A Customer Journey: YouTube, LinkedIn Groups, and Social Media Have Made Your B2B Sales Process Obsolete!

Transcription

1 2 0 / 2 0 Vi s i n f r M a r k et i n g Breakthrugh s 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s A Custmer Jurney: YuTube, LinkedIn Grups, and Scial Media Have Made Yur B2B Sales Prcess Obslete! By Mike Barr Fr ver 15 years Mr. Barr has helped cmpanies develp G-T-Market strategies that build market pwer and grw revenue. Link YOUR digital (and scial) marketing activities t YOUR sales prcess and YOUR revenue

2 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Executive Summary Yur custmers via YuTube, n-line frums, magazine websites, and cnsultants via their blgs, industry grups and articles, have nw created s much cntent fr prspects that the purchase prcess has radically changed. Prspects can learn what they want t buy withut ever talking with a sales representative and pssibly withut ever referring t the prduct s literature r web site. Such a majr change in hw custmers/prspects learn requires revisiting yur entire sales and marketing effrts. Yur prspects (and repeat custmers) are still prgressing thrugh the same fundamental purchase prcess frm unawareness, t selectin, t purchase, t use. Hwever, due t the way custmers nw btain infrmatin their relatinship with vendrs has fundamentally changed. Yu must nw link these tls t the custmer s new educatinal jurney in rder t accmplish what yu are actually trying t achieve increased sales. This paper utlines hw t link YOUR digital (and scial) marketing activities t YOUR sales prcess and YOUR revenue. The QDI G-T-Market Wrkflw Mdel enables yu t rganize yur sales and marketing activities int an verall wrkflw t help prspects mve thrugh their educatinal jurney t the use f yur prduct. This apprach identifies the purpse f each activity and hw yu shuld measure their perfrmance. The result is an alignment f yur sales prcess and sales/marketing supprt with the custmer s jurney t purchase and use yur prducts/services. Changing Envirnment If yu are like mst f ur clients, yur marketing rganizatin is creating new digital marketing and scial media tls such as: YuTube vides, Facebk pages, Twitter feeds, Linked-In grups, micr sites, blgs, campaigns, web-advertising, cntent marketing, search engine rankings, etc.. Hwever, these are n lnger brand building activities where visits r eyeballs are the bjective. Yu shuld measure yur sales and marketing prcess steps by their effectiveness and efficiency at delivering prspects t the next step in the jurney. By listening t custmers, yu will see the stages f this custmer jurney are familiar. The radically new self-educatin ptins mean yu must rebuild yur sales and marketing prcess t serve these familiar stages by aligning yur effrts with this new educatinal reality. Mst f yur ptential decisin makers are searching the Internet t btain infrmatin abut their industry r help with their jb. This means there is a pint when smene is lking fr infrmatin t help them / their business be mre successful that will lead t a purchase. What they find in this search will shape hw they view the prblem, what slutins they lk at, hw they evaluate the slutins, and what vendrs they shuld talk t. A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 2

3 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Because the Custmer s Jurney is custmer-cntrlled educatin, yu can n lnger buy yur way int their prcess with cld calls r traditinal ads. When searching fr infrmatin abut hw t address their prblem, buyers will decide in a matter f secnds whether t use the tls yu prvide r g elsewhere. Prspects will chse yur prducts if they are BETTER than the alternative likewise, prspects will chse t listen t yur marketing and sales assistance if it is BETTER than the alternative s. The new cmpetitr is taking business because prspects view his slutin as a better fit than yurs, r the prspects find the cmpetitr s self-educatin tls are easier t use than yurs. Yu knw where yur custmers are they are n the Internet. The questin is, d yu shw up as the best slutin t the PROBLEMS THEY HAVE when they are searching fr help? Yu need t shw them mre than just yur prduct; yu need t shw them yu can help, and yu may need t d it in an engaging way. Fr example, cnstructin equipment manufacturer JCB just prduced a vide entitled Visin f the Future. While a bit uncnventinal, its entertainment value is getting it fund and viewed by buyers wh never nticed anything frm JCB befre. Tday the mst imprtant task is t get search engines, existing custmers, and infrmatin surces telling the right custmers t see hw yu can help. A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 3

