Top B2B Marketing Strategies: Expert Insights from PR Specialist Mike Maynard
Key Takeaways
- Start with the Customer, Not the Product: Mike's foundational principle: PR campaigns that lead with what customers care about—not feature lists—earn coverage that drives pipeline. Product-first PR fails twice: with editors and with buyers.
- PR Is a Long Game in B2B: Unlike consumer PR, B2B PR compounds over quarters and years. Mike argues founders who measure PR by next-month MQLs always quit too early.
- ABM and PR Reinforce Each Other: ABM provides the target list; PR provides the credibility. Mike's strongest campaigns at Napier weave both together—earned media that lands in the inbox of named accounts.
- Technology Buyers Need Specialized PR: Generic PR agencies fail in deep-tech B2B because they can't translate the technology. Napier's vertical focus is its competitive moat.
- Earned Media Beats Paid in Trust: Paid ads convince fewer people every year; earned media still carries the trust premium. Mike's case: in skeptical B2B segments, PR is the cheapest credibility you can buy.
- Story First, Channel Second: Mike's process always starts with the story—what's surprising, what's true, what matters to the buyer. Only then does the team pick the channel. Channel-first thinking produces forgettable content.
- Napier's Vertical Focus Is a Moat: Napier serves B2B tech specifically, which lets them build editorial relationships, vertical playbooks, and case-study templates that horizontal agencies can't match.
Key Topics
Do you want to know how a Customer-Centric Approach Transform Your Go-to-Market Strategy? Dive into the latest episode of the B2B Go to Market Leaders podcast, whereMike Maynard, CEO ofNapier, a seasoned PR executive and expert in various go-to-market (GTM) strategies, including account-based marketing (ABM) emphasizes the importance of starting with the customer’s needs rather than the product. This customer-centric approach is crucial for developing effective marketing strategies that resonate with the target audience.
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