ENGAGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ADVOCATES

Transcription

1 ENGAGING INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY ADVOCATES

2 ARE YOU TALKIN TO ME? When designing and running any effective and engaging marketing program or campaign, it s key to know who your audience is and speak their language, so to speak (pardon the pun). Most companies have already developed personas to help them better understand, market and sell to their buyers. But they often stop there. What about existing customers, partners and employees who have not only already invested in a relationship with your company, but who have also become enthusiastic advocates for your brand? BUYER PERSONAS VS. ADVOCATE PERSONAS Developing a framework with which to better understand your advocates is just as important as understanding your potential buyers especially if you re going to invite them into an advocate marketing program. While there are often some similarities among these personas, what motivates someone to buy isn t the same as what motivates them to advocate for your brand over the long-term. 1

3 THE PSYCHOLOGY OF ADVOCACY When considering implementing an advocate marketing program, an objection that many marketers have is: That sounds great and all, but my customers, partners or employees would never do that. Those marketers are wrong. Here s why: It s simply human nature to advocate for things you love, whether they re restaurants, movies, smartphones or enterprise business-to-business software. People become advocates because they re hardwired to connect with others, establish relationships and build social capital. WHO ARE YOUR ADVOCATES AND WHAT MAKES THEM TICK? Beyond human nature, however, there are unique qualities among individual advocate types that marketers must take into consideration. What motivates and engages an IT professional in an advocate marketing program is likely to be very different from what will appeal to a marketer or a salesperson, for example. Understanding the persona(s) you are targeting with your program and the individual activities within it can help you design invitations, challenges, rewards, and messaging that appeal specifically to that audience, generating higher levels of engagement. Here, we ll look at information technology professionals, what defines that persona, and how to position your message to address the key challenges they face. COMING SOON: HOW TO ENGAGE Human resources professionals Salespeople Developers and programmers Executives And more! Receive more information about what motivates your advocates as it is released. 2

4 THE IT PERSONA THE STRONG, SILENT TYPE You re not likely to find your most, shall I say, outgoing types within this group. IT Professionals are typically the quiet, hard-working individuals operating behind the scenes at every company, focused on keeping things running. The glue, so to speak. A recent study entitled Distinctive Personality Traits of Information Technology Professionals confirms that IT pros have a preference for and comfort with cooperation and working as part of a team, are less assertive than others, and have a stronger propensity towards shyness and reticence. WE NEED YOU! But without them, businesses wouldn t function and employees wouldn t be efficient. However, oftentimes their efforts go unnoticed. We re all familiar with know-it-alls, but those in the field of IT can oftentimes back it up. They might not literally know it all, but they re generally very comfortable with a wide variety of technologies and have a thorough understanding of how each piece contributes to the overall productivity of the organization. GETTING EDUCATED An average of 36% have at least a bachelor s degree, according to a report by the Wall Street Journal. Education in science and tech seems to be a prerequisite - of those who pursue IT jobs, 46% majored in high-tech areas like computer and information sciences. And the learning never stops for these sponge-like folks - IT pros are always looking to soak up more and more knowledge, understand new technologies, contribute their feedback on current technologies, and even weigh in with their technological needs for the future. 3

5 IT advocates are extremely passionate about what they do. They love providing feedback and networking with their peers. They are used to having to listen, so when they get asked to speak they really enjoy that. KIM ELLIS Director, Customer Experience at BMC Software PAT ON THE BACK Everyone likes a pat on the back every now and then. But how noticeable the figurative pat should be differs greatly for the IT pro then other personas. WHAT S THE RIGHT WAY TO REWARD AN IT PRO? They appreciate recognition but not being in the spotlight. Subtlety with meaning delivers the recognition they want and deserve. So rather than shout from the rooftops about how a great a job they did, maybe opt for something more like a congratulatory , or gift card. 4

6 KEY CHALLENGES AND HOW TO ADDRESS THEM IT pros have worries just like everyone else. Top of mind are keeping personal data safe (you ll never find them revealing too much online); staying out of the spotlight; and avoiding engaging in conversations that don t have particular meaning and value to them. LET S STAY SECURE The number of highly-public data breaches in recent years, like Target, Home Depot, even the US Postal Service, is enough to get anyone freaked out about what and how they share information online. And the attacks are getting pretty sophisticated. If anyone is aware of the security risks online, along the damage it could cause a business, it s the IT pro. Symantec and The Ponemon Institute note that the global average cost of a security breach per record is $188, and the total average cost per data breach is about $5.4 million. That s no chump change. YOU WANT TO SHARE WHAT? When you re talking to IT pros, clearly communicate how (and if) their personal information will be used. Make them feel secure and indicate clearly that nothing will be published without their consent. 5

7 KEEP THEM OUT OF THE SPOTLIGHT You know how you feel when someone flashes a bright flashlight in your face? That s how IT pros feel when they re put on the spot in front of others. The aforementioned study found that IT professionals have significantly lower levels of extraversion when compared to those in other occupations. That s not surprising since most tasks involve solitary work, like working on computers and servers. The Institute for Management Excellence found in a 2003 study that while one-quarter of the general population can be considered introverted, 67% of computer professionals fall into this designation. HEY, DON T FORGET ABOUT ME! However, while you shine the flashlight - er, spotlight - somewhere else, that doesn t mean a little light is a bad thing. The IT pro does want to be recognized and appreciated for his accomplishments. You just need to understand how to tailor to the preferred reward type. (More on that later.) There are a lot of IT and IT-related advocates in our hub, so we ve put in a lot of techie rewards from ThinkGeek. KARL BAUTISTA Social Media and Digital Content Producer at WORK[etc] 6

