Title: Empirical Study – Online Marketing in B2B Business
Authors: Hans-Christian Riekhof, Marco Buhleier and Steffen Mix
“The realization is not surprising: The importance of online marketing in the B2B environment will increase significantly in the coming years.” summarizes Prof. Dr. Riekhof
The empirical study of PFH Göttingen shows that only a small part of the surveyed B2B companies has fully recognized the importance and opportunities of online marketing. In particular, it is noticeable that the opportunities for direct interaction with (potential) customers and the public are not really being exploited:
• In almost three quarters of the surveyed companies, the conceptual foundations of online marketing are considered rather insufficient.
• In 55 percent of the companies, no budget is defined for online marketing.
• In 43 percent of the surveyed companies, the budget for online marketing is between zero and five percent of the total marketing budget.
The study also shows that a significant increase in the importance of online marketing in the B2B sector is expected in the next two to three years. Society and companies are in the midst of digital transformation, which affects all business models. Those who want to be successful must strategically deal with these developments. So there is a lot to do.
