This article was originally published on Modernmarketingtoday.com
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The traditional B2B marketing doesn't answer the question: "Who is our company?"
It is no secret that the way people consume goods, services and content is changing in our increasingly digital-first world. The way we work and interact with those around us has become very different in only a few short years. It’s also no surprise then that the way brands market to consumers has changed as well, but when you observe this change, one thing is very clear: consumer brands are far outpacing B2B when it comes to demonstrating creativity.
The ‘creative bankruptcy’ that exists within B2B marketing is vast. You don’t need to Google “business finance” for example to be able to picture the results: the same blue hues, nondescript graphs and stock images of people in suits. This is a shame and a major missed opportunity: at the end of the day, there’s a human decision maker behind every target business, and they still respond to stimuli in the same way.
A select few have realized that for modern audiences – and also for hiring the best talent – we can’t be boring anymore. Companies cannot afford to fall short on the marketing side of the business and treat customers as if they were numbers on a spreadsheet. People operate on emotions, and they want to be entertained and excited as well as informed.
While this may sound intuitive, creativity in B2B marketing is yet to catch up.
How Capchase is choosing to stand out
This need for creativity, especially in finance, is what led us to do some introspection and build a visual identity that reflects our company mission to do things differently from the status quo. Our rebrand last year stemmed from our desire to make our brand more representative of who Capchase is and what we stand for. We wanted our brand to reflect the goals and needs of our customers but also be something that inspires them.
Many B2B companies take the well-beaten path and opt for a typical ‘letter-shape’ logo convention using the first capital letter from the company name. At Capchase, we wanted to represent an idea: movement and speed (thus, our logo is a literal representation of a ‘fast-forward’ button which can be seen in the absent spaces). We also wanted to represent flexibility and liquidity, so our design incorporates wavy patterns and bold colors. In the stuffy space of fintech, we wanted to stand out as different, the same way we believe our non-dilutive alternative financing product is different and radical for founders.
Of course, there are outlier brands who are bucking the creative bankruptcy in B2B and whom we have been inspired by along the way: Mercury, Gong, Slack, and Webflow to name a few – who have added personality and fun into their brands.
Creative marketing is the future for B2B companies
It is important to remember that you are not selling to a business – you are selling to people. B2B marketing has historically relied on data, facts and hard information, but that rarely left a lasting impression on intended audiences.
Twenty years ago, you could play it safe on the marketing front. But as workplace culture continues to change and millennials – who increasingly make up the business owner community – continue to constitute up the bulk of the workforce, B2B marketing strategies need to evolve with the change.
To be successful, we believe, businesses need to tell stories with information to breakthrough in today’s market. With Capchase, we're able to tell our story through our brand while keeping our purpose top of mind – helping companies accelerate growth by bringing future revenue forward to today.
