Posted by Frank Candio on Tue, Feb 09, 2010 @ 08:50 PM
Filmmaker John Hughes wrote and produced some of the most successful films of the 1980's including Ferris Buhler's Day Off, several of the National Lampoon franchise and Home Alone. The story behind one of his most popular movies, Pretty in Pink, contains a valuable lesson for all B2B marketers.
Here's the story.
In the original ending of the movie, Molly Ringwald's character ends up with her eccentric best friend - a character named Duckie played by John Cryer - rather than the rich guy she was pursuing the entire movie. This ending made sense, sent the right message and ended the movie on a high note.
Unfortunately there was one problem. The test audiences for Pretty in Pink hated this ending. The film's producer was horrified. They thought the movie was perfect for their demographic. So they showed it to another test audience. Same results - the audience hated it.
The producer pulled her team together and after careful reflection decided to rewrite and reshoot the ending. When asked why the film's producer said:
"We decided we were making the movie for them - the audience."
What does this have to do with B2B marketing? Everything.
The starting point for all your marketing activities must be your audience. Who are you trying to engage, what is important to them, and how can you reach them. Too often we get caught up in the latest marketing technology or trend that we lose focus on the basics.
- It starts with your ideal prospect profile. What are the characteristics of the buyers who have the highest probability to buy from you?
- Then you need to truly understand and internalize their business challenges. What keeps them up at night?
- Finally, you need to create messaging and content relevant and aligned to their challenges - and then deliver it to them.
If you do this successfully, you will have an ending your audience and your sales team will like.
Sales Engine International is a Sales 2.0 Prospect Engagement and Marketing Campaign Execution Company. Clients come to us for inbound and outbound marketing strategies, tools and services that engage and move your prospect through the funnel, result in more qualified leads, and offer complete marketing spend transparency.
Posted by Frank Candio on Wed, Feb 03, 2010 @ 11:04 AM
Fans of the TV show Mad Men know that Don Draper is the quintessential ad man. He is cool, creative and smart.
The show takes place in the 1960's and there are many vestiges of an era long passed:
- The characters all smoke - in their offices
- Drinking is encouraged and condoned during office hours
- The women in the office are objectified
So office life has changed dramatically since the 60's. But what about Don Draper's job? Back then he was focused on big ad placements and media buys.
Today, the spend in the traditional media outlets has plummeted as companies look to market digitally.
Unless Don adjusts, he's a dinosaur.
Posted by Frank Candio on Tue, Jan 26, 2010 @ 12:15 PM
Last night I received a call from Eddie. Eddie mentioned my friend Mike said I might be interested in seeing a presentation for his product. He then gave me a little pitch and closed for the meeting.
Cold calling is a tough business in any economy. It is difficult to get a "live" voice on the other end of the phone and when you do -you have less than a 20 % chance of getting your meeting.
How do you improve your odds? Through referrals. C-Level Executives are three times as likely to take a meeting with someone referred by a colleague or business associate.
Working influencer channels can pay big dividends.
Posted by Frank Candio on Thu, Jan 21, 2010 @ 08:04 PM
Most Sales Executives I speak with believe once the economy turns around, their revenue numbers will be once again achievable. Budgets will be funded…people will start buying and happy days will be here again.
The economy is not a like a light switch that is either on or off. Economic downturns like the one we recently experienced have broader consequences. And as conditions improve over the next 12 – 18 months, it is critical for Sales Executives to recognize what has changed and adjust their strategies and approaches accordingly.
We are now in a necessity based economy and this will not change anytime soon. What is a necessity-based economy? For your prospect this means the pain of not having your products and services must override the pain of paying you for them.
Most companies have cut staff, slashed their budgets to bone and improved the productivity of their remaining employees. Surviving the trauma of the recession, they will not be quick to staff up, spend and return to their old ways.
Here are some things to consider as you plan your go forward strategy:
1. To be better salespeople your Reps must become better businesspeople. In this new environment, your prospect will expect no less.
2. Differentiation is critical to success. Your prospects will always opt for the low cost solution if they see no difference.
