The increasing importance of accumulating, analysing and applying data in B2B ads
In today’s competitive B2B arena, data isn’t just an optional tool for your marketing campaigns – it’s instrumental. Equipping yourself with an arsenal of available data and analytical tools, you need to interrogate and extract the most insight from your data, to ensure your content is more targeted at the top of the funnel.
For marketers targeting niche, high-value audiences, data can unlock valuable insights into preferences and pain points, allowing you to create campaigns that align perfectly with their needs.
The result? More personalised experiences, more impactful campaigns and a bigger ROI.
Not sure where to start? We’ve broken it down into three simple steps.
Step one: Data collection
Every journey starts with a first step. In our case, that’s effective data gathering.
The key is to collect data from a wide range of touchpoints. Ideally, you’ll be using a variety of techniques for a multi-pronged approach that gives you a comprehensive view of your audience.
You might gather data using:
- CRM systems – to capture comprehensive customer and prospect data.
- Website analytics tools – to track users’ behaviour and engagement when interacting with your site.
- Social media listening tools – to ‘tune in’ to market sentiment related to your brand and keywords.
- Regular client surveys – to access direct client feedback.
- Everyday customer interactions – to provide authentic, ‘word of mouth’ insights.
Additional data sources for B2B campaigns could include the following touchpoints:
- Existing CRM data that you already hold
- Data from live and online events, e.g., exhibitions, trade fairs
- Data from buyer intent platforms, from Appolo.io to ZoomInfo
- Data from mergers/acquisitions, as reported in business-focused media
- Data from Demand Side Platforms (DSPs) – Platforms such as Sky and EE can provide marketers with access to decision makers and leaders at SMEs
- Data from professional associations and trade bodies
- Data from trade media outlets
- Data from LinkedIn Sales Navigator and Campaign Manager
Whichever methods you choose, it’s essential to ensure the data you’re collecting is high-quality, consistent, and accurate across all sources.
You’ll also want to stay on top of important data privacy standards—or get a team of digital experts like us to handle it for you—to ensure you remain fully compliant.
Step two: Data analysis and application
With a wealth of data now at your fingertips, it can be tricky to know where to start when it comes to breaking it down into meaningful chunks. But, if you keep in mind the original objectives behind your data gathering exercise, that should guide your approach.
Segmentation is key. By analysing main data points such as industry, company size, and buying behaviour, you can group your audience into distinct segments. This helps you craft highly targeted messages that resonate with each group.
Next, you can begin creating Ideal Customer Profiles (ICPs). ICPs allow you to identify who your most valuable customers are, based on shared characteristics across your audience segments. By mapping out these profiles, you gain a deeper understanding of your customers’ particular needs, challenges, and pain points.
Data visualisation tools like MS Excel, Google Charts, and Tableau can help you spot trends and patterns to inform your ICPs. For example, by visualising your audience’s behaviours and interests, you can see which pain points are most common.
The more accurately you segment and build ICPs, the better your targeting becomes. The more relevant your content, the greater likelihood of engagement.
Step three: A/B testing
An essential tool in any marketer’s arsenal. The key to A/B testing ads is to test one variable against a control, allowing you to identify which version performs better. By testing different subject lines, CTAs, visuals and ad variations, you can fine-tune your campaigns to discover what resonates most with your audience – and keep refining until you get it just right.
When testing, it’s crucial to use reliable platforms and methods. We recommend calling upon the specialised expertise of B2B market research agencies for testing ads, as well as the testing facilities available on platforms like Google, Meta and LinkedIn, which offer a wealth of data to analyse performance.
However, A/B testing shouldn’t be an afterthought – it needs to be a fundamental part of your campaign strategy. Marketers should allocate time for testing different ad variations during the initial campaign setup phase, gathering data-driven insights before rolling out full campaigns. This proactive approach helps ensure your ads are optimised for performance from the start, rather than needing costly adjustments mid-campaign.
Integrating testing as a regular practice in your marketing ensures you’re consistently improving and adapting, and ultimately producing more effective, data-backed B2B ad campaigns that deliver ROI.
How AI is changing the game
Let’s not forget the topic on every marketer’s lips.
It’s true, the integration of AI is taking data-driven B2B advertising to the next level. Platforms are already using AI-powered tools to analyse massive data sets such as CRM platforms, LinkedIn and Google, to identify patterns and generate customer insights.
For marketers, this means faster, more accurate analysis and fewer repetitive tasks (yay!).
However, with so many new, increasingly sophisticated tools at your disposal, learning how to navigate them can be a daunting task.
Fortunately, we’re staying on top of the latest developments and how they’re impacting the marketing world – so you don’t have to.
Check out our latest edition of ‘Tech Talk’ to learn more.
