Boost B2B ROI with Alternative Paid Media Platforms

In the world of B2B marketing, relying solely on traditional advertising channels may limit your potential to engage a full spectrum of decision-makers. As audiences expand their digital presence across an array of platforms, diversifying your media strategy can open new doors for connecting with key clients in the places they naturally spend time. With each new channel offering unique advantages, adopting a multi-platform approach may be the key to gaining a competitive edge and maximising returns on your paid media investments.

Understanding the varied preferences and behaviours of your target audience is essential for developing an effective, targeted media plan. However, navigating the vast landscape of digital platforms presents challenges. How can you determine which channels will support your strategy effectively, and which will truly resonate with your intended audience? Choosing the right platforms requires a nuanced understanding of your audience’s habits and a clear vision of where your campaigns can make the most impact.

This article explores practical strategies to help you better understand your target audience, from analysing demographic data to observing engagement trends across different media. By taking a data-driven approach, you can craft a clearer, more effective media plan that doesn’t just rely on mainstream channels but instead leverages a mix of traditional and emerging platforms. Doing so will enable you to reach decision-makers in more dynamic ways, fostering meaningful interactions that stand out from typical B2B marketing efforts.

Beyond the usual suspects like LinkedIn or Google Ads, we’ll introduce you to several underutilised platforms that may offer fresh opportunities in the B2B space. These channels often go overlooked, yet they provide unique advantages for brands looking to distinguish themselves in a crowded marketplace. From niche industry forums to innovative ad placements on professional social networks, these options can help elevate your marketing approach, capturing the attention of an audience that is often hard to reach through conventional platforms.

Adopting a broader view of paid media strategies can offer tangible benefits. By embracing new channels and refining your approach, you’ll be well-positioned to create a more dynamic and effective B2B marketing strategy. These adjustments can not only expand your brand’s visibility but also contribute to building stronger, more authentic connections with your audience—enhancing your chances of achieving an impressive return on your media investment.

First things first: Understanding your audience

It’s surprising how often businesses feel they lack the right tools to truly understand their audience, even though they may already have a wealth of data at their fingertips. Your CRM system, for example, likely holds significant insights that could help refine your marketing strategy. Many marketers overlook just how useful a CRM can be in addressing essential questions about audience behaviour and preferences. Used properly, it can reveal much more about your customers and prospects than you might expect.

Firstly, a CRM system allows you to analyse data specifically tied to your business. By keeping a record of all customer interactions—whether they’re successful, lost, or disqualified—you can start identifying patterns and trends. This information offers a direct view into how potential customers engage with your brand and what factors may influence their decisions. The insights from these interactions can help you refine your approach and make adjustments that improve future outcomes.

Another key area where CRM data can help is in exploring the buying committee. Often, B2B marketing campaigns target multiple stakeholders within an organisation, but are they the right ones? Your CRM should detail who is involved in the sales and pipeline activities, providing insights into whether your campaigns are reaching the right individuals within these organisations. With this information, you can ensure your messaging is getting in front of the decision-makers who matter most.

Additionally, a CRM system can shed light on which accounts initially seem qualified but ultimately aren’t. For instance, perhaps a company appeared to be an ideal fit but ended up being disqualified by the sales team. Or maybe you see an unusual number of disqualifications for specific types of accounts. By examining these cases, you can uncover shared characteristics and adjust your targeting criteria to avoid similar mismatches in the future.

Beyond CRM data, there are other valuable methods to gain audience insights. LinkedIn groups, for instance, can be a rich source of information. For almost any product or service, there’s likely a LinkedIn group where people discuss relevant industry topics. Analysing these groups can help you understand the job titles, firmographics, and pain points of potential customers. Observing these discussions provides an unfiltered look at common challenges and concerns in your target market.

The LinkedIn Insight Tag is another powerful tool. By setting it up on your website, you can track attributes such as job titles, company names, company sizes, and seniority levels of visitors. This data allows you to see who is visiting your blog or key pages, offering a comprehensive view of the types of users engaging with your content. With these insights, you can refine your strategy to better attract and serve your ideal audience.

Finally, reviewing your competitors’ websites can also provide useful intelligence. Take a look at the industries and job titles they’re focusing on and see if certain verticals are highlighted through case studies or testimonials. This approach can help you gauge which market segments are priorities for your competitors, giving you a benchmark to cross-reference against your own strategy.

Plan smart: How to build a basic media plan

One common mindset in marketing is the desire to be visible on every platform, with some believing they can effectively distribute a budget of £2,000 across several channels. While this approach may seem comprehensive, it often results in diluted impact, limiting the potential for meaningful results or measurable growth. When resources are spread too thinly, achieving tangible outcomes or scaling up becomes increasingly difficult.

