8 C’s to get the best bang for the buck from your B2B online marketing

Based on my digital marketing efforts and experience to date, I have identified eight areas where you need to focus your efforts to optimise the effectiveness and return on investment from the business-to-business online marketing process within your organisation.

If you would like to continue this conversation in more detail, I welcome your comments at the end of the blog post or interact with me on LinkedIn and Twitter

1. Content

Adequate production of suitable thought ware across your relevant service lines and industries is an absolutely essential.  The content you create must “showcase” the products, solutions and services your organisation provides. The content you produce should be suited for the different channels you manage. For an email introducing an article, the article in question should be quite detailed, content for a blog post should be shorter and to the point. If you are using YouTube, arrange to have a short video clip produced where the thought leader discusses the specific content.    

2. Channels

Constantly review your processes to optimise the digital channels you are utilising. Remember that you are dependent on the channels your prospective clients choose to use. Monitor the market on a regular basis. Try new things. Poll your prospects and clients and ask them what they prefer. Marketers who anticipated Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube as future channels of choice for their prospects and clients will have benefitted from this foresight.

3. Change Management

You cannot manage B2B digital marketing in isolation. It has to be owned by the entire business.  Develop a change management strategy to educate the relevant persons within your business on the positive effects they will experience by utilising the digital channels effectively. Showing them how to create a Twitter account and how to tweet is not enough. Take them through the full process from cradle to grave and show some examples of business meetings being created, proposals being requested and business deals won.  Make B2B Digital marketing part of your organisation’s DNA!

4. Communities

The products, services and solutions you provide will determine how your market will prefer to interact with you. Figure this out and build your communities accordingly. Once you have acquired a Like, Follow, Connection, subscription, make sure you nurture this audience appropriately. If you are targeting a finite, known market, do the research and identify who you are connecting with and devise a strategy to develop an online relationship with the rest.  Don’t worry about quantities but rather on the quality of the conversations you are having. Identify social media influencers, relevant people in the media and brand advocates and look after them.

5. CVs

If you are using digital effectively, it is a good idea to create online resumes for all your thought leaders. If you share a thought piece and include the name of the thought leader, you should also provide a link to the person’s LinkedIn profile. Their LinkedIn profile should contain a decent photograph, a good summary explaining their personal value proposition and adequate connections, endorsements and recommendations.

6. Call back

Successful B2B digital marketing models have a golden thread from start to finish. At a specific point in the B2B marketing process, you may have to pass leads onto your sales team or someone responsible for taking the process to the next step.  As a follow up to all B2B digital marketing campaigns, the relevant persons need to follow up timeously and ask for appointments, set up meetings, ask if the person requires additional information, etc.

7. Closing the loop

Obtaining adequate feedback from the business in terms of meetings, requests for proposals and business won is very important. Make of point of asking the “business” on a regular basis on what happened with the leads you sent them. File this information away so that you can report back to the business on a later stage on all the successes as a result of your B2B didgital marketing activities.

8. Compliance

There are all kinds of legislation already out there and proposed amendments that may be passed soon. Consult with a digital communication legal specialist, get them to assess your existing environment and to provide you with feedback in terms of where you do not comply with existing legislation, what you need to do in order to comply and what plans you should be putting in place now in order to comply with legislation that is coming soon. This can be a big differentiator for you if your competitors are not doing anything about it.

I hope these eight points will be of assistance to you. Do you have any comments? Have I left something out? Do you agree or disagree with some of the points?  I would love to hear from you. 

The Festive Season survival guide for the social media manager

The Festive Season is nearly upon us and most social media managers deserve a well-earned break after a long year of growing their social networks and participating diligently across all the social networks they manage. I have listed a few things you can do which will ensure that you keep your community happy and afford you some time off.

Let your followers know you are taking a break

There is no harm at all in letting the subscribers to your blog and newsletter, your followers on Twitter, Facebook friends and LinkedIn connections know that you are going on leave and that they will not hear from you as often as they are used to. Schedule a blog post announcing the fact and schedule a few announcements on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and other networks you participate on.

