Once we’d all finished popping the champagne (ok, actually tea as it was only 9.30am) after reaching this fulfilling benchmark, I thought, well, what next?

Specifically what next for email? My inbox is full of emails from publications, potential suppliers etc, ranging from “email doesn’t work anymore” to “email is the way forward” and everything in between.

My personal, very humble opinion, is that email still works, just as it always has done, in the sense that GOOD email marketing works, POOR email marketing DOESN’T.

Ok, rant over…almost.

We’ve probably all seen the email, blogs and websites that have all hints and tips about what works, and we discuss them earnestly over networking drinks and in planning sessions. So we all know it, but do we all do it?

No, is the simple answer. Which got me wondering, well why don’t we then? Nobody sets out to do a bad email.

I have a theory (based on the aforementioned 200 email campaigns) that it boils down to 3 reasons:

1. Decision by committee - too many cooks spoil an email and dilute the message and original intent with multiple minor modifications that are unnecessary at best, and downright damaging at worst. We need to be stronger, as marketers, to stand up for our beliefs as to what’s right and what’s effective!

2. Succumbing to the number tempation – well yes, we’ve verticalised our message and approach, and we know who will respond, but how will it hurt if we just add another 5,000 contacts to the list of recipients? It will make the sales guys happy….enough said here I think

3. Thinking email is cheap – yes, the actual physical cost of an email campaign is cost effective, but why waste that money by using poorly qualified data for example? Why is it ok not to test email campaigns as you would other marketing channels? Always integrate with other channels! Be clever about the ROI, don’t just blindly follow the opens and clicks list.

I’m sure you all know the above (from painful experience I’m sure), perhaps what we need are lessons in assertiveness rather than email marketing. Yes, I’m being facetious – actually it brings me round to my favourite subject – getting best practice B2B Marketing on the executive agenda.

Until marketers are targeted and SUPPORTED on criteria that results in good quality b2b marketing, then it’s not really going to change. What do I mean? Well for starters:

1. Accept that good marketing takes time to prepare, so approve budget EARLY, accept that time to leads reflects the prep and relationship build time appropriate for your market

2. Create linked objectives between sales and marketing – make it clear where the line is, and what the expectations are – if you have a 12 month sales cycle and don’t approve budgets until March – guess what, no leads until Q3!

3. Create objectives NOT JUST BASED ON LEAD NUMBERS. Yes, leads and sales pipeline is important. But in B2B where relationships have to be nurtured, relationships, reputation and influence are equally as important. Would Proctor and Gamble stop doing television advertising because people don’t rush out to buy the minute the advert is on?

My mission is continuing – I am attending a small dinner on the 27th September with senior marketers from some of the largest global companies, where I am going to throw down the gauntlet – watch this space

If you want to support my B2B Mission, please join our B2B marketing symposium LinkedIn group!

thanks all!

B2B Marketing · campaigns · email · email marketing · marketing ROI

Sorry for the “blog gap” – have been sunning myself on holiday…more about that another time.

Have just been reading reviews of Richard Branson’s new book,  Reaching for the Skies. Have also read his blog entry about the same. I like Richard Branson – can’t help it. Listened to the audio version of his autobiography over a 2 month period recently and still listen to the odd snippet when I need motivation – helps when you run your own business, to understand that the stress and the problems are the same!

What I also like about RB (if I may call him that, I’m sure he won’t mind) is his frank admission that he couldn’t have done what he did without help. Which is so true, and it’s also true that it’s quite rare to hear people in similar positions, genuinely admit it.

It’s a bit like that being an agency (or a consultancy I would imagine), you become that person(s) that people couldn’t do without, and sometimes you get the acknowledgement and sometimes you don’t. To be honest, the best relationships and projects come from a partnership approach, where client and agency lines are blurred in the sense that everyone pitches in, and everyone takes responsibility and ownership where needed.

