This post originally appeared on MarketingProfs.
A spate of articles recently have expounded on the “consumerization” of all things business: the consumerization of sales, of IT, and of business-to-business (B2B) marketing most prominently. McKinsey’s David Edelman has referred to the consumerization of B2B marketing and sales as a “massive disruption” on the horizon.
While there’s no question the concept has legs, it may be more powerful from an analytical standpoint to take a step back and ask exactly what “consumerization” means in a business context: what is it precisely about consumer marketing and sales that B2B professionals are seeking to emulate?
Image credit: The Blue Diamond Gallery
Clearly the suggestion isn’t that enterprise software vendors should start taking out print advertisements in Vogue magazine, or that machine tool manufacturers should invest in splashy commercials on The Golf Channel. Upon closer examination, the move toward consumerization seems to boil down to embracing one key concept long pursued by B2C brands: minimizing friction across the promotion and buying process.