Marketing to a New Generation of B2B Buyers

Hey, everybody. Welcome back to the show. I gotta say Proud Stars fan today. So this is probably the first and last time I'll ever do a show, in a Stars jersey, but it's sort of, almost an emergency session of congress because we we gotta talk about sort of the elephant in the room, of our industry as we face recruitment, retention, and audience challenges, and that is what the heck to do with Gen z. And I mean that in a really positive and respectful way because they're aging into the industry not only from a a talent perspective, but from a decision maker standpoint as well. So so you know what? I gotta bring in somebody who has all sorts of different experiences, not only in the industry, in the AV world, and b two b, but also someone who's sat in places like college recruitment and understands sort of different channels, and best practices in marketing. And that's Derek DuPont, senior manager of brand and corporate marketing over at QSC slash QSYS. Derek, man, great to have you on the show. Yeah, Ben. I'm excited to be here, and this is gonna be an awesome conversation. So I'm really excited. Thanks for having me. Absolutely. Well well, Derek, I'll tell you, I I I did my best sort of to to give the intro there, but you've had the chance to sit sort of in so many different places across the, the zeitgeist of marketing, so to speak. Give us just a quick rundown of what that's looked like for you. Sure. Yeah. No. I appreciate that. And, yeah, it's it's been a great run. And, like, I think a lot of us know marketing can take us many different places. And so, I've been on agency side working in branch strategy. I've worked as you alluded to, in university public university. I've worked with startups. I've done some social media programs. So I've had a lot of different experience across brands, marketing, social media research. And so, you know, I'm really excited to kinda talk about how a lot of those things come together and how we think about Gen z and, you know, how they're different than generations that come before and how they're similar. So it'll be great. Well, love it. I mean, I I think that's probably a nice natural launching off point for us. You know, it it's interesting. Obviously, we wanna draw sort of a natural distinction between b to c and b to b. Right? I think b to b is is where more of the focus is today. Extended sales cycles, multiple touch points, things like that. But it's a nice little sort of slice of the pie because, you know, we've got people for the first time really aging into decision making style roles, and it's important for us to evaluate and sort of break down those best practices. And and I think it's important too as we even talk about marketing. I would loop sort of recruiting retention and sales into that conversation as well. But at a high level, you know, Derek, what are some of the things maybe where you think about Gen z and they say, hey. This is different. This has to look a little bit different. Whether it's it's being that first generation of folks who grew up, you know, where where being a YouTube influencer and content creator was a real path. I mean, where where do we even start there? Yeah. Absolutely. So one of the things I first think about is, like, I like to, like, zoom out and look at the the brand story. So coming from my experience in branding and really looking at it through the Gen z lens, there's some things that as b to b marketers that we can do to really quickly start to align better with Gen z. And so we think about the story that we've been telling, you know, historically as b to b marketers. A lot of times, it trends towards speeds and feeds and really product focused. And we're really trying to showcase, you know, what the product can do, and that's great. And that is really important work that needs to be done. However, there's another layer to marketing and to brand that we really need to make sure we're not missing when it comes to Gen z. And this is that layer where we tell the story of the brand. We really connect with the authenticity and really connect with what Gen z cares about, which is who are you? What do you stand for? You know, how do you relate to me? How can I be associated with you? Do I wanna be associated with you? And if Gen z doesn't have an opportunity to know a brand in that way, it's gonna be really hard for them to get past that level to really get into what's gonna really help drive that sale, which is going to be those technical marketing pieces. Right? And so I think it's really important for us to take a look at our brand overall and say, are we telling a story? And if we are telling a story, is it a story that actually is resonating with this audience or not? And that's a really good place to start. You know, I like that you sort of brought up the speeds and feeds type of things. I I some people disagree with me on this, but I would loop sort of the AV world, especially when you get down into the technician installer integrator into sort of the the world of blue collar. And that's not at all a disc. That is very, very much a compliment because there's a lot of skilled labor that has to happen. And when you look sort of even zooming out like you mentioned, there's a massive sort of gap when it comes to Gen z, not only understanding what happens in these industries, but awareness that these industries even exist. Right? So we have sort of a a challenge where, hey. Maybe we bring somebody to the end of the industry for the first time, but we don't we won't win on technical specs. Right? The, you know, the the idea is not that, hey. I'm I'm gonna tell you why my cable is better than this person. Right? That that that doesn't work. Right? That's easy to you know, you talk about engineers who are engineer minded come in and build companies, start companies. That works really well for them, right, if they're buying. But the we we sort of are