15 Major B2B Marketing Statistics and Insights in 2024

Knowing B2B marketing statistics is key for business owners like you to master the art of drawing in other businesses and boosting sales. 

Marketing to other businesses is different from marketing to consumers, and it can be quite a challenge to win them over and convert them into clients without insights into how it works.

To stay ahead of the competition, you will need to keep track of essential trends in business-to-business marketing.

Here’s a list of over 15 key statistics any B2B marketer should know, plus tips on how to advance your strategies with the help of the best QR code generator. 

Table of Contents

1. How big is the B2B marketing industry?
2. Part I. What are the statistics for B2B inbound marketing?
   • Inbound marketing is dedicated to producing and distributing content that organically draws in customers.
   • Inbound marketing tactics costs 62% less per lead than outbound marketing
   • Buyers will make around 12 online searches before making any purchasing decisions
3. Part II. Trends in outbound B2B marketing statistics
   • A person is exposed to 4,000 to 10,000 ads every day
   • 84% of marketers agree that outbound marketing is still effective
   • Outbound marketing tactics have an estimated 4.9% response rate 
4. Part III. The state of content marketing in B2B
   • 73% of B2B marketers use content marketing in their overall marketing strategy
   • 58% of US marketers have increased their content creation with generative AI
   • In-person events are the best-performing content marketing channel for B2B
5. Part IV. B2B video marketing statistics
   • 84% of B2B marketers use video marketing
   • 70% of B2B buyers and researchers watch videos to help with making purchases
   • 52% of B2B marketers agree that video content yields the highest ROI
6. Part V. Impact of B2B email marketing statistics on businesses
   • 50% of B2B marketers say email is the most impactful marketing channel
   • 46% of all opened emails were first accessed with mobile devices
   • 77% of B2B buyers preferred being contacted through email
7. Part VI. Latest B2B social media marketing trends
   • 95% of B2B marketers create social media content
   • 84% of B2B marketing professionals use LinkedIn as their social media platform
   • The fastest-growing platform for B2B marketing is TikTok
8. Boost your B2B sale strategies with QR TIGER

How big is the B2B marketing industry?

B2B, or business-to-business, is an exchange of products or services between businesses. An example would be the manufacturers of a certain product doing business with a wholesaler who wants to sell it. 

B2B commerce is a booming business, whether offline or online. According to the B2B e-commerce statistics report from Statista, transactions in the wholesale and manufacturing sectors in the United States are steadily growing.

Asia, on the other hand, makes up about 80% of the global B2B e-commerce market.

With B2B sales on the rise, it only makes sense that its marketing industry grows as well. According to Statista, advertising and marketing expenses in 2024 reached around 39.1 billion dollars in the United States alone. 

What’s more, it’s only expected to grow. Forecasts from the same Statista article state that B2B marketing expenses are expected to reach an estimated 69 billion dollars by 2026.

Part I. What are the statistics for B2B inbound marketing?

B2B inbound marketing is one of two ways businesses connect with their peers, the other method being outbound marketing.

If you’re looking to get started in inbound marketing or make some changes in your current strategy, here are some things you should know:

Inbound marketing generates 54% more leads than traditional paid marketing

Inbound marketing is dedicated to producing and distributing content that organically draws in customers.

Based on marketing trends from HubSpot, inbound marketing might be a way for businesses to generate even more leads. Additionally, leads are more likely to convert to sales when using inbound marketing methods.

According to the Search Engine Journal, SEO leads have a 14.6% close rate, which is the percentage of sales leads and outreach efforts that result in successful customer conversions.

Tip: According to a report from BlueBite, 39% of people scan QR codes out of curiosity. Take advantage of this by using a QR code generator to generate even more leads.

Inbound marketing tactics costs 62% less per lead than outbound marketing

According to an infographic from Demand Metric, content marketing is cheaper than traditional paid marketing strategies.

In addition to costing significantly less, this form of inbound B2B marketing also generates almost three times as many leads per dollar spent.