Schedule a few updates     

Schedule a few blog posts to be published at regular intervals during your time off. This will ensure that there isn’t total silence and that your subscribers will have some material to consume. Being the Festive Season you may want to focus on blogging content that is related to this time of year. You can use tools such as Hootsuite and Socialoomph to schedule a series of updates for Twitter, LinkedIn and Facebook too.

Check in now and then

Have a cursory look at your mentions on Twitter, updates on LinkedIn and Facebook and comments on your blog once a week. Attend to any important items and leave the rest until you return from leave. Your followers will value your commitment.

Share some of your holiday experiences

Many shy away from this altogether but for those that enjoy sharing a few pics with their followers, this is an ideal time to do so. I enjoy mountain biking and the outdoors so I will be sure to share take a few photographs whilst mountain biking or hiking in some exotic location and post them on Twitter and Facebook.     

Don’t forget to send a Festive Season greeting to your community

Take the time to send out a few messages across all the digital platforms you manage to wish all your followers and subscribers and to thank them for all the support they have given you this past year.

Happy Festive Season

I would like to end this by wishing all my subscribers and their respective families a happy, peaceful and restful Festive Season. Enjoy your rest and the time you will be spending with your family and friends. Thank you for your support this past year and come back recharged and ready for a fruitful and abundant 2013!

One final comment – According to the Mayan calendar some believe that the end of the world will occur sometime in December 2012, so if you are an ardent believer in these predictions, go crazy with that credit card and have an extra helping of pud at every meal ;)

Do you have anything to add?

 

The level playing field has turned into a content arms race

This article which I have reblogged from Schaefer Marketing Solutions, emphasises the importance of content in your social media marketing strategy. 

The level playing field has turned into a content arms race

(This article was written by Mark Schaefer and was originally published on the Schaefer Marketing Solutions website. Click Here to access the original article).    

Have I ever told you how much I love Gini Dietrich? For me, she is such an amazing role model for dong it right on the social web. And if you’re one of the five people on earth not already following her Spin Sucks blog, go do that now.

Gini is a smart and savvy friend and we don’t always see eye to eye, which makes her an even better friend. Last week she penned a post about how Facebook seems to be unfairly squeezing money from us by forcing us to use paid promoted posts to reach people who are already following us. It’s a good point of course, but I fell off Gini’s wagon at this point:

The awesome thing about the web and social media, in particular, is it levels the playing field. No longer do you need millions of dollars to spend on PR firms and ad agencies in order to build your brand and reputation among the masses.

Today all you need is a good writer, a self-hosted website and/or blog, and organically grown social networks. With those three things, you suddenly are competing with the big boys for reputation and credibility. You’re seen as a thought leader in your industry. You’re creating kinship among your prospects. And you’re selling in a way that has never before been possible.

All of the tools are free so it’s a really low barrier to entry. And it works.

You see, I have been thinking just the opposite about our social media world. Yes, three years ago Gini was probably right. When the social web was young almost any foray into social media was novel and attracted attention. It was pretty cheap and the entry barriers were indeed low. You could post a video of a bride falling into a swimming pool and it would go viral.

No longer.

Today YouTube is mainstream entertainment fueled by slick corporate video content. People have increasingly sophisticated expectations about what they’re going to find on your Facebook page, Twitter stream, or blog.

I recently saw a statistic that stated there was more information created on the web in the last two years than all of human history combined. I don’t know if that is true or not and I rarely let facts get in the way of a good story anyway, so let’s just say it makes a point — there is an enormous amount of data to get through these days. Heck, even Mashable makes me dizzy.

The content arms race

To succeed on the social web today you better bring your A Game and a bucket of money. To connect with customers today you need to consistently provide useful, relevant, and entertaining content — and that is not cheap. And as the information density on the web increases, so too will the cost to produce that great content.

Yes, yes, I know there are plenty of companies who are still finding niche success with modest social media programs but as soon as their competitors get in the game, the content arms race begins.

As I wrote recently, the social web is NOT a level playing field. There is definitely a first-mover advantage for people who have the money to create useful content and overwhelming amounts of it (which then become entrenched in the search rankings). In the long term, you probably will NOT be competing with the “big boys” (as Gini states) with just a writer and a blog.

6 great tips for selling yourself online

In my latest article published on the Memeburn website, I discuss B2B digital marketing and present some tips on how to sell yourself or your business online.