are at this crossroads where we have to be able to talk beyond just the speeds and fees and jump beyond the technology, and they have to talk about what what our technology empowers us to do. So how how do you start sort of that conversation when you really approach it from sort of that that aware industry awareness and and and even just sort of a guiding standpoint there? Yeah. Absolutely. That's an excellent question. So one thing that I think is really important is that we look at it from also what are we building on. And so a lot of our businesses in AV, we have a lot of incredible legacy in what we've done in the past. Right? And how we've done this and we've done a really great job at it. And we have a really great community of people in AV. I think it's really important to tell the connective story. You can't just jump into, let's speak directly to Gen z, right, and change your brand, change your story. You're gonna create disconnect, and you're not gonna win in that sense. And so I think a good place to start is looking at what have we done well, what's worked really well, and then how does that story act as a launchpad for where we wanna go and the story that we need to tell. And so you can also do that by working backwards by looking at what's Gen z interested in. Right? Just start there. Do some really great research on understanding what that audience is looking for, what is influencing their buying decisions. And another thing that I think is really important when we talk about b to b versus b to c is, again, like you said earlier, the touch points. Right? And so I think the latest I saw was around six to eight touch points. Sometimes it can be upwards of of twenty. Right? It can be all over the place as far as how many touch points it takes to influence a sale. And I think that one thing that's really important for us to keep in mind is that we remain consistent in how we message and how we communicate as a brand across these touch points. So it might be easy or easier, I won't say easy, to go and at a high level, create a brand story, create a connective tissue, put some really great marketing out that, is really clearly speaking to Gen z. But then once they get further down, you know, in the buying funnel, are they still getting the same experience? Are they still feeling the same treatment? Are they still being spoken to in the same way? Because we don't wanna we wanna make sure that that's consistent all the way across. So it gets a little more complex in that way, but it's that's one of the exciting things about b to b marketing, I think, is that you have a lot of opportunity to create really deep experiences with people. Yeah. Well, look. You brought up sort of having to find that balance between marketing to not only different generations, but different buyers from different industries. And, I mean, this is a challenge that you've seen not even generationally, but but by vertical and by use case where we've got decision makers from health care and hospitality and education that never even would have considered themselves in the world of AV that we have to teach and educate. Right? So it's not a unique problem generationally. I think it's important to to differentiate that. It's not always, you know, based off of age. It's easy to sort of pinpoint, but it's not always based off of that. Right? We talked about sort of the preferences across what we would say maybe generational gaps versus, hey, handshake styles, trade show centric to, you know, a full digital. How do you sort of find that balance and cater to different audiences at the same time? Yeah. Excellent question. So, you you know, I like to think about it as, like, a bit of a Venn diagram. So when we think about content and delivery even, the audiences, they're going to have overlap. And I think that where brands can get really strong is finding that overlap, and it takes a lot of experimentation. So the way I like to think about it is, you know, if you look at that Venn diagram and say we're talking about generational or could be industry specific, it's a matter of let's see what's in the center, what's resonating well, and make sure we're paying attention to data. Right? This is something that even though we're talking about content and brand, this is all really granular as far as the data goes. You wanna get really specific on the feedback you're getting and make sure that you're reading that and making those decisions not based on as, you know, as Gen z would say, we're not making vibe decisions. Right? We're making decisions that are actually based on data. And so if we're looking at that Venn diagram, it's taking a really clear look at what's the content that is working for the general audience, but then also taking bets on some of those more outside things. You wanna get specific. And if we wanna win with Gen z, we do need to speak directly to them. We wanna make sure we're taking those bets, but at the same time, finding that overlap is where I think we're gonna be the strongest, and you're gonna be able to create the most compelling content overall. And so segmenting when you really wanna take a shot, test something out, the segmentation is really gonna be powerful there, but then finding that overlap where you can really be consistent and strong in your messaging too. Yeah. Well, one of the things that that I even personally have seen success with with with sort of the Gen z market is sort of the subject matter expert influencer type. Right? Very authentic, not necessarily fully branded. It's not necessarily even coming from the corporate page because it's all I mean, like, you know, when I go look at a restaurant, I get on Yelp. Right? Same sort of idea where there's sort of the social proof, the social, expert. How how important are things like that maybe to attach sort of the individual personas to maybe that style of marketing. Is that something where where I mean, even you guys, have