I was trying to explain to a client the various aspects of email deliverability, IP warming, reputation etc. We ended up discussing the analogy of moving to a new neighborhood.
Today, you are really popular. Your kids get invited to all the parties and you play tennis and know everyone at the club. Things couldn't be better - you are welcomed and accepted. Then you move and everything changes. No one knows who you are, and you have to start all over again making friends and reintroducing yourself to the community, even though as a family you haven't changed at all.
As it relates to email, when you move your domain from one carrier to another, you have to 'start over' and work on your relationship all over again and it takes time. There are things you can do like move over your spf records, but the fact remains is that you have to reearn your reputation and build trust again. Over time, you will (hopefully) be just as popular in your new neighborhood as in the old one.
Friday, February 27, 2009
Tuesday, February 24, 2009
An Interview with Cathy Johnson
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An Interview with Debbie Qaqish
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Monday, February 23, 2009
An Interview with Neal Bush
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Friday, February 20, 2009
Web 2.0 Selling...It's Here, Now!
This blog is inspired by reflection on what has changed in selling - the answer is EVERYTHING. My background includes being a VP of Sales for many years, working for one of the world's most renowned sales training companies and now working in the lead generation space. This mix has given me a forward thinking perspective on what is Web 2.0 Selling and here it is.
First, the Buying Process. By now, you've heard everybody and their brother talk about this yet FEW companies have a documented Buying Process - how their customers buy, how they go through their decision making cycle, who is involved, what kind of information are they looking for and when. But, boy can they tell you about how they Sell! How customers buy is THE game changer for sales. No longer do they need to pull in a rep to get education - they get it online and actually use information gleaned from online to go deep into their buying cycle and YOUR sales cycle.
So, what has happened? MARKETING, not sales, is now using powerful "lead management" systems that help them look at, track and automatically respond to online behavior. They get a lead qualified, pass it to sales who now has a lead to follow up on - IN THE TRADITIONAL WAY. Most sales groups have no further insight into online behavior! Did I miss something here? Why is this insight only in the hands of marketing. As a sales person, I would want to have access to ALL information around what an opportunity is thinking, doing to help me shape better pursuit decisions.
I predict this will change dramatically in 2009.
1. As marketing gets more educated and comfortable with these tools and begin to work more with sales in bringing this capability into the SALES process, we will wind up with a group of sales people who will find they cannot live without this invaluable digital behavior.
2. The lead management companies are coming to market with additional solutions that are just for sales people to use as they pursue opportunities
3. This entire market is maturing rapidly
It is going to be a lot of fun to introduce digital insight and behavior into the sales process and see how it all changes in 2009. And, at the end of the day, this is a response to how our prospects and customers have changed.
How do you think sales will change in 2009 with these new tools and behaviors?
First, the Buying Process. By now, you've heard everybody and their brother talk about this yet FEW companies have a documented Buying Process - how their customers buy, how they go through their decision making cycle, who is involved, what kind of information are they looking for and when. But, boy can they tell you about how they Sell! How customers buy is THE game changer for sales. No longer do they need to pull in a rep to get education - they get it online and actually use information gleaned from online to go deep into their buying cycle and YOUR sales cycle.
So, what has happened? MARKETING, not sales, is now using powerful "lead management" systems that help them look at, track and automatically respond to online behavior. They get a lead qualified, pass it to sales who now has a lead to follow up on - IN THE TRADITIONAL WAY. Most sales groups have no further insight into online behavior! Did I miss something here? Why is this insight only in the hands of marketing. As a sales person, I would want to have access to ALL information around what an opportunity is thinking, doing to help me shape better pursuit decisions.
I predict this will change dramatically in 2009.
1. As marketing gets more educated and comfortable with these tools and begin to work more with sales in bringing this capability into the SALES process, we will wind up with a group of sales people who will find they cannot live without this invaluable digital behavior.
2. The lead management companies are coming to market with additional solutions that are just for sales people to use as they pursue opportunities
3. This entire market is maturing rapidly
It is going to be a lot of fun to introduce digital insight and behavior into the sales process and see how it all changes in 2009. And, at the end of the day, this is a response to how our prospects and customers have changed.
