Marketing how to: Growing importance of social media in B2B marketing
Marketing how to: Growing importance of social media in B2B marketing
The technology behind social media websites enables users to actively interact with others. This has led to immense growth in popularity of these websites. Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus are creating a revolution in the modern world.
Marketers are waking up to the business opportunities offered by these websites. Recently Lopez Research and The Software Industry Association (SIIA) surveyed 106 marketing executives about their organization’s use of email, mobile marketing and social media.
The use was social media to build the brand, gain leads and improve customer support were studied. Social media is driving a small portion of revenue and engagement today. However, almost 90 percent of the organizations believe that social media marketing benefits business.
In an effort to make the most of this opportunity, many companies are investing in numerous social media channels like blogs, Twitter, Facebook, Google Plus and LinkedIn.
Companies which service B2B customers are as interested in social media as companies that service business to consumer B2C segment, with roughly 90% of all respondents stating they use social media marketing.
This is a clear indication in the mindset of the corporate world. In fact it is a far cry from several years ago where many businesses were questioning the value of social media.
Social media marketing has matured to the point where companies are looking at a mix of quantitative ROI measures such as revenue and web site traffic but also qualitative measures such as brand awareness. Social is very effective in creating brand awareness among the members of the target market.
Not all organizations spend equal time and money on social media. Many companies are spending under 10 hours per week on these efforts. Unfortunately most marketers are still managing their social media efforts themselves.
While many companies will continue to do their own posts, Lopez Research expects social media analytics to be an area where many firms will consider purchasing a managed service.
Email marketing continues to be a main marketing tool for a majority of the companies surveyed. Mobile marketing use was low amongst the respondents, which isn’t surprising given that a high percentage of companies surveyed serve the business-to-business (B2B) and business to government (B2G) groups.
A majority of the respondents, 88%, stated their primary geographic market is inNorth Americabut only 12% of the respondents considered consumers part of their target market segmentation. In general, Lopez Research believes mobile marketing is in its infancy and will experience double-digit growth over the next two years.
According to marketing how to experts, social media marketing and mobile marketing are here to stay. They have moved the companies closer to their customers. It will be interesting to see how they evolve as tools for B2C and B2B marketing.
Marketing How To: Top Clickbank Features That Increase Your Profits
Marketing How To: Top Clickbank Features That Increase Your Profits
Clickbank is one of the leading retailers of digital products. It has helped many vendors and affiliates create huge amount of wealth. Affiliates can choose from tens of thousands of products to promote.
Clickbank has many amazing features that vendors and affiliates can use to enhance their income. Here is a brief overview of some of these features which have the potential to take your online business to the next level.
PitchPlus
This feature was earlier known as One-Click Upsell. It allows vendors to pitch for additional products. After the customer would have confirmed the purchase, he/she is offered another product by being redirected to the upsell page. The customer can buy this product without having to enter the credit card details again.
Vendors can create the products as upsells. The advanced version of this feature enables you to present up to three consecutive upsell offers. It also offers the ability to downsell. In this scenario, if a customer intends to decline upsell, they may be offered with another product or the same product with a discount.
TID and VTID Tracking
TID is the tracking ID offered by Clickbank. It is a string of alpha numeric characters (maximum 24 characters) appended to the end of the Clickbank Hoplink. TID enables you to track your hoplinks. You can use as many TIDs as you wish. It helps you to understand where to focus your time and energy. You will know where your sales are coming from. Vendors can use VTID. The Vendor TID is appended to the paylink instead of the hoplink.
Joint Venture
Partnerships help affiliates and vendors increase their profits. The “Joint Venture” feature promotes profitable partnerships. This versatile feature is relatively new. It enables vendors to split their income with partners. It also allows them to promote products of other vendors as upsells. Using this awesome feature, vendors can offer two tier affiliate commissions. Using this feature, affiliates can partner together and split profits from their affiliate sales. This feature allows you to set contracts within your Clickbank account.
Clickbank is like an ocean with immense hidden treasures. With patience and persistence you can definitely create a huge amount of wealth with this internet behemoth.
Marketing How To: Effective Tips on Developing Your Sales Skills
Marketing How To: Effective Tips on Developing Your Sales Skills
Entrepreneurs start businesses with great ideas and immense earning potential. However, most of them fail to run their ventures profitably. One of the main reasons behind this failure is lack of adequate sales skills. It is very important to sell yourself, your ideas and your product or service.