you seen success doing that? I mean, what sort of that mix look like? Yeah. Absolutely. I think, you know, like, in b to c, influencer is, table stakes at this point. And I think in b to b, we're really moving toward that as well. And so it's your point. It's how do you find those specific personas that'll speak to those different demographics we're going after. And so we look a lot to our community for that as well. And so what are conversations that are happening organically? What are things we can highlight? Where are stories we can pull out of real use cases that are interesting and compelling? And those really speak the strongest to our audiences because they're real people. It's something that we know as marketers is that the strongest marketing that can be done is marketing is done on your behalf by real people. You know? And so if we can create really strong branding that compels people to be advocates, that's really powerful. And so when we can pull those stories in and we can make sure that we have those strong influencer types, that person to person marketing, right, those conversations that happen are really important. And just putting those on a pedestal is is a really big key to just speak directly to Gen z or any other demographic for that matter. Yeah. What and and what's been cool too, this is more macro trend really than than generational specifically. But, you know, we we've seen sort of this mass embracing of, obviously, the best marketing tool that exists in the world. Right? The cell phone. K. I can I now could become a content creator? I can go to an Infocom. I go to whatever show and and, you know, the the barriers to entry that existed for me to publish content and expertise are now lower, which in the inverse allows other people to see it easier and and consume it easier and and and things like that. I I'm curious. You know, that's obviously something that we see in our personal lives all day. Right? I I I always love pointing at the Taylor Swift example because Taylor Swift's best marketers are freaking fans. There just is no there's no there's no ifs, ands, or buts about it. And and, you know, some people sometimes just look crazy and too much, but but that sort of idea exists in our, quote, unquote, business world too. But how how does sort of that that accessibility, whether it's through the phone, whether it's through the lower barriers to entry that we see sort of in the b to c world, cross over into our into our world of b to c or b to b in in business? Yeah. I mean, it's such a good point. I think that, like, this idea too of mixing in, like, fandom. Right? It's something that we see as, like, b to c brands that are highly successful. They spend a lot of time on this fandom idea. And I think that as b to b, we can do a really great job at this too in creating these advocates and empowering people to share things. And so it's like, where do we find those places where we can just spark advocacy? How do we create moments? And I think, you know, like, we do a really good job, I would say, at trade shows and creating experiences that generate FOMO. And, you know, this is something that is not typical of a trade show. And how do you create moments where people just they can't help but share? You're not asking them to. You're not commanding them to. You're not incentivizing it. But you're creating experiences that are so compelling and so interesting for humans that they have to share and they wanna share. And so, you know, looking at that all the way from, like I talked about, trade shows, but all the way down to packaging. You know? A lot of times, you'll on YouTube, you'll see unboxing videos for, you know, different computers and devices and things like that. A lot of times b to c, but in b to b, we have people that are, you know, just as interested in that experience, but we're not necessarily creating that for them. So how do you think about these moments where you can just create this moment of delivering wow that'll spark someone just to share something? And to your point too, it's like, yeah, it's so accessible in the phone. I think getting away from this idea of we always need to be highly polished. It needs to be very technical and specific. There's value in those moments of just authenticity and just the realness of that. And I think balancing that out. Right? And, again, like, I wanna be clear. I don't think it's ever an idea of trading one strategy for the other. It's a yes and all the way. And it's mixing this in and delivering this level of content as well as all of the technical that we know is really impactful and really important in the buying journey too. You know, it's interesting. I've I've got a stepbrother who's fourteen years younger than me, and he teaches me everything. You know? It's it's You gotta have that person in your life. That's important. And I and I think too, it's it's it's been funny to sort of watch him. He's he's going here. He's in college now. And it's funny to see how invested he is with brands and causes. And we'll go we'll do outrageous things to be part of things that he doesn't get paid for. He's gotta fly to, like and it's baffling to me, but it's sort of kind of amazing because that's one of the things that we don't do a great job of tapping into in in b two b, and this is not just Gen z, obviously. This is this is in general. We've got these massive fans and these people who are willing to not only create for us, but come to our events, come to our shows, cosign our stuff, and and it's unbelievable to see you talked about table stakes. How much we're leaving on the table with these people? That I I don't have a perfect answer for you. Right? I don't know why it's time, budget, technology, resources, whatever. But how do you see sort of that trend, that attachment of fandom attachment of fandom continuing to influence not only Gen Z, but probably even beyond that too? Yeah. Yeah. And I think that's yeah. It's it's such a good point. I think that the brands that are gonna win the next decade of and beyond of b to b marketing are the ones that are not just marketing to their buyers, but they're the ones that are building with them. Right? So it's like this idea of how do we do this together? And so I think that if you don't have a community that you've created that is, you know, an owned community for your brand as your brand, then I think you're gonna miss a lot of opportunity. I think that the brands that have this in place and that are starting to kinda build this community and listening, you know, not just talking to the community, not just using the community as a place where, you know, you're getting questions answered and people can talk to each other, but, like, treating it like a clubhouse. Right? This is a place where people come together to connect, to be, to belong, to be part of your brand. And if you have that in place, it'll just set you up to be able to do those things and to create that. And I think that to your point, yeah, I think that very quickly, we'll start to see brands start to take off that are doing these things and thinking in this way and applying this kind of playbook to it, because to your point, people are hungry for this. People want to be connected to brands. They wanna have those brands that they can really stand up for and be associated with. And so as brands, it's it's our duty really to create that space and to create that connection and to create opportunity for people to be connected. One and I'll tell you, I this is not I'm not paid to say this or anything. I'm a put that disclaimer out there. There have been very few companies in our industry who have done such a good job as you guys at the QSC and QSYS group because you you you have existed historically on both sides of the spectrum. Right? Obviously, the b two b, the install, integrator world. But the point of entry for a lot of folks is the musician crowd. It's the speaker crowd. It's a lot of those technical, volunteers and, you know, folks that they're just passionate about, even electrician type work could come in. And and and you guys have done such a good job of bridging that gap and building that gateway. Sort of the the last question that I have, and I'll help you lay on the plane with it is how can people sort of start? Right? We we we we see these companies who want to build that level of success and wanna build these different channels and wanna be able to reach end users, but some of them are just stuck. Right? They think, hey. I'm an LED manufacturer. Hey. I'm a I'm an integrator service provider. I don't have these fans. I don't know how to reach these new people. Where would you recommend that people start to sort of build that relationship? Man, that is it's such a good question. Right? And I think it can vary depending on where you're at in this journey. But I would say that one of the key steps is just listening. Right? And so looking at the journey someone might have with your products or with your service and seeing where, one, are there places where there is what I would call, like, moments of wow happening. Right? Are there places where you're creating an experience that is unlike anything else? It's already happening. And if there are, then use that as a starting point and jump off from there. How can you create content in that moment? How can you really, you know, just from that piece, create advocacy beyond that and use that as a starting point to build on. And from there, you'll find further places where you can create that that moment. Right? But if you're not even there yet and if you're at a place where you're just like, again, like, literally, how do I even begin this? Right? I think a really great part place to start is to ask questions of people. Go back to your customers. Go back to even competitors. Right? And just do some research, understand, and just see where there's opportunity to create advocacy, create community. There's always gonna be a place to start. It's just really finding for you as a brand, as a business, like, where the best place to begin is. And I think listening, asking questions, and really just taking a hard look at your brand experience, how, you know, your marketing is currently, interactions that are happening. Like, that's that's the best place to start. Asking questions is it feels like always the best place to start. But I do wanna call out one thing you said too. You talked about working with competitors, and that sort of has been the, the no go zone for a lot of people. And I'd like to remind folks that a rising tide lifts all boats. Right? And if we're hemorrhaging talent and struggling to find use cases, it's great that, you know, you're you've got fifty percent market share. But if that market share goes down every single year, then we're all screwed. Right? So it's it's important to collaborate. Right? Whether you're talking recruiting, retention, industry awareness, stuff like that, we're we're we're all in in the same, in the same boat together. And and look, I say this in in a really loving way, but our industry is no longer really defined by technical differences, especially with a lot of our companies. Our our differentiation lives a lot of times more on the service side of things, the application side, the subject matter expertise. So, it's it's important for us to be able to have conversations outside of technical capabilities and even with with partners. But, Derek, I'll tell you what, man. We we gotta find a way to have you back on. This is sort of a an elephant that's very difficult to eat in one bite, but, you know, I I I tell you, I appreciate you coming on the show, and and we gotta have you back on. I'd love to, Ben. Thank you. It's been a great conversation, and it's been been a great time to be here. Well, thank you, Derek, and thank you all for tuning in. Be sure to check us out next time on the show.