top of page
Search

FY25 Planning: What is the State of Play for B2B Organizations?

thomasmckeown55


With FY25 planning season well underway it’s crucial to understand the state of play for modern B2B organizations. Recently, McKinsey, released their pulse survey which collected data from market leaders (4,000) across all segments (34) and geographies.

Below is my take on their top 5 learnings and how it impacts FY25 planning and strategy for B2B CMO’s and Heads of Marketing - 1) Rule of "Thirds" Still Applies -  Essentially, 1/3 of B2B buyers prefer in-person engagement, digital engagement, or remote communications respectively.  This trend has become one of the lasting results of the COVID-19 pandemic. According to McKinsey’s data, 50% of B2B buyers preferred in-person and other traditional forms of communication before 2020. This shift is here to stay.


To maximize your impact on the B2B buyer in your target market it becomes essential to tailor your messaging to your buyer preference. "Meet people where they are." 2) Omnichannel is Golden - Not only must you meet buyers "where they are" but increasingly, you must meet them "where they are, when they want, through their favorite channels." AKA - multiple messages, through various mediums, multiple times (Omnichannel). As if it wasn't hard enough already, everything should ALSO be wrapped in a seamless experience (with a bow on top). McKinsey says B2B customers use an average of 10 interaction channels per buying cycle. Practically speaking, this means CMO's or Head of Marketing must focus on creating a curated buyer experience, intelligently crafted across all channels (#digital, #social, #events, #email, #content, etc.). The importance of holistic messaging has never been more relevant. 3) E-commerce is Indispensable - According to McKinsey data, e-commerce has passed in-person sales at organizations who offer it. To me, this marks the continued evolution of B2C influence into B2B, where in the former, e-commerce has reigned supreme for a long time. It's never been more important for B2B companies to optimize the user experience of their e-commerce platform 4) Hybrid Work Works - "Companies where employees work in multiple locations (at home, in the office, or at client sites) are more likely to experience 10 percent–plus revenue growth." As expected, having access to a wider talent pool and allowing people to work on their terms improves the bottom line. Flexibility is not just a worker benefit, it's key to your company's growth. 5) #GenerativeAI -  AI is not theoretical, already 19% of B2B sales forces are implementing it for various use cases. We talk about this all the time however, those who are able to maximize the effectiveness of AI tools across their organizations are going to be the ones who thrive. Organizations who are not at least experimenting with Generative AI are falling behind fast. If you're a Head of Marketing or #CMO at a B2B organization today these insights should be top of mind while you build your strategy for FY25

8 views0 comments

Comments


bottom of page