How do you think sales will change in 2009 with these new tools and behaviors?
Thursday, February 19, 2009
"The Year of the Lead"
It seems like demand generation has exploded onto the marketing scene in 2009. Call it lead generation, lead management or demand generation, the appetite for leads has grown exponentially between this year and last. The business is coming from very focused and motivated marketing teams who understand this is "The Year of the Lead." The pressure from their companies to produce revenue in this type of atmosphere has opened up exploration of new ways to impact and create revenue. The spotlight is now squarely on demand generation solutions.
You see this in several ways:
1. The marketing automation companies and consulting groups are seeing rapid growth in this environment
2. Even in companies where marketing budget and/or teams have been cut, the focus on lead generation continues and we see many companies who are now "outsourcing" their lead generation function. A recent study from DemandGen Report showed that the budgets for lead generation are holding steady in 2009 (after big increases in 2008) and in some cases are increasing.
3. Participation of marketers in professional events focused on demand generation is growing and the fact that we now have events focused in this area is growing
Along with that appetite has also come a much broader knowledge of the exciting marketing category. I had a conversation yesterday with a marketer just beginning to look at lead management systems and how to improve leads in his company. He was WELL educated. He had spoken at length with a peer in another company and he had great ideas for what he wanted from a demand generation program. This is strikingly different from even a year ago. At that time a typical conversation would have been me doing ALL the educating.
The net? If your CEO or VP has asked you for more leads, better quality leads or ways that marketing can impact revenue...they are serious. It is "The Year of the Lead."
Tell me your opinion! What are you seeing?
You see this in several ways:
1. The marketing automation companies and consulting groups are seeing rapid growth in this environment
2. Even in companies where marketing budget and/or teams have been cut, the focus on lead generation continues and we see many companies who are now "outsourcing" their lead generation function. A recent study from DemandGen Report showed that the budgets for lead generation are holding steady in 2009 (after big increases in 2008) and in some cases are increasing.
3. Participation of marketers in professional events focused on demand generation is growing and the fact that we now have events focused in this area is growing
Along with that appetite has also come a much broader knowledge of the exciting marketing category. I had a conversation yesterday with a marketer just beginning to look at lead management systems and how to improve leads in his company. He was WELL educated. He had spoken at length with a peer in another company and he had great ideas for what he wanted from a demand generation program. This is strikingly different from even a year ago. At that time a typical conversation would have been me doing ALL the educating.
The net? If your CEO or VP has asked you for more leads, better quality leads or ways that marketing can impact revenue...they are serious. It is "The Year of the Lead."
Tell me your opinion! What are you seeing?
Thursday, February 12, 2009
10 Best Practices for Sales & Marketing Alignment
This week I was working with a new client and we were conducting the lead management kick-off meeting. This client had just purchased a lead management system and was preparing to soar into the world of Web 2.0 marketing. In attendance were the marketing staff and a significant number of sales people. The ratio of sales to marketing in this meeting was 3:1.
The purpose of the kick-off was to:
- Begin building a collaborative lead management relationship between sales and marketing
- Begin building a jointly constructed lead management process
- Introduce the team to the capabilities and possibilities of their chosen lead management system
- Build a set of Use Cases (highly customized lead management scenarios for the company with priority)
The entire team fully participated, shared and respected each other’s opinions and ideas during the session. The result of the day was a sales and marketing team that was fully charged and excited about Web 2.0 lead management in their company.
I share this story as a way to set up how every company needs to better align sales and marketing around ALL lead generation efforts. In a study we conducted last summer, we asked leading marketers what one piece of advice they would give to a new lead generation marketer – the answer was a loud and resounding – “Get aligned with sales.” We see this as such a critical success factor that in our newly published LASER Approach, we outline beginning the lead management dialog with sales even before your company invests in a lead management system
The case above is finally beginning to become the norm yet I still see companies in which marketing does not or can’t engage with sales in building and improving lead management. Here are a few ways you can improve your own alignment with sales and your lead generation efforts. These are not rocket science, but they are Best Practices that will ensure you lead generation success. What have you seen that works?
