Tag: lead generation

Forward-Thinking B2B Marketers Partner With Influencers To Create Cross-Channel, Long-Term Campaigns

Posted on by Dan Strickland

Risk aversion is becoming a top motivator for B2B buyers. Research shows 78% of buyers are dedicating more time to researching solutions and are increasingly turning to peers and thought leaders for relevant insights. Demand Gen Report’s 2018 B2B Buyers Survey demonstrates the growing influence of third-party sources and outside opinions on the buyer journey. According to the report:

65% rely on peer recommendations and review sites;
54% use social media to research vendors and solutions; and
36% connected with thought leaders to ask for their opinion.
As buyer behaviors continue to shift towards peers and thought leaders, forward-thinking marketers from companies such as SAP, the Content Marketing Institute and Oracle are looking beyond their internal resources to leverage industry influencers to drive engagement, enhance content and build trust with buyers.
— Read on www.demandgenreport.com/features/industry-insights/forward-thinking-b2b-marketers-partner-with-influencers-to-create-cross-channel-long-term-campaigns

B2B Marketers Looking To Better Track Activity Across Buyer Stages, Channels & Campaigns

Posted on by Dan Strickland

Findings from the 2018 Marketing Measurement & Attribution Benchmark Survey show that more than half (55%) of B2B companies say their current ability to measure and analyze marketing performance “needs improvement” or worse. The inability to track activity between specific buyer stages (48%) and measure impact across channels/campaigns (47%) are the biggest challenges for marketers looking to demonstrate marketing impact.
“People used to think it was just the ‘sales’ funnel,” said Kevin Joyce, CMO and VP of Strategy Services at The Pedowitz Group, in an interview with Demand Gen Report. “But it’s not; it’s the ‘sales and marketing’ funnel. That top half of the funnel belongs to marketing. And yes, the sales team is going to source a significant amount of that funnel, but marketing is responsible for more and more of it now. Both sides have to recognize that and be accountable.”

Research from Demand Gen Report and Madison Logic shows that more than half (52%) of B2B marketers said that “extending marketing influence across the entire buyer journey” is a top ABM initiative for them. When asked what potential improvements could support a more consensus sale, respondents listed options such as:

The ability to deliver messaging aligned to opportunity stage;
Deeper intelligence on the most engaged accounts;
The ability to identify contacts with target accounts;
Deeper intelligence on account-level areas of interest; and
The ability to measure marketing impact on deal size and time to close.
“[Multi-touch attribution] is the holy grail of the CMO,” said Jon Russo, Founder and CMO of the B2B Fusion Group and Board Member of the marketing operations association MOCCA. “You’ve got to have this right to gain full-funnel visibility.”

— Read on www.demandgenreport.com/features/industry-insights/b2b-marketers-looking-to-better-track-activity-across-buyer-stages-channels-campaigns

Marketers should use lead generation to build brand awareness, nurture prospects and …

Posted on by Dan Strickland

“. . . customers, qualify leads and ultimately generate measurable revenue.” 

Dan Strickland recently downloaded Marketo’s comprehensive, 160 page guide to lead generation, covering topics ranging from content marketing and website SEO to telesales and content syndication.

Marketo’s Guide provides a “How To” for:

  • Defining a lead and understand his or her buying journey
  • Building a robust lead generation strategy through marketing automation
  • Using content marketing, social media, your website, SEO, and paid programs for lead generation
  • Building an enduring customer relationships with Middle-of-Funnel (MOFU) techniques
  • Testing, optimizing, and measuring your lead generation campaigns . . . see link below: