An Interview with Randy Borns – B2B Marketing

By Richard Doyle

This Thursday the 12th, we will have the pleasure of having Randy Borns come in for the next meeting. Located in Room 176 in Lake Ontario Hall at 6pm. This is a visit you don’t want to miss. Don’t believe us? Well, hear what Randy had to say in this interview and you might change your mind.

Randy Borns runs Borns B2B, an agency that specializes in B2B marketing. What is that, you ask? Business-to-Business marketing. When people think of advertising, most people think of B2C marketing, Business-to-Consumer. You probably don’t know about all the exciting unique opportunities B2B marketing provides. In my interview with Randy, he spoke all about the wonders of B2B.

I asked Randy what is the biggest difference between B2B and B2C marketing, and he told me, “I think one of the main things is the pace at which the work is done.” He went on to explain that in B2B, “The pace is gonna be slower, we’re gonna have months to develop everything that’s evolved from the brand to the message.” B2B campaigns seem to be more long-term and strategic, and it’s something we should consider deciding what kind of field of marketing we want to go into. 

Randy went on to say that in B2C the work is much more fast-paced, and its life expectancy is shorter. There won’t be these large ongoing campaigns like B2B. He stated, “I never enjoyed that fast pace, you had to compromise on so much.” This isn’t to say that B2B marketing is better, but it shows how different these kinds of marketing can be.

I asked Randy what he liked the most about B2B marketing, and what the biggest challenges he faced in them. He gave some pretty astonishing information. He told me that, “Budgets are higher in B2B, they’re higher ticket items. We have clients that make products that sell for hundreds and thousands of dollars.”

This should open our eyes to how unique B2B can be. When we think of advertising, we think of selling a bottle of pop or a pair of shoes, and maybe at most, a car. In B2B, the most modern and expensive technology or machinery is being sold to companies for an incredible amount. This completely changes how we go about marketing the product.

Randy commented on this saying how “You can’t tell them the whole story up front. It’s not an emotional sell, it’s more of a pragmatic sell.”

B2B also offers an incredibly unique event that B2C rarely touches on—Trade shows. You’ve heard of them before, but do you know how big and expensive they are? How much marketing is involved? You’ll be surprised by what Randy had to say.

“Trade shows are very very expensive.” Randy said. How much do you think they are? Guess how much a company spends. Got your guess? Ok, here’s what Randy said about the cost. “I’ve seen as much money spent on one trade show as their entire marketing budget would be for that year.” Isn’t that insane? That should put into perspective how important these trade shows are.

Randy talked about one of the largest trade shows he has ever been to in Chicago. He stated, “Clients will ship equipment to the show, stuff that has to go on a semi. You would walk miles if you saw every booth at this show.”

Randy also stated that the pure size of these events makes it a struggle for companies to promote during the event due to the overwhelming competition. As a B2B agency, effectively promoting a client’s business for a trade show is one of their biggest tasks.

Randy explained that “We’ll develop campaigns that start to connect with people before the show” so that “When people get to the show they’ll have us on the agenda.” This sheds light on some of the unique marketing strategies B2B offers that B2C doesn’t offer. Trade shows are an amazing event that has plenty of marketing opportunities. If it sounds interesting, you may want to consider a career in B2B.

I finished my talk with Randy by asking him how one would get into B2B marketing. He told me to, “Talk about B2B, position yourself as someone truly interested in B2B.” His reasoning is that there isn’t a ton of people out there who specifically state which side of marketing they want to go into, so by knowing which side you want to go into will set you apart from others as it shows your interest and passion.

He followed this up by saying, “There’s a tremendous opportunity because people don’t even think about it.” Randy went on to say how B2B doesn’t always get the attention it deserves, but because of this, it offers more of an opportunity if you’re looking to get into it.

Randy finished our talk by saying how he feels about coming to our next meeting. “I’m glad everybody is gonna get a glimpse of it, it’s not something for everyone but it’s a niche that could provide someone with a leg up.”

So, if you’re starting to become interested in B2B you have the perfect opportunity to come to our next meeting and hear from a master of it. Any questions you have will be answered, you will be amazed at what else B2B involves.

Randy Borns will be in Lake Ontario Hall room 176 this Thursday the 12th at 6 pm. This is a meeting you don’t want to miss out on!

While you wait, click here for an article Randy’s company published about B2B! Read it before the meeting to be expertly prepared!