Work with sales to:
- Build a language of leads
This is the most BASIC step yet EVERY company we work with has an issue of not using a common language of leads - Build a common lead management process
When is a lead handed over, how is it handed over, what is the responsibility of sales when it is handed over, how does sales hand it back to marketing if not yet sales ready? - Create a lead scoring program
You cannot create a lead scoring program without sales. Time and time again, when we facilitate a lead scoring exercise with sales and marketing, marketing is amazed at what they learn - Build Sales Champions for the lead management program
Identify and work with a few sales people to ensure they have high quality leads and access to the prospect digital behavior so they can make better pursuit decisions. They will never go back to selling with this and it will win over the rest of the sales team. - Build a priority of campaigns
Nobody knows what is hotter in the market than a quota carrying rep. Ask them what kind of program or message will produce “Hot Leads.” - Create a regular communication cycle
This includes the campaign calendar which gives them time to order their priorities to follow up right after a campaign. It also includes communicating on how programs are doing and the impact marketing qualified leads are making on the funnel and the revenue picture for the company - Create a feedback loop
You will need to get feedback on the quality of the leads so you can make adjustments for future programs - Service Level Agreements Marketing is working hard to produce leads that fit the requirements of sales. Sales should have specific duties and responsibilities when it comes to lead follow up and disposition
- Guiding Principles
As marketing spends more and more time in the lead management part of their business, their role changes and you need to re-set expectations. Creating 5 – 7 Guiding Principles will help everyone understand the new role of marketing and reduce potential friction. - Finally, if you don’t know how sales works in your company, learn!
What have you seen that works?
Wednesday, February 11, 2009
Fail Fast and Fail Forward!
"Fail fast and fail forward!"
This is advice I recently heard from a veteran sales & marketing professional when asked what advice would he give to the fledgling demand generation marketer. While this is not something you expect to hear, it makes perfect sense given the unknown territory the demand generation marketer is responsible for. The statement sums up an approach which uses an hypothesis for all elements of an untested demand generation strategy, test it, analyze it, if it fails, move on to the next option.
However, what I see every day are marketers who believe they need to get it right the first time! So let's debunk the idea that is has to be perfect every time. The use of a hypothesis, testing and improving through cycles is not new in a business setting. Entire industries such as manufacturing and software development were built on this concept. To help you ratchet up your level of professionalism as you work in your organization to improve demand generation, let’s borrow a model that is known and accepted around the globe in every industry – the Deming Cycle.
Developed by Edward Deming in the 1930’s to improve the manufacturing process (and demand generation IS a process), the idea is that perfect quality was not possible in the first iteration of a manufacturing process. Deming outlined a simple, yet highly effective 4 step process that tests and builds in quality over numerous cycles. It’s called PDCA or Plan-Do-Check-Act (also known as the Deming Cycle, Shewhart Cycle, Deming Wheel, or Plan-Do-Study-Act.)
PLAN
Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with the specifications.
DO
Implement the processes.
CHECK
Monitor and evaluate the processes and results against objectives and Specifications and report the outcome.
ACT
Apply actions to the outcome for necessary improvement. This means reviewing all steps (Plan, Do, Check, Act) and modifying the process to improve it before its next implementation.
Without using this specific language, the most successful marketers in demand generation use this kind of process. They take the approach of planning the best they can given what they know today and given the data and systems they have at hand. They are not afraid to approach this as a series of experiments. They begin with a hypothesis, run the experiment, see what happens and adjust the next cycle as needed.
Here is a recent example of Plan-Do-Check-Act for Demand Generation. Last week we launched a "test" campaign for one of our customers. We tested two different elements: the subject line and text versus graphics in the body of the email. We had 4 different emails that we tested. As usual, the CLEAR winner with a 45% click-through to form completion ratio, was not the one we expected! We were convinced going into the test that this would not be the winner. In fact, the one we liked had horrible performance. So, later this week our client will now confidently launch the broad campaign knowing he has chosen the best option and should expect a very good result.