8 INTROVERTED BY NATURE Michael Jackson once asked if you Wanna be Startin Something. The IT pro s answer would be a definitive no unless the conversation has some particular meaning and relevance to him. Translation: ditch the meaningless small talk, or at least save it for another persona. Help facilitate these types of conversations, and do your homework to make sure the topics you are promoting are engaging and interesting. THERE ARE ALWAYS EXCEPTIONS TO THE RULE Note that these are only generalizations for the purposes of understanding the typical IT persona as a whole. As with anything, there are always exceptions. many IT professionals are introverts oralthough adverse to the spotlight, we have found that many are not. So it s very important to know your advocates and what motivates them. SOPHIE BROWN Customer Marketing Manager at Bomgar 7

9 POSITIONING So how can you best position yourself for these types of customers? BE TRANSPARENT and stick to the point. Don t try to convince your audience of something that isn t a reality. Chances are they know the truth before you do! Be factual and open during all interactions. After 12 years marketing to IT professionals in various roles, I ve learned one very important lesson: don t oversell something or make it sound more fun than it really is or they will be totally turned off. LIZ PEDRO Director of Customer Success Marketing at Mitel WHAT S IN IT FOR ME? Make the answer to this question clear. Always position your interactions with IT professionals in a way that delivers value. If you are trying to engage your audience for product feedback, position the ask in a way that communicates: we want you to dictate the direction of our product s future. What features and functionality do you need most? Don t make it sound like you are asking for input that you ll never really take into consideration. 8

10 KEEP IT LIGHT Have a little fun. Remember, IT pros may typically be quiet, but they are often also quirky. What you may consider geeky, they may thrive on. So don t be afraid to travel to the lighter side and have fun. Present the longstanding debate of Star Wars vs. Star Trek, for instance, and watch everyone weigh in. In fact, despite their affinity for technical jargon, you d be surprised how much IT pros might appreciate such lighter fare. Our customers are almost exclusively in the IT industry and we ve learned that while they are obviously very technologically savvy and have a tendency to be a bit introverted, they also seem to appreciate a little humor. They see a lot of technical verbiage on a regular basis, so they respond well to being treated like an actual human. ANDRIA KELZENBERG Digital Marketing Specialist at Arrow S3 GIVE THEM A PLATFORM While it doesn t have to be a soapbox, IT professionals still want a platform where they can and should be heard - even if they re often tied up working behind the scenes. Make them feel valued, and stress that you are interested in their personal opinions. Make your surveys are specific, and show that you are aware of their advanced expertise. 9

11 CASE STUDY HOW STAR WARS HELPED QUORUM GET MORE SPICEWORKS REVIEWS Quorum provides the only PCI-compliant, instant disaster recovery solution for the mid-market. Their customers? Mostly IT professionals. Online Marketing Manager Kevin Lau wanted to raise awareness about Quorum s solutions by asking their advocates to boost the number of customer reviews on Spiceworks, a professional network and review site used by more than five million IT professionals and over 3,000 technology brands. Unfortunately, after a few weeks, the number of new Spiceworks reviews was low. Kevin took a step back to think about why this might be. Then, he had an ah-ha moment that changed everything: I realized that an advocate marketing program isn t just about asking advocates to do stuff for us, says Kevin. We were being one-sided and needed to focus on giving instead of just taking. Kevin saw that those initial challenges weren t compelling or diverse enough to capture the attention of Quorum s customers. He was primarily asking advocates to leave reviews on Spiceworks, but wasn t doing anything to motivate them to do so. Then he shifted gears and created challenges that would help him get to know his community of customers. In one challenge, he simply asked Quorum s customers if they preferred Star Wars or Star Trek. After learning that he had a community of diehard Star Wars fans, he played off that theme and got a much greater response. 10

12 He discovered that Quorum s IT advocates responded to the following types of challenges: Surveys (such as feedback and product development) Fun challenges (including the Star Trek vs. Star Wars challenge) Knowledge sharing When I focused on what my advocates wanted as opposed to what I had wanted I achieved my original goal of getting more Spiceworks reviews, Kevin explains. AFTER PUTTING THE FOCUS ON QUORUM S ADVOCATES, KEVIN: Engaged 72% of his advocates and got them to return to The Quorum Academy on a regular basis Received more than 70 Spiceworks reviews and testimonials Identified five Super Advocates (customers who are highly motivated to help Quorum at a moment s notice) Got references from 16 customers Increased employee participation 11

13 CHALLENGES THE 3 QS: QUIET, QUIRKY, AND QUALIFIED. These best describe the IT persona. Your key challenge is in understanding all three, and learning how to speak their language, and recognize their work and viewpoints in a way that they re most comfortable with. It becomes a balancing act between satisfying the IT pro s need to be rewarded yet not be the centre of attention. Whatever you do, don t forget to have a little fun while you re at it. Start engaging your IT audience with some simple asks about their daily work. Start conversations about specific hot topics in IT. Direct your advocates to debates where they can showcase their expertise and help others. Show you care about their input by giving exclusive access to new features. 12

14 INVITE, MOBILIZE AND RECOGNIZE YOUR ADVOCATES Now that you know more about what motivates IT professionals to advocate for your company, it s time to take action with Influitive s powerful advocate marketing software. Influitive s AdvocateHub is a complete advocate management platform that helps B2B marketers capture customer enthusiasm, and use it to turbocharge marketing and sales efforts. With AdvocateHub, B2B marketers build advocate communities where customers, fans and evangelists can complete challenges like referrals, reference calls, product reviews and much more. VISIT INFLUITIVE.COM TO LEARN MORE