Fortunately sales skills can be learnt; and experience is the best teacher. It is advisable to work in an organization which would be into similar business as you intend to start. This will help you to gain first hand experience of selling to prospective customers. You will feel comfortable with selling per se.
Selling involves interacting with people whom you would never have met before, on one to one or one to many basis. If you are an introvert, it is advisable to practice speaking to people.
Marketing how to experts recommend that you have a clear profile of your target customers in your mind. This helps you to speak their language and to relate with them easily. For example, if you are selling to software developers, they will listen to you if you use terminology related to the industry.
It will be very easy to sell if you know your target customers’ buying behavior. If you are trying to sell a truck, you cannot expect your customer to decide overnight. You need to be prepared to make repeat calls.
For a start up, it is very important to get good word-of-mouth as soon as possible. Your first customer can help you in this. Marketing how to experts suggest that you do everything possible to please your first customer. It is okay if you lose some money in the bargain. If you delight this customer, he/she is more likely to promote your business in the market.
It is important to look at the long term perspective of the business. Spend time in building long term business relationships with your customers. This will help you in getting repeat business.
It will be easier for you to sell to your prospective customers if they perceive you as an expert. Your website provides you a great opportunity to display your expertise. Marketing how to experts suggest that you create interesting, informative and valuable content on your website.
It is important to spend time in performing sales related activities every day. Establishing a routine will definitely help you in this endeavor. For instance, you may dedicate the first two hours of the day for calling your prospects and fix appointments during the later part of the day.
In today’s competitive global business environment it is not enough to sell just once. You need to find ways to stay in the minds of your customers. It is important to remember that your competitors will be behind your customers. In order to keep your customers’ attention, marketing how to experts suggest that you send them newsletters or surprise gifts on special events (like birthdays or anniversaries).
It is a good idea to create accounts in social media websites like Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus. Encourage your customers to follow you. Engage your customers using these websites. Encourage them to give feedbacks and suggestions.
The key to success in sales is asking right questions; and the main reason for failure is assuming. Do not hesitate to ask questions, as it enables you to gain valuable information about your customers.
By implementing the above mentioned tips, you are sure to become a high performance salesperson in a short time, thereby taking your business to great heights.
Marketing How To: How to Conduct Productive Brainstorming Sessions with Your Sales Team
Marketing How To: How to Conduct Productive Brainstorming Sessions with Your Sales Team
Businesses all over the world run on great ideas. Businessdictionary.com defines brainstorming as a “process of generating creative ideas and solutions through intensive freewheeling group discussion”. Each and every participant is encouraged to come up with as many ideas as possible.
In addition to generating great ideas, brainstorming sessions bring people together into the creative process, promote a sense of ownership, create a sense of belonging, promote team spirit and identify people with great ideas.
No idea is a bad idea in a brainstorming session. No one is allowed to analyze or criticize the ideas during the session. The purpose is to generate as many ideas as possible by making the most of the creative potential of all the participants.
Sales persons regularly interact with customers and prospective customers. Brainstorming session with the sales team usually generates great ideas to improve the business. The challenge is to make the most of these sessions.
Here are some tips on how to conduct brainstorming sessions with your sales team.
Marketing how to experts recommend that you choose a location away from the office. Successful organizations usually choose a resort. The location should be conductive to creative expression. The participants should be allowed to dress in casual wear.
Ideally an entire day should be dedicated for the session. It is important to be prepared with tools like a computer, soft board, white board, projector, bold marker pens, sheets of paper, etc.
The number of participants should not be more than ten. Marketing how to experts suggest that one person should act as a coordinator. The coordinator may begin the session with a brief welcome address.
The rules have to be communicated clearly. It is a good idea to have a copy of the ground rules displayed on a softboard. The coordinator should communicate the objective of the session with a focus statement, which should not be more than one sentence.
The focus statement should be specific and easy to understand. “What offers will encourage college students to buy our product?”, is a good example of a focus statement. It is important to avoid generic statements.
The coordinator should encourage participation from all the team members by conveying that they are perceived as valuable assets of the team. They should be encouraged to open up by saying that their ideas can make a difference to the company.