6 great tips for selling yourself online

I was contacted by a potential client a few weeks back and when we had our initial meeting I asked the question, “Why did you contact me?” The answer I received is what everyone in digital wants to hear: “Every time I googled, your name kept appearing in the search results”. I never asked for specifics because at that point I realised that the model I adopted was working for me.

Without going into the nitty gritty details of the model, I have listed its key ingredients. I cannot guarantee this will work for everyone, but it appears to be working for me.

Click Here to read 6 great tips for selling yourself online on the Memeburn website

I will be most grateful if you would share this article with your network!

6 things you can do to get your LinkedIn group discussions humming!

Does this sound all too familiar?

“I created a number of LinkedIn groups and promoted them on all my digital channels. I shared content and seeded discussions on a regular basis and promoted these using the share features on the group. When I did my mailers I also included links to the group discussions. I shared discussions on other groups I joined, but I am not seeing the results I expected”.

Here are 6 things you can do that may prompt more dialogue in your LinkedIn groups

1. Purpose of the group

Be very clear when deciding on a name for the group, describing the purpose of the group and what benefits members will derive from the group. The will help you set expectations up front.

2. Vet every request

Do not allow anyone to join your group without your permission. Do not be scared to turn people away. There are many unsavoury characters out there whose sole purpose is to promote themselves and their services. These people will not add any value at all.

3. Seeding and managing discussions

Group members will not start talking without the right prompts. Ask explicitly for your member’s opinion on specific subject matter. Attempt to respond to every comment and ask additional questions to prompt further discussion. Do NOT allow anyone to start discussions or make comments without your permission. This may be time-consuming but is the only way you will maintain a good standard.

4. Invite and promote

When promoting discussions with your LinkedIn connections, group members, other groups and other social networks, attempt whenever possible to invite specific individuals, subject matter specialists and social media influencers to participate in the discussion. If the conversation starts faltering, invite other individuals to join the discussion.

5. Keep it topical and relevant

Content is the most important factor in any discussion. You HAVE to ensure that the subject matter is topical and relevant.

6. Less is more!

Do not attempt to manage too many groups and conversations simultaneously otherwise you will fail. Manage a small number of groups and ensure the conversations are high quality.

Summary

Let members understand what they will get out of your group and set expectations. Vet all new members and comments made by members. Respond to all comments where possible and invite subject matter specialists to the conversations. Keep the discussions topical and relevant. Focus on quality rather than quantity.

Is there anything you would like to add to this? I would love to hear from you!

10 different ways you can communicate with your target market on LinkedIn

Unlike any of the other social networks being used by B2B marketers to build brand awareness, establish new relationships and generate new business leads, LinkedIn provides a plethora of communication options which I have listed below.

Sending a connection request

To generate new connections, LinkedIn provides a facility to send a connection request. Bear in mind that the assumption is you were previously acquainted with the person to whom you are sending the connection request, hence the options presented when you send the request (ie colleague, classmate, we’ve done business together, friend, groups, other). Bear in mind that if the person advises LinkedIn that they do not know you, this is recorded. When you reach a specific threshold, you will no longer be allowed to send connection requests.

Requesting an introduction

You have the capability of sending a connection request through an existing connection. It is relatively easy to do this. When viewing the person’s profile (to whom you wish to connect), click on the “Get introduced through a connection” option and follow the prompts.

Sending messages to an existing connection

This is a pretty straight forward process. When viewing the connection’s profile, click on the “Send a message” option and hey presto!

Sending bulk messages

You are able to compose a message and send it to many recipients. What is great about this feature is that you can specify locations and industries. This works well if you have content you want to share with connections within, for example, the Banking industry.

Sending Inmails

InMails are private messages that let you send business and career opportunities directly to any LinkedIn user. InMail allows you to contact or be directly contacted by 2nd or 3rd degree contacts as well as LinkedIn users who are not in your network.

Invitation to join LinkedIn groups

If you manage a LinkedIn group, there are a number of options available to invite persons to join your LinkedIn group. You can type existing connection name and email addresses or share the invitation with LinkedIn, Twitter and Facebook.

