The Future of B2B Starts Now: Launch of AIM B2B
Award-winning B2B Group Providing Full Service, Data Driven Creative Marketing in Japan, Asia and Beyond Announces New Agency
The launch was held on July 11 of AIM B2B, a marketing, PR and communications agency in the Custom Media KK group with the goal of guiding B2B brands in Asia’s complex markets.
AIM B2B is a master at market intelligence and is backed with decades of media experience, tailoring their work towards result-driven approaches.
Deep Dive Into AIM B2B’s Mission
As a full-service agency, AIM B2B will close the gaps between Japan and the global market. AIM B2B delivers creative and data-driven marketing solutions that support innovators in AI, clean energy, fintech, healthcare, manufacturing and technology to create lasting impacts for the future.
Through the power of storytelling, AIM B2B creates meaningful connections with their audiences while utilising authentic voices and precision to craft professionalism. By empowering industries through sustainable changes to better succeed in Japan and with their international perspective, strong local networks and deep market knowledge, AIM B2B connects global brands with Japan. AIM B2B is also partnered with BBN International, the world’s leading B2B agency delivering globally relevant strategies with meaningful local impact.
AIM B2B CEO and Co‑Founder Robert Heldt positioned the company as purpose-led and precision-driven, with the goal of moving client businesses forward in Asia’s complex B2B markets. He also serves as the CEO of Custom Media KK, the company behind AIM B2B’s shift to embracing AI in content marketing.
“Inspiration came from us wanting to better service our B2B clients and offer them a value proposition that’s going to help grow their businesses and deliver results for them,” Heldt said. “We wanted to be able to position our B2B offering very clearly for our clients.”
Inside the Mind of CEO Robert Heldt
Heldt provided a more complex and personal look into the thought process of AIM B2B’s creation and their mission as a company. Alongside being a key factor for the company’s inspiration, Heldt brought the framework to life and knows the benefits B2B industries have towards improving marketing in Japan.
Heldt shared the model that best describes AIM B2B’s vision, explaining how it shapes the company’s approach to business development and service evolution. “Our mission is simple. We want to empower these revolutionary B2B industries to lead the change and to connect with their audiences meaningfully through the power of storytelling,” Heldt said.
“We see global agencies talking about the power of storytelling, talking about humanizing brands,” Heldt added. “But what does that mean from a Japanese context”?
Heldt addressed the importance of human connection on an emotional level in B2B relations, noting that the process also includes business to businesspeople. “There are humans involved in the decision making process, we need to remember that,” Heldt said. “B2B decision makers are people making rational decisions for their businesses, but they are also emotionally connected and make decisions based on trust, alignment and confidence. Storytelling can help us connect with buyers’ emotions and rationale on a human level.”
Heldt addressed how AIM B2B plans to differentiate itself in Japan and across Asia. He emphasized the team’s multicultural background and their deep understanding of how to embrace diverse local business cultures.
“A lot of us come from different parts of Asia, we’ve got quite a few diverse nationalities,” Heldt said. “We understand what it is to be in a different culture and what it is to adapt and respect the local culture.”
The Asia AIM Podcast
The Asia AIM B2B Podcast was also recently launched where Heldt and COO Sam Bird dive into AIM’s framework, Adapt–Implement–Maximize, while highlighting real-world stories from global brands, navigating cultural nuance, buyer psychology and market complexity.
“In the launch episode we introduced the podcast, the concept and direction we have planned,” Heldt said. “We also talked about the core differences between translation and localization, the need to build trust and relationships to successfully crack the market.”
Their first podcast episode provides listeners with important tips and techniques such as the value of localizing rather than translating, the idea of how trust comes first with relationship-building and stakeholder consensus and the concepts of Kaizen and Nemawashi, the popular Japanese business approaches.
Inside Look Into AIM B2B’s Strategy With its Chief Strategy Officer
Yosuke Miyazaki, AIM B2B’s Chief Strategy Officer, operates the development and execution of clients’ corporate direction and long-term goals, playing a key role in shaping the group’s vision and positioning within the global B2B landscape.
Japan’s B2B marketing landscape is undergoing a pivotal shift and explains that now is the perfect opportunity for growth and innovation with their new launch.
“The Japanese government is actively promoting business opportunities for foreign companies, particularly in the B2B sector, through various policies and initiatives,” Miyazaki said. “These include efforts to attract foreign investment, streamline business registration processes and foster open innovation between startups and established companies.”
Japan is often seen as trailing behind global B2B marketing trends, thus Miyazaki highlighted how AIM B2B’s model was created based on these trends.
“We have had a process from before the rebranding,” Miyazaki said. “It had five steps instead of three. In essence, what we do is the same, but the three-step framework is received better because it focuses on taking less time for the initial discovery phase and gets into the execution sooner.”
But what is the definition of success for AIM B2B in its first year? What KPIs or milestones are they targeting?
“For the first year, raising brand awareness is the primary goal. And with the rebranding making our message focused and sharper, the expectation is that we reach more clients, which we wouldn’t have before,” Miyazaki stated.
Miyazaki gave more detail about how AIM B2B helps clients build capability into their strategy, due to marketing surveys showing that AI proficiency is a top need.
“We as an agency already do AI and will continue to use AI-assisted tools to improve the efficiency of our work and the quality of our deliverables” Miyazaki said. “For example, optimising existing content for Generative AI search engines (GEO optimization) is vital in reaching the right audience. But at the same time, AI proficiency is integrated with most of our client’s messaging and storytelling. So it is weaved into almost all of the content and activities we craft for clients.”
More Than a Launch: AIM B2B Creates a New Standard for B2B Success
As AIM B2B steps confidently into its first year, it is obvious that the agency is more than just a new player in the B2B marketing industry, they are an initiator for change. AIM B2B is backed by decades of experience, a diverse team with a mission that is rooted in authenticity and innovation. AIM B2B will redefine how global brands connect with Asian markets.
With its distinctive framework: Adapt–Implement–Maximize, a growing podcast platform and a leadership team that is committed to delivering meaningful impact, AIM B2B isn’t shaping the future of B2B marketing in Japan, it’s leading it.