The birth of a new business is a time of great doubt and uncertainty for the entrepreneur and knowing the differences between B2B and B2C as a business model can mean the difference between the success and failure of your business.
The first place to start is to study the market, identify the competitors, decide if a physical space is needed, if other professionals will be hired, choose the best marketing strategies, establish alliances with other companies, among many other important decisions.
Therefore, before making those decisions, you must know who your target audience is. At the end of the day, understanding the profile of who will buy your product or service will give you more security to define all your sales actions.
We talked earlier about the, which are nothing more and nothing less than the ideal profiles of buyers.
But before going to the analysis of potential clients, you need to know what market your business will target and for that you must know the differences between B2B or B2C as business models.
If these concepts are new to you or seem complicated, calm down. We will explain everything to you in this post. Continue reading!
What is a B2C business in marketing?
The B2C, or Business to Consumer, is what most people live in their day to day. This type of business is defined by transactions that are made between individuals and companies.
In other words, we are dealing with a B2C business when we shop at the supermarket, buy clothes at a store in the mall, hire an Internet service for our home or choose a gift at one.
In general, we can say that one of the most important differences of B2C purchases is that emotional factors tend to have a great weight at the moment of the decision.
The exciting commercials at Christmas time, the commercial showing seemingly delicious foods, the clothes that promise to make you more elegant and attractive. All of this influences consumers in their purchasing decisions.
B2C business example
Do you know when you walk past a bakery, you feel the smell of bread coming out of the oven and you can’t resist the temptation? Maybe you weren’t planning on eating bread at the time, but the smell triggered a desire and you ended up going in to shop.
Or then, when you’re watching a Youtube video before bed and a pillow commercial pops up that promises to make your night’s sleep cozier and more relaxing. You automatically imagine yourself sleeping with that pillow and decide that the next day you will go to a store to buy it.
In both cases, emotional factors prevailed over the functional issues of the products.
VIDEO | 6 Characteristics of Current Consumer Behavior
It wasn’t the ingredients that the bakery uses to make the bread that made you want to taste it. As it was not the technology, the fabric or the foam of the pillow that convinced you that it was an excellent acquisition.
For this reason, the main marketing strategies that companies use to attract individuals have the objective of activating some sensation or emotion.
In the same way, the most used communication channels are word of mouth, marketing brochures and emails, social networks, YouTube channels, various magazines and traditional media such as radio and TV.
Despite this, it is important to emphasize that, even being stimulated by emotional factors, more and more consumers are looking for more conscious and lasting purchases.
Therefore, do not stop communicating your technical and market differentials when talking to that audience, ok?
What does a B2B business mean in marketing?
Now, B2B business, or Business to Business, are the transactions carried out between companies. In general, they are purchases or negotiations related to a corporate need, that is, of a group of professionals.
Some examples of this are companies that hire tools and software from other companies, suppliers of materials from warehouses that supply offices from time to time, courier services that serve delivery companies, or even delivery companies. law firm that offer legal consulting for a small entrepreneur.
In general, these negotiations are of higher value and with recurring purchases. Therefore, they demand greater and presentation of data and benefits. In other words, the rational aspect is predominant in decision making.
As they can be long-term relationships, the customer’s lifetime value, known as CLV (Customer Lifetime Value), is very important in the relationship.
The company providing the service or product will probably dedicate itself to understanding the needs of the potential client and will maintain contact with him for much longer until he is convinced of the advantages offered. Therefore, one of the main differences between B2B and B2C is the conversion time of a sale, which is usually longer in the B2B model.
Content marketing, inbound and outbound marketing strategies are very efficient in this case, as they offer quality information, clarify doubts and create a relationship of trust between the professionals of both companies.
Now, the most used communication channels are commercial emails, social networks such as LinkedIn, landing pages, blogs, specialized magazines, telephone calls or video calls, consultancies and meetings.
VIDEO | 5 reasons to use LinkedIn for companies in your digital strategy
Bringing this to our reality, we can say that the relationship between and the Producers and Affiliates is B2B, while the relationship between the Producers and Affiliates and the buyers of digital products is, in general, B2C.
But in addition to the differences between B2B and B2C, there are other very interesting business models, such as the B2B2C and C2C models.
Do you want to better understand how they work?
When to use a B2B2C model?
In B2B2C, a company communicates simultaneously with these two publics mentioned above. In other words, it serves both companies and the final consumer.
In this type of business, the B2B company, which is the supplier of a product or service, reaches the B2C public indirectly, normally through another company.
B2B2C business example
Online marketplaces are a form of B2B2C business.
Probably, you have already bought a product online in an ecommerce that, in reality, was only managing the transaction between you and another company. And maybe you haven’t noticed.
Do you know that appliance you bought in a multi-brand online store? So, it is very likely that the supplier of that product is another company and that the e-commerce is only intermediating the purchase.
In other words, this marketplace offers the sales platform for another company to advertise its products (B2B) and, at the same time, offers a showcase of products so that the end customer can make their purchases comfortably and safely (B2C).
In the same way, we can say that physical stores or autonomous sellers that offer consignment sales products are a form of B2B2C in offline transactions.
And, as we saw earlier that for different audiences some marketing strategies must also be different, in the case of B2B2C, the intermediary company must adapt its actions to each of its audiences. In other words, with other companies she is going to communicate in a different way from the one used with the final consumer.
It is important to say that, many times, the communication channels used by B2B and B2C may be the same. Meanwhile, the biggest difference will be the way they are used, the language and the approach to messages.
What does a C2C model mean?
The C2C, or Consumer to Consumer, is the type of sale made between two individuals.
This type of business is very common in craft fairs or pages to sell used items.
In addition, social networks have become an important communication channel between people who want to sell and those who want to buy.
To meet this growing demand, Facebook launched a tool that facilitates business transactions between users of the platform.
You already know the differences between B2B and B2C, always think of the consumer!
There are many differences between these business models, but, as we can see, the main one is in the purchase motivations of each customer profile.
So remember:
In B2C and C2C, consumers are more interested in products and services that directly connect with their desires and feelings. Although these customers take into account factors such as price, features and quality, the differential will often be an emotional identification with the brand.
On the other hand, in B2B, the decision is made rationally, according to the needs of a group of people or an organization. Therefore, you need a longer negotiation process until the closing of the sale.
Did you like this text and did you manage to identify the profile of your company between the B2B and B2C models? So, don’t forget to also read our post that teaches you how to create a .
Facebook Comments
Disqus