Archive for the ‘Marketing strategy’ Category
Friday, December 31st, 2010
Recently, I lost my crystal ball. So, I won’t be adding to the posts about predictions for the new year. Instead, I took a look backward to see whether previous year end posts still apply. I think they do.
Learn from the past, capitalize on success
At the end of 2008, in Shorten the sales cycle next year: Year end marketing planning, I advocated taking stock of what worked and what didn’t—so that you can capitalize on your successes and avoid repeating what turned out to be mistakes. In particular, I suggested focusing on buyers’ perceptions in four areas: the desirability of the solutions, the reputation of the vendor, the effectiveness of the communications, and the responsiveness of the individuals leading the sales or business development effort.
Tags: buyer personas, buyers' perceptions, buying process, customer development, customer insights, customer research, demand generation, lead gen, market planning, online communities, sales cycle, sales enablement, web analytics
Posted in Internet marketing, market intelligence, Marketing communications programs, Marketing strategy, social media, social media marketing, Uncategorized, value propositions | No Comments »
Friday, December 3rd, 2010
Today, everyone is all a-twitter about the importance of being relevant. As they should be.
According to Marketo’s Andrew Spoeth, the average B2B buyer receives 20+ campaign touches per week. What this means is that prospects will only pay attention to that information they deem highly relevant to their situations.
Know prospects’ priorities
If we want to capture prospects’ attention, engage their interest, and ultimately win their business we need to speak directly to our prospects’ highest priorities. What that means is that we need a way of determining what these highest priorities are.
This is a preview of
Wondering what content your prospects find most relevant? Ask them.
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Read the full post (396 words, 4 images, estimated 1:35 mins reading time)
Tags: buying process, customer feedback, qualified prospect priorities, relevant content, win loss
Posted in market intelligence, Marketing strategy, Uncategorized | No Comments »
Monday, November 29th, 2010
This is the third in a series of three posts on insights I gleaned from a conversation with Dave Wieneke, who blogs on the future of digital marketing. The first post described how B2B marketers can set up digital signals to help them monitor marketing performance against their business goals. The second post described actions marketers can take to figure out what’s working and what’s not.
This post discusses what Dave sees as the four steps to digital marketing: Segmentation, Integration, Automation, and Optimization. In it, I will tie together all three posts, and return to the questions I raised on behalf of B2B marketers at small companies at the beginning of the first post.
Tags: B2B marketing, digital marketing, digital marketing campaign, editorial calendar, integrated marketing campaigns, marketing goal, marketing performance, social listening, web analytics
Posted in Internet marketing, Marketing strategy, Uncategorized | 6 Comments »
Monday, October 25th, 2010
In a recent post, Laura Ramos observed that business-to-business marketers have long struggled to reach decision makers and measure marketing results. She observed that they may encounter difficulties because they don’t spend enough time understanding who their best customers are and what distinguishes them–noting that understanding buyer behavior is much more than conducting customer satisfaction surveys or publishing success stories.
I found her post timely. I’ve been struggling with articulating the very concepts that she relayed so fluently as I revise own website.
Shorter sales cycles depend on deep customer insights
This is a preview of
B2B marketers struggle to reach decision makers and measure marketing results
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Read the full post (704 words, 4 images, estimated 2:49 mins reading time)
Tags: attract business, B2B marketers, behavioral data, business-to-business marketers, buyer behavior, buying criteria, buying process, customer research, customer satisfaction surveys, high-tech marketing, increase revenues, lead generation campaigns, marketing collateral, marketing processes, marketing systems, product managers, product marketing managers, professional services marketing, web analytics
Posted in market intelligence, Marketing strategy, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
Monday, October 18th, 2010
By Barbara Bix, B2B Marketing Consultant
Businesses today are seeking products, services, and solutions that will directly or indirectly improve their competitive advantage. As part of the sales process, buyers expect to hear how sellers’ products or services will materially contribute to the buying organization’s success–and why the seller is uniquely qualified to deliver that value. This post outlines how to step into buyers’ minds, and create value propositions that compel them to buy.
What is a value proposition?
