2021 Marketing Trends for B2B Companies
Speak Agency • January 14, 2021
SHARE THIS:
"To expect the unexpected shows a thoroughly modern intellect."
—Oscar Wilde
If nothing else, 2020 has taught us to expect the unexpected, and then un-expect even more. As it turns out, 2021 is putting that mantra to good use already.
While it is human nature to want to quantify this year’s events and place them neatly into compartments for reflection and posterity catharsis may prove to be the only true remedy for what has become the year of which no-one shall speak.
After everything we have gone through, we are hopeful for a new year and a return to the normal we knew before the pandemic hit. Thankfully, with the help of our co-workers, family and friends, we have learned to cope and carry on together. With steadfast hearts and hopeful expectation, let’s kick off 2021 with the prognosticating you’ve come to expect this time of year: The five digital marketing trends of 2021.
This time around, we decided to throw out the crystal ball—obviously it's no help to us at this point. Instead, we've procured the tastiest bits from the digiverse to share what trends we'll see in the new year. You’re likely already using one or more of these strategies, but we believe the five activities listed below will continue to gain in popularity and be used at the forefront of B2B marketing efforts in 2021.
Video Advertising
Video has been at the top of our list since 2012, so it should be no surprise that it continues to evolve in unexpected ways that keep viewers coming back for more. In 2020, thanks to some high-profile shenanagins, TikTok spread like wildfire across the U.S. where now there are over 80 million active users
and growing. And we were late to the party, currently there are over one billion users worldwide.
B2C brands have already tapped into the vast user-base by creating viral video content that resonates with target audiences-B2B brands can take part in it as well. While TikTok is wildly popular, it isn't the only type of video advertising you can use. We are also predicting that informational videos, webinars, and customer testimonials will continue to capture your audience's attention through brand storytelling. What's more, this company's innovative technology
makes creating the perfect video to tell your story even easier. Every B2B company has their own narrative. We suggest showing off that unique story to express how your brand is different and why it matters. If you’re struggling to tell your story, or just need help pulling it all together, we can help.
Virtual Events
When the pandemic first hit back in March, all large and in-person events were canceled without a clear date to reschedule. We saw B2B companies frantically try to find alternatives to in-person gatherings. Zoom quickly became the go-to for video meetings, conferences and events. We learned (and are still learning) to toggle the mute button before we start talking. Others have fallen victim to the zoom freeze amusing teammates with perfectly timed awkwardness. In addition to Zoom, companies sought out virtual event platforms such as Cvent, Hubb, and BigMarker. Thousands of attendees can interact with their favorite brands and chat with other professionals from the comfort of their own homes. We highly recommend keeping the event engaging with meaningful interactive content as attendees face distractions within the home.
Account-Based Marketing
If you aren't aware of what ABM is yet-that's okay! We've mentioned how ABM is on the rise in our recent blog post-Modern Account-Based Marketing. Here's what you need to know. Take a peak at a little snippet from our blog below:
"Modern ABM employs simple and smart digital marketing platforms that enable your marketing team to align with sales to create highly personalized buying experiences for your ideal target accounts. This cross-team functionality removes any uncertainty and improves communications resulting in consistent strategies across the organization. With ABM, no matter where your team is at in the sales process, any member can immediately pick up where an account was left off.
"
ABM is a great strategy for targeting those high-level professionals in sought-out companies. Be sure to provide your target audiences with highly customized and memorable experiences.
Emphasis on Mobile Advertising
Since many of us have been social distancing in our homes for months now, we have naturally increased our mobile device usage. We rely on our mobile devices to communicate with friends and family, search the internet for banana bread recipes and doom scroll through countless social media apps. Mobile devices are how we stay connected and B2B brands can take advantage of where consumers are. First things first though-you need to make sure that your website is optimized for mobile devices. If your site isn't mobile-friendly, visitors will be quick to notice and will continue along the buyer's journey on a competing site. Once you've mastered mobile optimization, we suggest advertising where your audiences spend a good amount of time. That could be a 30 second video ad on YouTube, sponsored business pages on Facebook or display ads on LinkedIn. Plan to know where your audiences are and generate content that will encourage them to convert into customers.
Content Marketing
Content marketing continues to be a tried-and-true measure to convert leads into customers-as long as your content is informational and helpful. There are several types of content marketing, from blogs to infographics, webinars and user-generated content. We are talking endless possibilities! Be forewarned, if your content isn't exciting or beneficial to the reader, you may not see your hard work pay off. Keep your target audiences in mind while you're creating content. First consider what the visitor is searching for and be sure to provide them with a clear answer or solution before they exit out of your carefully crafted content.
