ToB operations, 7 pitfalls to avoid

If you stand in the right place, even a pig can fly.

ToB is a hot spot. People who do ToC operations want to do ToB operations. However, ToB operations have many different directions from ToC. If you want to switch to ToB operations , or have already done ToB operations, you should pay attention to the pitfalls in your work.

Avoid digging a deeper and deeper pit, trapping yourself in it and unable to extricate yourself. Sooner or later, you will drown in the pit.

First: Only know operational skills

ToB operations and ToC operations are two completely different sets of logic. ToC operations follow the AARRR model. The operations staff have clear division of labor: channels, content, and users.

ToC products target a wide user base and deploy SEM and DSP in the channel. As long as customers can be acquired on a large scale, the goal is achieved, and all registered users are valuable. Use processes or content to convert users, use the RFM model to stratify users, and stimulate user activity according to levels.

Operations personnel only need to understand the user's psychology and skillfully apply operations skills to complete their operations work well.

However, in the B2B industry, users need to pay actual money, and customers need to pay for the value of the product.

Operations personnel must know how to use the product, the value it brings to customer business, and accurately convey the value to users.

Operations personnel must not only understand the business of their own products, but also understand the business of their customers, and have strong summarizing and conclusion skills to combine the product with the user's business.

When doing ToB operations, it is difficult to achieve effective results by just knowing operational skills.

Second: Focus on front-end customer acquisition

Before, I also thought that the value of operations personnel lies in obtaining customer leads, and other things should include business, pre-sales and after-sales follow-up.

This is a big pit, big enough to drown the operators.

In some companies that do not have this mechanism, operations personnel obtain valuable leads through content or delivery, hand over the leads to the business department, and transactions are made. The company only credits the benefits to the business department, which does not help the operations personnel's performance at all.

Operations personnel need to follow up on the value to the end. After users leave your company, they should review the progress every week or every half month, and continue to follow up on the user introduction process. This will help them understand user needs and better introduce more users.

If the operations staff obtains a large number of clues, a corresponding handover mechanism should be established to promote the transfer of operational value.

Focusing on front-end customer acquisition, the end result is to make wedding dresses for others, and in the end you can't even get the good guy card. The company still thinks you are someone who only spends money but cannot produce results.

This type of people are the easiest to be optimized!

Third: Relying solely on channels

Some ToB operators have relied on channels, thinking they can sit back and relax, but in fact they have not brought much value.

ToB products can bring in a large number of users and cash flow if they have cooperative channels, but operations personnel must always be aware that business is better at managing channels than operations.

Moreover, cooperation with channels is essentially business cooperation between companies. As long as the business can maintain a virtuous cycle, changes in the contact person will have little impact on the business.

Moreover, their lifeline depends entirely on the channels. If one day the channels stop cooperating with them, will they have a way out?

Although channels bring value to the company, I still feel that the value of operations staff is not fully utilized. When doing ToB operations, it is best to develop in all aspects rather than putting your fate in the hands of others.

Fourth: Create private domain traffic

The fire of private domain traffic has spread to all walks of life. Many ToB companies have also started to deal with private domain traffic. Creating a group is called private domain traffic. For specific ways to play with private domain traffic, you can refer to the content in "Aha, creating a group is private domain traffic, no wonder the operation work is not done well".

The cost of acquiring a single user in the ToB industry is very high. If you pull all your target users into a group, the operators of your competitors will get to know about it and sneak into the group to poach your users one by one. Isn't that just making wedding clothes for others?

The time for cultivating ToB leads is very long. Instead of keeping active users in the group, it is better to maintain users through WeChat, care about users every now and then, and share valuable information in the industry in the circle of friends. This is much better than communicating in a group.

If the product can be ToC, it is possible to cultivate private domain traffic. The focus is still on the form of the product. It is not recommended to cultivate private domain traffic for products with high customer unit prices.

Fifth: As long as the accurate flow

Every penny must be spent wisely, and all users require precision.

Some ToB companies have relatively high requirements. The customer leads obtained by operations must be able to directly close deals. Narrowing the target user group too small will be detrimental to the development of product operations.

When doing ToB operations, it is not necessarily possible to contact decision makers immediately. Most of the time, we can contact users and then push operators in reverse through users. It would be better if we could reach the decision makers directly, but this path is mostly not feasible.

Instead of being at a loss, it is better to give it a try.

Widen the user opening to allow more users to come in, let more users understand and use the product, and when they can use the same function in the future, they can also use you as a backup.

If you are not even a spare tire, how can you talk about becoming a regular employee?

Sixth: Not digging deeper into the decision makers

In the B2B business, users are users and decision makers are decision makers.

Don't expect to impress users and make decision makers pay for it.

ToB products are not worth the price of a meal, they can easily cost hundreds of thousands or even millions, so it is the job of operations staff to find key decision makers by using users.

For valuable users, we should meet with their decision makers through communication and exchange meetings, and communicate with them.

It is best to let the business department do the in-depth work of the decision makers, and the operations staff can just follow up on the progress.

Seventh: Don’t create content

ToB creates content not for now, but for the future.

Many ToB companies believe that developing good products and services and serving current customers are enough to promote the company's growth. In other words, the company is doing well and creating content will require more manpower costs. Some companies have already achieved performance growth through their distribution channels, so why should they find work for the team?

When doing operations, we must always be prepared for danger in times of peace.

The value of content lies in highlighting the value of the product, increasing product exposure and promoting growth.

Reaching users through content is a long-term and effective way. The content from 2015 can still bring customers this year. If we can realize the power of content in this aspect, I am afraid that there will be more companies creating content.

Some companies do have strong products and strengths, but because their content is poor, new users entering the circle do not understand the company and will not choose to cooperate with such companies.

Moreover, the first impression will affect the user's decision, so it is necessary to stimulate the user's cognition through content.

In general, ToB operations are not yet mature. Although some people have started ToB training, covering everything from customer acquisition to delivery, many things are indeed beyond the control of operations.

I also hope that this article will inspire you to continue to improve the processes and mechanisms of ToB operations, and I look forward to your communication with me.

Author: Zhang Mu

Source: Operations Officer Zhang Mu

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