B2B Lead Generation: Web 2.0 & Social Media

Published by AYN Brand | Filed under Internet Marketing

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Chris Brogan has a well-deserved reputation as being one of social-media’s true community-builders. Chris, who is a co-founder of PodCamp co-founder as well as the Vice President of Strategy and Technology for CrossTech Media, presents on Successful Lead Generation in a Social Media World at the Marketing Profs B2B Forum. Chris will pull from his own experience building successful social networks to show companies how they can do the same. He’ll also talk about using social networks as lead generation tools to build your customer and client base.

Let’s say I am a B2B marketer, and am constantly hearing buzz about social media and how it can help my marketing. Why is social media important to my business and why does it deserve my attention?

Top 10 Keys to Marketing & Sales Success

Published by AYN Brand | Filed under Public Relations, Strategies, loyalty, marketing

Time and again, studies have shown that focusing on customer satisfaction is the key to closing sales. It seems elementary, but you’d be surprised at how many salespeople try to “trick” or bargain their way to closing sales, using such manipulative tactics as discounts, coercion, preying on fears, or rote scripts. While these tactics may provide a boost in the short-run, many of them require constant maintenance and are poor in generating long-term customer loyalty and brand advocacy.

When marketing and selling, then, you should make sure you and your marketing/sales team make these top ten keys intrinsic to their approaches in order to achieve success:

1. I have the best interests of the customer AND the company in mind: I look for win-win solutions.
2. I try to achieve my goals by truly satisfying each customer’s needs, not by saying whatever it takes to convince them to buy.
3. I ask “why?” questions to identify my customer’s real needs and which benefits they seek.

How to Twitter for Better Business

Published by AYN Brand | Filed under Branding, Internet Marketing, Twitter, marketing

Just when you were done setting up your blog, branding your MySpace page, adding your info to LinkedIn, and setting up a Facebook account, the social net-world moves on to the the next new thing: microblogging. Microblogging is the fast-food version of online communication, where you can post your thoughts on the fly with quick and easy SMS or mobile apps. Leading the way is Twitter, a microblog application that allows you to post small (less than 140 character) messages from your computer or mobile phone.

You may wonder, “What’s the point? Why not just use a blog?” For business communication, there are definite advantages of using both.

With blogs, you can post in-depth articles, press releases, and other company news. The advantage Twitter presents over a blog, however, is in its ability to enable you to keep in touch with people quickly and simply. Twitter is the light and nimble hybrid of blogging and SMS.

Top 4 Successful Loyalty Programs

Published by AYN Brand | Filed under Branding, Direct Marketing, Experiential Marketing, Promotional Products, Strategies, marketing

When a loyalty program fails, marketers tend to blame the strategy rather than look into the value proposition of the rewards/incentives offered. It’s frequently the rewards themselves that are to blame: if a person can’t afford the rewards they want, and don’t want the rewards they can afford, why would they want to participate?

Most loyalty marketers agree that a successful program should offer a perceived reward value of 5%. In other words, for every $100 members spend with you, they should earn a reward with a *perceived value* of at least $5. For most programs, this is a minimum threshold. Note the difference between perceived value and actual cost. If you give back five cents on every dollar a customer spends with you, then the perceived value and the actual cost of the reward are identical.

Philanthropy & Diversity as Outreach Strategy

Published by AYN Brand | Filed under Branding, Community Relations, Minority, Public Relations, Strategies

With strong petitions for giving coming from such bigwigs as Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and former President Bill Clinton, corporate philanthropy has gained increased national exposure this year. Studies have found that corporate foundations gave more than $1.8 billion to diverse communities in 2003.Diversity Inc. asked eight companies with demonstrated philanthropic success in diverse communities why this has been good for them. Here are their top five reasons:

Increases Customer Loyalty

As a leader in the healthcare industry, it is vital for WellPoint, No. 47 on The 2006 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity list, to connect with its consumers. In an industry that historically has evoked distrust and doubt among people of color, WellPoint has put great emphasis on following through on its commitment to diversity, especially with philanthropy.

“Consumers and our associates pay more attention to what we do than what we say,” says David Casey, vice president, diversity and work-force development. “It is imperative that we engage in tangible programs and initiatives that don’t just speak to our commitment to diversity but demonstrate it.”