The importance of B2B websites has grown massively in recent years. Moving from brochureware to lead generating. This is not surprising as 92% of B2B purchases now start with an internet search¹. But many B2B companies are not fully maximising the opportunities offered from their website traffic; in fact, only 28% of companies are satisfied with their conversion rates².

Websites play a key role in partner marketing programmes and can be a powerful tool in joint go-to-market plans. Following the great learnings from The Manchester Metropolitan University, along with PRWD and the expert Paul Rouke, below are a handful of top tips and considerations.

1. Grow a customer-centric business mindset with websites at the core

• 74% of business buyers conduct more than half of their research online³ before speaking to a person, so it’s vital to ensure that websites are populated with engaging and informative content.
• Only by changing the mindset of the senior leader’s business and putting websites higher on the marketing agenda, will potential customers be able to find all the information they need and be motivated to get in touch to find out more.

2. Capture customer insight to formalise continuous learning

• Data and analytics are powerful tools so companies should formalise a process for capturing insight about customers buying behaviour and sharing it with colleagues across the organisation.
• It’s critical to carry out customer listening and continuous learning. With this, marketing teams will be able to identify opportunities to optimise conversation on the website, which in turn will increase the chances of a customer continuing the desired online sales journey.

3. Identify a senior executive to champion CRO

• It’s often the case that B2B businesses don’t recognise the CRO opportunity and typically have poorly designed websites that have been designed by committee⁴.
• Increasing focus and investment in websites is critical to ensure success beyond being a showcase for a company’s offerings.
• Identifying a senior executive to become the company sponsor and champion of CRO will help increase awareness of its importance and increase momentum behind website development.

4. Dedicate resource to user research

• Conversion rate optimisation is quite scientific, dealing with psychology, behaviour, data and statistics⁵. It is therefore essential to utilise people with the right skills and experience; they need to be curious and passionate about optimising the customer journey.
• Allocating dedicated resource to this role will ensure that the data collated will be valid as it can often be the smallest tweak that makes the most difference in finding a combination that engages readers and converts visitors⁶.

Conversion rate optimisation can be complex, but with the right strategy and culture, and some dedicated resource, websites can be made to work harder and be a key weapon in your partner marketing armour.

References:

1. Wizdo, L. (2019) Welcome to The B2B Marketing Renaissance – https://go.forrester.com/blogs/welcome-to-the-b2b-marketing-renaissance/

2. Sharma, G. (2019) 3 B2B Conversion Optimization Practices You’ve (Probably) Overlooked –

https://unbounce.com/conversion-rate-optimization/b2b-conversion-rates/

3. Wizdo, L. (2015) Myth Busting 101: Insights into The B2B Buyer Journey, Forrester – https://go.forrester.com/blogs/15-05-25-myth_busting_101_insights_intothe_b2b_buyer_journey/

4. Simmonds, R, (2019) Why Are Most B2B Websites Designed So Poorly Even In 2019? Foundation Inc. – https://foundationinc.co/lab/b2b-websites-designed-poorly/

5. PRWD (2016a) The Four Pillars of Digital Transformation-People & Skills – https://www.prwd.co.uk/blog/the-four-pillars-of-digital-transformation-people-skills/

6. Grundy, J. (2016) 10 Benefits of A/B Testing – https://www.mightycall.com/blog/10-benefits-ab-testing/