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![]() Sapar Karyagdyyev, CEO at Gamingtec, shares his professional tips on how to build effective relationships with business partners ![]() 30.Jun.21 1:06 PM By Shawn Highstraw Photo Sapar Karyagdyyev |
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Interacting with other businesses can be challenging for a company, especially if the company does not have such experience. B2B relationships significantly differ from the company’s communication with clients. Sapar Karyagdyyev, CEO at Gamingtec, shares his professional recommendations on how to build effective relationships with partners. This article will be useful for startup entrepreneurs that work in the media entertainment market. Good messaging and branding are the keys to success, according to Sapar Karyagdyyev. When promoting products for consumers (business-to-customer level), marketing departments mostly focus on fun and creative ideas with the potential to be viral. On the B2B (business-to-business) level, the task is to show the benefits of the products or services and convince the company's top management (decision-makers) that their investment is a sound approach and will yield profit. To raise brand awareness and advertise the company on the B2B level, marketers use certain methods that work best for this market segment. It can be email marketing, digital advertising, advertising in trade magazines and journals, online and offline participation in industry conferences and exhibitions, SEO, and others. Sapar Karyagdyyev says that all these methods are effective when promo materials are focused on highlighting overall ROI and are addressed to potential business partners. To build a partnership in the media entertainment industry, it is crucial to know the other company's business processes and be able to explain to potential partners the perspectives of a long-term collaboration even if it does not imply immediate results. It is the task of a knowledgeable sales team. Therefore, one should give high priority to the training of the sales team so that they are effective and flexible enough to communicate with future partners. Another aspect the company should pay attention to is its tone of voice. “Most of the companies are looking forward to being known as professional and approachable players of the market. They try to be neutral in communication, and, unfortunately, sound like robots. But who wants to partner with a robot?” asks Sapar Karyagdyyev. According to him, to sound natural and become remarkable, a brand should focus on such characteristics as being “friendly”, “informative”, and “knowledgeable”. These features can help distinguish the company from competitors, as well as build trust and a meaningful connection with the targeted audience. Among the companies (representatives of media entertainment and technological industries) that have a remarkable tone of voice, there are such businesses as Slack, Mailchimp, and Dell. Slack’s messages are direct and clear (how to organize the working process of a team); sometimes they include emoji—this way, the company shows the human side of the brand. Working primarily with small businesses, Mailchimp uses simple messages and informal phrases like "we've got you covered"—the company is ready to speak the same language with the entrepreneurs that use its services. Dell shares company news and talks about innovative technologies in a friendly way on LinkedIn. They use this social network to build communication with potential partners. To achieve great results in B2B marketing campaigns, every action should be planned holistically based on market research and analysis of the brand, a strategic marketing plan that includes a brand strategy, and messaging platforms. This is the point to clarify what makes your brand unique and distinguishes it from competitors. If you need to do the research, SWOT analysis can come in handy. For most small-to-medium-sized business partnerships, a marketing and PR agency can be beneficial. Agency experts work over strategic and tactical communication plans. They can guarantee that every piece of creativity, communication, and content will be planned and implemented professionally. A successful marketing strategy includes an SEO program, too. Link building, keyword search, website optimization, and content development—all these components are necessary to improve organic Google search ranking. SEO development is a long-term project that requires time and money but benefits with great results. B2B marketing campaigns in the media entertainment industry are targeted at a long-term interaction with the audience (potential partners). They are based on the “what’s next” question that is well-planned and implemented on different levels at a time. |