The hardest projects are where the lines are drawn firmly between client and agency. You see it less and less (thank goodness) but it’s still there sometimes – dictorial communication, finger pointing and blame when things go wrong (as they inevitably will when one party feels bullied, as communication is impacted)

What clients can do:

- Submit clear briefs with as much detail as you can provide, never make ANY assumptions about what your agency understands you want

- Respond positively when there are misunderstandings – everyone makes mistakes, and sometimes misunderstandings are down to miscommunication and assumptions on either side

- be clear about how you will measure success, especially if this changes as the project commences

- take a collaborative approach when goals are not met – many factors contribute to the success or failure of a project and are rarely down to one party or activity

- treat your agency as part of the team, motivate them as you would a team that you employed directly

What agencies can (and should) do:

- ask as many questions upfront, even if it feels uncomfortable, better to look daft now than when you’ve worked hard on something irrelevant

- clearly document your expectations at the beginning, especially around deliverables, success factors and contingencies

- keep a consistent project team – too many cooks etc

- provide clear and regular reporting mechanisms, and go through them in person or by phone on a regular basis with the client – who tend not to read complex GANTT’s or spreadsheets

- be a   part of the client’s team, go and see them regularly, focus on the relationship

- under promise, over deliver (see, I told you there were plenty of overused phrases here)

Partnership is a term that is overused – and it’s no longer a selling point. You have to demonstrate your commitment to a partnership approach – and that’s where I think RB is so successful. When you read his books, he doesn’t come across as precious about his role – he just wants to get the job done, and put the right people with the right skills to use in the right places. He doesn’t always get it right – and that’s what life is about.

agency · B2B Marketing · client · dos and don'ts · richard branson · sales · top tips

Now, a question. What’s the purpose of email?

Answer – communication.

What’s the least effective kind of communication for relationship building? One way communication.

Ok, so that was two questions, my main question is why oh why oh why oh why do companies STILL insist on sending automated emails that you can’t reply to??? (I don’t advocate gratuitous punctuation normally but this needed it)

I downloaded a paper today from a website, and asked for it to be emailed to me. And it duly was delivered – great.

BUT the email it was sent from was a “noreply@” email address. What makes this offence doubly frustrating is that, while I downloaded the content from a popular marketing publication site, the email (and therefore the content) was from a marketing agency.

So, really, marketing ought to know better – as it’s customer service and engagement rule 1: give the customer as many opportunities to engage with you as possible – and make it easy.

With today’s technology it is very easy to include a proper email address in automated communication, which someone could reply to – say if they had a problem downloading the content, or if there’d been no attachment as promised. Or they may have been so riveted by the content that they wanted to get in touch. You can route it to a mailbox, restrict out of office bouncebacks and apply rules so that it’s dealt with appropriately.

It really is the simple things that make the most difference – for example the automated email wasn’t personalised – but they know who I am as I had to log in to make the download.

None of it’s difficult – it’s just about attention to detail.

PS – if you’re reading this, and you have a jolly good reason for using a noreply email, I am genuinely interested in a lively debate.

B2B Marketing · communication · Digital Marketing · email · noreply · technology marketing

Finally – the light is dawning….and the blog below puts an element of it perfectly!

You’ll be delighted to know that I am continuing my mission to get B2B Marketing the kudos it deserves – hence highlighting the below blog. I am finding (and I don’t want to court too much controversy here) but in the US, they seem to focus much more on B2B as a discipline than we do here.

I have seen an uplift in organisations focused on B2B which is very heartening – but we need a defining of standards, a code of best practice – a clear path to B2B excellence so those coming into the field have a standard against which to target themselves – and to ensure that B2B is not overshadowed by it’s perceived more glamourous cousin B2C.

http://blogs.forbes.com/marketshare/2010/06/28/b2b-marketing-is-more-than-leads/

To do B2B Marketing well you need to think over and above lead generation, and in addition to the sales and marketing synergy discussed in the above blog you need to ask yourself:

1. Can you talk in the way your customers talk?

2. Does the way you market match the way your customers buy?

3. Are you talking to the right audience?

4. Are you engaging your customers in your growth strategy?

I could go on..but you’ve probably heard enough.

If you know of good B2B examples – or sites – please comment and list them here.

thanks!

