27 Sep |
Is Your Marketing Ready to Adapt to the Changing Business Landscape? |
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The crevasse between Sales and Marketing is commonly visible across all types of companies. Some choose to ignore it at their own peril and those that take cognizance of it are still struggling to find ways to bridge the gap. Despite earnest efforts by some B2B organizations to integrate sales and marketing, the gap still remains. In previous posts I have talked about ways to bring lead generation, sales and CRM together. In my opinion, even though sales and marketing teams may have started communicating more closely, the reason their combined effectiveness still falls short is because of a
Read more...03 Feb |
To Spike, or Not to Spike: that is the question |
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I’m feeling inspired by Shakespeare here but unlike Hamlet, it’s not a question I would ponder. Rather, it is a rhetorical question and my answer would always be “don’t spike”. I agree; a challenging economy and value-conscious customers are making it increasingly difficult for organizations to stay afloat, let alone meet sales targets. Added to that is the pressure of getting to customers before your competitors do. A “quick fix” might seem like the ideal solution. Enter a spike marketer who may be able to deliver the quick boost you’re looking for to improve your sales.
Read more...09 Nov |
Is There More to Social Media than Meets the Eye? |
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Social Media and B2B Lead Generation In the spring this year, I wrote in one of my blog posts, that “social media is new and evolving”. That was in late April 2010. Today, in the fall of the same year, I have to say that social media has indeed evolved with great speed! This actually makes me want to caution marketers that social media isn’t like magic beans that will sprout into a lead generation beanstalk overnight. You still need a very strong foundation on which to build your demand generation efforts. Incorporating social tools and technologies into tried and tested target
Read more...21 Sep |
Demand generation — when pull not push seals the deal! |
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A case study on how the “Pull” strategy drives 98% lead acceptance from a sales team In my previous blog I commented on how demand generation goes beyond a leads database; that it involves nurturing true, qualified leads. I raised an important question about marketing strategy — Do you tend to push leads out to your sales reps? Or do you use a pull strategy where they can be productive and clinch the deal with home-grown prospects? I could go on about how the ‘pull strategy’ initiates lead acceptance, capitalizes on hot prospects and drives quicker results, but since we’re
Read more...17 Aug |
Broad based demand vs. tiering: which to choose? |
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Revenue and sales volume should determine your marketing strategy Should your business target broad based demand or focus on a tiered marketing structure? In other words, should you put all your eggs in one basket or have a finger in every pie! The answer requires a careful analysis of the demand for your product/service and the role each market segment plays in your revenue. As a service provider, for example, where does a larger share of your revenue come from – the general public (the broadest category), enterprise (the next largest) or strategic accounts (the smallest group)? It
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