PR and B2B tech purchases

By Reka Agopsca, Eleven Hundred Agency

The human psyche is truly singular. We can reason our way into or out of behaviours, let our emotions steer our choices, and our ‘gut feelings’ and experiences shape how we interact with the world.

This element of psychology is also part of B2B tech PR. We often get to talk about the most ground-breaking of innovations that the average person has never heard of. Yet, just because our messages don’t target consumers at large, we still strive to evoke emotion and understand what makes the B2B buyer tick – their needs, wants and fears.

If we peel back some layers, we find four key psychological factors that influence B2B tech purchasing decisions. Good PR taps into these to create opportunities and make a positive impact:

Trust

Trust is the foundation of any relationship. B2B decision-makers want to feel assured in their decisions, especially when they involve investing in costly and complex products or services that promise significant business transformation. Trust is what dispels this fear of the unknown, which makes it worth earning.

Earning trust is done through actions – you have to show, not tell. PR can help by communicating key messages in a transparent and consistent way, across an array of channels. When the same message is conveyed on the company’s website as in journalist-written pieces, customer testimonials and reflected in industry award wins, it starts to resonate and build that trust with the brand.

Overwhelm

B2B tech decision-makers are inundated by choices. Amidst stiff competition in technology markets, brands continuously strive to differentiate themselves, but without the right PR, the benefits different companies offer can get lost in the noise or seem like mere jargon.

PR’s job is to cut through the noise, make technical benefits accessible and speak the language of decision-makers. Getting relevant messages across to the right people at the right time can pay dividends, as Eleven Hundred Agency’s PR campaign for Icelandic data centre operator, Verne, shows.

FOMO

The Fear of Missing Out is more prevalent in the tech space than ever before. Business leaders have always faced a level of pressure to adopt the latest technologies in order to retain their customers, top talent and market advantage. However, the rise of generative AI has ushered in a new age of FOMO.

In this environment, it’s key for B2B tech buyers to remember that the opportunity cost of slow adoption is easily outdone by the financial cost of rushed adoption. Getting this message across was particularly important for our data movement client – presenting an opportunity for PR to both trend-jack and educate.

Eleven Hundred Agency project-managed two independent, multinational surveys, two years apart – before and after the genAI boom – which showed enormous discrepancies between organisations’ AI ambitions and the robustness of their data movement capabilities. Crucially, we were also able to put a financial figure against the opportunity cost of bad data. Creating an opportunity to educate amidst widespread FOMO allowed us to tell our client’s core business story in new ways that made people listen.

Validation

Pioneers, forward-thinkers and leading organisations often must take calculated risks to keep their competitive advantage. But where possible, B2B decision-makers look to their peers for validation and seek to learn from the success of others. This is where PR can help by crafting compelling customer case studies.

A happy customer is your best brand advocate. Case studies give them an outlet to talk about their success as well as yours – demonstrating how the right technology partnership can achieve enviable results. Beyond validating your business case in front of prospects, good PR can also cement the existing customer relationship, securing brand awareness for your customer in front of key audiences.