Charlotte

B2B Marketing · Lead Generation · marketing strategy · Sales and Marketing Alignment

Our first B2B Marketing Symposium for corporate B2B Marketers, has officially launched! Our first event is July 15th 2010, and you can access an invite from the link below. You can hear senior marketers from Google, Salesforce.com, Sterling Commerce and the Carbon Trust discuss their experiences, best practices and case studies around B2B marketing.

If you are a client side B2B Marketer, then this event will be invaluable (although of course I may be a little biased!). the symposium is designed to provide valuable resources such as Case Studies, Best Practice and guidance on how to run effective B2B marketing programmes.

Invite copy located here….

The microsite is under construction as we speak – so watch this space!

B2B Marketing · Events · Google · Ice Blue Sky · marketers · Salesforce.com; Carbon trust · Sterling Commerce

I guess a more accurate (but less optimistic title) could have been “Integrating Sales and Marketing – is there any point and does anybody want it to happen?” – however that would have been a little defeatist (and much less catchy).

I attended a B2B Marketing Event recently, where they had a speaker presenting on that very subject (Rod Sloane) and, today received an email from B2B Marketing on using technology to bridge the gap.

All very useful, as Rod addresses the culture issue, and the latter using technology – and it’s obvious that both are needed.

However, it got me thinking – are we over intellectualising the issue? Can we not just apply some plain old psychology to the problem, and look at the motivations of both sides:

Marketing:

1. Wanting to demonstrate their value to the business
2. Needs sales to follow up on leads to gain validation
3. Needs sales to help them get closer to the customer (to validate messaging, help with case studies etc)

Sales:

1. Needs marketing to generate productive and relevant meetings for them
2. Wants marketing to take ownership of the pipeline
3. Wants their market and customer knowledge to be leveraged

I know I’m simplifying, and that there are wider, more complex motivations (and issues) but you get the drift.

Next, why is everyone talking about the need to inetegrate the two? Why do people feel it’s not happening? I would like to suggest 2 factors here:

1. Fear of failure (if we don’t work together and it fails, we can blame each other)
2. Lack of communication (what exactly is it that you do?)

IDC Advisory Group (according to Rod Sloane) said earlier this year “in 2009, half of all sales people did not meet quota, two thirds of the time, it was due to lack of sales and marketing alignment”

So, what are the clues to help you work out if sales and marketing aren’t aligned in your organisation (as if you didn’t know), Rod points out that generally large amounts of finger pointing occurs, as opposed to focusing on moving forward and addressing change.

What I ultimately really liked about Rod’s presentation is his assertion that ultimately what marketing is about is generating revenue – amen.

If you’re a regular reader (thank you by the way) you’ll know that improving the quality of B2B Marketing is a personal mission of mine, and Rod highlighted two core tenets of that process:

1. Marketers are responsible for revenue generation – and that includes embracing (maybe not literally) the sales team
2. Marketers should be compensated on their contribution to a sales deal

So, actually, (to bring me back to my point – and I do have one) the process of integrating sales and marketing has to begin with your sales and marketing strategy: combined targets, communication improvements and combined compensation – and a provision of the right tools to make it happen.

B2B Marketing · integration · Rod Sloane · sales · sales and marketing integration

Just a quick update to my post of a few weeks ago…”B2B Marketing – the forgotten discipline”…

I am really pleased to let you know that the first B2B Steering Committee meeting was held on Thursday May 6th in London for the Marketing Society (http://www.marketing-society.org.uk/)!

I have been appointed the chair for this forum, which is very exciting.

It seems that what is missing for most B2B Marketers is understanding what case studies and best practice exists to help increase knowledge and expertise. There seems to be a lot of vendor led information available, but a lack of independent, clear and concise information on how to be a brilliant B2B Marketer.

Many industry qualifications seem to focus on B2C Marketing theory and disciplines, with maybe a “chapter based” nod to B2B – completely ignoring the many complexities and difficulties in B2B.

What’s very exciting is that we have some very “big brains” involved in the Marketing Society’s forum, which means we can quickly start generating some great content – watch this space!

So, the mission continues! Now, if only I can get the CIM’s attention….

B2B Marketing · CIM · the marketing society

B2B Marketing Networking Forum Event:

Date: Thursday July 15th

Location: London

Time: 5.30pm onwards
—————————————————————-

As part of our mission to provide valuable content, best practice and case studies for the B2B Marketing Community, we are delighted to announce our first event for the B2B Marketing Forum.

