June 14, 2019
5 Awesome Examples of B2B Website Design
3 min readThe B2B sales cycle is typically much longer than traditional B2C websites, where immediate clicks and buys are critical. This creates a very different set of challenges when designing for a B2B website. So what makes an awesome B2B website design? B2B web design needs to focus on (1) concise copy that tells a story, (2) brand personality, (3) brand consistency, (4) clear representation of scale, and (5) intuitive Call To Actions (CTAs). Let’s dive into each of these.
DRIFT’S BEST PRACTICES FOR B2B WEBSITE DESIGN:
01. Concise Copy That Tells a Story
Have you struggled to explain your brand “story”? We get it. It’s not easy, especially for B2B, where organizational hierarchies, hundreds of opinions, very specific verticals, and years of failed attempts have jaded the process. It means your copy is probably stale, inconsistent, and lacking in personality. Afraid your business won’t sound “professional”? The way you talk to your customers, should be real, authentic, and please, go easy on the jargon.
Tip 1: The first thing someone reads should engage, explain, and begin to tell your brand story. That’s a lot of work for a few words, but it’s critical.
Tip 2: Keep your copy simple, and short. Attention spans are short, and once your customer knows generally what you do, there are other, more important checkboxes to worry about.
Tip 3: Here’s a simple guide to use for most everything you write: Relate to your customers internal problems, provide evidence of your expertise, and share a simple process for solving your customer’s problems. Lots of great insight into this topic in this book.
02. Brand Personality
B2B Brand Personality can be challenging. When your customers are hospital executives, or oil and gas CEOs, it’s easy to think that everything has to be completely buttoned up, all of the time. One thing to keep in mind is that real people are reading your site content. Injecting a causal, and approachable tone can be refreshing. Maybe not when you’re talking about Reactor XY2’s emission rates, but we can help find the right place.
Tip 1: Create user personas to help identify personality types of potential website users. This will help give perspective and create some boundaries for the copywriting.
Tip 2: Photos play a huge role in any web design. It’s critical that you have imagery that parallels the quality of your service or business. The type of lighting, mood, angle, editing, content, etc., can all help support the brand personality. Photography for Websites Tips here!
03. Brand Consistency
This one is huge! It’s one of the things we tell our B2B clients in our first meetings. Perception is the reality. If you want customers to associate trust, detail oriented, premium, great service, etc., then your web presence needs to speak loudly to those points. Many times the website is a check mark in the sales cycle. Client A has been through a sales call and the sales person said all the right things. Client A also got a recommendation from a friend. 9 times out of 10 Client A is still going to your website. This is another checkmark. If your site doesn’t live up to the recommendation and everything pitched by the sales person, then you get a major disconnect. The salesperson said you could trust us, but I don’t trust your website. Your brand needs consistency through every touchpoint.
04. Clearly Represent Scale/Capabilities
Many times we see B2B websites that don’t clearly establish the scale at which they work/provide service. This is a major concern for potential customers, “Can this team handle my needs?”. Through your website copy and imagery there should be no questions.
Tip 1: Display the logos of companies you’ve worked with that are established in your industry
Tip 2: Show imagery that has a variety of project types/equipment/team size/etc.
Tip 3: Show off meaningful awards/recognition
Tip 4: Create Testimonial Videos that get real, authentic, unscripted feedback
Tip 5: Create content that establishes you as an expert in your industry
05. Intuitive CTAs
While you may not be needing to lock down a sale at this moment, you should still have clear objectives for your users. Make contacting your sales team the easiest thing for someone to do. Personalize it – if you’re contacting the faceless sales@b2bcompany.com – try adding some personality, maybe it’s “contact James” at sales@b2bcompany.com.
A great web design agency can help tell your b2b story, engage users, and foster brand loyalty. Your B2B Website Design is a critical touchpoint in the sales journey, and getting it right is worth the effort. We have a great B2B Marketing and Website Design case study for Eagle Metal – a manufacturer of truss connector plates and a software suite for truss design and truss plant manufacturing.
Any questions about how we can help with your b2b website design? Let’s set-up a consultation. Reach out to us here.
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