You're a new consultant in B2B Marketing Strategy. What mistakes are you making?

Top three on my list are:- 1. A one-size-fits-all approaches rather than tailoring strategies to each client's unique needs. 2. Minimal continuous improvement by pivoting, showing the reds and falling short with ongoing learning and staying updated with the latest trends and best practices in the market 3. Lack of data analysis and measurement to track the success of the strategies leading to data-driven decisions.

New B2B Consultant? Avoid these 5 mistakes! 1. Shiny Object Syndrome: Align trends with client goals, not fads! Focus on "why" before "how." 2. Research Underestimation: Deep dive into client's industry & personas. Become their expert overnight! 3. Feature Trap: Sell solutions, not features! People buy to solve problems. 4. Communication Silos: Bridge the gap! Clear & consistent updates build trust. 5. Measurement Neglect: Track KPIs! Marketing without data = driving blindfolded.

Task #1, understand their goals. BUT also pushback on their goals if you think they're misplaced. You're the strategic consultant. Often clients don't understand marketing. Have a genuine strategic discussion and end with shared goals. Typically it's about revenue.

Many time clients will tell you their marketing goals because they think they know them already, but most actually don’t. As a consultant it’s our job to consider to go deeper. For instance, a client told me he needed to run Google Ads to get more signups for his app, and wanted me to consult on the strategy to run the ad campaign. I asked questions to go deeper, advised him against Google Ads at this point in his business, and developed an organic social media content strategy, an email nurture sequence and a paid ads strategy for LinkedIn. We got massive results because he didn’t need Google Ads - he needed to reach more customers and he thought that was the way to do it. So getting to the root of things is key.

There is so much insight available by talking to your sales teams. So often, win loss data from bids and prespectives on what was said in the room are ignored or taken as a snapshot but not gathered systematically. So direct customer research is important, but there's a lot to be gained by talking to the people who are in market every day as well.

Not researching the market and the competition can be a costly oversight. Early in my B2B marketing freelancing career, I worked with a client in the manufacturing software space. They assumed their biggest competitor was a well-known industry giant. Through deep research, we discovered a smaller, agile competitor targeting a specific pain point our client wasn't addressing. We pivoted the strategy, focusing on that niche and highlighting our client's superior customization options. Result: Doubled leads and exceeded sales targets in the first quarter. Always research beyond the obvious competitor!

As a consultant you bring an unbiased and fresh perspective on the market and competitive challenges that the internal marketing team may be blind to, or unable to effectively articulate to internal stakeholder. Researching the external landscape you can uncover unknown or unacknowledged market or competitive threats, such as the threat of the status quo/doing nothing!

This is critical. Sometimes we get caught in believing the client has the best understanding of their clients/customers, their competition, market trends, and more. Validate those and come up with your own POV. Do your own study of competitors. Interview customers. Interview prospects. Talk to others within the client. Where you disagree with what the client has told you, discuss and debate and come to an agreement.

As a new consultant diving into B2B Marketing Strategy, understanding the market and competition is key. I kick off by diving into voice of the customer research, uncovering market segments that resonate and spotting emerging trends. Then, I dig deep into competitor analysis, using techniques like surveys and website research. One of my favorite methods? Plotting common problems on a 4-quadrant graph and mapping competitors’ solutions. This approach not only helps define our unique selling proposition but also refines our value proposition and sharpens our market positioning.

I've had clients love work I've done. New website, brochure, event marketing, other. But I try and keep the goals firmly in their face to hold me accountable and to ensure we're all focused on where we need to go. Even when we're not hitting those goals. Often clients don't understand various KPIs or metrics. You send an email and spew out open rate and clicks and more and they many times they don't know if that's good or bad. Those are more for you. The SMART goals are the key. They should understand those and those are the most important measurement.

Diving straight into choosing channels or tactics without doing the foundational work first is an all-to-common mistake for early stage startups. First, you've got to know your audience. This means customers calls, sales demos, call recordings, G2 reviews, and more. Then you've got build out and validate your positioning and messaging. Nothing you do will be impactful if you don't get this write. After this, ensure this is reflected consistently across all your sales and marketing material. Then you can look at tactics. Be ruthless in understanding where your ICP and buyers spend their time, what their problems are, and how you help them. Then zero in on the channels and content formats that will help you get this message to them.

Don't fall prey to the "channel buffet"! CMI reports 73% of B2B companies struggle to use the right marketing channels. A shotgun approach wastes resources. Focus on where your client's audience lives. Leverage data & research to identify the most effective channels for their industry, target audience, and budget. Align tactics with goals! Need brand awareness? Prioritize social media & content marketing. Need qualified leads? Explore targeted PPC campaigns & nurture with email marketing.

This can be a challenge if you're working with a client in an industry you're not familiar with. Yes, the key is understanding where the target audience can be found. Look at how competitors market themselves and learn from that. Interview customers and prospects to learn where they find the category of product or service your client provides.

The B2B buyer journey has changed radically since the mid-2010s. For professionals who’ve been in the B2B game for a while, it can be too tempting to stick to old strategies. However, change is inevitable, and success hinges on a company’s ability to continuously adapt to how buyers move through their journey from awareness to decision today.

Cross-pollinate your experience if you have it in other industries. I once was hired by an EdTech firm, no experience in that industry. I asked them why they chose me. They said if they brought someone on from the EdTech industry they'd know exactly what the person would do. They didn't want that. They wanted new ideas. So use them!

As well as the basics, it’s so important to understand how the rest of the organisation is set up to hit their own team and company goals. Cross functional alignment (or understanding at the very least) across sales, trading teams, product, customer etc etc will deliver a better strategy, outcome

As a new B2B consultant, remember why you were hired: to fill a gap in marketing know-how. Confidence is key—clients rely on your expertise. Don’t shy away from pushing back when needed. Offer fresh perspectives and alternative solutions to add real value. Much luck & success.

The biggest mistake: making promises that you know you can't meet and will make your project ROI negative with high chances of customer dissatisfacton. Your sales pitch as a new consultant will be 50% over your actual capabilities and experience. Tone it down.