Buyers will make around 12 online searches before making any purchasing decisions

With the internet playing a part in everyone’s lives, people are very likely to use it to learn more about something they want to buy.

This fact is prevalent in the business world, it seems. According to Business2Community, B2B buyers will make around 12 distinct searches on the Internet before making purchases.  

Part II. Trends in outbound B2B marketing statistics

To supplement your outbound marketing strategies, here are three essential statistics you should take note of:

A person is exposed to 4,000 to 10,000 ads every day

According to Gitnux, an independent market research platform, the average person is presented with 4,000 to 10,000 ads a day. 

What’s more, 84% of millennials distrust traditional advertising. However, the platform does not clarify whether these insights are correlated.

Still, it does bring up the point that marketers should strive to improve their sales funnel and earn the trust and attention of their audiences. 

84% of marketers agree that outbound marketing is still effective

Despite the previous statistics, most marketers still agree that outbound marketing strategies still work. According to the report from ZipDo, this may be because of how these tactics impact sales.

For example, almost 60% of consumers say that promotions and offers from outbound channels play a role in their purchasing decisions.

Additionally, outbound strategies, when combined with those from inbound marketing, can increase lead generation by 41%.

When it comes to outbound marketing tools, marketers aren’t found wanting either. From a QR code generator with logo integration to CRMs, outbound marketing still has a place in the modern business world.

Outbound marketing tactics have an estimated 4.9% response rate 

Another statistic from ZipDo that could explain the staying power of outbound B2B marketing is that this response rate is the highest it has ever been since 2003.

Personalizing your outbound marketing messages can lead to a 500% higher response rate than generic messages. 

Tip: Did you know that a TV ad QR code during the Super Bowl caused Coinbase’s app to crash due to the massive web traffic it received? Use QR codes in e-commerce and outbound marketing strategies for more effective campaigns.

Part III. The state of content marketing in B2B

Time to get into the specifics. Here are three B2B marketing statistics on content marketing:

73% of B2B marketers use content marketing in their overall marketing strategy

Based on a report from the Content Marketing Institute (CMI), content marketing plays a part in the strategies of most B2B marketers. 

In fact, according to data from the same report, 83% of respondents from top-performing B2B organizations use tools to help with content marketing.

These respondents come from organizations with a marketing strategy they consider extremely successful.

58% of US marketers have increased their content creation with generative AI

With the advent of generative AI use in many industries, it was only a matter of time before it became a significant tool in a marketer’s arsenal. 

Case in point, based on the data from eMarketer, over half of marketers in the US have made use of AI to create more content. 

Additionally, a CMI report says that most marketers use AI to brainstorm new topics, find headlines and keywords, and draft content. 

In-person events are the best-performing content marketing channel for B2B

According to Forbes, 56% of B2B marketers use in-person events as a channel for B2B content marketing. This highlights the significance of building relationships and doing business face-to-face in the B2B space.

The second best-performing channel is through webinars, with just over 50% making use of this method. 

Other content marketing channels for B2B content marketing include:

• Email (44%)
• Organic social media platforms (44%)
• Blogs (40%)
• Email newsletters (39%)

Tip: QR codes are useful for connecting with your audience on social media. Use a Link in Bio QR code to lead customers to your social networking sites and boost engagement! Be sure to add a QR code call-to-action to draw attention to your code.

Part IV. B2B video marketing statistics

Video marketing is known for being an effective means to draw sales in the B2C space. It only makes sense that it performs just as well in B2B. Here are some statistics to reflect that:

84% of B2B marketers use video marketing

According to the latest B2B marketing report from CMI, videos are the second most popular content type made by marketers. 

Additionally, they are also the most effective content type, sharing the top spot with case studies or customer stories.

70% of B2B buyers and researchers watch videos to help with making purchases

Based on B2B video marketing statistics from Google, the B2B buyer’s journey involves watching videos before making purchases. 