The coordinator should avoid giving lectures during the session. The participants should be encouraged to speak. The coordinator should take care not to inhibit the flow of ideas. He/she she should intervene only when there are negative comments, criticism or too much of time consuming analysis. Mobile phones should not be allowed inside the room.
The coordinator should evaluate the ideas towards the end of the session. Voting will help in selecting good ideas and eliminating bad ones. The entire team should then focus on improving the good ideas.
Marketing how to experts emphasize on the importance of documenting the entire procedure. The session may be concluded by the coordinator by briefing the team as to what was achieved as a result of the exercise. This is when “who” would do “what” by “when” would be clear to the entire team.
By implementing the above mentioned tips while conducting brainstorming sessions with your sales team, you are sure to generate great ideas.
Marketing How To: How to Market Your Small Business Without Spending Anything
Marketing How To: How to Market Your Small Business Without Spending Anything
Internet offers immense opportunities to market your small business for free. More than two billion people use the internet all over the world. Social networking websites like Twitter, Facebook and Google Plus help you to get the word out about your products and services.
It is free to register to the above mentioned social media networks. If you can spend a little, you can use targeted online ad platforms. All that you need is a good marketing strategy and time.
In the online world, you gain immensely by building credibility. Once people perceive you as an expert, it will be easy for you to sell your product or service. People are desperately seeking valuable content.
Marketing how to experts suggest that you spend time blogging, tweeting and sharing valuable information relevant to your industry. Establish your expertise on the social media networks. Be liberal in helping out your followers on the social media networks.
You can write how-to articles. Successful marketers create educational videos and publish them in YouTube. You may also write reviews on various industry trade shows. These are proven ways of establishing expertise.
Every piece of valuable information you put on the social networks will take you a step ahead towards sale. If people perceive you as a knowledgeable source, they will definitely buy from you.
Social media is gaining immensely in popularity. As we have all witnessed, it played a major role in removing dictators from power. Use the power of social media to market your business.
Identify fans of your brand. Marketing how to experts recommend that you share the positive inputs of your fans about your brand extensively on the internet. Your prospective customer is more likely to buy from you if the endorsement comes from someone outside your company.
It is very important to ensure that your business is listed in online directory services. Marketing how to experts recommend that you use Google Local Business Center, Angie’s List, Yahoo! Local, YahooPages.com, SuperPages, SearchLocal and Yelp.
Publish your phone number, working hours, physical address, email address, location map and website URL in these websites. Many of the above mentioned online directory services allow users to leave reviews and feedbacks. Encourage users to review your products or services. Successful marketers offer incentives for writing reviews.
Marketing how to experts suggest that you offer ad-funded payment options. This approach, popularized by TrialPay, is effective in turning curious browsers to buyers. This works if you already have a steady flow of customers and you are looking to increase your customer base.
The above mentioned tips will definitely help you in getting more customers; however it will definitely not happen overnight. Patience and persistence are the necessary keys to success.
Marketing How To: How to Convince Google That You Are a Robust, Ethical and Dedicated Brand
Marketing How To: How to Convince Google That You Are a Robust, Ethical and Dedicated Brand
Two billion people use internet regularly all over the world. Most of them use Google to search for information. Google is the leader in the search engine segment. For the success of your online venture, you need to rank high in Google.
Google will reward those brands which offer value to its users. Here are a few tips on how to convince Google that you are a strong online brand.
Targeting keywords in your anchor text is a good way to improve the rankings. It is also advisable to use your brand name. Linking in this way reinforces the fact that your site offers a brand. Google is more likely to treat your site favorably. However it is important to continue anchor text linking.
Marketing how to experts suggest that you increase the amount of search conducted around your brand name. Google likes brands which are searched by many people. Social media websites like Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus offer a great opportunity to improve your brand’s online presence. You also need to use offline media to entice people to seek more information about your brand on the internet.
Another effective way to convince Google that your brand is popular is to get mentions of your brand on the internet. Every time someone mentions your brand on the internet, the popularity of your brand increases. However it is important that your brand appears in a reputed website.
To increase the number of times your brand is mentioned, it is advisable to distribute online press releases using the services of websites like free-press-release.com. marketing how to experts recommend that you use your brand name in the title and the text of the press release. Use your brand name while participating in various forums. Use your brand name in backlinks on high page rank article directories.
