SAN FRANCISCO — October 25 , 2018 — A new survey today released from Bospar, the boutique PR firm that puts tech companies on the map, revealed that the vast majority of B2B decision makers are turned off by marketing buzzwords like “disruptive” and “best-in-class” and that most know they need PR — even though not all of them know what exactly it is.
*The survey of more than 1,000 B2B decision makers in the United States was conducted by Propeller Insights on behalf of Bospar in September of 2018.
Clichés Aren’t Cutting It With B2B Buyers
The vast majority of B2B decision makers (88 percent) feel that marketing clichés are detrimental to a company’s credibility. “Disruptive” is the worst offender, with almost a full third of the vote (32 percent). This is followed by:
- “Bleeding-edge” — 30 percent
- “World-class” — 30 percent
- “Best-in-class” — 29 percent
- “Cutting-edge” — 29 percent
- “Industry-leading” — 26 percent
“I have encountered a feeling among marketing executives that ‘grandiose’ language is more serious or professional,” said Bospar Chief Content Officer Tricia Heinrich. “Unfortunately, it is also empty and imprecise. Ideally, marketing materials spell out in clear and specific language how a product or service solves customers’ problems.”
They Know They Need It, But Not What It Is
When it comes to PR, almost all B2B decision makers (98 percent) agree that it is important — to shape people’s opinions (36 percent), to increase visibility (20 percent), to increase sales (17 percent), and because people don’t believe advertising (12 percent) — and 4 in 10 (39 percent) say social media will be the biggest focus for PR five years from now.
However, they don’t all know or agree on what, exactly, PR is. About a third (66 percent) understand that it is “a strategic communication process that builds mutually beneficial relationships between organizations and their publics,” but the rest think PR is:
- Events planning — 10 percent
- What Sarah Huckabee Sanders does for Donald Trump — 9 percent
- What Samantha Jones does on Sex and the City — 4 percent
- Throwing parties — 4 percent
- Lying — 4 percent
- What Jennifer Saunders does in Absolutely Fabulous — 3 percent
About Propeller Insights
Propeller Insights is a full-service market research firm based in Los Angeles. Using quantitative and qualitative methodologies to measure and analyze marketplace and consumer opinions, the company works extensively across industries such as travel, brand intelligence, entertainment/media, retail and consumer packaged goods.
About Bospar
Bospar is a boutique tech PR firm featuring a team of highly seasoned professionals who exist to put tech companies on the map. Bospar’s principals include a long-time PR and tech industry guru, a former broadcast TV producer and award-winning media maven, a standout PR agency manager from the corporate side of a leading global law firm, and an experienced executive with both large agency and public company credentials. Bospar’s larger team includes experts in both social and traditional media, as well as financial and analyst relations and public affairs.
