B2B Marketing Doesn’t Have to be so Hard

When it comes to business-to-business marketing (or B2B marketing) you may think call centers are a thing of the past. However, while it may seem a little counterintuitive at first, the use of the Internet has actually substantially increased the value of call center technology! In fact, the global cloud-based contact center market is expected to grow from $6.80 billion in 2017 to $20.93 billion by 2022. How can this be? And how do these numbers affect your B2B marketing efforts?

The New School of B2B Marketing

Customer expectations are ever-increasing. This means business owners and managers must be prepared to meet these rising demands. To be prepared, they need your business to meet their needs. It’s a cycle that you need to be ready for. Sure, some businesses will pass off the situation to their online support team to handle. But while it’s true that live chat is the preferred method for Millennials seeking commerce support, people still desire B2B marketing and customer service efforts via phone, as well! Data suggests that the U.S. represents the largest market in the world for call center technology. This growth is partially in response to the increasing complexity of issues that business owners face every day. According to a 2017 benchmark report, “As the complexity of the issue increases, such as with payment disputes or complaints, customers are more likely to seek out…a real person on the phone (40%).” Also, according to a recent Forrester survey, “As volumes of customer conversations balloon across an increasing number of channels, companies are increasing staff sizes: 46% of global contact center decision makers project 5%-10% growth in the next year and 14% project growth of more than 10%.” Therefore, B2B marketing call centers are buckling in and bulking up to meet these needs.

B2B Marketing Call Centers in the Cloud

It’s not about just having the manpower set and ready to roll, though. Agents’ success (and by association, your business’s success) depends on utilizing the right call center software. More than 60% of companies use some variation of a cloud-based call center system for their B2B marketing efforts and use B2B marketing call centers as an essential part of maintaining a consumer-centric focus. As a result, a recent report from Markets and Markets indicates that cloud-based communications systems will be worth $20.93 billion (USD) by 2022. Why is this? What’s the benefit of managing your B2B marketing from the cloud?

Statistically, consumers will wait on hold for an average of 11 minutes before jumping ship, hanging up, and moving their business attention elsewhere. The main reason business owners cite for their dislike of calling companies is because they want to talk to a “real person” right away and they can’t. Cloud-based calling software requires no physical hardware. This allows agents to be able to access their accounts at any time, from anywhere in the world that offers Wi-Fi accessibility. Therefore, your customers know they have your attention when they need you! Cloud-based calling software also provides you with the tools you need to build relationships with prospects, track sales’ progress, and connect with more businesses in less time. Donna Fluss, President of DMG Consulting, suggests that call center technology isn’t the problem for companies… it’s their failure to persistently maximize the use of the features that could make their B2B marketing call center great. “There’s a plethora of sophisticated call center technology available to operate a call center,” she said. “The challenge is to select the right technology, implement it properly, and then optimize performance on a day-to-day basis.”

Is Your Call Center Ready?

If you aren’t using the right tools to support your call center’s B2B marketing efforts, it’s no wonder that it may feel like a difficult or dying approach. You should be employing customizable dashboards with granular views of your B2B marketing data, accessing on-the-go insights that affect your decision-making, and building an efficient, effective process for making more connections and more sales. If you fear that your business is falling behind the times and you’re wanting to catch up with cloud-based call center technologies, connect with Call Logic for a FREE live demo of today’s version of vibrant B2B marketing calling software.