4 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Frm yur rganizatin s pint f view yu need t redesign yur custmer engagement. Frm yur prspective custmer s pint f view, yur custmer engagement apprach is bslete. This paper utlines the apprach we have used t understand the custmer s jurney frm unawareness - thrugh purchase - t use f the prduct, s that we can design a g-t-market wrkflw that helps the custmer mve frm seeing the prblem, t seeing the value f ur client s prduct, t using the slutin. Cnsider: 70% f B2B buyers use a search engine at the start f their buying prcess (Mediative) 80% f prduct research fr future business purchases start with search (Pardt) 54% f B2B buyers fllw grup discussins t learn mre (DemandGen) 84% f B2B marketers use scial media in sme frm (Aberdeen) Custmer Jurney Prspects tday search the Internet fr infrmatin abut their PROBLEM, which leads them t: Blgs where thers have asked and anyne has answered YuTube vides abut slutins psted by users (r manufacturer) Magazine/publicatin websites Assciatin websites We als knw that prspective buyers want t learn abut their ptins n their wn schedule they aren t ging t wait fr a sales persn r fr yu t infrmatin. They find the infrmatin they want n the web. This easy availability f infrmatin has als changed the infrmatin gathering prcess. Decisin makers are nw asking ther peple let s call them researchers -- in the rganizatin t gather infrmatin r assess ptins; even make recmmendatins. These peple range frm a gfer, t the user, t a subject matter expert. In sme cases these researchers dn t want fllw-up by vendrs, s they will intentinally nt call sales peple; ften they will nt prvide cntact infrmatin at websites. While 5 years ag asking yur sales frce r channel fr a dem was a cmmn way fr a custmer t start their jurney, they are nw n the web lking fr infrmatin has yur marketing mix changed apprpriately? A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 4

5 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Decisin makers and researchers are educating themselves n ptential slutins (prducts/services) t prblems they see tday; hence, the traffic f yur digital marketing activities. Of curse, sme f the traffic is related t cllege students researching fr a term paper and yur suppliers lking t understand yur business. Prviding self-educatin sites, vides, and blgs, and seeing the use f these tls desn t mean they are delivering the results yu need. Yur Custmers are first self-educating, then they are chsing t engage yu (yur sales frce, distributr, r dealer) when they are ready. If yu dn t already have research shwing hw yur custmers are self-educating befre calling yu yu are falling behind. Rethinking hw yu help perspective buyers Yu can t stp the prspect frm self-educating, but yu can wrk with the tls they use t help them learn. Histrically, marketing and sales have prvided much f the infrmatin buyers wanted and thus, custmers kept us infrmed abut where they were in the custmer jurney (i.e. I am just cllecting infrmatin, lking at sme ptins fr next year, cmparing 3 vendrs ). Research is nw shwing as much as 50% f the custmer s purchase prcess ccurs befre the prspect cntacts any vendrs. The custmer jurney map must start with hw custmers becme aware they have a prblem. Building the New Custmer Jurney map requires new knwledge 1) Yu need t knw (nt just think yu knw) what the researcher r perspective buyer is searching fr s yu can insure the search will lead t yur tls. 2) Yu need t knw what ther surces they will explre such as industry sites, discussin grups, and distributin web sites. 3) Yu need t knw what infrmatin frmat(s) is the mst insightful (text, vide, chat, simulatin ) s yu can match yur cntent t their expectatins / apprach. 4) Yu need t knw what they wuld return t these sites fr, s yu can build an n-line relatinship with the researcher r decisin maker. T gather this knwledge we must step away frm measuring each tl separately. Peple act as if knwing hw many likes a Facebk page received is a substitute fr knwing if the infrmatin helps the user mve twards purchasing yur slutin. We must understand the stated and unstated purchase prcess needs just like we d when we develp new prduct/service cncepts. A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 5

