In the B2B world, the lines between sales and marketing often blur. The challenge? Teams are often distinct and each facing their own pressures, making collaboration tough. That’s why the field of B2B demand generation has sprung up. The function is designed, specifically, to bridge the gap between sales and marketing operations. Content marketing, lead generation, and top-of-funnel marketing programs often live in this space.

For an in-depth definition, check out this article from HubSpot, which describes demand generation as “the umbrella of marketing programs that get customers excited about your company’s product and services.” The article further breaks down the concept: demand gen programs “can help your organization reach new markets, promote new product features, build consumer buzz, generate PR, and re-engage existing customers.”

Here are some suggestions to keep in mind for your own demand gen efforts.

1. Focus on Delivering Value

Want to spark engagement for your products and services? Give your audiences a reason to love your company.

When it comes to capturing your audience’s attention, the digital world is competitive. It’s hard to stand out from the crowded content marketing space and build an audience of your own.

The best way to tackle this challenge is to offer value to your audiences—right off the bat. Give them educational content, free information, and free trials: anything to help simplify their decision cycles and build trust in your company.

Engaged audiences will make it easier for you to build demand. Make knowledge and trust your platform.

2. Give Your Customers Space

Want your audiences to buy more quickly and shorten your sales cycle? Take a step back from your sales messaging.

Paths to a B2B sale are often complex, with prospects taking multiple steps and consulting multiple players until they’re ready to buy. In the B2B world, each of these steps and players within them will have their own set of questions and demands.

Your demand gen strategy should reinforce these connections for the long-haul: even if your audiences aren’t ready to make a purchase now, they might be in a year.

Successful demand gen programs are low-pressure, friendly, and empowering—not demanding and strong-arming people into a sale.

3. Focus on 1:1 Relationships

Your messaging should strive to build relationships by establishing credibility in the marketplace, and speak directly to a persona’s specific pain point and the value you offer to solve it. Otherwise, why should your audiences care?

Demand generation is the process of building relationships at scale. You need to make sure that you’ve giving all prospects the personalized attention that they need and deserve to feel confident about purchasing your product.

Nobody wants to receive spammy, one-size-fits-all messaging. You need to tailor your B2B marketing content to each persona, with information that’s relevant and speaks directly to their acutely felt pain points.

Personalization should be the center of your demand generation strategy. After all, you’re selling to people, not clicks or robots.

Final thoughts

B2B demand generation programs are almost impossible to create without software. You need tools to support your efforts, and you need data to ensure that you’re making the right judgment calls. Stand out and make a lasting impression by following one rule: focus on empowering people, not squeezing revenue.