So as you look at your demand generation efforts, don't be afraid to test, test, test! It will make you a more successful marketer.
This is advice I recently heard from a veteran sales & marketing professional when asked what advice would he give to the fledgling demand generation marketer. While this is not something you expect to hear, it makes perfect sense given the unknown territory the demand generation marketer is responsible for. The statement sums up an approach which uses an hypothesis for all elements of an untested demand generation strategy, test it, analyze it, if it fails, move on to the next option.
However, what I see every day are marketers who believe they need to get it right the first time! So let's debunk the idea that is has to be perfect every time. The use of a hypothesis, testing and improving through cycles is not new in a business setting. Entire industries such as manufacturing and software development were built on this concept. To help you ratchet up your level of professionalism as you work in your organization to improve demand generation, let’s borrow a model that is known and accepted around the globe in every industry – the Deming Cycle.
Developed by Edward Deming in the 1930’s to improve the manufacturing process (and demand generation IS a process), the idea is that perfect quality was not possible in the first iteration of a manufacturing process. Deming outlined a simple, yet highly effective 4 step process that tests and builds in quality over numerous cycles. It’s called PDCA or Plan-Do-Check-Act (also known as the Deming Cycle, Shewhart Cycle, Deming Wheel, or Plan-Do-Study-Act.)
PLAN
Establish the objectives and processes necessary to deliver results in accordance with the specifications.
DO
Implement the processes.
CHECK
Monitor and evaluate the processes and results against objectives and Specifications and report the outcome.
ACT
Apply actions to the outcome for necessary improvement. This means reviewing all steps (Plan, Do, Check, Act) and modifying the process to improve it before its next implementation.
Without using this specific language, the most successful marketers in demand generation use this kind of process. They take the approach of planning the best they can given what they know today and given the data and systems they have at hand. They are not afraid to approach this as a series of experiments. They begin with a hypothesis, run the experiment, see what happens and adjust the next cycle as needed.
Here is a recent example of Plan-Do-Check-Act for Demand Generation. Last week we launched a "test" campaign for one of our customers. We tested two different elements: the subject line and text versus graphics in the body of the email. We had 4 different emails that we tested. As usual, the CLEAR winner with a 45% click-through to form completion ratio, was not the one we expected! We were convinced going into the test that this would not be the winner. In fact, the one we liked had horrible performance. So, later this week our client will now confidently launch the broad campaign knowing he has chosen the best option and should expect a very good result.
So as you look at your demand generation efforts, don't be afraid to test, test, test! It will make you a more successful marketer.
Monday, February 9, 2009
Social Media Begins with The Buying Process
This past week-end I attended SoCon ‘09, a social media conference held here in Atlanta. We had over 300 attendees and we covered a lot of topics. I facilitated one of the break-out sessions - "Using Social Media to generate leads for a B2B company - and it was well attended with about 40 participants. I had, of course, spent some time prepping for the break-out session, but based on everything I had earlier that day, I scrapped my approach (and my PPT) and decided to really get back to basics (and used a white board.) It struck me as I was listening to all the dialog (while I was twittering my impressions of the conference) that this crowd was very focused on the "pretty-shiny widgets" of social media and this crowd was also very passionate about social media and what could be done with it. I heard people say things like "I've been trying to get my company to blog for 3 years now!" or "If my company would just listen to me about social media."
While your company does need to listen, I think the more fundamental approach to social media for a B2B company is - Where are your customers? Do they go on-line and if they do, where do they go and why?
So to answer this question, in our break-out group, we:
1. Created a basic Customer Buying Process
2. Generated a list of social media tools
3. Identified the boulders - stuff we couldn't do anything about
4. Used 4 different buying scenarios - A transactions buying cycle with a buyer who has some knowledge and use of social media, a transactions buying cycle with a buyer who is a big user of social media, a complex buying cycle with a buyer who has some knowledge of social media and a complex buying cycle with a buyer who is a big user of social media.