Send an announcement from LinkedIn groups

For existing LinkedIn group members, you are allowed to send one group announcement a week. This will be emailed to all group members

New discussion on LinkedIn profile or groups

A new discussion posted on your profile will be shared with all your contacts. You can then share this discussion with the LinkedIn groups you manage, other LinkedIn groups you belong to, Twitter and specified LinkedIn connections and email addresses.

Comments on LinkedIn groups

For all LinkedIn groups, you are able to comment on all discussion. This can be a general comment which is viewed by all or a private comment to a specific individual.

Extracting contact details of existing LinkedIn connections

For all existing LinkedIn connections, LinkedIn provides you with the facility to extract your LinkedIn contact details to an Excel spread sheet. You must obviously exercise discretion in terms of ewhat you do with this information.

Summary

LinkedIn provides you with many options to communicate effectively with your target connections and existing connections and to publicise existing content to other social networks you belong to.

Is there other communication options provided by LinkedIn that I have overlooked? Have you had positive or negative experiences with these features and functions? I would love to hear from you!

5 functions provided by LinkedIn ads that are absolutely awesome!

Marketing 2.0 is all about “word of mouth” and placing the power in the hands of the consumer. This is all good and well when you or your business already has an established brand and reputation and people are talking and referring. If you are really good at what you do, a lot of business may come to you without you having to look for it.

Individuals and small to medium companies that are not in this fortunate position may have to work a little bit harder to be “seen”. I love using the analogy of the donkey in the movie Shrek, jumping up and down in the background, shouting out frantically, “PICK ME, PICK ME”. A LinkedIn ad is a great way to become more visible to your target market without breaking the bank.

Based on my experience with LinkedIn ads, I have discovered a number of superb features that I have listed below:

1.  The LinkedIn ad is really easy to use

You can literally have a LinkedIn ad up and running in a couple of hours. The only lag time is waiting for LinkedIn to approve the ad. LinkedIn takes you through a simple step-by-step process, providing guidance and instruction along the way. All you need is a suitable image, description and call to action and a link to where you want to take people, and you are set.

2.  Variation and rotation of ads

Sometmes you want to test the effectiveness of an ad. LinkedIn provides a facility to create multiple ads and allows you to rotate them. This way, you can gauge the effectiveness of specific ads and focus on the one that works for you (ie generates conversions).

3.  You can target your ads very precisely

This feature I LOVE. So you are a small to medium size business serving companies situated in Johannesburg, South Africa. The ad you have created is targeted at financial managers and/or directors in mining companies. You are only interested in females over the age of 40. LinkedIn enables you to target this specific demographic! This is the tip of the iceberg because there are even more options available.

4.  Billing model and daily limit

LinkedIn presents you with a flexible billing model which is very easy to manage. For those that want to test the effectiveness of LinkedIn ads, you can do so without committing to huge expense. For starters, you can bid on your ad, which is great. You can start low, monitor progress, and increase your bid, until you start seeing favourable results. You can also specify a daily limit, so if you want to run the ad for one day and cap your spend at $10, then so be it! You can have options to pay per click (CPC) or Pay per 1000 impressions (CPM)

5.  Great reporting and analytics on ad performance

If you want to gauge the effectiveness of an ad campaign, you need decent analytics. (It is also good to show to management if it is doing really well!) LinkedIn provides information such as Number of Impressions (ie how many times was the ad displayed), Amount Spent, Number of Clicks on your ad, Click Through Rate (CTR) and Average Cost Per Click CPC). You can specify the date range by which you want to report the criteria listed above. There are industry averages that are freely available that you can measure yourself against in order to see how well you are doing.

Have you used LinkedIn ads? What can you add or report on? I would love to hear from you!

 

The value of the “recommendation” on LinkedIn

Developing new relationships from scratch is never an easy feat for anyone whether is it a personal or business relationship. There is always the unknown that has yet to be discovered over time. In the business world, people only make buying decisions once you are viewed as a known and trusted advisor. To become a trusted advisor takes time, however this can be expedited through personal recommendations. On LinkedIn, a recommendation can be done in a number of ways:

The Introduction

If you would like to connect with a 2nd level connection on LinkedIn, there is an option on the person’s profile aptly named “Get introduced through a connection”. When you select this option, LinkedIn lists all your 1^st level connections that are already connected with the person in question. You can then select one of the 1^st level connections and ask the person to introduce you. This is way better than an unsolicited request that is likely to be turned down.

