Thursday, April 24, 2014

Proven Tactics Trump Marketing Tricks in B2B Sales

While new business-to-business marketing tricks get press, marketing basics, not some technology sleight of hand, remain the surest way to find, win and keep customers. And we thank Larry Kim, founder and CTO of WordStream, a search engine software firm, for that reminder in his recent article for Inc. magazine. Kim cites five basic strategies that have delivered B2B sales increases for his company: First "be a thought leader" to provide potential clients with information that underscores your expertise and authority via multiple channels, including website, blogging, podcasts, video, conference presentations, Twitter chats, you name it. Next, build brand ambassadors inside (employees) and outside (clients); encourage social media as one way for ambassadors to get the word out. Third, develop a profile of your ideal client and find out where to reach them and what message connects with them; since it costs five times as much to acquire a new client as it does to generate business from existing customers, targeting high-ROI prospects is essential. Fourth, Kim advises to "be real" in marketing and lead nurturing -- the tried-and-true tactic of underpromising and overdelivering. Finally, learn target prospects' paths to purchase in order to provide needed information in preferred formats and channels at the right timing for onboarding clients. Yes, it's common sense, but, alas, it's not always common practice! For the complete article, go to http://www.inc.com/larry-kim/how-we-got-thousands-of-b2b-clients.html

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Nonprofits See Year of Generous Giving Ahead

Seven out of 10 nonprofits expect donations to increase this year, and 13% expect their gains to be substantial—growing by at least 15%, according to a recently released survey of 538 charities by the Nonprofit Research Collaborative. As reported by the Chronicle of Philanthropy, charities in the survey said say they are optimistic because 2013 was stronger than any other year since the recession started. Indeed, Blackbaud's Charitable Giving Report for last year showed overall charitable giving grew 4.9% in 2013, while online giving grew 13.5%. The growing impact of online giving also was reflected in the Nonprofit Research Collaborative survey: Nonprofit respondents attributed much of last year’s growth in donations to special fundraising events and e-mail and online appeals, as well as big gifts from wealthy donors. Nonprofits that raised the most said they targeted a mix of donors for small, medium, and large gifts and diversified how they pursued donations by combining channels such as direct mail, social media, e-mail, and grant proposals. See the report on the Nonprofit Research Collaborative survey at https://philanthropy.com/article/70-of-Charities-Expect-Gains/145437/