Rethinking B2B Branding in Turbulent Times with Ana Raynes

It’s a different time for marketers and brand builders across the board. But what about B2B marketers? What’s different for them in the face of COVID-19? I couldn’t wait to ask our guest this week just that. Ana Raynes is the CEO and founder of Simplified Impact, a B2B growth marketing agency. We discussed what B2B marketers can do during these strange times and the various stages of business that will follow.

About Ana Raynes

Ana Maria Raynes is an entrepreneur, digital marketing expert, and CEO and Founder of Simplified Impact, a growth marketing agency for B2B niche companies. She was a co-founder of the Internet fashion startup Smart Is Cool, where she was responsible for social media and information technology. While working at Smart Is Cool, she was featured in Glamour Magazine and had multiple appearances on FOX Strategy Room. Following her position with Smart Is Cool, she pursued a career that focused on digital marketing.

Ana Maria worked for agencies in the New York and Boston areas where She has led digital marketing campaigns for clients such as HSN, Wendy Williams, Football Legend Carl Banks, iHip for Snooki, Eastbay, Aer Lingus, SkyMall, and more.

Before the launch of her own business, she was Vice President, Content Marketing at Didit, a digital marketing agency for enterprise eCommerce clients. As a thought leader in her field, she has been invited to speak at conferences such as PPC Hero, NY Small Business Expo, NYXPO, Philanthropy Day, CORE and Vistage.

Episode Highlights

What’s different for B2B brands as we deal with COVID-19? As a B2B marketer, I couldn’t wait to ask Ana this. And, as a smart guest, she noted, “It depends on your industry.” For example, she works with a lot of medical product and tech companies who are experiencing an uptick. But it’s not the usual cause for celebration given the circumstances …

Do brands celebrate growth in the face of a pandemic? “It’s somber growth. It’s very different than it usually is.” This growth also brings a new level of busyness as well. Speaking of routines …

Question all of your usual B2B assumptions. B2B marketing has a set of rules that are usually strictly followed. However, many of those best practices deserve a second look in these strange times. For example, B2B buyers typically follow a more traditional workday, which means B2B marketers are timing campaigns to the 9 to 5, Monday through Friday window. Now, with everyone working from home and getting things done at odd hours, a weekend email might not be out of the question.

What brand has made Ana smile recently? “There’s a brand called Love Powered Co. that does IM affirmations that are bringing light to so much of what’s going on lately. They always make me smile.” She also pointed to Working Mom Kind for smiles as well.

To learn more, go to the Simplified Impact website and follow her on Instagram.

As We Wrap …

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Until next week, I’ll see you on the Internet!

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