6 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s By rganizing this research with the fcus and depth yu wuld apply t new prduct cncepts, we can learn what we need t help custmers self-educate. The utcme f this effrt culd include deciding t supprt sme f these surces, regularly mnitr and participate in thers, as well as imprve yur tls. Remember, yur tls are everything frm ne tweet, t the crprate website, t entire industry specific sites. QDI s Marketing Wrkflw Mdel Belw is a generic versin f QDI s Marketing Wrkflw Mdel. This mdel shws the custmer s mvement thrugh the purchase/wnership prcess frm presale activities, t purchase activities, t pst-sales supprt. It links these stages with the required marketing, sales and supprt activities, and the vehicles manufacturers and distributrs use t execute these activities. QDI S GO-TO-MARKET WORKFLOW MODEL MANUFACTURER Leverage Prduct & Brand Advertising Trade Shws Web Site Vide Materials Intrduce Cncept Brand Awareness Prduct Inf Perfrm Dem Capture Order Delivery Tech Supprt Train Dispse YuTube Magazines Custmer Relatinship Carry Inventry Custmer Service Service CHANNELS Leverage Multiple Custmers and Prduct Lines PRE-SALE TRANSACTION POST-SALE Thrugh an in-depth research prcess yu shuld build a custmer jurney map f the as is prcess, then treat it as a wrkflw by determining what is needed at each step t help the prspect mve tward the effective use f yur prduct. This will define an bjective and measureable utcme f each activity; nes yu prvide, nes yu supprt, and nes yu mnitr. The research and wrkflw design prcess: A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 6

7 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Since the gal is t rganize all f yur sales and marketing activities int wrkflw functins, yu shuld invlve all f thse grups in the prcess. Therefre, the team shuld include representatives frm: Prduct marketing Marketing cmmunicatins Digital marketing (especially if separate frm traditinal marketing cmmunicatin) Sales Marketing strategy This team als serves t bring sales, marketing, and strategy tgether n hw t help ur custmer and grw the business. The prper use f the new tls is an utcme, nt smething frced n sales. The team will then wrk thrugh 4 steps: 1. Assemble internal perspectives and data 2. Gather prspect/custmer input 3. Design a GTM (G-T-Market) wrkflw 4. Implement Step 1: Assemble internal perspectives and data The team shuld cllect the internal infrmatin n: Industry Trade Publicatins - list their n-line services Directries Prduct ratings Searchable articles YuTube channels Assciatins Frums fr discussin including LinkedIn grups Large cnsulting rganizatins Newsletters Blgs and discussin grups Yur rganizatin Cntent prvided t magazines Cntent available at yur website(s) brchures, cnfiguratrs Traffic t the website and dwnladed cntent Psts and cmments at ther sites Resurces devted t mnitring the cntent A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 7

8 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s The team shuld interview key sales peple and ther stakehlders, having them walk thrugh their interactin with custmers. The questins utlined belw can be a guide fr these interviews. Frm these interviews, build a straw-man (r assumed custmer jurney) t serve as a guide in Step 2. Step 2: Gather Prspect/Custmer Input Nw the team talks t typical prspects t gather the raw input n hw they have been ging thrugh the entire prcess. Yu need t learn: What prcess did the custmer fllw? What surce f the inf did they use? Wh fund the surce? Hw did they find the surce? Wh did the research? Hw lng did the prcess take? Did they return t the same surces mre than nce? Why s yu can reinfrce this behavir Hw such as bkmarks, s yu can make it easy t revisit thse surces What delivered the essential value? Why was it valuable? Culd yur firm have prvided mre valuable cntent? Where d yur cmpetitive advantages fit in the learning prcess? Hw d we help custmers see the unique advantages f ur slutin? What wuld have been f additinal value? Where can ur strengths prvide unique slutins fr custmers? The team must even cnsider current custmers, hw did they decide they might need t make anther purchase, what wrk did they d befre cntacting yu abut making anther purchase? What are they ding nw t learn abut yur prduct, hw t use it, fix it, r replace it? Next, use the individual custmer s jurney ntes t create a table shwing: Rw 1: The majr stages custmers mve thrugh Rw 2: What activity the custmers need t accmplish/learn t mve t the next stage Rw 3: What surces f infrmatin the custmer is likely t use regardless f whether yu have anything t d with the cntent prvided at that surce A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 8

