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“50% of large businesses don’t have an email programme in place. In the construction industry, that rises to a whopping 90%!”
Norman Campbell.

As the evenings draw in and my roof guttering once again becomes choked with a million sodden leaves, I’m reminded that we’ve entered Q4 of the business calendar. As such, my mind turns to the way forward for 2010. And in the wake of the economic tsunami that was 2008 / 09, I’ve a fair hunch that I’m not alone in challenging complacency.

Between now and the end of the year, I’ll be sharing with you my tips for best B2B marketing practice in 2010, based on first-hand experience of being at the sharp end of B2B lead generation in the grip of a recession. Today’s post takes the form of a concise overview of the points I’ll be covering.

So here we go then – my Top 10 B2B Marketing Strategies for 2010. Here’s what’s coming up:

1/ Exploit online marketing to the full: the internet has transformed the ability of businesses to compete in a global economy. Spending on B2B online advertising is growing at 25% a year. And there’s a good reason.

2/ Send web traffic to product-specific landing pages – not just your homepage. Doing this can improve conversions by more than 100%.

3/ Test, test and test some more. Testing is the only cost-effective way to discover what works. But don’t test too many variables or you’ll muddy the waters.

4/ Make every element of your marketing operation measurable. You might think that this is a self-evident truth, but I never cease to be amazed by the number of businesses that have no real grasp of their marketing metrics. We’ll be discussing what to measure, how to measure and, most importantly, why to measure.

5/ Structure your marketing so that it enables prospects to research your product or service early on in the sales cycle. The modern buyer is far more receptive if they’re able to consider their options without being hassled by continuous sales pitches. By educating the customer, you will establish your organisation as a trusted advisor.

6/ Practice lead management. By scoring, nurturing, and routing leads as appropriate to their position in the buying cycle, it’s possible to more than double the number of sales conversions.

7/ Nurture; don’t pounce.  90% of prospects who visit your site aren’t ready to be sold to. Leads that are nurtured before going to sales are more likely to close, are more profitable and typically will have a shorter sales cycle.

8/ Introduce relationship tracking. Tracking the quantity and quality of marketing interactions with each prospect will inform you of the best move to make next.

9/ Cease thinking of marketing as a cost centre. Think of marketing as an investment that drives revenue proportional to input, not a liability that needs to be reduced. Like a sausage machine, the more you put in one end, the more you get out at the other!

10/ Invest more in automation technology. As marketing processes become more complex, to fuel growth it’s critical that you maximise your ability to automate, or your marketing is in danger of hitting a plateau due to overload.

And finally, a parable for our times

The Mayonnaise Jar

The professor stood before his philosophy class. Before him on his desk was a curious array of items.�
Without uttering a word, he picked up a very large empty mayonnaise jar and proceeded to fill it to the brim with golf balls.

He then asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

The professor then picked up a box of pebbles and poured them into the jar. He shook the jar lightly. The pebbles rolled into the open areas between the golf balls.

Once again, he asked the students if the jar was full. They agreed that it was.

Next, the professor picked up a box of sand and poured it into the jar.  Of course, the sand filled up all the gaps remaining between the golf balls and the pebbles.

Once more, the professor enquired whether the jar was full. The students responded with a unanimous ‘yes.’

The professor then produced two cups of coffee from under the table and poured the entire contents into the jar, effectively filling the empty spaces between the grains of sand.

The students laughed.

‘Now,’ said the professor, as the laughter subsided, ‘I want you to imagine that this jar represents your life.  The golf balls are the important things – God, family, children, health, friends, passions  – the things that if everything else was lost and only these remained, your life would still be full.

The pebbles are the other things that matter, like your job, your house, your car.

The sand is everything else – the small stuff, the details.

‘If you put the sand into the jar first,’ he continued, ‘there’s no room for the pebbles or the golf balls. And so it is with life. If you spend all your time and energy on the small stuff, you’ll never have room for the things that matter.’
So pay attention to the things that are critical to your happiness. Play with your children. Look after your health. Take your partner out to dinner. You’ll still find time to unclog the autumn leaves from the guttering. Take care of the golf balls first – the things that really matter. Set your priorities. The rest is just sand.’

One of the students raised her hand and enquired what the coffee represented.

The professor smiled. ‘I’m glad you asked,’ he said. ‘It just goes to show you that no matter how full your life may seem, there’s always room for a couple of cups of coffee with a friend.

When things in your life seem almost too much to handle, when 24 hours in a day are not enough,
never forget the mayonnaise jar and 2 cups of coffee.

That’s it for now. Thanks for reading. As ever, your comments and ideas are very welcome.

And always to a higher response!

Norman

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