Google is likely to pay more attention to good online brands in an endeavor to rid its SERPS of increasing levels of spam on the web. Marketing how to experts assure you that if you can come across as a good brand, you are likely to benefit. The above mentioned tips will definitely help you convince Google that your website is worthy of being considered as a reliable brand.
Marketing How To: How to Build and Manage the Reputation of Your Business Online
Marketing How To: How to Build and Manage the Reputation of Your Business Online
More than two billion people use the internet worldwide. It is important that your business has a good online reputation. Bad online reputation can cause immense, sometimes irreparable damage to your business.
Your prospective customer will definitely search for information about your company before doing business with you. People would definitely not want to associate themselves with a business with bad reputation.
The stakes are indeed very high for business owners. How your company appears in search results is very important in today’s competitive global market. You just can’t ignore this aspect any more.
Some business owners still believe that, “any publicity is good for the business”. Not anymore if it is negative. Vitaly Broker, the owner of retail eyewear website DecorMyEyes.com realized the repercussions of this belief the hard way.
Vitaly Broker used to harass his customers and directed them to vent out their frustration on the internet. His website climbed up in rankings. Google acted promptly by changing its code, thereby burying the website along with other businesses with bad practices. It is very important to create and manage good reputation online.
Managing the reputation of your business can be challenging. Many organizations offer online reputation management services. Netmark.com, Reputation Management Consultants, Customer Magnetism, Intrapromote LLC and Morrissey & Co are the top five names in the business, according to marketing how to experts.
If your budget does not allow you to hire the services a reputation management firm, you will have to do it yourself. Here are some tips from marketing how to experts on how you to manage the reputation of your business on the internet.
Use search engines like Google to search information about your business. This will give you an idea of how your business is portrayed online. Create accounts on social media websites like Twitter, Google Plus and Facebook. Check what people are saying about your business.
Marketing how to experts recommend that you use Google Alerts. It allows you to track search terms by type. Sign up for this service. You will receive any new mentions of your search term periodically on your email address.
It is very important to act when you see the need to act. Marketing how to experts recommend that you respond to reviews. Apologize whenever you are sure that the mistake was from your end. Assure that you would work towards resolving the issues. If you find that the review is false, it is important to get is removed, by explaining the situation to the website owner.
Marketing how to experts suggest that you build a positive reputation by offering high quality original content on your website or blog. Offer to help your friends and followers on various social networking websites, using your company’s products or services. Never post fake reviews. It may backfire.
Managing your business reputation on the internet is indeed a daunting task. By implementing the above mentioned tips, you are sure to succeed in this endeavor.
Marketing How to: an Overview of Relationship Marketing
Marketing How to: an Overview of Relationship Marketing
Relationship marketing is defined as a strategy designed to foster customer loyalty, interaction and long term engagement. This approach focuses more on customer retention than on customer acquisition.
The key to success of any business is the right understanding of what customer needs. It is very important to identify the inherent needs of your customer. This becomes possible by having thorough understanding of your customer’s business, which can be achieved by asking the right questions.
It is very important to stay in touch with your customer. This goes a long way in retaining your customer. You may achieve this in many ways. Marketing how to experts suggest that you invite your customers to various events, encourage them to give feedback regarding the performance of your product, send them goodies on their birthday or anniversary, etc. It is important to retain the “human touch” in your relationship with your customers.
Encouraging your customer to subscribe to your newsletter is another good way of staying in touch with your customer. Marketing how to experts recommend that you keep the design and content of your newsletter simple. Excessive self promotion is more likely to backfire. It is a good idea to keep the customer informed regarding your product launches. Provide tips on how best your customer can use your product or service.
You may include industry news, FAQs and testimonials. Marketing how to experts suggest that you run contests and allow the winners to choose their prize. It may be any one of your company’s products. There is no limit to creativity. The purpose should be to strengthen the company’s relationship with the customer and to delight your customer.
Relationship marketing is not about having a “buddy” relationship with your customers. It is important to come across as an expert. People would want to build relationships with experts who can add value.
Engage your clients using various social media websites like Facebook, Twitter and Google Plus. Marketing how to experts suggest that you offer solutions to their problems using your products or services. It is a good idea to publish white papers on your website. If your customer perceives you as an expert, you can be assured of his/her loyalty. Your customer will also give your referrals.
