How should cloud computing companies market?

As business processes get digitalized, technologies that enable businesses of all sizes to carry out these processes in an uninterrupted and efficient manner become increasingly important. Cloud transformation is the core of scalable, cost-effective, and uninterrupted technologies. As competition in the cloud computing sector increases daily, companies operating in this field need to utilize marketing and corporate communication to promote their activities, know-how, and competencies better.

The business world is getting digitalized, business processes are moved to the online environment, and cloud computing and cloud transformation are at the top of every senior executive's agenda. Considering the ever-increasing competition among technology companies, it has become ever more important to explain cloud computing better and to highlight transformation and added value more. In this article, we focus on this very topic and how technology companies that offer cloud computing solutions can better utilize their communication and marketing tools. In this article, we will first briefly explain "What cloud computing is" and "What a cloud company does". Then, we will clarify B2B marketing, a tool that increases the potential of cloud computing companies to sell their products and services to other businesses, and discuss how cloud companies should manage their communication processes as well as which tools they should use in an increasingly competitive environment. If you are ready, let the journey begin! 


Getting Started

We can easily claim that business processes have been undergoing a major transformation for about 10 years, but this change has accelerated in the last three years. Every year, the World Economic Forum publishes a Global Risks Report to list the issues of concern in the short and long term. In its latest report, it has identified "widespread cyber-crime and cyber insecurity" as the only technology-related risk for the 2- and 10-year lists, proving that transformation is fast enough to create insecurity.

Digital transformation is no longer a topic at the top of trend forecasts. It has penetrated into the center of our lives, encouraging businesses to utilize technologies that will enable this transformation. Today, digital transformation is more than big data centers installed in the headquarters and branches of companies or software licenses and hardware bought for every new need. Cloud computing offers the capacity, scalability, and efficiency to respond easily to the transforming digital needs of businesses.

What is the cloud? What do cloud companies do?

Cloud is a term that refers to servers accessed over the internet and the software and databases running on these servers. Today, cloud servers in data centers located in different parts of the world make it possible for users and companies to perform every action on the Internet or corporate networks. While cloud computing allows for many digital products and services for end users, businesses can benefit from cloud computing in almost all their business units, from supply chain management to human resources, from finance to customer relationship management, and from cyber security to enterprise resource planning.

According to Grandviewresearch research, the global cloud computing market, which is expected to grow by 15.7% each year until 2030, is shared by technology giants such as Amazon Web Services, Google Cloud Platform, Microsoft Azure, IBM Cloud, Oracle Cloud, and Alibaba Cloud. These companies do not only supply cloud infrastructure for developers, technology providers, and enterprises as infrastructure companies but also provide cloud software that runs on their own cloud platforms.

Companies such as Microsoft, Salesforce, SAP, and Zoho are among the key players in the cloud company or cloud computing provider market with their enterprise application software that runs on the platforms of cloud infrastructure providers. These companies are interested in marketing their products and solution families to companies, not individual users, as they enable the digital transformation of businesses with the enterprise solutions they develop. They are called B2B (business-to-business) companies.

What is B2B marketing, and why is it important?

B2B marketing, as the name suggests, is the marketing of products and services from one business to other businesses and organizations. Although communication activities targeting the end consumer often come to mind when it comes to marketing, B2B brands have recently realized the importance of marketing, too. This is because the cloud solution market is constantly expanding, in terms of both infrastructure and software. The competition among global giants in regional markets requires cloud computing companies representing the solutions of these giants to reach more customers.

Since cloud computing solutions, in particular, often target the niche and smaller customer groups, brands willing to increase their corporate sales potential need to run campaigns that are more authentic, appeal to the same niche and are consistent, rather than the usual methods such as general communication campaigns or TV commercials.

Although cloud computing plays an important role in balancing costs, digital transformation investments stand out as investments that company leaders view cautiously and selectively, especially in times of harsher economic conditions. Leaders who decide to invest want to see results quickly. To achieve the best matches, particularly cloud computing providers that have specialized in cloud computing, are knowledgeable about a specific industry, and have achieved successful digital transformation processes in different companies in a specific sector should put these capabilities into the service of their potential customers using various communication tools within the scope of B2B marketing.

How should technology companies manage their communication processes?

Once we are convinced that marketing and corporate communication are vital for B2B companies, we think it is important to focus on the differences between B2B and B2C marketing in order to discover what companies should pay attention to. This subject is clearly summarized in an article published in HubSpot.

• While fun factor and various opportunities come to the fore as convincing factors in B2C marketing, potential customers focus on return on investment (ROI), efficiency, and expertise in B2B marketing.
• Decisions are driven by emotions in B2C marketing. On the other hand, B2B companies base their purchasing decisions on rational and financial grounds.
• Although customers do not always need to be educated on the subject of B2C marketing, it is necessary to inform B2B companies about the benefits of the product and services offered and to educate them about the gains. Content marketing and corporate communication come into play at this point.
• While end-users establish shorter-term relationships with brands, B2B marketing aims for longer-term collaborations and long-term agreements

The above-mentioned four factors reveal that cloud computing and technology companies preparing to design their B2B marketing and communication plans need to focus on educating their customers, showcasing their expertise, providing convincing and research-based justifications, and investing in communication activities for the long term. These key points also define the tools to be used.

