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Archives for August 2008

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Business Marketing Fast Fixes

These are somewhat scary times at some B2Bs.  Despite expert advice about becoming more aggressive in a downturn (some of it summarized in our posting “B2B Marketing in a Recession”), their top management is more inclined to be cutting marketing expense than approving increased spending.  Leads are harder to come by and taking noticeably longer to close. – B2B Web Strategy – Fast fixes for B2B marketing in a sour economy

The slow economy may have given you a little bit of extra time on your hands.  Now is a great time to take a look at your business marketing plan and procedures and do some housecleaning.  B2B Web Strategy has some good information to get started, which can apply to both B2B and B2C companies.  Here are some more suggestions:

  • Measurement – Take a look at your analytics and sales measurement tools and make sure you are getting the information you need to make good decisions.
  • Advertising – Re-evaluate any advertising you’re doing – display, print, AdWords, etc.  What’s working well and what’s not?  Are the ways to improve what isn’t working as well?
  • Customer List – Spring clean your CRM or customer list.  Are there some customers/potential customers who should be moved to the bottom shelf?  Are there customers you should be spending more time with?
  • Lead Generation – Are your lead generation processes working well? Are there improvements you can make to increase leads or the quality of leads?
  • Sales Funnel – Once you get qualified leads, are they becoming sales?  What can be improved to increase the percentage of leads that convert to sales?

Remember that to increase sales on your website (and in general), you need to increase traffic to your site (and keep the same conversion percentage) or increase the conversion percentage (for the same amount of traffic) or both.  Periodically re-evaluating your business marketing plan and how well it is working can help you achieve whichever goal you choose.

What fast fixes work for your business marketing?

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Pre-Roll Ads May Not Scare Off Online Video Viewers

The perils of preroll appear to have been vastly overstated, according to Nate Elliott, research director at Jupiter, who suggests audience loss as a direct result of prerolls could be as little as 5%. – Advertising Age – Fear of Preroll Ad Eases

If you’re considering advertising your business on online video, this study shows that viewers are not likely to leave just because you advertise before the video (a preroll ad).  However, viewers will leave if they feel that the content is not valuable.

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B2B Website

If you are a business-to-business (B2B) company, your website audience is quite a bit different than a company who targets consumers (B2C).  To get the most of your business website, you’ll need to account for these differences in both your design and content.

Intent

Website visitors to a B2B website are people from other companies who are also trying to do business.  Their intent with visiting your site is to help them make money – by purchasing your products or services, gathering information, etc.  The B2B audience is usually online from their workplace, so time is valuable.

Small, targeted audience

The audience for B2B sites is usually much smaller than B2C, but is much more targeted.  Keep your targeted audience in mind when designing the site and writing content.  You have an opportunity to reach just the audience that you want – your customers.

Behavior

Because they are using your website for business decisions, the B2B audience will be focused on finding the information they need to make those decisions.  If they can’t easily find it, they’ll quickly move elsewhere.  However, B2B visitors are also looking to build relationships with companies and people they can trust.  If you provide valuable information, products and services, there is an opportunity for long-term partnerships.

Expertise

Your B2B visitors are experts in their field and expect the same expertise in potential partners and vendors.  They probably know your products or services better than you, so website content and layout needs to focus on this sophisticated audience.

Buying Process

The buying process in B2B is much longer and more involved than in B2C.  B2B customers are making rational purchase decisions based on business value.  They want products that will help their business be successful.  B2C customers make emotional purchase decisions based on personal value.  Information about your products and services needs to focus on business value and information necessary to make a rational purchase decision.

Value of Sale

Purchases made by B2B customers are typically much larger than B2C customers, so there is a great deal of value in the sale to your company.  It is worthwhile to put the time and effort into providing your customers exactly what they need to succeed – they will reward you with sales.

Listen

Because your B2B customers are experts in their fields, they are a valuable resource to your company.  Listen to what they have to say about your products, services and website.  Since they are looking for long-term relationships, they are often more likely to spend the time to help you improve.  Your B2B website should include opportunities to interact with your customers and for them to interact with each other.  You’ll find valueable information that usually comes with the high costs of a customer research firm.

If you have a B2B website, how do you use your website to reach your B2B audience?

For more information:

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