This contradicts the myth that videos are only used to draw attention to products and services. Instead, marketers can use videos to educate potential buyers.

In fact, according to data from Brightcove, 39% of B2B buyers watch product reviews, while another 39% watch product demos.

Tip: QR codes can direct people to videos that explain how your products and services work. To make the buyer’s journey easier for your customers, share these videos with them using a URL QR code, YouTube QR code, or file QR code.

52% of B2B marketers agree that video content yields the highest ROI

This statistic from Smart Insights highlights how companies can expect increased lead generation and sales by producing high-quality videos. 

Part V. Impact of B2B email marketing statistics on businesses

Email marketing is one of the best ways to nurture relationships with your customers. Here are some statistics that highlight its effectiveness:

50% of B2B marketers say email is the most impactful marketing channel

According to a marketing survey by eMarketer, email is the marketing channel that marketers find to have the most impact in their multi-channel marketing strategy. 

So much so that B2C and B2C marketers in the US have increased their marketing budgets for email alone.

46% of all opened emails were first accessed with mobile devices

Based on B2B email marketing statistics from Litmus, less than half of all emails were opened using mobile devices. This tells us that most people open new emails using their mobile phones for one reason or another. 

Additionally, Google reported that 75% of all Gmail users access their email on their mobile devices. 

Marketers can take advantage of this statistic by making sure their emails are mobile-friendly. 

77% of B2B buyers preferred being contacted through email

As per Forbes, this statistic shows us that even with different channels, email is the one that meets the needs and preferences of most buyers. 

B2B marketers should take note of this trend and use the best email marketing tool at their disposal to build and nurture relationships with customers.

Part VI. Latest B2B social media marketing trends

Social media has become one of the pillars of marketing in any business, and B2B is no exception. To get in on the trends in B2B social media marketing, we’ve gathered these statistics for you:

95% of B2B marketers create social media content

At this point, everyone already has already an account on almost all social media sites. This is the reason why almost all B2B marketers, according to a CMI report in 2020, create social media content as part of their marketing strategy.

What’s more, the best B2B marketers are also making use of the best social media marketing tools and tricks to strengthen their campaigns.

This is because social media also happens to be the most popular content distribution channel. Based on data from the latest CMI report, 90% of marketers use social media to distribute content. 

84% of B2B marketing professionals use LinkedIn as their social media platform

According to the latest CMI report, 84% of respondents picked LinkedIn as the platform that provides the most value to their organization. 

Furthermore, a sizable percentage difference exists between LinkedIn and the second-best-performing platform, Facebook. According to the report, only 29% of respondents place Facebook at the top of their list. 

Other platforms used by marketers include:

• YouTube (22%)
• Instagram (21%)
• X, formerly Twitter (8%)
• TikTok (3%)

Tip: Avoid overwhelming your audience with multiple links to your various social media pages by using a Link in the Bio QR code instead! With this QR code, all of your profiles can be conveniently accessed with one simple scan.

The fastest-growing platform for B2B marketing is TikTok

Despite only 3% of marketers putting TikTok at their top spot, B2B social media statistics from Target Internet state that TikTok experienced a user growth rate of 100% between 2022 and 2023. 

Moreover, HubSpot data shows that 24% of marketers say that TikTok yields more ROI for their organization. 

Boost your B2B sale strategies with QR TIGER

Trends all over the years have shaped the way B2B marketing is done.

From inbound marketing methods to traditional outbound strategies, everything has been affected by both technological advancements and changing societal norms. The introduction of generative AI has also sparked a new trend in content creation.

Keeping track of B2B marketing statistics is key to any marketer’s strategy. Another essential asset one can use is a good marketing tool like QR codes. 

Our ISO-27001-certified and GDPR-compliant platform offers over 17 QR code solutions for any of your marketing needs. 

Join over 850,000 brands, including world-renowned ones like McDonalds, Skechers, and Pepsi Co., with successful QR code campaigns today.