Marketing research strategies for understanding Millennial influence on B2B markets

Editor’s note: Nik Werk is a research manager at marketing research firm B2B International’s New York office. 

The next generation of Millennials will change the way we do business. But generational change is slower and less impactful in B2B markets because business decisions are inherently different than consumer decisions. While change is coming, B2B marketers and researchers should not mimic their B2C counterparts when engaging with Millennials.

The most obvious reason why generational change is slower in B2B markets is that it takes longer for younger generations to penetrate middle-level management and senior leadership positions. Decision-makers at the middle-management level drive many B2B business decisions and are a core target group for B2B marketing and sales efforts, while senior leadership positions drive large-scale organizational and strategic change. By comparison, generations have the power to drive change far earlier in their lives as consumers.

One overlooked reason why generational change is slower is the fundamental difference between consumer and B2B decision-making. Consumer decisions are largely made by individuals, with input and influence from others. Business decisions are made by larger decision-making units, which vary by geographic location, industry and place in the supply chain. For instance, when a manufacturing company orders materials to produce products, there are both formal procedures like legal processes, contracts and systems, and informal procedures like established relationships and stakeholder input that affect the decision about what to purchase and where to source the materials. Before someone can assume decision-making responsibility, he or she must learn to work within the established framework. While these processes and procedures do change over time, it is far more complex to change these B2B decisions than the tactical ones younger generations make as consumers.

Learning from their peers

Younger generations adapt to their environment and learn from their peers, displaying different purchasing behavior at work than in their private lives. For example, while Millennials are more plugged in to social media than previous generations, they do not use social channels to the same extent in a professional capacity – at least not yet.

In a 2015 survey conducted by B2B International with 266 marketing decision-makers, only 22 percent said they often use social media (excluding LinkedIn) for work purposes. More importantly, social media is considered the least useful channel for insights relevant to businesses, below Web sites, trade journals, conferences, blogs, associations and video Web sites. This is very different to consumer markets, where social media has been an integral part of marketing for years.

A different role in business

Millennials do matter to B2B markets, we just need to understand their role in making business decisions. Millennials primarily affect B2B purchasing decisions as influencers to the final decision-makers and as researchers. Research by Google suggests that almost half (46 percent) of the research influencing B2B purchasing decisions is done by Millennials, ages 18 to 34.

So, what does this mean for B2B marketers and researchers? Since nearly half of B2B purchasing research is conducted by Millennials, B2B marketers should optimize their channel strategy to the needs of this generation. The focus should predominantly be at the early stages of the marketing funnel – generating awareness and consideration – which is where Millennials are most involved now (Figure 1).

Research by IBM suggests that the marketing needs of Millennials differ from older generations in several ways:

• they utilize technology more, including smart phones and social media;
• they consider interaction with supplier reps to be more significant than other sources; and
• they value ease of doing business – a seamless experience – with suppliers.

B2B marketers need to ensure that their marketing strategy is optimized for digital channels and that their Web sites have a responsive design. Marketers also need to guarantee speedy and easy access to information and must be available as trusted partners when Millennials get in touch.

From researchers to decision-makers

As the younger generations slowly move from researchers and influencers into partial and, ultimately, final B2B decision-makers, it stands to reason that many of their behaviors, traits and needs will move with them. Market researchers need to be wary of their changing use of technology and increasingly focus on conducting research optimized for smart devices. As Millennials are more likely to leave feedback online or post on social media, reviews and social media monitoring could also become more important data sources for many market research types, such as competitive intelligence, customer satisfaction and branding research.

Millennials already influence B2B business decisions. They will ultimately take on more formal responsibility within established and structured decision-making units. And while they may change how those decision-making units work over time, the change will be slower and less visible than in consumer markets. The best B2B marketers and researchers can do in the long-term is to watch for any changes in behavior and focus on Millennials as researchers and influencers, optimizing marketing research and channel strategies accordingly.