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This week, the Mixology Digital team set up shop at the B2B Marketing Expo at ExCel London for two days full of exciting conversations, inspiring seminars and endless networking opportunities. It was our first time exhibiting at an event like this - although many of us had attended in the past - so it was exciting to show off the new Mixology Digital brand.
If you missed our summer rebrand, take a look at this article: Intentify Demand becomes Mixology Digital: Shaking up B2B Demand Generation
With over 5,000 visitors and over 100 brands exhibiting, it's one of the largest gatherings in the B2B marketing calendar and offers a unique platform to explore the latest trends, tools, and strategies shaping the future of B2B marketing.
And while the B2B Marketing Expo is always an event I enjoy, the real question is: what are the key takeaways?
Small but mighty
While there were plenty of big-name brands with equally big stands—6sense, Cognism, Gong and Lead Forensics, to name a few—I couldn’t help but notice that size doesn’t always equal impact. The larger booths were undeniably impressive, but at times, they felt a little overwhelming, with too many staff and less opportunity for genuine interaction.
In the Discovery Zone, we found ourselves at the heart of some of the most engaging conversations at the event. It seemed we had the perfect blend of energy, focus, and enthusiasm, which resonated well with attendees.
It was proof that sometimes, being 'small but mighty' is exactly what it takes to stand out in a sea of marketing giants.
Not enough people are talking about the power of content (and how to get it right)
There was a nice variety of speakers covering a lot of topics. And as you can imagine, a lot of those talks covered AI and automation, and how we can use technology to speed up processes, become more accurate with our campaign targeting and dive better results. All of which are valid and important topics.
But during our own live Q&A session, the topic of content came up and the importance it has in being able to frame everything else. Without good content, campaigns fall flat. And all the rest is obsolete.
It doesn't matter what format we're talking about, whether it's blogs, whitepapers, webinars or video, all the KPI measuring in the world isn't going to improve performance if you can't get a very important element right: content has a specific purpose and that purpose is highly dependant on the person reading it.
I did enjoy Bill Reed's talk (from NarrativeWorx) which provided actionable tips on how to create good content. Not just looking at the why it's important, but really digging into how to make a single piece of content 66% more effective.
The human connection is more valuable than we realise
In and amongst all the seminar sessions on AI and automation, and all the exhibition stands demoing the latest technology, there was one very constant, very strong theme: people connect with people.
So it seems almost silly that the value of human connection gets lost in the messaging, right? After all, we're there to connect with other professionals, hear professionals speak and find vendors who can help solve our pain points.
Imagine my surprise when one of the questions during our live Q&A asked: how do we make personalisation more huamanised? In theory, personalisation bridges the gap between the generic outreach message and the individual. But the rise of automation means that ‘Dear Joe’, is no longer enough of an indication that you know that person or even understand their challenges. These days, this information is readily available on LinkedIn and other social platforms.
What's the answer?
It's simple: we have to remind ourselves there's a person at the other end. And the success comes in remembering this and connecting with them.
I spent some of my time reconnecting with industry contacts I hadn't spoken to in years and meeting others in person for the first time, and the takeaways from all of these conversations left a lasting impression. And when I'm looking for a solution in that space, I already have a contact in mind. Because people buy from people, right? But only when those people take the time and energy to really understand where I'm at and what I need.
Not as many people are using intent as we thought
There's a lot of industry research which shows how popular intent data is, how valuable it is to the marketing strategy and how B2B marketers are currently using it.
For example, research from Gartner says that over 70% of B2B marketers are using intent data to target prospects, but when our CEO Will Smibert asked the audience ‘How many of you have used intent data to make decisions?' only a quarter of the room raised their hands.
So maybe intent data isn't as widely adopted as we're made to believe…and that's a problem.
Without the effective use of intent data, how do marketers know what matters most to their target accounts, and how do they differentiate between the accounts that are currently in-market to those that aren't?
Thanks B2B Expo 2024, until next year
All in all, what a great show. A huge thank you to everyone who stopped by the stand and took the time to talk to the team, and for those who came to our live Q&A on how to humanise your demand generation strategies.
See you in 2025!
