Public sector marketing (B2G) differs from B2B and B2C marketing in one very significant way: Marketers must comply with strict public procurement regulations while B2B and B2C marketers have much more leeway with their campaigns.
The contract award process is also different, but one thing that is the same is the importance of early engagement. Early engagement is encouraged so suppliers get to know contracting authorities in their sector and work together to refine contract requirements and solutions. But, how does one engage decision-makers?
Understanding Public Sector Decision-Makers
In the private sector, decision-making goes up to the C-Suite level, but there aren’t any chiefs in the Cabinet Office. Instead, decision-makers occupy all levels of government.
Secretaries of State are national department heads. They aren’t generally involved in public procurement decisions unless they are nationwide, like upgrading hospitals in major metropolitan areas.
It’s when you get down to executive agencies, government bodies, and local councils that department heads become decision-makers.
Small contracts for small government organisations typically go through heads of service at local government departments or procurement managers.
What do Government Decision Makers Prioritise?
The Procurement Act 2023 makes public procurement priorities quite clear.
Value is a very big deal, including social value, sustainability, operations, and costs.
There’s a lot of emphasis on transparency. Government bodies must be transparent about procurement transactions and interactions with stakeholders, ensuring details are available to the public. It’s about accountability and assuring taxpayers that their money is well spent.
Compliance is a major priority. It’s simple, marketers and suppliers who fail to comply with public procurement regulations will find themselves out in the cold.
B2G marketers must be aware of these priorities and prioritise them in turn so they can effectively meet contracting authorities’ needs.
Central government vs. Local authorities vs. Public bodies
The UK government is divided into three sections. The size and type of contract opportunities depend on which area of government is doing the tendering.
Central government: The overarching government sector that works with large contracts, large organisations, and plenty of sub-contractors. There are opportunities for small businesses and medium enterprises to get a piece of the lucrative pie as part of someone’s supply chain.
Local authorities: Administer national policies at county, regional, and urban levels. Local government contracts range from the very small to the moderately large. Many of the tenders at this level are perfect for SMEs, who can bid as individual entities or part of a consortium.
Public bodies: They include boards, agencies, advisory groups and committees, trusts, institutes, and councils. They tend to operate on a micro level with very specific mandates.
How to Develop Effective Public Sector Marketing Strategies
The differences between B2G and other types of marketing often require a different mindset. Here are three primary ways to adopt a B2G marketing culture.
Build Awareness through Thought Leadership & Content Marketing
Establish yourself as the go-to source for information and insights. This doesn’t happen overnight, but the hard work pays off when you achieve your procurement goals.
1) Become a thought leader
Produce unique content specific to contracting authorities in your niche, for example, (gated) whitepapers, guides (how-tos), infographics, and blogs.
Case studies demonstrate the effectiveness of your products, services, or works, showing central and local government bodies you can walk the walk. This is especially important in the public sector where buyers must account for their procurement decisions.
Extend your reach by hosting online and in-person events. Webinars are great for knowledge sharing and brand awareness.
In-person conferences establish your credibility and grow your reputation through the prestige of your speakers. If superstar speakers attend your events, you must be a superstar by association.
In-person events also provide prime networking opportunities and open the way for new relationships and collaborative projects with local authorities.
2) Use data and insights to reach the right buyers
Market intelligence tools, like Delta eSourcing’s analytics, provide valuable data to identify decision-makers.
Segmentation is a great way to organise decision-makers into logical groups; same goes with same so you don’t have to sift through your buyer list to find the info you want.
Typically, contracting authorities are segmented by role (finance manager, procurement manager) and service area (city, region, county, national).
3) Digital & social media engagement
The government’s social media presence is growing as it realises its importance in communicating with the public. For now, you’re most likely to find engagement opportunities on LinkedIn and X (Twitter).
LinkedIn blogs boost your thought leadership credentials. Remember to like and share other useful content. It shows you want to move the industry forward and aren’t just interested in self-promotion.
Leverage other marketing channels, including paid ads. PPC (Pay-per-click) advertising puts you front and centre on Google’s search results pages. PPC ads use keywords related to your services, products, or works.
LinkedIn ads serve a similar purpose, but the target is procurement professionals and not search engines in general.
Email Marketing for Government Engagement
Email marketing is the most effective way to engage public sector buyers. Content is king, so create an intriguing subject line and preheader followed by great content in the email body. Deliver these and you’ll have loyal subscribers with the potential to become loyal customers.
Remember, emails mustn’t be salesy. Focus on providing value, whether it’s a weekly tip or a webinar invitation.
Optimise email marketing strategies
- Segment your audience to personalise emails within your email marketing strategy.
- Ensure your marketing campaign complies with the public contract regulations set out in the Procurement Act 2023, and the UK GDPR (UK General Data Protection Regulation).
- Include case studies, but only when the time and context are right. You come across as dotty if you add them willy-nilly, which doesn’t help your reputation as a thought leader.
Key Public Sector Marketing Channels
Email, social media, and paid ads are three marketing channels available. Other options include:
Search Engine Optimisation (SEO)
SEO is the foundation for other digital marketing. It optimises content for keywords or phrases your target audience uses to find products or services online, for example, “office carpet cleaning services.”
You can optimise images, videos, paid advertising content, and SERPs (search engine results pages) snippets – the block of text below the title and link to your website.
Live & virtual networking events
Not everything is better when it’s digital. Live events are still vital to networking and relationship-building with other suppliers and local authority procurement stakeholders. Attend relevant industry events (Procurex and DPRTE) and government expos.
Some events are open to everyone, but you can target specific groups (decision-makers) by hosting exclusive briefings and roundtables. The idea of being an inner circle member is flattering, especially when you ask guests for a little presentation. Nothing too big. You want to encourage them to attend, not give them stage fright.
Best Practices for Converting Public Sector Leads
It doesn’t matter what the relationship, it’ll die if you don’t nurture it. Or, you can smother it with an abundance of enthusiasm. Walk the line by scheduling emails at decent intervals, like once a week or once a month. Whatever your schedule, ensure each email contains personalised value.
Consider collaborating with other local businesses or social enterprises on projects that increase your ESG credentials. This has nothing to do with social value in contracts. Public sector buyers will be impressed by your proactive approach to community well-being, and your ability to work with others.
We’ve mentioned the importance of compliance, but it’s worth mentioning again. The penalties for non-compliance are severe. Ignorance is not an excuse, so rather than risk being dumped out of the market, ensure you understand which rules apply to your procurement activity.
Measure and measure again
It’s crucial to measure the success of your engagement efforts, so you can tackle areas that need improvement and optimise areas that are performing well.
One of the great things about current analytics software is the ability to process real-time updates to deliver data and insights that enable you to make corrections on the fly.
You can also set KPIs that software can track and monitor, providing updates that enable you to tweak or adjust your procurement marketing strategy to hit your goals.
B2G Marketing is a Special Skill
There’s a lot to B2G marketing – a lot of complex, technical stuff that is best left to professionals.
Cadence Marketing specialises in the B2G sector. We have services and tools to help suppliers, from SMEs to larger business enterprises, win public sector contracts and establish their credentials in a very competitive environment.
Get in touch with our B2G Marketing experts today! Our consultants will demonstrate how our expertise can boost your business.
