At its most recent Sunset Keynote Event, BMA Atlanta featured Risa Teksten, B2B Industries Solutions Executive at Google. She works with top-rated Fortune 500 companies to develop custom programming, marketing and advertising solutions across Google platforms like YouTube, mobile, Google+ and Google Display properties. Focusing on how discovery, access and choice has changed for B2B marketers in the digital age, Risa discussed ways that companies can improve their use of search, create a unified social experience, and take more advantage of mobile and video. Nebo had the opportunity to partner with BMA Atlanta and conduct a short Q&A with Risa before the event.

Why are the themes of discovery, access, and choice important to talk about in a B2B marketing context?

B2B marketers really need to think more about the customer. While not B2C, they still need to include the “C” in the discussion. That means thinking about how they discover your brand, how they access information about who you are and what you can provide for them, and ultimately how you inspire them to make a choice. When you think about B2B marketing through those three themes, you have a much better sense of designing an effective strategy.

What are the most common mistakes B2B interactive marketers make?

They frankly need to think more about what B2C marketers are doing. It may seem like a different universe compared to B2B, and certainly the conversations can be quite different, but in order to be really innovative in the digital marketing space you need to be studying and learning from what other advertisers are doing. There are some really great B2C examples out there that can be applied to the B2B world.

How do you see B2B brands taking advantage of second screen opportunities, especially with the trend of users consuming multiple forms of media simultaneously?

I think it really falls into two buckets. First, it’s a matter of utility. That means understanding how your consumer uses the second platform from a location, information, calling, or other basis. The second aspect is thought leadership. I think it’s often surprising how much media is being consumed on secondary platforms. B2B marketers need to really think more about leveraging thought leadership opportunities on those platforms.

What near future trends are exciting you the most?

I’m really excited about social. I think there is a lot of innovation ahead beyond just the standard social networks we have today. Many of the solutions for marketers will increasingly become more empowered in the social space. I’m also still excited about search. At the heart of Google, we’re a search engine. It sounds a little funny to say that search is still new, but there are some interesting features coming up in search. Those features will incorporate more social and mobile aspects of digital marketing, and that will continue to make search exciting in the years to come.

Thanks again to BMA Atlanta for hosting this event. Click on their logo below to see a video version of this interview, along with a write up about the event.