I gave the 4 teams 30 minutes to talk through their scenarios and to identify which social media tactics and strategies they would use and why. The result? The RIGHT kind of conversation around if and how you need a social media strategy.
Ah-ha"s included:
- Wow, never thought about a buy cycle (Well think about it now! The power is now in the hands of the buyer!)
- Wow, my brain is bleeding (Yes! Thinking about how and why your prospects act on-line and with what tools is brain bleeding work but necessary.)
- We can use a lot of the same tools all along the buy cycle, we just will use them a bit differently - We can see that LISTENING is key in the early days of social media for lead generation
Lesson learned is that technology is still just technology. This stuff is beyond cool and we all need to be playing with it, learning it, and thinking about it. However, it is the smart application of that technology to drive a business result that creates new relationships and new business. With that said, we are still early days in understanding social media and the impact it will have on all of us. So for many, setting up social media as an experiment and as a way to listen is Step 1. Some people are getting "leads" through social media, but not in an automated fashion. We'll have to see about Step 2 in which we will find a way to "monetize" the chatter through automation.
While your company does need to listen, I think the more fundamental approach to social media for a B2B company is - Where are your customers? Do they go on-line and if they do, where do they go and why?
So to answer this question, in our break-out group, we:
1. Created a basic Customer Buying Process
2. Generated a list of social media tools
3. Identified the boulders - stuff we couldn't do anything about
4. Used 4 different buying scenarios - A transactions buying cycle with a buyer who has some knowledge and use of social media, a transactions buying cycle with a buyer who is a big user of social media, a complex buying cycle with a buyer who has some knowledge of social media and a complex buying cycle with a buyer who is a big user of social media.
I gave the 4 teams 30 minutes to talk through their scenarios and to identify which social media tactics and strategies they would use and why. The result? The RIGHT kind of conversation around if and how you need a social media strategy.
Ah-ha"s included:
- Wow, never thought about a buy cycle (Well think about it now! The power is now in the hands of the buyer!)
- Wow, my brain is bleeding (Yes! Thinking about how and why your prospects act on-line and with what tools is brain bleeding work but necessary.)
- We can use a lot of the same tools all along the buy cycle, we just will use them a bit differently - We can see that LISTENING is key in the early days of social media for lead generation
Lesson learned is that technology is still just technology. This stuff is beyond cool and we all need to be playing with it, learning it, and thinking about it. However, it is the smart application of that technology to drive a business result that creates new relationships and new business. With that said, we are still early days in understanding social media and the impact it will have on all of us. So for many, setting up social media as an experiment and as a way to listen is Step 1. Some people are getting "leads" through social media, but not in an automated fashion. We'll have to see about Step 2 in which we will find a way to "monetize" the chatter through automation.
Friday, February 6, 2009
Social Media and Lead Generation
This weekend I am attending and chairing a break-out session at SoCon 09 - a social media conference being held here in Atlanta. I am very excited to be going and I am most looking forward to talking to my peers about what they are doing with social media. Social media is all the buzz right now and I frequently have clients asking me - "How should I be using social media?" In the B2B world of lead generation (my world) this is still the trillion dollar question. My first response to this question is "What are your prospects doing on-line, where are they?" I recently had this conversation with a very conservative, 100 year old printing company in the mid-west. When we began to explore who their buyers and buying influencers were, we hit upon a particular profile of a "packaging engineer" and discovered that these guys (gals) live on the web. So, we are creating a social media strategy - very low key - something like Bob's Blog - that will create an interaction among this group sponsored by the client. And, the important thing about this strategy will be to LISTEN to what these engineers have to say! It is an experiment and we do not have a set of lead generation metrics tied to it. We are going to play and see what happens.
This brings up my second comment about social media. For all of us of a more "mature" age, if you really want to understand social media - look at your kids. We now have an entire generation of kids who have grown up in the digital age and it is simply a part of their DNA. I am an "informal" mentor in the GA Tech MBA program and from time to time, they will ask me to talk to one of their students about the big bad world of Web 2.0 marketing. I met with one of these students last November and as a 22 year old, she had done an internship for a major insurance company, suggested a social media strategy for them, they adopted it and offered her a job! When I asked her how this happened, she replied "It was just obvious!"
