At the B2B Marketing 2016 forum last October, we had several sessions when we reflected on some external forces that affect our work as marketers. Trends included the movement toward as-a-service business models (our CEO once famously predicted that every business will eventually become a software business), the increasing use of video content in marketing, and the leverage of social channels. These sessions had great attendance, and the feedback was very positive. We had made attendees aware of possibilities that they may not have yet discussed in their own companies.

Similarly, we often pleasantly surprise our B2B marketing subscribers with research reports that appear on our landing page. We provide powerful buyer and buyer-journey data to technology vendors, and we continue to explore the as-a-service theme through a series of reports from Duncan Jones, vice president and principal analyst, who normally publishes for sourcing and vendor management (i.e., procurement) professionals.

Duncan’s latest report for B2B marketing professionals is entitled “Best Practices: Pricing Strategies For B2B Digital Services And Subscription Products.” The report is the result of discussions with software-as-a-service billing providers such as Apttus, Avangate, Chargebee, Chargify, Digital River, and Zuora that already help many B2B companies as their business models move from a product sale to a services-based relationship. He also researched specific businesses like Filter Snap and SOYL (a division of Frontier Agriculture) and cites many examples of how new digital products and services are emerging in sectors like farm equipment (see graphic below), medical equipment, manufacturing, office furniture, and even legal services.

That’s the advantage of working with a research organization like Forrester; we tend to talk about marketing trends not in a standalone manner but in the context of topics like digital disruption, technology adoption, business trends in general, and, of course, the advent of business technology.

And on that last point, Forrester clients check out our new “The Top Emerging Technologies for B2B Marketers” report. You thought that you were already overloaded with marketing technology — well, a new crop of emerging technologies stands poised to unleash a new cycle of rising expectations from buyers, changing behaviors, and disruption. Stakes are high. One wrong investment could cripple your company’s ability to keep up. Make the right move, and you could speed past your competitors. The report profiles eleven emerging technologies spread across the three Forrester technology groups — systems of insights, systems of engagement, and enablement, principal analyst Steven Casey is the lead author.  

Always keeping you informed! Peter