From B2B and B2C to H2H: How to Humanize Your Marketing Strategy

Marketing is not just about selling products or services to businesses or consumers. It is about connecting with people, understanding their needs, emotions and values, and creating meaningful relationships that benefit both parties. This is the essence of H2H (Human to Human) marketing, a new paradigm that challenges the traditional B2B or B2C classifications and focuses on the human element behind every marketing interaction.

In this article, we will explain what H2H marketing is, how it differs from B2B and B2C, and what strategies you can apply to implement it in your business. We will also share some examples of brands that are using H2H marketing successfully and what you can learn from them.

What is H2H and Comparison with B2B and B2C

H2H marketing stands for Human-to-Human Marketing. It refers to the fact that every marketing interaction, between businesses and consumers or between businesses and other businesses, is an interaction between humans. It is a development from the traditional B2C, B2B or more recently B2H marketing models.

B2C (Business to Consumer) marketing is the type of marketing that targets individual consumers who buy products or services for their personal use. B2C marketing typically focuses on emotional appeals, personalization, convenience and customer satisfaction.

B2B (Business to Business) marketing is the type of marketing that targets other businesses or organizations that buy products or services for their operational or professional use. B2B marketing typically focuses on rational appeals, value proposition, efficiency and trust.

B2H (Business to Human) marketing is a hybrid type of marketing that recognizes that both consumers and businesses are made of humans who have both emotional and rational needs. B2H marketing tries to balance both aspects and appeal to both the heart and the mind of the buyer.

H2H marketing goes beyond these distinctions and emphasizes that regardless of the type of buyer, there is always a human being behind every decision. H2H marketing aims to create authentic, empathetic and meaningful connections with people, not just transactions with buyers.

5 Strategies to Apply H2H Marketing

1. Talk like an actual person. Use natural, conversational and easy language that reflects how you would talk to someone face to face. Avoid jargon, buzzwords, cliches and overly formal expressions that make you sound robotic or impersonal.
2. Tell stories. Stories are powerful tools to engage your audience, convey your message and evoke emotions. Stories can help you illustrate your brand values and showcase your customer success stories.
3. Show empathy. Empathy allows you to put yourself in your audience’s shoes and address their pain points, challenges, goals and aspirations.
4. Be transparent. Transparency builds trust, credibility and loyalty with your audience.
5. Be social. Social media is also a platform for engaging with your audience, listening to their opinions, answering their questions, and joining their conversations.

Examples of Brands Using H2H

• Mailchimp: uses friendly, humorous and quirky language that reflects its brand personality and appeals to its target audience of creative entrepreneurs.
• Slack: uses simple, clear and conversational language that explains its value proposition and benefits for different types of teams and industries.
• Dove: uses empathetic, inspirational and empowering language that resonates with its target audience.

Conclusions

H2H marketing is not a new trend or a buzzword. It is a reminder of the fundamental purpose of marketing: to connect with people and create value for them. H2H marketing is not about B2B or B2C, but about P2P: People to People.

To apply H2H marketing to your business, you need to adopt a human-centric mindset and approach that focuses on understanding your audience, delivering value and building trust.

Bibliography

[1] P. Kotler, W. Pfoertsch and U. Sponholz, H2H Marketing: The Genesis of Human-to-Human Marketing. Cham, Switzerland: Springer, 2020.