As this group of kids become the managers and leaders, social media will zoom! I am taking my 22 year old with me to SoCon and she will probably know more than me! Maybe she should run the break-out session!
Finally, I am working on my own learning and experiences with social media. I personally blog, facebook, linkedin and twitter and am a proponent of all things Web 2.0, find myself still fully in the exploration stages. I am currently working on "creating a work flow" for how I interact with all of my social media. Here is what I do: - When I fire up my laptop early in the AM (yes, I am an early bird) I: - check my blog - and take the time to respond or write one (love, love, love to blog) - set up my IM - I am connected to my entire team all day as we work on client projects - set up TWIRL - a little app that helps me twitter (this is on all day). I use Twitter all day for my brainstoming comments and quite frankly for social media ideas - check my LinkedIn Groups (I use this a lot for finding people, creating new relationships and communicating with professional groups) - check my Facebook (I use this a lot for current relationships) I will frequently re-visit many of these late in the day as well.
In closing, we live in a very exciting time to be a marketer. It's a time to explore new ideas and new technologies so education is key. Keep communicating on line, going to conferences and seeing what people are actually doing. I look forward to a great dialog on this post!!
This brings up my second comment about social media. For all of us of a more "mature" age, if you really want to understand social media - look at your kids. We now have an entire generation of kids who have grown up in the digital age and it is simply a part of their DNA. I am an "informal" mentor in the GA Tech MBA program and from time to time, they will ask me to talk to one of their students about the big bad world of Web 2.0 marketing. I met with one of these students last November and as a 22 year old, she had done an internship for a major insurance company, suggested a social media strategy for them, they adopted it and offered her a job! When I asked her how this happened, she replied "It was just obvious!"
As this group of kids become the managers and leaders, social media will zoom! I am taking my 22 year old with me to SoCon and she will probably know more than me! Maybe she should run the break-out session!
Finally, I am working on my own learning and experiences with social media. I personally blog, facebook, linkedin and twitter and am a proponent of all things Web 2.0, find myself still fully in the exploration stages. I am currently working on "creating a work flow" for how I interact with all of my social media. Here is what I do: - When I fire up my laptop early in the AM (yes, I am an early bird) I: - check my blog - and take the time to respond or write one (love, love, love to blog) - set up my IM - I am connected to my entire team all day as we work on client projects - set up TWIRL - a little app that helps me twitter (this is on all day). I use Twitter all day for my brainstoming comments and quite frankly for social media ideas - check my LinkedIn Groups (I use this a lot for finding people, creating new relationships and communicating with professional groups) - check my Facebook (I use this a lot for current relationships) I will frequently re-visit many of these late in the day as well.
In closing, we live in a very exciting time to be a marketer. It's a time to explore new ideas and new technologies so education is key. Keep communicating on line, going to conferences and seeing what people are actually doing. I look forward to a great dialog on this post!!
5 Ways to Pay for Demand Generation
There are many marketers that value the role lead and demand generation play in their organization, but often times, coming up with budget to pay for the platform is often an issue. Value in an organization is placed on traditional things like PR, Direct Mail, Tradeshows, etc. The trouble is, these channels are difficult to truly measure in terms of the revenue impact they have.
The average Marketing Automation System runs about $60,000 per year. Companies can run these platforms internally and typically allocate 1/2 to 3 FTE to use the technology as part of their lead generation efforts. An average marketing technologist will make about $75,000 loaded. Other companies choose to outsource their demand generation efforts, and these fees can range from $5,000 to $25,000+ per month depending upon the services and scope required. So let's say, internal will run approximately $135,000 per year and external will run approximately $120,000 per year. Where do you get this money, and what kind of return should you expect?
