A recent Octopus Group study of UK marketing directors revealed that changes in the competitive landscape were causing them to lose sleep, with over half stating that differentiation was a major challenge. This presentation explores: 1) How to use customer insight to formulate a differentiating B2B strategy that strikes the right balance of engaging customers and appeasing internal stakeholders. 2) How to activate differentiating campaigns brilliantly to build brand advocacy quickly.

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WELCOME
 Why differentiation is important
 Where differentiation is a challenge
 Examples of differentiation in action
 How to create a different kind of story
@weareoctopusgrp / @brandtosales / #b2b

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SLEEPLESS CMO
RESEARCH 2016
weareoctopusgroup.net/tech-heads-2016
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COMPETITIVE PRESSURES AS A DRIVER OF CHANGE
92% 30% 90%
competition in their market
has increased the pressure for
their company to achieve its
commercial objectives
this pressure
has increased
significantly
they’re having to become more
creative and innovative to
compete with other suppliers in
the market
SAYSAY SAY
/ Why differentiation is important
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Base: Total (100)

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Base: Total (400)
CHALLENGES
OF SUPPLIER
COMPETITION
Top three
challenges for
buyers in selecting
and onboarding
suppliers in a
more competitive
market
37%
39%
48%
Market becomes too ‘noisy’ /
overwhelming
Harder to distinguish between supplier
propositions
Buying process becomes more time-
consuming
/ Why differentiation is important

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Dramatic changes in competitive landscape are a key
driver for CMO pressure.
Convergence of “services” and expanded portfolios of
offerings are creating new competitive threats – each
competitor creating more content / using more tech,
burning more time….
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/ Why differentiation is important
IN SUMMARY

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CMOs lose sleep
over competitive
pressures that drive
‘more, more, more!’
CONCLUSION
Lack of differentiation and
market convergence
confuses customers and
delays decision making
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The solutions lie
in marketing levers
[differentiation] that offer
exponential value

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You want to be noticed.
You want to stand out.
You want to fit in.
SCHOOL DISCO
SYNDROME
/ Where differentiation is a challenge

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5 B2B DIFFERENTIATION CHALLENGES
/ Where differentiation is a challenge
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• Marketplaces are busy and noisy
• B2B thrives on similarity
• Customers experience common pain points
• Search demands common terms
• B2B is innately conservative

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BEYOND THE CORPORATE COMFORT ZONE
Comfort
Zone
Differentiation
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/ Where differentiation is a challenge

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/ Where differentiation is a challenge
WHERE DIFFERENTIATION OCCURS
Differentiation lifecycle
Core differentiators
Brand Evolution
CompanyEvolution Customer environment
Go-to-market
Technology innovation

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/ Where differentiation is a challenge
WHERE DIFFERENTIATION OCCURS
Differentiation lifecycle
What you wear
How you dance
What you dance to
Who you dance with
Creating a different story

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DIFFERENTIATION EXAMPLES
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/ Examples of differentiation in action
The long game eSports start-up
Video Streaming eSport service
Technology innovation

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DIFFERENTIATION EXAMPLES
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/ Examples of differentiation in action
The first-to-market
SIP Trunking Telecoms Provider
Go-to-market

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DIFFERENTIATION EXAMPLES
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/ Examples of differentiation in action
The community builder
BPM software provider
Customer environment

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CREATING A DIFFERENT STORY
Differentiated brand
Differentiated content
Differentiated customer service
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/ Examples of differentiation in action
Sometimes just
removing a coffee
stain can be
the difference
Finding your ‘coffee stain’ moment

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HOW TO CREATE A DIFFERENT STORY
Find the stories that make
a difference in your
business
Find the stories that make
a difference to your
customers
Find the stories the
competition keep
telling…and avoid them
1.Discover
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/ How to create a different kind of story
Great news: No two companies are actually the same

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HOW TO CREATE A DIFFERENT STORY
Get everyone excited
about what makes your
stories different
Create a different
narrative that
everyone believes
Identify all the ways
you can get your
difference across
2.Define
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/ How to create a different kind of story
Great news: Genuine difference get everyone excited

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HOW TO CREATE A DIFFERENT STORY
Difference embedded
in your approach
Difference embedded
in your content
Difference embedded
in customer experience
3.Deliver
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/ How to create a different kind of story
Great news: Great differentiators influence everything

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IN SUMMARY
• Prospects seek differentiation to help the decision making process
• Differentiation is difficult to identify, but valuable when established
• All businesses are different but many fail to bring their own story to life
• The journey to establishing and embedding differentiation goes beyond
the ‘comfort zone’
• Remember the ‘3Ds’ - Discovery, Definition and Delivery
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/ Panic at the disco

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hello@weareoctopusgroup.net
+44 (0)20 3772 8899
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