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Archive for the ‘B2B News’ Category« Previous EntriesDoing Business In ChinaWednesday, April 25th, 2012  Last week, B2B International CEO Matthew Harrison was a guest speaker on the panel of Insider’s International Trade Breakfast in Manchester. Matt, along with the other panellists, discussed all things China, offering advice to companies interested in the opportunities this vast country has to offer, as well as answering any specific questions or concerns put to them by members of the audience. Matt, who set up B2B International’s first office in China back in 2006 and who has also helped scores of other companies across a whole host of sectors to establish or expand operations in the Middle Kingdom, was perfectly placed to share his insights. Insider’s review of the event can be found by clicking here. If you are interested in doing [more] business in China, why not visit our China website to find out how we may be able to help you. B2B International gauges business sentiment on both sides of the AtlanticMonday, March 19th, 2012  B2B International has done for itself what it does for others – conducted market research to ask clients and prospective clients what marketing concerns/interests they have and what challenges they expect their business to face in the year ahead. The response is an overview of the prevailing mood in Europe and America and a snapshot of business people’s views of the marketplace. The research surveyed 270 business professionals from large organisations, most of which appear in the Forbes Global 2000; a third in North America in December and the remainder in Europe in January, and confirms that brand is definitely the essence of a company. Key challenges are developing brand identity, and communicating to existing and potential customers with a compelling customer value proposition supported by a strong brand. Gaining a competitive advantage (63% Europe; 49% US), and retaining customers and extracting maximum value out of them (58% Europe; 47% US) are the two main requirements for companies – on both sides of the Atlantic – to address over the coming year. Asked if they could wave a magic wand that would solve any challenges their organisation currently faces, most respondents want to better understand their customers and their markets. Many also voice frustrations with internal factors – including investment, communications, CRM systems and inefficiencies with other internal processes, while a significant number are seeking ways to develop their business and brand by identifying solutions around four key questions: who (target customers), where (optimum markets), what (improved and differentiated products/services), and how (fastest and most effective route to market). Businesses constantly look to grow, even in today’s harsh economic environment, and do this through product development, entering new markets, expanding in existing markets or moving ahead of the competition. Given this fact, it was interesting to note that the three main types of market research considered by companies are: market assessment, needs analysis & segmentation, and customer satisfaction. Over £1,200 was raised for worthy causes through this online survey, with B2B International making a donation to charity for each completed questionnaire. Impressive growth continues for B2B InternationalTuesday, February 28th, 2012  Another strong year of growth for international business-to-business market research and market intelligence specialists B2B International reported another excellent year in 2011, with revenue breaking the £4m (US$6.3m) barrier and profit increasing by 21% from £580,000 to £700,000 EBITDA*. Since its formation in 1998, the company continues its record of growing its revenue and making a profit for 14 consecutive years. CEO Matthew Harrison attributes the company’s success to a number of factors: “Despite the difficult economic environment in UK and Europe in 2011, B2B International’s growth in this region was its best ever at 33%. North America also had an excellent year, equalling the record year of 2010. Another reason for our success over the past few years is the increased diversity of our customer base. The financial sector is now our third biggest sector, complementing the two traditionally strongest markets of engineering and manufacturing, and chemicals and gases; and business services continue to grow. Finally we have moved towards the ‘productisation’ of much of our offering, developing a number of metrics that are pre-defined before a project, add value to the customer and allow comparison with aggregated data, all of which clarify our outputs in the minds of our clients.” B2B International’s growth plans have not abated for 2012. An office in Chicago was opened a month ago, and an ambitious foray into the consumer arena is promised, with a new consumer subsidiary Deep See Research (www.deepseeresearch.com) set to launch in April. B2B International opens Chicago officeWednesday, February 1st, 2012  B2B International, global business-to-business market research and business intelligence specialist, with its North American headquarters in New York, is delighted to announce a new office in Chicago, to better service clients in the mid west and beyond. The expansion is a response to the increase in clients located in Illinois and neighboring states, as well as Chicago being one of the top cities in which B2B International is asked to conduct focus groups. Director Julia Cupman explains, “While the New York office has been hugely successful in meeting the needs of our North American clients, we recognize the benefits another office will have in terms of our responsiveness to client demands.” Visit our North American website at: www.b2binternationalusa.com or contact our Chicago office on the details below: The Willis Tower, Floor 84 233 S. Wacker Drive Chicago, IL 60606 Tel: +1 888-927-0095 (toll-free); +1 312-204-7201 E-mail: chicago@b2binternational.com B2B Intl Confirmed At IDM 2012 Business Marketing ConferenceMonday, January 23rd, 2012  The 9th IDM Business Marketing Conference: New world, new values, new customer rules The role of marketing in driving the business, and the need to have nailed down a robust and well thought out business strategy to underpin your marketing, has never been greater. To achieve results and demonstrate their impact on the bottom line, business marketers need to embrace new and innovative strategies and tactics to engage with their customers (and stakeholders) and integrate them into their existing approaches. Technological developments and economic challenges have fundamentally changed the way business marketers do business and the shift in power to the consumer has had a profound impact on moving from a push to listen/nurture/respond approach. Nick Hague, Managing Director of B2B International has been confirmed as a speaker to talk about “Taking account of global cultural differences and understanding the complexities of international expansion”. On the day, Nick will be joined with other speakers including: • Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Mubaloo • Chief Marketing Officer, Psion • Marketing Director, Reed Business Information • Head of B2B Marketing, KLM • UK and Ireland Brand Manager, IBM • Head of SME Business Marketing, 02UK To understand what the new b2b world looks like in 2012, the new values that hold true and the new customer rules in b2b marketing come along on the 24th May 2012 at the Commonwealth Club in London. For more information visit: http://www.theidm.com/marketing-events/b2b-conference/ « Previous Entries |
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