1. Reallocate your PR budget. The average B2B company is spending $10,000 per month on retainer, and usually gets 1-2 speaking engagements, a by-line article, and a press release. Shift 50% of that and you just about have the software paid for. In return, you will be able to run unlimited outbound and nurturing campaigns, score and profile your leads, integrate with your CRM, and see a 3X increase on average in lead production. Assuming you have a 30 to 1 lead to close ratio at an average sale of $50,000, and you sell 1 new person per month, marketing automation will get you an additional $1,200,000 per year against the same spend you have now. That's a 10 to 1 return on investment for no additional budget.
2. Do one less tradeshow. The average tradeshow costs $30,000, and you are lucky if you get 2-3 good leads. You will have to run 3-4 tradeshows to get one customer, costing you $120,000 to gain $50,000. Hardly a worthwhile investment. $30,000 is 1/2 a year of a license. Using the math in step one, you will have produced $600,000 in the first 6 months with additional revenue, giving you more than enough to pay for the rest of the year and beyond.
3. Eliminate one direct mail campaign. Assuming you send out 10,000 pieces at a total cost of $1.50/piece, including design, print and postage, then you can save $15,000 and pay for 3 months of marketing automation. That 3 months will net you $150,000 and pay for the license for 2 years.
4. Reduce Google Adwords Spending. The average B2B company is spending at least $30,000 per month on pay per click. Trimming just $5,000 per month will pay for the license, generate an additional $1,200,000 in sales and allow you to double your Google Adwords Budget next year.
5. Reduce your Agency spending. A typical Agency gets at least $10,000 per month on retainer for creative services, but typically is not helping you with demand generation. Refocus that money on marketing automation. These platforms will repurpose existing content, drive additional traffic and convert more leads to sales. Shift your content strategy from agency created to user generated. This is much more cost effective and significantly more valuable in conversion.
There are probably a number of ways you can shift your budget around, but these 5 will be more than enough to get you started.
The average Marketing Automation System runs about $60,000 per year. Companies can run these platforms internally and typically allocate 1/2 to 3 FTE to use the technology as part of their lead generation efforts. An average marketing technologist will make about $75,000 loaded. Other companies choose to outsource their demand generation efforts, and these fees can range from $5,000 to $25,000+ per month depending upon the services and scope required. So let's say, internal will run approximately $135,000 per year and external will run approximately $120,000 per year. Where do you get this money, and what kind of return should you expect?
1. Reallocate your PR budget. The average B2B company is spending $10,000 per month on retainer, and usually gets 1-2 speaking engagements, a by-line article, and a press release. Shift 50% of that and you just about have the software paid for. In return, you will be able to run unlimited outbound and nurturing campaigns, score and profile your leads, integrate with your CRM, and see a 3X increase on average in lead production. Assuming you have a 30 to 1 lead to close ratio at an average sale of $50,000, and you sell 1 new person per month, marketing automation will get you an additional $1,200,000 per year against the same spend you have now. That's a 10 to 1 return on investment for no additional budget.
2. Do one less tradeshow. The average tradeshow costs $30,000, and you are lucky if you get 2-3 good leads. You will have to run 3-4 tradeshows to get one customer, costing you $120,000 to gain $50,000. Hardly a worthwhile investment. $30,000 is 1/2 a year of a license. Using the math in step one, you will have produced $600,000 in the first 6 months with additional revenue, giving you more than enough to pay for the rest of the year and beyond.
3. Eliminate one direct mail campaign. Assuming you send out 10,000 pieces at a total cost of $1.50/piece, including design, print and postage, then you can save $15,000 and pay for 3 months of marketing automation. That 3 months will net you $150,000 and pay for the license for 2 years.
4. Reduce Google Adwords Spending. The average B2B company is spending at least $30,000 per month on pay per click. Trimming just $5,000 per month will pay for the license, generate an additional $1,200,000 in sales and allow you to double your Google Adwords Budget next year.
5. Reduce your Agency spending. A typical Agency gets at least $10,000 per month on retainer for creative services, but typically is not helping you with demand generation. Refocus that money on marketing automation. These platforms will repurpose existing content, drive additional traffic and convert more leads to sales. Shift your content strategy from agency created to user generated. This is much more cost effective and significantly more valuable in conversion.
