New Data: Which Apps Can Help Build Your B2B Sales Funnel Fast?

In this article, we share recent NuVoodoo study findings that rank how often B2B prospects use so-called “walled garden” digital apps (requiring logins) to help marketers optimize reach, frequency, and the return on digital ad campaign spend.

Targeting B2B prospects presents unique challenges for digital marketers due to the distinct characteristics and behaviors of this segment. One of the primary difficulties lies in the longer sales cycles inherent to B2B transactions. Unlike B2C transactions, which often involve individual decision-makers and shorter timelines, B2B purchases typically require consensus from multiple stakeholders, each with their own priorities and concerns. These high-stakes decisions result from building trust, creating awareness for various products and services, and showing value to close prospects. This often involves significant investments, which lead to a more cautious and thorough decision-making process, elongating the sales cycle.

For digital marketers, finding the channels that can draw qualified business leads into and down a sales funnel of a typical customer journey – from awareness to action –  is paramount.  It starts by identifying the platforms with the best potential to reach and deliver message frequency to prospects efficiently.

In June 2024, NuVoodoo conducted an extensive digital media study. The objective was to understand media consumption habits and the types of incentives that prompt engagement from key B2B segments.  We’ve discussed incentives in previous articles (link to the blog page or to individual articles if they’ve fallen too low in the hierarchy).  Today we’ll rank decision-makers app usage, which offers crucial insights into both potential reach and message frequency so that marketers can optimize their channel mix more effectively

To achieve a nuanced analysis, we segmented respondents into two distinct groups:

Group 1: Business Purchase Decision-Makers

• Criteria for Selection: Working-age respondents who confirmed that they make at least some purchasing decisions on behalf of their employer or business.
• Sample Size: This group consisted of 1,091 individuals out of a total sample size of nearly 3,200 nationwide respondents.
• Demographic Composition: Within this group, 61% were men and 39% were women. Generationally, 64% were Gen Z and Millennials, while 36% were Gen X and Young Boomers.

Group 2: Business Conference Attendees

• Criteria for Selection: Respondents who acknowledged attending an industry conference or trade show in the past six months.
• Sample Size: 931 met these criteria
• Demographic Composition: Similar to Group 1, with only minor variances

Understanding Potential Reach through Daily Use Percentages: Daily use percentages give marketers a clear picture of how many business decision-makers are actively using each platform on a regular basis. High daily use indicates a platform’s broad reach, making it an essential component of any marketing strategy aimed at maximizing visibility.

• Broad Audience Access: Platforms with high daily use percentages, such as Google (81%), YouTube (73%), and Facebook (68%), ensure that ads have the potential to be seen by a large portion of the target audience. This is crucial for initial brand exposure and building awareness.  Both Meta and YouTube owners Google either offer company-specific or keyword/URL-based targeting to help isolate the most qualified targets.  Both platforms allow marketers to upload customer and prospect lists to create custom audience segments, serve them videos, and display ads.
• Cost Efficiency: Investing in platforms with high daily usage can yield better cost efficiency as the likelihood of ad impressions increases, ensuring that marketing budgets are utilized effectively. The targeting solutions offered give marketers the ability to reduce wasted impressions and maintain a narrow focus.

Evaluating Potential Frequency through Compulsive Use Rates: Compulsive use rates, defined as the percentage of users engaging with a platform four times a day or more, help marketers understand how often their ads could be seen by the same users. This frequent engagement is vital for reinforcing brand messages and driving conversions.

• Message Reinforcement: Platforms with high compulsive use rates, such as Google (29%), Facebook (23%), and Youtube (21%), provide opportunities for repeated ad exposure. This repetition helps to reinforce the brand message, increasing the chances of recall and influencing purchase decisions.
• Faster Impact: Frequent interactions with ads can accelerate the impact of marketing campaigns. High compulsive use rates mean that decision-makers are more likely to see ads multiple times within a short period, speeding up the customer journey from awareness to action.

By combining insights from both daily use and compulsive use data, marketers can strategically allocate their resources across various platforms to optimize their channel mix.

• Balanced Approach: Platforms like Google and Meta (Facebook & Instagram’s parent company), which score highly on both daily and compulsive use metrics, should form the cornerstone of a balanced marketing strategy. This ensures both broad reach and frequent engagement.
• Strategic Investment: Understanding the dual metrics helps in identifying which platforms warrant greater investment. For instance, YouTube, with significant daily use (73%) and compulsive use (21%), is ideal for campaigns that benefit from engaging video content and frequent user interactions.
• Tailored Content: Different platforms excel at different types of content and engagement. Marketers can tailor their content strategies to leverage the strengths of each platform, using detailed information from NuVoodoo’s data to create highly targeted and effective campaigns.

B2B marketers must achieve a high degree of precision to reach the right professionals within specific industries or roles. This is particularly challenging given the limited size of the potential audience compared to broader B2C markets. As a result, marketers need to employ highly focused and effective outreach strategies to connect with the right prospects.

Creating content that meets the expectations of B2B buyers is another significant challenge. These buyers are often looking for detailed, informative material that addresses their specific needs and challenges. Content to engage and educate this audience is as important as the advertising targeting and tactics that drive interaction. Establishing thought leadership is crucial for building trust and influencing decision-makers.

Addressing the challenges of targeting B2B prospects requires a strategic, well-coordinated approach that leverages data-driven insights, high-quality content, and personalized engagement to effectively reach and convert prospects. Partnering with professionals who have experience conducting market research and a proven track-record for executing successful marketing campaigns can further ensure success.

NuVoodoo helps clients find and influence B2B prospects efficiently. It’s easy to get in touch. Drop us a line at tellmemore@nuvoodoo.com.