Mobile Connectivity & Internet of Things Highlight Top 15 B2B Trends for 2015
Digital consultancy and research firm Bell Pottinger released their predictions for the top 15 digital trends for 2015 in the B2B market, which was based on data accrued throughout 2014. Mobile technology-related factors and their relationship to the connected device ranked as the top three most significant trends B2B marketers need to consider moving into 2015.
Connectivity between devices and the use of mobile technology, in the form of wearables, communication platforms, and retail equipment used in places such as tradeshows and retail showrooms, were related to 6 of 15 key trends.
According to James Thomlinson, Partner and Managing Director of Bell Pottinger Digital:
“While technology will be one of the biggest drivers of marketing change in the New Year, the key focus for brands will be on delivering truly integrated strategies. Every year new hardware and software appears, but the most successful brands in 2015 will be those that harness new technology to deliver a single experience to consumers wherever they are in their journey”
Findings for many of the top trends in 2015 were consistent with those found in other publications. For example, mobile connectivity in the form of near field communication (the top trend B2B marketers need to look for in 2015) was also mentioned in a Forbes 2015 Trends article as an upcoming trend for both B2C and B2B industries.
The “Internet of Things” (IoT), IE, the ability for common products, like refrigerators and thermostats, to be connected to the internet has also been mentioned in other sources as a key trend, as IoT becomes more accessible for enterprise companies.
Traditional B2B online marketing tactics still played their part, as branded content, content marketing, and the shift to mobile device adoption for online access (discussed in a recent KoMarketing article) also were noted as key trends in the New Year.
Bell Pottinger created an infographic announcing the trends and providing data that helped them to include and rank each item, which can be found below, as covered by B2BMarketing.net.