3. Know when to walk away. Sales Reps must fully appreciate the opportunity cost of pursuing business they are not likely to win.
Posted by Frank Candio on Tue, Jan 12, 2010 @ 07:07 AM
Over the weekend I spoke with a friend who is marketing a sports related product. We were throwing ideas back and forth when I asked him how many website visitors he gets each month. He said about 6,000. I then asked how many email addresses he harvests from those visits. He said none.
One of the biggest opportunities most companies miss is converting website visitors into leads. Your visitors have some interest - that's why they are coming to your site. The goal then is to capture their credentials through offers.
Here's why:
1. You'll be able to execute one to one marketing to these visitors
2. You'll organically build your prospect list
3. You'll learn what offers / messages are resonating with your prospects
It is the biggest bang for your marketing buck. Do it.
Posted by Frank Candio on Mon, Jan 11, 2010 @ 02:44 PM
The whole premise of lead nurturing campaigns rests in the concept that all prospects are not ready for "buy now" sales messages.
This does not mean you have to be passive in your approach. Accelerator campaigns attempt to move prospects along in your process based on their previously identified behavior. By recognizing and analyzing their behavior on your website, the frequency of visits, and the information they have downloaded - for example - you can (and should) adjust your nurturing approach. For our clients this often means we begin one to one marketing.
Prospect digital behavior is telling us something. We need to listen.
Posted by Frank Candio on Wed, Dec 16, 2009 @ 02:12 PM
Interesting report from research firm Outsell:
http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091216/MEDIABUSINESS/912169998/1078/newsletter011
$60 billion moving from traditional advertising - print and TV ads - and moving to the web. Much of that investment is going into the company website.
Posted by Frank Candio on Wed, Dec 09, 2009 @ 09:36 AM
Your company has the latest eMarketing technology and a formal nurture-marketing program in place. You notice a spike in activity with a prospect you've been digitally nurturing for several months. They spend 15 minutes on your website and download an ROI calculator you've made available.
Clearly it is time for a Sales Rep to call.
Your marketing department passes the lead to your Sales Rep and the next day he makes the call. He's able to get through to the prospect and asks the normal qualifying questions about needs, budget and timeframe. He quickly learns the prospect does not have a budget or timeframe established. The Rep tosses the lead aside and moves on to the next prospect.
A year later your primary competitor issues a press release announcing a new customer - this prospect.
What happened?
The hard truth is this situation is occurring more frequently than ever before. Studies show more than half of the leads discarded by Sales Reps convert for someone within 24 months. So ---- what can you do to ensure you are not missing out on these real revenue opportunities?
Most sales reps are proficient at prospect qualification. They can establish budget, timeframe and need and articulate their value proposition to qualified buyers. However, in our increasingly competitive environment, prospects are looking for more from the Sales Rep. They already educated themselves - in some cases extensively - prior to talking to the Rep. Therefore, when this first conversation takes place, the buyer wants the Rep to understand their situation and offer insight into helping them solve their business challenges. If the prospect receives no value from the dialogue with the Rep, they will quickly disengage and disappear.
Great closing skills are a quality we look for in Salespeople. Equally important is the ability to engage prospects in intelligent business conversations that help build a relationship and fosters continued engagement.
Teaching your Reps these skills will help you minimize those missed opportunities.
Posted by Frank Candio on Fri, Dec 04, 2009 @ 04:02 PM
I came across an interesting statistic from Juniper Research:
"Four out of 10 social network participants are using these sites to gather product information and recommendations."
One of the challenges B2B marketers have with social media is tying their efforts and activities back to results. Clearly, this data point doesn't constitute "full validation" of social media as a marketing tool, however it does offer positive reinforcement.
Posted by Frank Candio on Mon, Nov 30, 2009 @ 01:07 PM
B2B Online surveyed almost 350 B2B companies about their 2010 plans. Here's a summary of the results:
- 40 % plan to increase their marketing budgets
- About half plan to keep spending flat
- 13 % will reduce their marketing spend
The biggest increases in spending will be online where marketers can have more accountability on their spend.
The full survey results can be found here:
http://www.btobonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20091116/FREE/311169985/1444/FREE