Diana Marszalek 10 Jan 2020 // 2:00PM GMT
NEW YORK — Edelman has launched a new unit aimed at helping B2B clients employ contemporary communications practices.
Edelman Business Marketing offers clients earned media, editorial and martech offerings housed in a single unit to further B2B clients’ adoption of integrated communications, which they have been slower to adopt than consumer-facing companies, agency leaders said.
The US-based practice will be led by US managing director Joe Kingsbury (pictured), who will oversee five regional leaders and a 40-person agency-wide team. Current clients include Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Shell, HP Enterprise and Businessolver.
Corporate affairs and advisory services practice chair Jim O’Leary said the creation of the unit stems from B2B companies’ increasing need to become more contemporary in their marketing practices as their customers become more sophisticated.
It’s not unusual for B2B companies to still rely heavily on traditional practices, like email marketing and display advertising; at the same time, they often don’t always have the editorial expertise to create content marketing and the like that can help grow business, he said.
“Our approach to integrated B2B marketing is both editorial and data-driven. Many leading B2B companies now require this combination of technology savvy and editorial instinct because it more effectively enables demand generation and revenue growth,” O’Leary said.
The unit will also work with clients on moving into new kinds of communications, like thought leadership.
The creation of Edelman Business Marketing, which officially launches today, also reflects the agency’s growing focus on fostering B2B client relationships, which have been on the upswing. Edelman has seen double digit growth in the sector in the last couple of years, and expects to see the same this year, O’Leary said.