What are the communication tools that cloud and B2B technology companies can use?

Today, the sales success of businesses is determined not only by the performance of their field teams and the adequacy of the customer experience they offer but also by their media visibility and the informative content they provide. In this sense, the following tools stand out among the tools that cloud and B2B technology companies can use and put at the center of their marketing and communication plans.

Regular press release distribution

Businesses supporting cloud computing and working for the digitalization of their business processes should start with press releases to ensure media visibility. Press releases both provide businesses with the opportunity to make their knowledge of the sector and digitalization visible and have a positive impact on search engine results. Brands' press releases that are based on global trends and reports are newsworthy and are created with a qualified editorial approach on topics of interest for journalists, provide visibility in digital and print media when distributed through PR services that offer strong media networks. Cloud computing companies that regularly communicate sector-specific developments and expertise through press releases can easily attract the attention of customers who need the products and services they offer. B2B technology companies targeting foreign markets can also attract the attention of foreign customers by gaining ground in the international press with press releases that are distributed abroad, tailored to market dynamics and media principles, and localized on a language basis.

Special news and branded content

Exclusive news and branded contents (advertorials) published in business-oriented or sector-specific digital publications or frequently visited news sites also reveal that the cloud computing and B2B technology company in question has strong media relations. These efforts both support reputation management and raise the brand position for potential customers in no time.

Cooperation with business magazines

In Turkey, there is at least one printed publication or magazine that every sector follows with interest. In addition to general business magazines such as Fortune and Capital, magazines that focus on payment systems, IT, construction, finance, and entrepreneurship are among the media that B2B companies and technology providers should develop sustainable relationships with. These magazines, even if they have low circulation, are sure to reach the right people and therefore help to increase both sales potential and reputation.

Cooperation with news and business-oriented television channels

Television channels that focus exclusively on business and finance or business programs on news-oriented channels stand out among the communication tools that contribute to the reputation of brands and provide them with media visibility. Special guest programs to be organized in specific periods, such as the 10th or 20th anniversary of the sector or at the beginning and end of each year, are important for cloud computing companies to briefly showcase their vision, the values they believe in, and their achievements in the sector.

Downloadable documents

B2B companies need to actively involve their own media in the process while utilizing existing means of media. Today, brands' websites and social media channels are positioned as their own media tools. Earlier in the article, we mentioned that potential customers of B2B want to be informed. Downloadable documents are one of the most professional means to respond to this request. When a cloud computing company presents its know-how on the market, technology, and sector that it targets and trusts its competence in as an online downloadable PDF document that combines academic and present-day contents to inform the reader without being boring, this also creates a space for the sales funnel. For example, a downloadable document titled "How cloud computing is transforming e-commerce?” delivered via a short form that just asks for a full name and email address can make it easy to discover enterprise customers who are clearly interested in the topic.

Success stories

Success story case files or videos of other customers' experiences, called testimonials, play an important role in convincing potential customers. This is because success story studies, which provide the opportunity to learn about industry expertise and project success from the first person, seem more realistic for corporate customers than many other marketing efforts.

E-newsletters

Did you know that 93% of B2B marketers use email as a tool? As a low-cost marketing tool, e-newsletters reach customers interested in the services and products of cloud computing companies directly via e-mail, greatly increasing sales potential. Regular communication of success stories, news about the industry and the sector, and the latest developments in the sector through e-mails to customers can create a more effective result than sending formal sales e-mails.

Webinars

Having become even more popular with the onset of the global pandemic, webinars are an interactive way of reflecting sector-specific enterprise. Webinars stand out as an effective way for B2B companies and cloud computing solution providers to create a potential sales channel by enabling them to talk about the trending topics of the sector and the current developments in their business in a cost-effective way.

Meet B2Press!

As B2Press, an online PR service provider which increased its business volume by 104% and its turnover by 163% by serving more than 450 brands in 2022, we offer many cloud computing companies and technology providers in our portfolio the opportunity to deliver their products and services to more people using the above tools. By freeing public relations from its traditional limits and adapting it to the digital world, we create new spaces for brands to express themselves.

• We offer press release distribution services in 23 languages in more than 30 countries around the world and ensure cost advantage by combining media monitoring and reporting processes in a single package.
• We establish media relations and develop special content based on the sector, brand, and customer objectives for special news and branded content in both print and digital media.
• Within the scope of our B2Press Plus service, we produce technical documents, downloadable presentations, Website content, and e-newsletters, as well as competitor, agenda, and trend analysis for large systems such as cyber security, corporate software, and holding companies.
• With JakoMeet, one of our business partners, we build Webinar infrastructures tailored to the needs of businesses and start a new era in digital event management.

Fill out the offer form at the bottom of the article to learn more about us and to get information about our services.