This is a preview of
How to create a compelling value proposition: Do it yourself in 3 steps
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Read the full post (769 words, 2 images, estimated 3:05 mins reading time)
Tags: B2B buyers, business-to-business, call to action, compelling value proposition, competitive advantage, justify the investment, offer, position, products, quantifiable outcomes, reduce risk, services, value proposition
Posted in How to, Marketing communications programs, Marketing strategy | 3 Comments »
Wednesday, October 13th, 2010
This morning, a colleague called to brainstorm ideas on how to promote an upcoming program on “reaping the benefits of a diverse workforce”. Her concern was that the small business owners she was targeting had opted not to attend other programs on diversity.
To address her concern, I immediately donned my strategic marketing hat. Some would say that when you have a hammer, everything is a nail…
Helping prospects recognize they need what you have to offer
This is a preview of
When you’re a marketing strategy consultant, everything comes down to marketing strategy
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Read the full post (932 words, 5 images, estimated 3:44 mins reading time)
Tags: buying process, Marketing strategy, marketing strategy consultant, small business owners, small businesses
Posted in Buying process model, Marketing strategy | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 28th, 2010
Why do some posts get retweeted more than others? Here are the results of a recent experiment.
The experiment: Same article, different results
Last week, Marketing Profs published my article entitled Accelerate Referrals: 9 steps to success and their readers retweeted it 73 times! This week I began publicizing the article and it was retweeted at least once. Same article, different results…
So what can we learn from this? Here are some of my conclusions. Please chime in with yours!
1. Publish where others will see your article
This is a preview of
Want more retweets? 5 secrets to success + an example
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Read the full post (716 words, 4 images, estimated 2:52 mins reading time)
Tags: accelerate, community, content, content is king, email, followers, marketing consulting firm, newsletters, referrals, retweet, sharing
Posted in How to, Marketing communications programs, Marketing strategy, social media, social media marketing | No Comments »
Tuesday, September 14th, 2010
Believe it or not, I think the answer to smarter, greener cities may be more compelling communications. I reached this conclusion after hearing a number of experts propose other solutions. This post explains why.
Background
This morning, I had the good fortune to attend Building the Future: Opportunities for Energy Innovation and Efficiency hosted by the Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council at Foley Hoag’s Emerging Enterprise Center. The keynote speaker was Dr. Joan Fitzgerald, Northeastern University Professor and author of Emerald Cities: Urban Sustainability and Development. The other panelists were Cambridge, MA urban planner Iram Farooq, Architect and Autodesk Industry Programs Manager Erin Rae Hoffer, and entrepreneur and developer Kenneth H. Smith. Attorney Adam Wade from Foley Hoag moderated the discussion.
This is a preview of
Want to develop smarter, greener cities? Maybe the key is compelling communications
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Read the full post (1135 words, 6 images, estimated 4:32 mins reading time)
Tags: B2B marketing consultant, effective marketing, Energy, Massachusetts Technology Leadership Council, social media
Posted in Energy, Marketing communications programs, Marketing strategy, Speaker notes, Uncategorized | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, September 8th, 2010
How do you stay top of mind when everyone is head’s down trying to get their own jobs done? How do you ensure that prospective customers think of you when problems arise?
The short answer: you need to stay in touch, talk about things that really matter to those you want to remember you, and remind them that your business is a valuable resource they can tap in each of the areas where you’d like to work with them.
Drip campaigns reinforce your brand
This is a preview of
Drip campaigns keep your company top of mind: 5 steps for success + an example
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Read the full post (899 words, 4 images, estimated 3:36 mins reading time)
Tags: brand, branding, call to action, case example, drip campaign, market disruption
Posted in health care, How to, Marketing communications programs, Marketing strategy | No Comments »
Friday, August 13th, 2010
Last night, 50 Wharton alums gathered in downtown Boston to hear Professor Peter Fader speak about “The Paradoxes of Interactive Media”. Of special interest were Dr. Fader’s comments on how target marketing has changed. His message: when profiling your most promising prospects, focus on differences in behavior rather than demographics.
To illustrate his point, Dr. Fader looked at the data underlying a study that concluded that Hispanics were more likely to purchase DVDs than Caucasians. He began by acknowledging that the conclusion was accurate–but not particularly useful.
Lies, Damned Lies, and Statistics
Tags: Boston, demographics, market segmentation, market segments, marketing campaigns, purchasing behavior, target marketing, trigger events, Wharton
Posted in Buying process model, How to, Internet marketing, market intelligence, Marketing communications programs, Marketing strategy | No Comments »
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