Listening is the cornerstone of empathy, yet it’s often overlooked in B2B tech marketing. All too often, it becomes a numbers game – sales data, distribution metrics, customer satisfaction scores – without actually engaging in conversations with those driving these results. But numbers only tell part of the story.
Simple strategy: Get on sales calls with your sales teams! Sit down with the people responsible for selling your product, both internally and across the channel. Listen to the feedback they’re receiving from customers and partners. This is your chance to hear firsthand what matters most to them, which pain points surface most frequently, and what you can do to help address these issues.
Channel partners, in particular, often face unique challenges that require empathy and flexibility. Maybe their customers are asking for more customisable solutions, or perhaps they’re struggling to integrate your technology with existing systems. By listening and adapting, you not only show that you care about their success but also position yourself as a trusted partner who’s invested in their growth.
Empathy is a Team Effort: Collaborate with Your Internal Experts
As a marketer in the B2B tech space, you’re often not the expert in every detail of your product or service, nor should you be. Instead, your role is to collaborate with internal experts across departments, including sales, engineering, and customer support, to bring out the best messaging and support your channel partners need. In tech, where advancements happen rapidly and customer requirements evolve constantly, working closely with subject matter experts is crucial.
Leverage internal subject matter experts to enhance your channel marketing efforts. For instance, have your product engineers lead webinars or co-host events with channel partners to discuss the latest innovations. These technical experts are more likely to speak the same language as the distributors and vendors who are helping bring your products to market. A product demo delivered by an engineer who truly understands the technology is far more impactful than a polished marketing script.
Similarly, your sales team is your greatest ally when it comes to understanding FAQs and objections from vendors and distributors. Their real-world experience interacting with these partners can guide your content and messaging strategy. Use these insights to develop more relevant, empathetic marketing materials that address the common concerns of your entire channel ecosystem.
Authenticity Isn’t Just for Customers: Engage Your Channel Partners
In B2B land, authenticity isn’t only for your customers; it’s critical for building strong relationships with your channel partners, too. The tech industry is flooded with noise, and many vendors and distributors have heard it all before. What they’re looking for isn’t just another promotional email or flashy product demo. They want real, authentic communication from brands that genuinely care about their success.
Take the time to develop tailored, personalised messaging for your channel partners. Sending out blanket emails that focus solely on product features or market growth isn’t enough. Instead, show your vendors and distributors that you understand their specific business needs and that you’re committed to helping them thrive.
Surprisingly, your company LinkedIn page isn’t always the best channel for this. It might be your engineers or developers, posting authentically about the challenges they’re tackling in real-time, who make the most meaningful connections. Their unscripted, humanised posts often speak to the core of what vendors and distributors want to know: how is this technology evolving, and how can it benefit my business?
Channel marketing is about relationships – and relationships are built on trust, authenticity, and empathy.
Tailor Your Approach: Reaching Every Stakeholder with Empathy
One of the most common mistakes B2B tech marketers make is using a one-size-fits-all approach when communicating with different stakeholders in the channel. Your customers, vendors, and distributors all have unique needs, and empathy means recognising and addressing those differences.
For customers, empathy might mean focusing on their specific pain points, offering personalised support, and creating messaging that demonstrates how your technology solves real-world problems.
For vendors and distributors, it’s about showing that you understand their market pressures, their need for reliable supply chains, and the challenges they face in selling your product. Empathy means creating co-marketing materials that help them sell more effectively, offering training and resources tailored to their sales strategies, and maintaining an open line of communication so they know you’re always there to support them.
By tailoring your marketing efforts to each group in your channel ecosystem, you’re able to create more relevant, impactful, and empathetic connections. This not only strengthens relationships but also drives better business outcomes for everyone involved.
Empathy as a Competitive Advantage in Channel Marketing
Empathy is more than just a feel-good idea – it’s a competitive advantage. When you show your channel partners that you understand their needs, care about their success, and are willing to listen and adapt, you create relationships that stand the test of time.
Successful channel marketing in the B2B tech space isn’t just about pushing products; it’s about building an ecosystem where every stakeholder feels valued, heard, and supported. Empathy is the foundation that enables this ecosystem to thrive, fostering trust and loyalty among customers, vendors, and distributors alike.
Final Thoughts: Bringing Empathy to the Forefront of B2B Tech Marketing
Empathy should be at the core of your channel marketing strategy, guiding how you engage with every stakeholder across your ecosystem. Whether it’s actively listening to the concerns of your distributors, collaborating with your internal experts, or crafting authentic messaging that resonates, empathy is the key to building strong, lasting partnerships in the B2B tech space.
So, let’s start by taking the time to listen! To your customers, to your vendors, and to your internal teams. Empathy isn’t a soft skill; it’s a powerful tool that can help you create meaningful, human connections that drive long-term success.
Louise Mahrra
Louise Mahrra is a marketing strategist and channel expert.
She is the founder of The Marketing Human, a blog exploring how real human connection powers better marketing, especially in the IT and channel space.