9 Inf Surces Activity Stage 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Fr example, cnsider this scenari fr a client s piece f equipment: Custmer Jurney Stages (Example) Pssible need Learn abut the prblem Learn abut slutins Cmpare alternatives Evaluate alternatives Purchase New business pprtunity Manager realizes new Eq. required View cntact s slutin View vides Identify OEM and 3 rd party Eq. prviders Owner calls 2-3 knwn vendrs fr dem Owner places the rder Owner requests a manager t lk at the pprtunity Persnal cntacts Magazine sites YuTube vides Supplier websites Auctin websites At industry grup r website ask thers their experiences Viewed by wner & manager (Manager influences wners decisin) The team may find there is mre than ne path and shuld create a table fr each path specific grup f custmers take. Step 3: Design a new Custmer Jurney wrkflw Nw add rws t transfrm the table int a plan t help custmers in ways that lead t the purchase and use f yur prducts: Rw 4: What cntent yu will prvide Rw 5: Where yu will prvide that cntent Lcatins yu cntrl Industry sites and hw yu will prvide/influence the site s cntent Rw 6: Metrics and measurement methdlgy Fr example: Percentage f prspects that use the cntent via win/lss surveys This prcess will give fcus and bjectives t yur cntent marketing activities. Cntent marketing is NOT brand building; cntent marketing is the fuel fr a custmer jurney that leads t the purchase and use f yur prduct. The team may want t create a visual representatin f the new custmer jurney and yur wrkflw supprt t help yur rganizatin understand and supprt the new scenari. A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 9

10 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s If yu have mre than ne Custmer Jurney, repeat the prcess fr each Custmer Jurney table. Step 4: Implement Use the table(s) t assign wh will be respnsible in each clumn, fr creating the cntent r wrking with the wner f the cntent/frum, t prvide cntent and review what thers pst. Implementatin shuld include a trial perid during which the team reviews prgress n each activity s metrics. Refining the cntent and metrics helps mre prspects mve t a slutin (driving higher sales). With decisin makers searching the Internet fr infrmatin the key is hitting the bull s eye with yur message fr the specific custmer r custmer segment. Yu nw have t be n target t bth cnnect (prspect finds yu in their search) and influence (prspect stays t read yur materials). Example A firm was explring hw t find future prspects by creating an industry fcused website. Earlier research had detailed what infrmatin was mst valuable t firms in this industry. A trial web site and SEO marketing (t draw peple t the site) shwed they culd attract industry persnnel. Hwever, since visitrs wuldn t register t btain the infrmatin, the site didn t generate new leads. By cnducting Custmer Jurney research the firm learned: The industry data being used t attract users t the site didn t build repeat visits -- these prspects already had ther surces fr this infrmatin. Hwever, prspects were searching fr specific kinds f applicatin and safety infrmatin that wasn t readily available. In additin, prspects wuld return t the website whenever they needed this type f applicatin r safety infrmatin. The custmer jurney research als shwed that sme f the visits were at the beginning f self-educatin that wuld lead t shpping and purchase. Thus, usage behavir at the site wuld indicate the user was a ptential prspect much earlier than the traditinal sales cntact. The research als revealed that while the initial bjectins t registering at the trial site still existed, there were situatins where the user was willing t register and wuld later expect the registratin t link t ther interactins with the firm. A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 10

11 20/20 Visin fr Marketing Breakthrugh s Thus, by lking at the custmer jurney the firm saw hw t re-purpse the site t help educate prspects in applicatins that lead t equipment purchases, and hw t link this assistance with lead generatin. Fr this firm, the industry infrmatin apprach enabled it t cnnect and shw slutins befre the prspects have interacted with cmpetitrs. Summary The ubiquitus availability f infrmatin has changed hw custmers make B2B purchases. Using the Internet, digital marketing, and scial media means yu are using the new weapns, but until yu rganize them int a unified wrkflw yu are still using an bslete battle plan. Creating an accurate custmer jurney map and building the right marketing wrkflw requires the same level f custmer learning and fcus that yu undertake when creating a new prduct line. While this effrt is significant, the new sales and marketing wrkflw will help mre prspects thrugh an educatinal prcess that leads t using yur slutins delivering increased sales alng the way. Fr additinal examples f Custmer Jurney Maps r t discuss hw QDI wuld apprach leveraging yur digital marketing t drive grwth, give us a call. Michael Barr Steve Bassill (847) ex 225 (847) ex 229 Surces: Mediative Pardt s DemandGen Aberdeen JCB vide White paper, Feb Padt s 2013 State f Demand Generatin Reprt, The 2012 B2B Buyer Landscape New Challenges, New Cmplexity: by DemandGen Reprt Aberdeen Acess reprt Are we there yet QDI Strategies, Inc S. Milwaukee Ave, Ste. 620 Libertyville, IL Tel: Fax: A Custmer Jurney... COPYRIGHT 2014 QDI STRATEGIES, INC. Page 11