The Web and B2B Sales Cycles

Brochure-ware. E-commerce. Web 2.0. The evolution of the web...

Where is your website on that list? Is it just “out there”? Is your web presence integrated with how you go to market? With how your prospects and customers use the web in the buying cycle?

The web continues to evolve as a business tool. We all understand the direct to consumer model...everybody’s bought from an online retailer. Yet there is still a disconnect in the B2B space about using the web. Is this an article about SEO (search engine optimization), social media marketing, or online pay for click advertising? Not really...

Sure there have been lots of media on, and you’ve received sales calls about, using social media like twitter and facebook or buying new web services. But I believe there is a fundamental lack of understanding about how the web affects the selling cycle.

That’s why we’ve developed a simple model to help organizations understand how buying behavior affects the selling cycle in industries from professional services to manufacturing and other B2B vertical markets.

The purpose of this model is understanding how the internet is used by prospects and customers in the buying cycle and how to integrate inbound web techniques with the direct selling model.

We’d love to show you this model. It will give you insight into how you can be thinking differently about your website and web presence and how they can impact your selling cycle and resulting sales.

Join us for our web event on January 11. You’ll leave with insight:

• How traditional direct selling models work
• What the web can do to improve your direct selling
• Why “drip marketing” and other techniques to eliminate competitors fail
• Ways to increase the integration of your inbound/online and direct selling efforts

Email me to receive the full program outline. This web event is free.

SLE

Networking Wine

I attended a great event with a presentation by Deb Mortillaro of Palate Partners. Deb’s company does a great job of helping people better understand wine and the food it goes with as well as selling some great choices (yes, I was able to sample!). Her topic for this business audience was describing prospects and clients and how we relate with them to types of wines. If you’re interested, email me and I’ll introduce you.

What does this have to do with Marketing?!?

Well it gave me a fun way to describe some of the people who are most helped by what and how we do things at Eckert Marketing/geniusmarketing.com. Maybe you know one of the “wines” described below...

New Wine

I’ll call the first, “new wine in old wineskins” – There are a lot of new ways to market via the web, social media, texting, etc. But many companies try to put this new stuff into the old model of wineskin – their traditional go to market/selling strategy. Now marketing via the web can be very productive, but considering how these newer inbound strategies will integrate with the existing go-to-market strategy is vital. Not all new strategies do fit; and sometimes adjustments must be made to maximize the effectiveness of inbound strategies. I have a great little model that delves into this subject...if you’d like to see it, email me.

Basic Red

Another type is a nice solid red wine – they have a good offering, but aren’t sure of the best way to make an impression - should they go with the full entree? Just the cheese and crackers? Some of our clients are like that...they know the importance of making the right choices as they go to market and we help them match their story, offering and sales process with the marketing that will make the most impact.

A Touch of the Bubbly

One client type is entrepreneurial – like champagne, lots of energy, full of life. This strength can lead them to see a new marketing idea, and being the entrepreneurial big thinkers they are, they chase after that one idea. Might be great! The next big thing! We help them consider the possibility and again, if and how this new marketing idea is best integrated into their existing strategy.

Bargain Shopper

Finally there is the bargain shopper. Sent to the wine shoppe for an important dinner party. They are overwhelmed with the choices, and seeing the $1 off tag on a particular bottle, they make their choice. These folks think about marketing by budget rather than by strategy. Now mind you, I won’t steer them to the $100 a bottle import, but choosing how much marketing to do shouldn’t be just about what’s the cheapest option... We are proponents of many low-cost strategies and tactics, but only when they will be effective in gaining the results. We can help unpack the choices and put together the most cost-efficient and effective tactics.

If you know someone who I’ve described, I hope you got a chuckle and will introduce me. Email me and let’s discuss how to get the right choices to meet the financial and strategic goals. Then we can sit back with one of Deb’s best and toast the results.

SLE

Let the Press Do Journalism

A client of mine was frustrated with their lack of success getting their news releases published. They spent a good bit of time writing, editing, polishing and formatting their releases to make sure everything was perfect. They then sent their releases by email and in hard copy to their local and targeted industry publications.

“All we get is a mention in columns of bulleted news items in the trade pubs,” he lamented, “and in the local newspapers, we never get a mention!”

I suggested that he try a different tact. Instead of sending a full story in a long narrative (some of their releases were three pages) as an attachment to an email, try just sending an email with a story idea.

He was concerned that’d he lose control of the message.

This is a common issue with smaller companies. They want to share their story with the world, for free, on their terms. That’s what the web is for!

Working with professional journalists, is a different animal. Reporters want to uncover stories that matter to them, their editors, and most importantly, their readers. So here are some tips I passed along to my client:

1. Send an email with a subject line that hints at the story subject.
   

2. Make the email short with one key point about the potential story.
   

3. ASK the reporter if their readers might be interested in the story.
   

4. Follow up with a phone call.
   

If you get no response, try something crazy... read the publication.

1. See if the publication has a place where they explain for what they are looking (most newspapers won’t, but trade pubs sometimes do...check their websites).
   

2. Look for places in the publication that might be difficult to fill, such as those “notes” type sections.
   

3. Use the publication’s website contact page to submit story ideas (many have segmented contact forms for different subjects). These go directly to the reporter that covers the subject.
   

Separately, try to get to know the reporters.

1. Go to events that they may attend...networking, business functions, charitable events they sponsor.
   

2. Call reporters and ask about stories they’re pursuing.
   

3. Refer them to sources who may be of help to them.
   

4. Build a relationship.
   

I know, that could be, well, work! Yet like anything else, getting to know your target audience (the reporter) what they need, and helping them get that (what they need) will go a long way to getting what you want. You want the reporter(s) to recognize your email or phone number and think of you as a resource.

The company tried the first approach and got a conversation with a reporter started. That will bear fruit down the road.

SLE