Instead, a well-structured media plan that focuses on key channels can make a significant difference. By consolidating your budget and efforts, you gain a clearer understanding of each platform’s potential, allowing you to make more informed decisions. This approach helps in allocating funds to channels that are most likely to yield strong returns, thereby maximising the overall impact of your campaigns.

A successful media plan should include several essential components, starting with audience segmentation and identification. Understanding who your target audience is and where they are most active will shape the foundation of your plan. This process ensures your efforts are directed at reaching the most relevant audience for your product or service.

Clear goals and objectives are also vital. Defining specific, measurable goals helps in tracking performance and gauging the success of your campaigns. A multichannel strategy, meanwhile, allows for a balanced approach by ensuring that your message is reaching audiences across various touchpoints, but in a focused and intentional way rather than spreading resources too thinly.

Finally, performance measurement and analysis are essential for ongoing improvement. Regularly reviewing campaign outcomes enables you to refine your strategy over time, ensuring that your efforts are continually optimised to achieve the best possible results.

Off the beaten path: Uncommon platforms for B2Bs

With a well-defined media plan, you’re ready to explore new platforms, including some that may not be as mainstream yet still offer valuable opportunities.

Reddit Ads

Unlike many platforms where users are passively scrolling, Reddit’s community is actively engaged and seeking high-quality advice. This dynamic creates a prime opportunity for B2B advertisers, as 68% of Reddit users are not on LinkedIn, giving you access to a distinct audience that might otherwise be missed. Reddit’s value extends across the B2B buyer’s journey, allowing you to connect with potential clients at various stages, including:

Problem identification (awareness),
Solution exploration (consideration),
Fit evaluation (research),
Shortlisting (advocacy), and
Community support (retention).

To effectively advertise on Reddit, consider implementing some key strategies. Start by setting up your tracking pixel to understand if your target audience is engaging with your site, enabling you to build remarketing pools. Find subreddits related to your industry to ensure relevance, and carefully choose Reddit’s ad inventory options to control where your ads appear. For more details, you might also want to check out a comprehensive guide on the various Reddit ad formats available.

YouTube Ads

Though often seen as a B2C space, YouTube can offer untapped potential for B2B marketers. The platform excels at delivering content to users not actively searching but who could still be receptive to relevant information. YouTube ads are particularly effective in guiding prospects through different stages of decision-making, such as understanding your offerings and evaluating fit.

For those exploring YouTube advertising, here are some campaign options to consider:

Use video reach campaigns for broad awareness.
Video view campaigns work well for brand consideration.
Demand Generation campaigns are ideal for encouraging deeper engagement and brand consideration. This replaces the previous video action campaigns, with a full phase-out expected by mid-2025.
For conversions, consider pairing Performance Max with Search campaigns to drive more qualified leads.

TikTok

Given the rise of younger buyers with decision-making power, TikTok is becoming increasingly relevant for B2B marketing. Millennials and Gen Z, who are steadily occupying higher roles, are an active part of TikTok’s vast user base. In 2024, users aged 25 to 34 make up almost a quarter of its U.S. audience, making it a key platform for brands targeting younger professionals.

If you’re considering TikTok, here are two steps to help you get started: first, build custom audiences to reconnect with visitors who have previously been on your site. Second, take advantage of TikTok search ads, a new feature that allows brands to show up in search results—ideal for targeting decision-makers who may be casually exploring products or services.

Make the most of your B2B paid media plan

In the fast-paced world of B2B marketing, keeping ahead of the competition requires a willingness to embrace new strategies and platforms.

Exploring alternative channels such as Reddit, YouTube, or TikTok can offer unique opportunities to connect with key decision-makers in ways that go beyond traditional advertising. Each of these platforms provides distinct advantages, enabling you to reach audiences where they are already engaged and open to learning about solutions that meet their needs.

At the heart of a successful marketing approach is a well-structured media plan. This plan should serve as the foundation, guiding your efforts to test and refine strategies while ensuring you’re reaching the right people at the right times. As the digital landscape and buyer behaviour evolve, adapting your approach with precision and purpose becomes crucial.

Additionally, the needs and preferences of B2B buyers are changing rapidly, influenced by emerging technologies and shifting workplace demographics. By staying flexible and experimenting with new tools, you’ll be well-positioned to engage effectively with your target audience, building trust and relevance that ultimately support your broader business objectives.

Embracing these new opportunities and adopting a forward-thinking mindset will help you connect with prospects in more meaningful ways, positioning your business for continued success in an ever-evolving market.