The provision of, or the request for, a recommendation

LinkedIn provides a feature for users to provide recommendations for others. You are given the option to either send a request for a recommendation or simply create a recommendation for someone. This is a great way to bolster your individual profile. There is nothing better than to read a person’s profile which has a number of independent recommendations to provide more credibility. This carries even more weight if you happen to know the person that has provided the recommendation for the person’s profile you are viewing.

News on your company page

For those that have created a company page on LinkedIn it is a good idea to include the news feature. This enables you to add all relevant news on your company whether it be press realeases, cutomer testimonials, general company use, financial results, etc to be displayed. This is a good way to build credibility for persons viewing your company page, wanting to know more about what others think about your business.

This will hopefully provide you with some insight of the value associated with introductions, recommendations, customer testimonials and company news that may be facilitated by LinkedIn.

Is there anything I have left out? Is there anything you would like to add or comment on? I would love to hear from you!

 

Five points to consider before participating on LinkedIn

The common mistake most people make when using a tool is not gaining a good understanding of how the tool works and what they hope to achieve. Before registering and participating on LinkedIn, new users should consider the following five points:

1. Self-educate first

Get your hands on some LinkedIn training material and read it from end-to-end. You need to have a good understanding of all the features and functions of the social network first, before you do anything.

2. Different strokes for different folks

There are a whole bunch of different organisations and individuals participating on LinkedIn from individual contractors, job seekers, recruiters, small to medium size businesses, large companies and global enterprises. It is important that you understand your individual requirements first.

3. Do some research

There are many LinkedIn users out there that have already benefitted from the correct use of LinkedIn. Spend some time conducting research. Check out the case studies to learn what others have done right (and done wrong). This will save you a load of time.

4. Tap into all the rich content provided by the gurus

There are numerous marketing thought leaders and gurus out there who are constantly developing rich content . Find out who they are. Subscribe to their RSS feed, connect with them on LinkedIn, follow them on Twitter, Like their Facebook pages and learn from them.

5. Plan

Formulate a proper plan on what you are going to do, how you will do it, what you hope to achieve, how you will measure success and measurement criteria. Include timelines with specific milestones. This is a journey you are planning, so make sure you do it right first time.

Here is a short video clip explaining what LinkedIn is all about

What would you add to the 5 points I listed? I would love to hear from you.

Getting personal

A small group of senior executives is using Twitter and other social media platforms to project their personal brands. It’s proving good for business but there are potential pitfalls.

BY  Simon Cashmore  of BrainStorm, 17 August 2011

Amid the media celebrities, sports personalities and social commentators that draw followers and top the trending topics on Twitter, a surprise moniker recently appeared – @MichaelJordaan.

Michael Jordaan inhabits a world far removed from the galaxy of most prominent Tweeters whose spontaneous and pithy comments are instantly tracked by thousands of followers. Jordaan is the CEO of First National Bank (FNB).

A large financial institution may seem an unlikely home for a rising social media phenomenon. But banking is a business that touches most South Africans, many of whom have strong opinions about the experience. Jordaan’s frequent, insightful and sometimes witty observations about the industry have drawn a strong following. More than 2 700 people are currently following Jordaan on Twitter. Key to the popularity of Jordaan’s Twitter service is his willingness to break the traditional bounds of corporate communications. He is not shy to express opinions, engage in discussion or admit mistakes. His Twitter conversations often reach beyond banking and the world of finance. Wine is a frequent topic. When he is not overseeing the sprawling business of FNB, Jordaan is as likely as not to be found working on his Stellenbosch wine estate.

“I started using Twitter for fun. Now I’m addicted to it. I like the immediacy and the brevity of it,” he says.

Jordaan is one of a small but growing group of top executives who are using influential social media platforms to project a personal image or brand to a wide and diverse audience. Many of them use several social media platforms but Twitter is by far the most prominent. The management of such personal brands is set to become an important issue in South African business in the next few years. It’s an issue that will concern not just the leaders and figureheads of major organisations but all employees who have access to social media platforms such as Twitter, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube. And that’s just about everyone.

