B2C, Meet B2B

I've worked in a number of very different industries - publishing, real estate, entertainment, and software/technology (current) - and as such, have had quite a bit of exposure to different marketing strategies and techniques. An interesting promotional/communications positioning technique, that I have stumbled across twice recently is giving audiences a 'how to' use scenario.

This is very common is the B2B world through the use of case studies, application notes (for life science software), etc. But, for the B2C world, I think it is one of the next evolutions for brands once they have established themselves initially and then outline growth strategies (note: of course, smaller niche competitors that pop-up often start in exactly the reverse fashion).

The two examples are both from the (packaged) food & beverage world:

1. A recent Tully's campaign titled 3:21, which my friend who is a Director of Marketing has kept me up to speed about as the campaign has rolled live. Essentially, trying to stand out versus the competition via promotional positioning and own a share of customers'/consumers' mind when they think 'Its 3 o'clock...damn, I'm tired and have at least 3 to 4 more hours'.

2. Lipton Cup-a-Soup...."Beat the 3pm slump." Again, makes perfect sense. You're at the grocery store and are perusing the soup isle, and seeing the packaging and messaging make you think....or at least made me think!...."I always get a little slower around 3pm. Lemme try this one."


Just an interesting observation, since the B2B and B2C worlds are always adopting strategies and tactics from each other. Often, these have greater success on the crossover.

One final note, I just started reading "Strategic Database Marketing." So far, an excellent read. I'll be posting a review soon on this book, which I am certain is available on Amazon.com, Barnes & Noble, and other online retail sites that sell marketing books.