B2B vs B2C sections of a website

How to you keep separated without restricting information?

[arieng]

This is a problem I've come across several times, but this time it really has me stumped?

I've been working with a client in the food manufacturing/distribution industry that does the majority of their business through traditional channels. Their online presence has historically been a branding site that provided very little interaction with visitors.

Recently, they decided to make a big push into the Food Services industry, looking for restaurants/institutions that could utilize their unique product line. We've set up a section of the site devoted to these customers. Features include a variety of product & pricing downloads as well as the ability to contact a rep for their area.

Unfortunately, this section of the site is being overwhelmed by consumers. Most of the downloads are requested by the company name 'myself' and the reps are getting phone calls and emails by passionate consumers. It's nice to have fans, but these are sales reps. not customer service employees.

They've asked me to solve the problem and I don't see any elegant solutions.

What would you do?

- Create an application process for the B2B section, losing the 'casual' B2B visitor?
- Build a 'help desk'-type solution on the back-end to manage which visitors get access to reps.?
- Set up a new site and segment your marketing efforts?

If you've dealt with a similar situation, I'd love to hear your solution.

[phranque]

i would increase the barriers to entry into the b2b support section by registering and identifying visitors.
you can provide links in your direct marketing materials that will temporarily "register" prospective b2b customers.
include tools to measure conversions.

i would also provide a forum with appropriate spam protection to engage the consumers with a full "passion bucket".
try to get your customer to become involved in the forum as moderator as well as the customer service aspect.

[Circus_Act]

Another option would be to create a completely new domain for the new business initiative. Many companies do this successfully (think honda.com and their honda-engines.com or honda-marine.com domains). Since your desired audiences for your content is so different, this might help you keep your rabid consumers away from your sales reps.

With such an enthusiastic customer base, it seems like creating some branded ancillary products that these consumers can buy from your site would be an easy revenue stream to tap.

[arieng]

Thanks for the responses Phranque & Circus Act, I was starting to think that I'd posted a dud.

I think both of your comments are right on, and I'm leaning toward a combination of the two. I'll set up a new B2B domain so we can place it on marketing collateral, but I'll still need a link to it on the B2C site. For those visitors, there's really no alternative to a registration process.

The forum idea is a good one, but I'm worried that it might not ever develop critical mass. There are few things to make a customer question a company like entering a forum and finding only a few tumbleweeds blowing by.