trend highlights that even highly professional, serious business-to-business messaging can benefit from a creative edge to stand out in crowded marketplaces. Companies that infuse humor, narrative, and engaging visuals into their content creation processes can form more memorable connections with buyers, whether it’s through unique blog posts, interactive infographics, or high-quality videos.

Visual storytelling is more vital than ever

B2B clients need to trust their partners before making a purchase, particularly in highly technical industries. That’s why visual storytelling has become a fundamental tool for B2B marketers, as we explore in our blog on B2B visual storytelling.

Rather than long, text-heavy documents, many business buyers now prefer concise, visually engaging content that communicates complex ideas quickly and effectively. Research shows that video consumption among B2B audiences is rising, and there are many indications that this B2B marketing trend will only grow as time goes on. The same is true of social media content, and both can be pursued in tandem to maximize results.

Why the shift? Videos offer the ability to explain detailed product features, showcase use cases, and present testimonials in a compelling and digestible format. Additionally, animated explainer videos, webinars, and even live-streamed events are becoming standard tools for boosting engagement and conversion rates.

Keep this in mind as you plan your content strategy for 2025 and later. If you aren’t already, it may be smart to look into incorporating video content as a major asset in your overarching plans.

Account-based B2B marketing may outperform other options

Account-based marketing (ABM) continues to grow as one of the most effective B2B marketing strategies.

In contrast to broader approaches, ABM focuses on targeting high-value accounts with personalized campaigns, increasing the likelihood of converting those leads into clients. For example, research conducted by the ABM Leadership Alliance and ITSMA reports that 76% of marketers see a higher ROI with ABM compared to any other B2B marketing strategy.

There are several key reasons for this:

B2B decision-makers usually have specific products, services, or functionalities they’re looking for
Personalized content is more likely to connect with a recipient in general, not just in the B2B space
ABM enables B2B brands like yours to begin building relationships with prospects right out of the gate

As more companies adopt ABM, the pressure to refine targeting methods and personalization will intensify, as well. Marketing teams need to collaborate closely with sales to identify key accounts, understand their business challenges, and build campaigns that address those issues head-on.

Optimized emails have higher open rates

It’s no massive surprise that email marketing continues to be a vital communication channel in B2B marketing (both for gaining new clients and strengthening relationships with current ones). However, its effectiveness hinges on two efforts: personalization and mobile optimization.

To increase the open rates of your B2B emails, you’ll want to prioritize both going forward, plus practice other B2B email marketing best practices.

Personalize and “mobilize” for great results

Inboxes are more cluttered than ever, and people – even motivated B2B prospects! – are fast on the clicker finger when they think they see a spam email. That’s why personalization has become non-negotiable.

Personalized emails that speak directly to the recipient’s specific role, industry, or pain points are significantly more effective at cutting through the noise, and B2B account holders or decision-makers are more likely to notice marketing emails with personalized elements in the first place. Additionally, including personalized product recommendations or industry-specific insights helps build trust and relevance.

Personalization can range from including the recipient’s name in the subject line to dynamically tailoring content based on their past behavior or preferences. As you refine your email strategy, use your knowledge of your target audience’s needs and preferences to personalize their emails in the most impactful ways possible. Mobile optimization remains a critical factor. Business buyers flip through their emails on their smartphones more often than ever, making it essential for marketers to create responsive designs that load quickly and display effectively on mobile devices. According to studies, emails optimized for mobile see higher engagement rates, as busy professionals often check their messages on the go.

In the B2B space, strong social content builds connections

Social media marketing isn’t just a B2C strategy. Today, social platforms play a significant role in B2B marketing strategies, driving brand awareness and audience trust.

However, many B2B businesses are now using social media specifically for lead generation and recruitment – two goals that have been primarily pursued using other channels and tactics. With the right approach, your brand can also take advantage of the reach afforded by the world’s most popular social media platforms to generate more leads and find top talent for your organization.

Leveraging social for B2B lead generation

Social platforms such as LinkedIn, Twitter, and even Instagram are incredibly powerful tools for B2B lead generation. By regularly interacting with prospects and professionals in your niche or industry, you can identify key decision-makers and engage them with targeted content.

LinkedIn, in particular, is known for its high engagement rate among professionals, making it ideal for publishing thought leadership pieces, industry reports, and case studies that can capture the attention of potential leads. However, other platforms – like Meta, YouTube, or TikTok – can be great platforms to connect with audiences in a variety of industries. Many also offer social listening tools to monitor conversations around your industry and glean valuable insights into client needs and pain points.

Ultimately, you can then use those insights to inform content creation and engagement strategies that draw leads into your ready-to-go sales funnel.

B2B recruitment via social platforms

Beyond lead generation, social platforms have emerged as excellent channels for B2B recruitment.

Some B2B companies are increasingly using LinkedIn and other social networks to source top talent. For instance, they might engage potential employees with content that highlights company culture, innovation, and industry leadership or even “cold message” job candidates in hopes of tempting them to make a switch.

You don’t have to stop there, either. Recruitment marketing on social media also helps position a company as an employer of choice within the industry. Sharing employee testimonials, behind-the-scenes content, and showcasing how a company supports professional growth can be persuasive for high-caliber candidates.

Don’t forget your business’s Indeed or Glassdoor pages, too. Employee candidates do a lot of research into employers online; claiming these pages to build them out with quality, branded content could be a good way to highlight your brand’s best aspects or attract talented workers.

The bottom line? Social is a big tool – and it’s trending to become even bigger for B2B marketing and recruitment.

Technical, tactical SEO is critical for B2B marketing

When a B2B prospect searches for something specific on Google, the first three companies that appear are more likely to get their business than those further down the page. The value of good SEO isn’t a new trend. But there’s a renewed emphasis on completely understanding a buyer’s needs and constructing a holistic persona, and that could be the leg up your brand’s SEO strategy needs to succeed.

Thoroughly understand user intent and target the right keywords

B2B buyers often conduct thorough research before making purchasing decisions. Taking time to know what they’re looking for – and what they’re trying to solve – is crucial if you want to know which keywords to target.

Since competitive B2B niches can feel crowded in terms of keywords, tactically selecting lesser-known keywords or drafting specific pages to cater to prospects are clever ways of boosting your brand’s SEO and enhancing its visibility to the people who matter most. The more keyword research you do, the better; different prospects will look for different things based on their mindsets and readiness to make a purchase, after all.

On top of that, the more you understand your target audience through keyword research, the more you can use that knowledge to craft high-quality content for your site and social pages. Our SEO agency lives and breathes this stuff – check us out to see how to maximize your search engine visibility.

Elevate your B2B marketing strategy with a partner

The best B2B marketing campaigns integrate many complex elements into a cohesive, holistic strategy. Content creation, personalization, analysis – it’s all vital. Fortunately, keeping up with modern trends and taking advantage of new technologies isn’t something you have to do alone. Get in touch with us to learn how the Infinity team can help you create a successful strategy today.