By Jared Bodnar
February 26th, 2010
I hear it every day: trade shows are dead; people can’t afford to attend trade shows these days; exhibiting at trade shows is a waste. For the most part, I agree. Attendance at trade shows is down, people are reallocating marketing resources to virtual events, and companies are scaling back trade show sponsorships. However, I think that maximizing your trade show presence can still be an effective tool to reach decision-makers.
I recently attended the Golf Industry Show to support several of our green industry clients. One was launching a new auspicious product into the golf industry, and I think they fully maximized their trade show activities with pre-show communications, print advertisements, giveaways, a microsite, product collateral, a Flash-based demo, media conferences and even a live presenter in the booth. It all paid off in the form of trade media coverage, more than 100 new sales leads, high awareness levels and excitement about the product. I don’t think they could have generated as much interest in the product without the trade show as a focal point.
In addition, there are numerous ancillary benefits of attending trade shows. Sometimes it’s the only time you see industry partners and trade media, plus it’s an opportunity to meet face-to-face with your best customers and continue to cultivate those relationships.
Have you scaled back or eliminated trade shows from your marketing mix? Have you tried virtual trade shows or resorted to ‘unconventional’ trade show tactics such as outboarding?
By Nancy Landl
October 26th, 2009
Isn’t this a nice thought? For B2B marketers, efficiency has never been more important. Need I remind you that you are tasked with getting better results, with fewer dollars?
Fortunately, new technology has helped marketers trim costs dramatically over the past few years. For example, you no longer need to travel to meet with colleagues and customers; you can use WebEx or Go To Meeting for productive presentations, meetings and training sessions. This alone can generate substantial savings in time and travel expenditures.
Marketing communications initiatives have become more automated. E-mail, e-blasts and e-newsletters have made communication more direct, and your website is monitored so you find your web traffic and other analytics.
Your customers are searching for your business (rather than you seeking them) with web search engine optimization—and these prospects can be followed up and nurtured by call center reps until they’re ready to buy. The sales cycle is shortened, resulting in increased new customers at a much faster rate.
How are you using new technology to save time and money?
By Jared Bodnar
October 23rd, 2009
You may remember this blog post (my first here at B2B Fishbowl), in which I posited that the future of B2B marketing lies in mobile devices and discussed some ways that B2B marketers can optimize their content for these ubiquitous objects.
I must say, that I felt flush with glee and vindication when I read this article in USA Today in which the big takeaway from the Web 2.0 Summit in San Fran was that everything’s going mobile at a breakneck pace.
As a result of this news, I began to wonder about what’s next for B2B marketing. What is the Web 3.0 landscape going to look like? Will I be able to prophesize the next big thing in business-to-business communication?
I highly doubt it. However, I have a few swell ideas of what will make an appearance in the B2B realm of the future: Highly contextual content, augmented reality, even more feature-rich, multi-functional mobile devices, granular information aggregators, a new generation of new media. In all cases, customers will have more control over the buying process and the conversations they have with B2B companies and brands, so get there before your competitors do.
What do you think the future of B2B marketing holds? Am I way off or the Nostradamus of new marketing methodologies?
By Jared Bodnar
October 14th, 2009
Most B2B companies look at face-to-face appointments as the end-all, be-all of the B2B selling process. I’ve often been told that good sales reps can close a deal if they get in front of a prospect, but teleconferences or Web conferences are not as valuable.
However, the fact is setting face-to-face appointments with B2B prospects is a time consuming and costly task. You’ve got to identify the decision maker, call them several times, leave messages, get past the gatekeepers and persuade them that they need your company’s solution.
The good news is: there’s a surefire shortcut to getting in the door and meeting face to face with your prospects—nurture your leads!
According to Sirius Decisions, nurtured leads result in 20% more sales opportunities than non-nurtured leads. In addition, a nurtured lead—one who has responded to your e-mail blasts, online surveys, Webinar invitations and asset downloads—will be a lot more open to taking a phone call from you and, eventually, setting a face-to-face meeting.
What has been your experience with appointment setting? Do you have an automated lead nurturing methodology in place for your business?
By Nancy Landl
September 28th, 2009
B2B marketers spend tens of thousands of dollars every year purchasing prospect lists to “mine” for new customers when what they’re seeking may be right in front of them– in their own database. Here are some real-life examples of how a simple phone call uncovered several golden opportunities:
Data Cleansing—A distributor of products perfect for use in government stimulus projects recently did telephone prospecting to clean up an in-house list of municipal, county and state contacts. They not only obtained up-to-date info on key decision-makers, but during the process discovered several open bids and acted on them.
No Customer Left Behind—A service provider found that a significant number of customers had opened accounts but were no longer purchasing from the company. An outbound call program uncovered and activated an astonishing number of these accounts.
Survey—A technology company used an old company list to conduct a survey. The information obtained regarding the prospects’ needs, budget and purchase timing was actionable, providing an opportunity to set many sales appointments.
Do you have an old prospect list? What do you do with all the leads you gather from advertising, direct mail, websites and tradeshows? Do you outsource calling programs?
