Striking B2B tips and tricks from OFFF and AdWorld

Lockdown? Well, then we’ll just send our BBC’ers on a virtual trip to…

OFFF

The OFFF Festival in Barcelona is one of the most influential creative festivals in Europe: designers, theorists and professionals host inspiring workshops, conferences and performances for six days. OFFF is the mecca for every creative B2B’er!

AdWorld

Want to join seventy thousand (!) brilliant minds from the world of advertising? Well, then you have to be at AdWorld. Because before, during, and after corona, AdWorld is the largest online event in the advertising world: three days filled with creative speeches and panels. It’s the ideal holiday destination for both B2C and B2B marketers.

Ward, Jenta, Joachim, and Carlota came back with a suitcase full of handy B2B tips and tricks. Whether you’re sitting on your desk chair or leaning back on the beach: let us inspire you!

Ward, art director, a fan of Studio Dumbar and their avocado approach

We start with Ward, my favorite art director! Driven like no other and the human version of “still waters run deep”. He made an online trip to OFFF in Barcelona.

Session: Studio Dumbar at OFFF Barcelona

I was especially impressed by the session of Studio Dumbar. The five fundamentals of their company blew me away!

The pancake mentality
A company is a pancake where the employees are the ingredients. Different yet equally important.

The hamburger technique
When giving feedback, use the bun – burger – bun technique: start with something positive, then point out what needs improvements, and end on a positive note.

The pizza test
Good pizza often tastes better the next day. And the same goes for design: leave your work for a while. Still, satisfied the next day? Buon appetito, then!

The avocado approach
To find out whether an avocado is ready to eat, you first have to give it a good squeeze. A similar approach goes for ideas. Don’t throw an idea out of the window too quickly. There is something interesting in every idea. Maybe inspiration for your next big campaign?

Your stomach rules
Working on an empty stomach doesn’t work. Pause on time and grab a bite to eat. Stay focused.

“I am a big believer of the ‘avocado approach’. It often happens that we search for days for a striking concept, only to end up using one of our first proposals.”

Creative copywriter Jenta comes up with unexpected SEO insights

Our copywriter Jenta: smooth talker, sharper pen, critical eye! And she enjoyed taking a virtual flight to AdWorld as well.

Session: How to Grow Your Organic Traffic by Repurposing & Upgrading Existing Posts by Aarohi Surya (MEA Marketing Representative)

I was always taught: Google = SEO. So, I was shocked when Aarohi started her session by saying that ‘Google doesn’t care about SEO’.

“Are you also shocked? Relax, let me explain…

Content is king, backlinking is queen

The tip you usually get to rank higher on Google: create new content and do not forget to backlink to relevant ‘older’ content pieces on your website.

Internal & outbound linking remain important

Internal links lead to another page within your own website, while outbound links lead from your website to other websites. As for these two classics: they are still important. So if you are still doing this: good job!

Relevant content prevails over new content

Do you have to publish three blog posts every week on your B2B blog? Ok, but where on earth do you find the time? Good news: Google actually wants your content to be relevant, and ‘relevant’ does not always equal ‘new’.

Here are four steps that can save you time:

Step 1: Practice Content Pruning
Before you start creating new content like crazy, you should first browse your old content.

Step 2: Select relevant content pieces and keep them up-to-date
Watch out for broken links.

Step 3: Join online communities such as Quora, Facebook, and Reddit
To make your content up-to-date, you need to know what your prospects are doing today. So go out and uncover what questions they are asking online.

Step 4: Be the solution
Adapt your content with these questions in mind. Make sure your content reflects the answers your prospects are looking for.

“I am already looking forward to coming back with useful tips for next year.”

Joachim, motion designer, inspired to experiment more by FuturePlay

Joachim is our all-around motion designer. He’s always up for a challenge, so he enjoyed going to Barcelona virtually. Tendril, Beeple, and especially FutureDeluxe made a lasting impression.

Session: FutureDeluxe at OFFF Barcelona

If I had to choose between all the inspiring creatives, I would choose FuturePlay by FutureDeluxe, a creative studio based in London, Los Angeles & Sydney.

“FuturePlay gives their creatives time to experiment. The emphasis doesn’t lie on execution and production. Rather, they focus on

Fantasizing
exploring
& experimenting

with new forms of design, technology, and moving images.

Great concept, right? If you are already blown away by the B2B concepts of one art director or graphic designer… Then imagine what can happen when you give different creatives time and space to experiment together. It’s bound to let the sparks fly.”

Carlota, copywriter with an energetic Spanish temperament, makes sure your core message never gets lost

“Last but not least: I also went on an inspiring trip. In addition to a number of sessions at the OFFF Festival in my second home country, I attended a session by Alex Cattoni at AdWorld.”

Session: The Wheel of Persuasion: How to Build Trust, Create Believability & Inspire Action by Alex Cattoni

“Alex is a marketer, copywriter, and founder of the Copy Posse: a real boss lady! In her session, she explains how and why our message is all too often lost. We go straight from our client’s problem to our product. Big mistake! This is how it should be:

Problem: start by correctly identifying the problem of your prospects.
Pain: empathize with their pain and create the desire for a solution. Important: the problem is not the pain, but what causes it.
Prescription: introduce a credible remedy to overcome that pain. Keep in mind: the prescription is not your product, but a specialized method, approach, or tool.
Pivot: switch from “them” to “you” and explain who you are and why you are the expert.
Positioning: capitalize on the solutions that your prospects have tried in the past (without success) and explain how your approach can help them achieve the desired result more easily and quickly.
Product: only now do you introduce your product and your unique selling proposition.”

Less is more, but not if your message gets lost in the process.

“Sometimes, a small diversion can lead to better and sometimes even unexpected results. And that also applies to my trip to AdWorld, of which this article is the result!”