Relationship marketing helps you to build referrals, reduce marketing expenses and to focus on customer needs. For your business to succeed, you need to combine elements of both transactional marketing and relationship marketing.
Marketing How To: Five Free Content Curation Tools
Marketing How To: Five Free Content Curation Tools
Content curation is defined as “the collection and sharing of content; like articles, videos, pictures and other pieces of digital content”. It involves the collection of content relevant to a topic, and then sharing short portions of that content on a website or other platform; while linking to the original source giving it the credit it deserves.
Curing content enables you to offer the best content available on the internet to your visitors. Many content curation tools are available on the internet. Here is a brief overview of the top five free content curation tools.
Scoop.It
This free tool is highly popular among marketing how to experts. It increases your efficiency and improves engagement with your audience. It enables you to tap into and respond to what people are searching.
The tool allows you to find the content based on your keyword. You will be able to use many sources (like RSS feeds, websites, etc). The tool can easily be installed on your browser.
You can add posts as and when you find them. The tool enables you to share the content on various social networking sites like Twitter, Facebook and LinkedIn. This helps you to get more followers.
Bundlr.com
This tool enables you to create topic pages with photos, videos, tweets and documents. You can bundle and share web content easily. You can sign into the tool using your Twitter account.
PearlTrees.com
This free tool is gaining in popularity. It allows you collect, organize and share anything you like on the web. The tool enables you to share across a variety of platforms.
MySyndicaat.com
This personalized news aggregator enables you to collect, filter and share web content. The tool enables you to aggregate content from a variety of sources on the internet. You can also automate keyword searches.
CurationSoft
This desktop tool is free to use. It is only limited to Google’s Blog Search to search for content.
While using any of the above mentioned tools, it is very important to give credit where it is due. By using the above mentioned free content curation tools, you will definitely have an edge over your competitors.
Marketing How To: How to Create and Deliver Winning Sales Presentations
Marketing How To: How to Create and Deliver Winning Sales Presentations
Sales persons all over the world find it challenging to grab and retain the attention of their prospective customers while delivering a sales presentation. During sales presentations, it is not unusual to find some members of the audience absolutely clueless about what is happening.
Here are some tips on how to win over your prospective customers through effective sales presentations.
Human beings have two ears and one mouth. It may be an indication that we have to speak less and listen more. Some sales persons make the mistake of talking too much during their sales presentations.
Marketing how to experts suggest that you use this opportunity to ask questions and to listen to the needs of your prospective customers. Of course it is important to introduce yourself, your company and your products or services, but it is more important to keep it brief.
Your presentation should be interactive. Jared Reitzin, founder of mobileStorm, says, “Nothing is more annoying than when someone is pitching you, and it’s all about them, their products,”. Marketing how to experts suggest that you open your presentation with a hint that it would be interactive. You may use open ended questions after a brief introduction.
It is important to be spontaneous while delivering your presentation; however, that does not mean that you should be unprepared. Marketing how to experts recommend that you be prepared with a logical flow. It is a good idea to practice your presentation with a good colleague. You need to ensure that you have covered all the points clearly and concisely.
Good sales people spend considerable amount of time in understanding their prospective customers. There are many ways to do so. If you are selling to a business, spend some time on your prospective customers’ website to understand their business.
This will help you in positioning your product or service as a solution to their problems. Your prospective customer will buy from you if he/she is convinced that your product or service will help in solving their problems.
Some sales persons make the mistake of assuming that a business presentation should be a serious affair. Of course you need to convey your commitment during the presentation, but you need to be creative and energetic while doing so. It is very important to make it an entertaining and interactive affair. It is by far the best way to grab and retain the attention of your audience.
Use of visual aids like slides, handouts and brochures conveys professionalism; however, it is important to consciously avoid using visual aids as a crutch. Successful salespersons do not depend too much on them to sell. Marketing how to experts suggest that you use visual aids to highlight the USP of your product or service.
In spite of implementing the above mentioned steps while delivering your sales presentation, you may not get a sale. But it is important to take this opportunity to establish the next step in the sales process, depending on the situation. It is important to never give up. Patience and persistence are the keys to success.
