Vanessa Horwell of THINKINK shares how strategic messaging, data, and storytelling help B2B brands stand out and drive real business impact.
Vanessa Horwell, Chief Strategy Officer at THINKINK, is in charge of transforming complex B2B messaging into clarity. In an era marked by undifferentiated communication, shifting buyer behaviors, and fragmented attention spans, THINKINK stands out by helping brands communicate purposefully, not just polish. With over two decades of experience guiding companies across fintech, adtech, travel, and other high-growth sectors, Horwell knows that strategic differentiation hinges on connection, not just product. This conversation delves into the blind spots holding B2B brands back, how to cultivate trust in lengthy sales cycles, and why THINKINK relies on data, storytelling, and flexibility to deliver measurable outcomes in a rapidly evolving marketing landscape.
Full interview;
THINKINK specializes in bridging complex B2B industries with compelling storytelling—how do you define strategic differentiation in a crowded market today?
The challenge we see facing so many B2B companies across the industries we serve is that they use the same language, and a lot of it is technical and jargon. It’s tough because in many cases, their product offering is very similar, and no business wants to admit that they aren’t 100% unique. Many companies fail to invest in proper messaging at different points in their business maturity. So they either hit a plateau and come across as dated or jump onto the latest buzzwords bandwagon and drown in a sea of sameness. That’s why we drive home the need to create a messaging and communications framework that’s grounded in what buyers need, not what you sell, and how you connect your unique value to their needs. If you read a lot of B2B marketing and sales-enablement copy, it’s heavily skewed towards features and benefits, vs. what keeps me up at night as a buyer. The companies that do this well think of B2B audiences as consumers….because they are.
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You’ve worked with brands across fintech, adtech, travel, and more. What’s the most common strategic blind spot you see B2B companies struggle with?
We see a couple of blind spots, and the first one ties back to my above comment—not having a solid foundation to build on. I can’t tell you how many companies we’ve spoken with that have never created a proper messaging framework, so every department communicates what the company does differently, creating confusion and brand dilution along the way. The second blind spot is not knowing who their buyers are. How can you successfully market and sell your products to audiences if you don’t know their needs, struggles, pain points, priorities, and so on? The third is not knowing how buyers and markets perceive their brand. I’d say there is a general lack of investment in developing data-driven and validated buyer stories and personas, and a lack of prioritization in talking with companies, or even just research to determine B2B brand perception.
How should B2B leaders rethink their comms strategy in an age of fragmented attention and harder-to-earn trust?
Across the board, B2B companies will need to invest in their owned media properties while at the same time collaborating with established media properties and brands. I don’t need to tell you how much the traditional media landscape has changed recently and will be very different in a few years. There’s a general lack of authenticity in B2B comms, and I think that comes from not looking at buyers as consumers, so expect to see some changes there, as well as the rise of B2B influencers; they have a growing role in comms strategies. I believe there will also be a wholesale rethink of companies’ investments in events and conferences, which have traditionally yielded a lot of leads, but are now becoming much more expensive on a per-lead basis, alongside the dilution of ROI with so many events.
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How do you align PR, content, and brand strategy with measurable business outcomes, especially in long sales-cycle industries?
Interestingly enough, this is precisely what led me to found THINKINK—I was frustrated by the lack of agencies (at the time) that couldn’t connect the PR, marketing, and sales dots. The alignment starts with looking at the client’s wants and which actions and channels will get them there. I say that because PR is not always part of the equation, even though PR is a core focus at THINKINK. PR is difficult to tie directly to commercial outcomes, although it can significantly contribute. Sometimes, PR is the last mile in a strategy that could be a year-long one, and we’re focused on direct channels and outreach for the rest of the time. In any case, we track every event, metric, and conversion across all areas in which we’re involved (content, demand gen, events, PR, thought leadership, social, etc.) to attribute impact and success against objectives.
What role does data play in guiding your strategy recommendations at THINKINK, particularly when working with emerging tech sectors?
It’s super important! As a business, we’ve invested heavily in data and research tools that can help us paint clear pictures of where buyers and markets are heading, or invest and generate insights for clients they wouldn’t normally consider when developing strategies. We’ve had instances where we have been able to present whitespace opportunities, and others that validated what clients thought would be successful. We have also expanded our Business Intelligence and Research capabilities to meet the growing need among B2B companies and startups, especially those raising more capital.
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With AI tools changing how content is produced and consumed, how do you see their role evolving in B2B marketing strategies?
We’ve all felt the impact of AI in our professional lives (some more than others), and as an agency, we have embraced AI wholeheartedly. We are adapting AI tools to improve how we produce quality content at scale, and I think most B2B marketers will be trying to do the same. But there’s a danger in relying heavily or solely on AI; it’s not a replacement for creativity or contextual knowledge needed to inform any strategy. It’s a huge helper, for sure, but not the be-all. Clients will still need our human minds to generate the foundations of their strategies.
What excites you most about the next wave of growth-stage B2B companies, and how is THINKINK positioning to support them?
Having just celebrated our 21st year in business, we’ve witnessed and been a part of growth spurts and innovation across many industries. What’s exciting to me is how this next generation of companies continues to build on what’s come before them, but without legacy constraints. At the same time, B2B marketing and PR budgets are smaller than they were several years ago, so we’ve adapted our business model to be more flexible and offer tiered programs to companies at different stages of maturity and funding. Given everything happening geopolitically right now, supporting companies’ business growth and continuity is more important than ever—this is not the time to go into hibernation as a brand!
