In a nutshell, demand generation is what a brand does to drum up awareness and interest. Making the public at large conscious of their B2B company is a key factor in leading them to want to discover more.

Basically, B2B demand generation boils down to any marketing effort your B2B business makes to bring people into your sales funnel – with a special focus on personalization.

Commonly found in B2C in areas with longer sales cycles, demand generation tends to be more prevalent in the B2B world for one simple reason:

B2B products or services aren’t usually impulsed purchases, which means traditional marketing strategies won’t always work. Instead, when it comes to your demand generation strategies, you’ve got to think outside the box.

Break Through the B2B Demand Generation Confusion

So, What’s the Difference Between B2B Demand Generation & Lead Generation?

While these two concepts are easy to confuse, they are a bit different. Like lead gen, demand gen is a critical part of the sales cycle, but they are not the same. Think of them as two separate circles that overlap.

One of the key differences is that, unlike lead generation, demand gen doesn’t necessarily involve a deal or follow-up. Rather demand gen is what a brand does to create interest, while lead gen is more of the how part of the process.

Put simply, B2B demand generation lets consumers know who you are, while lead generation is how you make that interesting work for you.

What is B2B Demand Generation as it Relates to Inbound Marketing?

Another concept people often confuse with demand gen is inbound marketing. Of course, while any effective demand generation strategy will include both inbound and outbound marketing strategies, again, they are not the same thing as demand gen itself.

One of the big reasons people find demand generation so confusing is that it’s not as tangible a concept as the others it’s mixed up with. There is no spot in the sales funnel for “demand generation.”

In fact, in many cases, your demand generation efforts will start well before any customer enters the buying journey!

Content Marketing, as Usual, is King

Creating content is, by far, the most common method of generating demand for your products. Usually, the best content seeks to answer questions or solve a problem potential customers may have.

Digital content, like blog posts, white papers, case studies, and videos – that are search engine optimized (SEO) – helps improve your odds of being found by people looking for what you have to offer.

But B2B marketing and demand generation can also be interactive! Webinars and event marketing, for example, are fantastic ways to raise awareness, while engaging directly with consumers. What’s more, their popularity with both marketers and consumers is on the rise.

Social media has also become a critical tool in the demand generation toolbox. Boring and bland corporate personalities have been replaced with new, more human, and approachable profiles that help consumers see them as more than a faceless entities.

This ongoing presence helps keep you top of mind and keeps potential (and existing) buyers coming back for more. That gives you a chance to nurture relationships in the long term.

B2B demand generation is a deep and complicated concept – that happens to be critical to your success as a business. Want to learn more, or get a hand setting up yours?

Book a free consultation with the experts at Asset Digital Communications today!