Visible and Available

It’s part of the new world of business,” says Craig Rodney (@Craigrodney), MD at social media consultancy Cerebra Communications. “In the past, senior executives communicated in boardrooms behind closed doors. Now many are out in the open, visible and available to their customers and engaging in dialogue with other executives in the social media space,” says Rodney.

This process, he says, ‘humanises’ and ‘democratises’ organisations. Customers develop a personal affinity with executives and the organisations they represent. Employees also have access to senior management and insight into their thoughts on the business. Many of the traditional barriers that hinder access to organisations, and stifle communications within them, are being pulled down by the rise of social media, claims Rodney.

Jordaan says his decision to begin tweeting two years ago was a personal choice. “There was no grand strategy behind it,” he says. Nonetheless, Jordaan’s Twitter account has proved good for business. “It provides a very good feedback loop. If things are going wrong in the business, I get to hear about them on Twitter long before the hierarchical channels of the organisation inform me. I can respond quickly to address problems and get them fixed.”

He adds that Twitter is also quick to deliver positive feedback. The bank’s recent advertising campaign, for example, prompted many Twitter users to tweet their approval to Jordaan.

Authenticity essential

FNB has begun to use a variety of social media platforms, such as Twitter and Facebook, to promote its banking services. Its marketing department launched a corporate Twitter account under the name of the fictional character RB Jacobs (@Rbjacobs) to encourage customers to engage with the bank. However, Jordaan is keeping his personal Twitter account. It’s very much an expression of his own personality, he says.

Vodacom CEO Pieter Uys (@uyspj) runs his own personal Twitter account and keeps it distinct from the group’s official services (@Vodacom and @Vodacom111). “I’m surprised we don’t see more company executives on Twitter. There’s nothing quite like it for getting instant, unfiltered feedback. It’s a great way to understand what customers like and what turns them off,” he says.

Uys’ willingness to engage with consumers and address their complaints as well as receive compliments has earned him a following of nearly 2 500 people on Twitter. His popularity, however, lies not only in his ability to deliver a service to customers, but also in the ways he projects an appealing personality.

Mike Saunders (@mikesaunders), CEO at social media agency DigitLab, stresses that authenticity is essential for the success of a personal brand. “People want a connection with the executive rather than the company,” he says.

Such a connection demands a lot of executives. They must be prepared to share something of themselves – their thoughts, their interests and their activities. Bleating sanitised corporate news through Twitter is a sure turn-off for any prospective audience. Furthermore, good personal brands depend on executives making themselves accessible – an occasional tweet is no good. They must also be responsive. Answer questions. Engage in conversation and be prepared to take criticism.

Servest group CEO Dennis Zietsman (@Zeeserve) says dialogue with customers using Twitter provides management with greater insight into the workings of the business. “It has taught us to think more broadly about our company and our industry,” he says.

Credibility is another essential ingredient. Deloitte’s digital channels executive David Graham

(@DavidGrahamSA) has racked up a following of 36 000 people on his personal Twitter account in the past two years. He uses Twitter in conjunction with a variety of other social media platforms, such as LinkedIn, YouTube, blogs and e-mail, to communicate Deloitte’s ‘thoughtware’ to senior management throughout South Africa’s top 500 companies.

”You develop a relationship with your clients using Twitter. The information you broadcast must be consistent and relevant. If you send out junk, it will damage your credibility,” says Graham.

He warns that Twitter must be mixed with other social media platforms to achieve successful business-to-business communication. “Most C-suite executives still prefer e-mail,” he says.

While a strong personal brand can raise the profile and improve the perception of both the executive and the organisation they represent, it also presents its own challenges and potential pitfalls.

“Executives need to draw a line between their professional and personal lives and decide how much of themselves they are going to disclose. They must be clear about what they can share about their organisations,” says DigitLab’s Saunders.

He adds that it is essential for executives to regulate how they communicate. “Any indiscreet or inappropriate remark can be highly damaging for their personal profile and the organisation they represent.”

The world of social media is littered with examples of celebrities, politicians and business executives who have embarrassed themselves spectacularly by broadcasting personal information that has gone public.

Saunders advocates that organisations draw up a clear strategy that defines the parameters within which executives and all other employees may communicate across social media platforms.

Do you know any CxOs? Please share this article with them and encourage them to join a value-adding social networking community