The event is aimed at corporate B2B marketers. If there is interest from agency based, or freelance marketers, we will launch a separate group.

The first hour will feature case-study based best practice advice from those in the field at large technology companies.

Following that will be drinks and networking.

Full details will be released shortly, but I can hint that we have one the most well known technology companies presenting!

if you’d like to reserve a place, please do let me know by contacting me at info@icebluesky.com, otherwise, you will receive the invite shortly.

Many thanks,
Charlotte

B2B Marketing · Event · Technology

OK, so the title might be a little over dramatic, but recent events have reinforced my belief that for most marketing content/organisations/events B2B gets forgotten.

FMCG companies fare the best when it comes to marketing column (and web) inches, followed closely by retail. I suspect because a large proportion of us are exposed to these brands constantly, so they seem relevant.

However, when you’re trying to find case studies to support the latest B2B marketing proposal/idea/technology, it’s like looking for the proverbial needle in a haystack. Mind you, if you think that’s challenging, try looking for useful information on the latest trend, that is not written by a vendor with a (more than) slight bias!

So, I am on a mission – by this time next year I want there to be 100% more content focused on B2B!

Being one to put my money where my mouth is, I have started with the Marketing Society – to cut a very (very) longstory short, I started a LinkedIn discussion in their group to see if anyone cared about B2B – as previously the MS focused on B2C pretty much exclusively. This languished for about a month or so, and then suddenly garnered about 30 comments and the attention of the CEO and Marketing Director of the MS. We had a great meeting last week, and we are launching a B2B Steering Committee next month with a view to driving B2B content and evets – hurrah!

Next target – the Institute of Directors – again, pretty much all their events that help businesses with marketing, focuses on B2C, or is very generalised. Most of the people I meet at the IOD are B2B, so it struck me that I can’t be the only one frustrated with the lack of knowledge and information. So, am in touch with one of the regional leaders and we are going to investigate the appetite. I did try LinkedIn with this one too, received a couple of replies, and one person helpfully moved the discussion to the jobs section?!

We (as in Ice Blue Sky) are also launching a B2B networking group – specifically for marketers and business leaders. We will scour the country for industry experts and relevant case studies to provide as much value as possible. First event likely to be June/July time.

So, watch this space, and if you want to join the crusade, let me know!

B2B · Institute of Directors · Marketing · Marketing Society · networking

What makes an effective cross channel campaign?

Integrated lead generation – sounds good? Practical tips below to help integrate digital into your campaigns, feel free to add your own!

1. Create a URL for your campaign, or use your standard one – and make sure you include it prominently in all your collateral (Ads, Emails, etc). The more memorable the URL the better (think short and sweet) – even if it’s a masked URL that goes to your standard site – you should see hit rates increase.

2. Find a term or keyword that relates to your campaign that can be optimised on Google. Include in your outreach (i.e. Google “IceBlueSky” – try this one to see what happens) to drive traffic to your site – this will also help your Google rankings

3. Include unique URL’s in campaign content so that you can track responses from each channel

4. Use your website as more than an information source – create a “learnings” element to your website to encourage people to visit. This needs to be relevant to your campaigns but can be highly effective when done well

5. Link your different channels with a series of activities – create a natural journey between channels and activities so that target contacts come into contact with all of them. Create a story and strengthen the emotional engagement.

6. Make sure your look and feel is consistent – sounds obvious but you’d be surprised how often this is sacrificed for “looking cool and creative”! You can still create a strong and effective individual identity whilst retaining common look and feel.

7. Use channels that are appropriate – Facebook is typically NOT appropriate for B2B – LinkedIn and Twitter work well for B2B, but make sure you have a proper strategy in place – and adjust internal expectations accordingly in terms of return. There are plenty of tools around that can help you leverage these channels without risking sacrificing your brand’s reputation. Keep personal and business social media firmly segregated.

B2B Marketing · Campaign Management · Cross Channel · Digital Marketing · Ice Blue Sky · Lead Generation · Personalised URL