The Need for H2H in the era of B2B and B2C
As marketers and solutions providers, we are often predominantly trained to speak terms like business to business (B2B) or business to consumer (B2C). However, underneath every business, it’s the human side that’s dealing to bring it to fruition. How can we as individuals ignore that in plain sight?
I was over at a Leadership Summit recently where I happened to met a few influencer leaders of different business domains. We were talking about the way marketing strategy has changed over the years. It was during one such conversation that this very question popped up, ‘When you are in a meeting with a prospect, do you enter the room with the view of managing the business or managing the clientele’s emotions? It did get me thinking, even though we are marketing our solutions, at the end of the day, we’re dealing with people and satiating their needs, their requirements, and the humane side is every bit as important as the business solution.
For ages, organizations have favored the idealogy of business models such as business to business (B2B) and business to consumer (B2C), and to some extent consumer to consumer (C2C). But being in the business, if there’s one thing you understand, models aren’t always the final answer. Sure, business models are often the epitome and help conceptualize ideologies, processes, and functioning of the organization. However, new models emerge with time, and being at the forefront of the ground reality is what creates a business idealogy that can meet the demands of the consumer.
Human-to-human interaction (H2H) has been one of those models that brands are still warming up. And it has proven to be quite effective because of the nuisance of personal connection that can be built with this model. The understanding though in my experience is that H2H has been and should always be the backbone of any business model. The words like B2B, B2C were coined terms to identify your business model, but they did lack the basic idea of connecting with the end clientele.
Whether it’s a B2B or a B2C model, sales are often brokered by individuals. Integrating the H2H appeal to your business model can create an authentic image of your business to the client. This helps create deeper connections that can act as the bridge of trust between you and your customer ultimately transpiring to a sale and long-term relationship.
I’d put forth a quote from Maya Angelou that has stuck with me for a long. She said, “I’ve learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.”
And that resonates with the business side of things as much as everyday life. Understanding your client’s needs, taking time to study their pain points, and devising a solution around that is what they appreciate. There is enough competition in the market and brands that have constantly been at the forefront are the very same who can figure out how they can alleviate the experience that their business creates. In today’s date, having a unique selling point is no longer the path to gaining customers. Figuring out how you can differentiate yourself from your competitors and deliver the right interaction is the way forward and H2H appeals as the perfect conducive way for it.