There are probably a number of ways you can shift your budget around, but these 5 will be more than enough to get you started.
Wednesday, February 4, 2009
When good technology goes bad!
As marketers, we've all been there. We've planned for our webinar, spent countless hours making sure our content was beneficial to the participants, worked on our campaigns to invite people and then 30 minute before hand, tested everything. Then the curtain goes up and what was just tested 30 minutes ago...freezes up! What do you do? How do you handle this?
The answer is with honesty and transparency. This happened to me yesterday and as the speaker AND a veteran of many, many webinars, I can tell you it was highly embarrassing. You don't want to waste people's time while you are "trying to get up and running" and you certainly don't want to give people the idea that your "Web 2.0 skills are sub-par". Yet, this is what can and did happen.
My apology email is going out this morning. I don't want to make this conversation about "what system to use" ...I've heard stories of all of them "freezing up" at one time or another. I want to make this about just being honest and saying...thank you to the participants who did hang in until the end and for the ones who dropped off early, I can't blame you.
We will continue to run webinars (with a different provider) and I hope that all of you will return for our next one. We have fabulous content, insight and experience to share with the industry and I hope to see you all there!
Keep your fingers crossed, lightening doesn't strike the same place twice, does it?
The answer is with honesty and transparency. This happened to me yesterday and as the speaker AND a veteran of many, many webinars, I can tell you it was highly embarrassing. You don't want to waste people's time while you are "trying to get up and running" and you certainly don't want to give people the idea that your "Web 2.0 skills are sub-par". Yet, this is what can and did happen.
My apology email is going out this morning. I don't want to make this conversation about "what system to use" ...I've heard stories of all of them "freezing up" at one time or another. I want to make this about just being honest and saying...thank you to the participants who did hang in until the end and for the ones who dropped off early, I can't blame you.
We will continue to run webinars (with a different provider) and I hope that all of you will return for our next one. We have fabulous content, insight and experience to share with the industry and I hope to see you all there!
Keep your fingers crossed, lightening doesn't strike the same place twice, does it?
Tuesday, February 3, 2009
The Perfect Storm..ooops, Opportunity!
In my opinion, 2009 is the year I call "The Perfect Opportunity" for marketers. I realize budgets are being cut and people are being laid off but between all of this the focus on lead generation is growing, not shrinking. For those marketers responsible for lead generation in their companies, 2009 represents a monumental year in career potential.
Just as in a Perfect Storm in which a unique set of conditions come together to create a gargantuan event, in 2009 we have a set of conditions that I believe creates the Perfect Opportunity. What are they?
1. Your company is now ASKING you for help! They are asking you to work with them to produce more leads with a focus on quality because this means more revenue. Where else will they get it from in this tough 2009?
2. The technology is here, now, and it works! There is a plethora of marketing automation/lead management solutions on the market. And, unlike the early days of CRM, this stuff works! Your job is to select the right solution for your needs!
3. Buyer behavior is online! Your prospects and clients are getting all of their information online and this is where you need to be...creating digital dialogs and relationships. This is actually the prime condition to the Perfect Opportunity.
The role of marketing has the chance to really grow and change in 2009. You need to be ready to not just accept this role, but lead your company in the right direction.
Just as in a Perfect Storm in which a unique set of conditions come together to create a gargantuan event, in 2009 we have a set of conditions that I believe creates the Perfect Opportunity. What are they?
1. Your company is now ASKING you for help! They are asking you to work with them to produce more leads with a focus on quality because this means more revenue. Where else will they get it from in this tough 2009?
2. The technology is here, now, and it works! There is a plethora of marketing automation/lead management solutions on the market. And, unlike the early days of CRM, this stuff works! Your job is to select the right solution for your needs!
3. Buyer behavior is online! Your prospects and clients are getting all of their information online and this is where you need to be...creating digital dialogs and relationships. This is actually the prime condition to the Perfect Opportunity.
The role of marketing has the chance to really grow and change in 2009. You need to be ready to not just accept this role, but lead your company in the right direction.
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