Are you looking to optimize your mobile site or put together a plan for an ABM pilot program for 2021? We can help-we know how to help brands speak human. We look forward to connecting with you all in the new year!
Marketing and sales are supposed to work in sync. Marketing creates the messaging, sales takes it to market, and customers get a consistent, compelling brand experience. But in reality? That almost never happens.
For tech startups, creating a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) — the stripped-down version of your product that allows you to test core assumptions with real users — is a common approach to product development. But what about your brand? Enter the Minimum Viable Brand (MVB): the essential elements needed to present your company professionally and connect with early customers, without over-investing in elaborate brand development.
Let's cut to the chase: In a world drowning in digital noise and AI-generated content, brand authenticity isn't just a nice-to-have — it's your survival kit. Today's tech-savvy customers can smell manufactured messaging from ten browser tabs away, and they're not afraid to hit "unfollow" faster than you can say "corporate values." The Power of Brand Truth Here's the deal: brand authenticity means getting real about who you are as an organization. We're not talking about your product specs or your tech stack — we're talking about the raw, honest truth of why you exist and what drives your team to show up every day. Your brand truth might be buried in your startup story, your unique approach to solving gnarly problems, or the way you're fundamentally changing how your customers work and live. Take Microsoft's transformation under Satya Nadella. When he took the reins in 2014, he didn't just pivot the company's technology — he unleashed its authentic truth as an enabler of human achievement. This wasn't some slick marketing play; it was a fundamental shift from "Windows first" to "empower every person and organization on the planet to achieve more." The result? Microsoft's stock price soared over 600% since 2014, and they've become one of the most valuable companies in the world. Why Truth Matters More Than Ever The numbers don't lie: According to Stackla, 88% of consumers say authenticity is crucial when deciding which brands to support. Even more telling? A recent Edelman study found that 81% of consumers need to trust a brand before they'll even consider buying from them. In an age where every startup claims to be "disrupting" something, customers are developing highly sophisticated BS detectors. They're not just looking at your product dashboard — they're scrutinizing your GitHub contributions, reading your engineering blog posts, and watching how you handle service outages on Twitter. Uncovering Your Brand's Truth Finding your brand's authentic truth requires serious introspection. Ask yourself: What technical problem made you angry enough to start this company? What conventional wisdom in your industry are you willing to challenge? What keeps showing up in your customer success stories? What principles would you defend even if they slowed down your growth? Sometimes your truth is hiding in plain sight. Look at Twilio. Their brand truth isn't about APIs — it's about democratizing complex communications technology. This core truth drives everything from their developer-first approach to their acquisition strategy. Expressing Truth Through Story Once you've nailed your brand truth, you need to tell its story in a way that clicks with your audience. And no, we're not talking about another "Our Journey" blog post. Consider how Stripe tells its story. Their truth isn't about payment processing — it's about increasing the GDP of the internet. This bigger narrative has turned what could have been dry technical documentation into a compelling story about empowering entrepreneurs worldwide. Their transparency about their engineering challenges and public infrastructure investments has built unprecedented trust in the developer community. Building Trust Through Consistency Real talk: authenticity means walking the walk. When Zoom faced security criticisms in 2020, CEO Eric Yuan didn't hide behind PR speak. He admitted the problems, implemented a 90-day feature freeze to focus on security, and hosted weekly webinars to address concerns. This transparent approach turned a potential crisis into a trust-building opportunity. The data backs this up: According to PwC, 71% of consumers say they'll lose trust in a brand if they perceive it's putting profit over people. And once that trust is gone, 46% say they'll stop buying from the company altogether. The Bottom Line In the tech world, where every other company claims to be "revolutionary" or "game-changing," authentic brand truth is your secret weapon. It's not about crafting the perfect message—it's about having the courage to be genuinely, consistently, unapologetically you. The next generation of successful tech brands won't win because they had the most sophisticated tech stack or the biggest AWS budget. They'll win because they dared to be real in an increasingly artificial world. In an industry obsessed with automation and scalability, never forget that authenticity is the one thing you can't fake. Remember: Your brand truth is like your source code — you don't write it from scratch, you refactor and optimize what's already there. When you commit to pushing authentic commits to your brand repository, you're not just building a better story — you're compiling a more resilient business that resonates with users on a fundamental level.
