{"id":26248,"date":"2020-05-01T09:35:40","date_gmt":"2020-05-01T13:35:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/exob2b.com\/?p=26248"},"modified":"2020-09-01T10:03:07","modified_gmt":"2020-09-01T14:03:07","slug":"dont-kill-your-b2b-marketing","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/exob2b.com\/en\/dont-kill-your-b2b-marketing\/","title":{"rendered":"Don’t Kill your B2B Marketing"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Today we\u2019re facing a lot of uncertainty and this inevitably affects the companies and B2B marketing decisions we make. Let’s try to find, in all this chaos, a time for opportunity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s stay active!<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Our decisions will have an impact on our entire ecosystem, starting with\nthe people who make it up. From the outset, activate your internal\ncommunications with your world and with your community. Show leadership in your\ncommunications and demonstrate that you are present.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

That’s why I’d rather talk about slowing down, rather than stopping all\ntogether, with my team. We will\ntake this moment to review (actions, attitudes, processes, technologies, etc.),\nmove away from them a little and, think about other ways of doing things that\ncan be more beneficial.<\/strong> We can even think about this with regards\nto our customers, our suppliers and the community. We’re not on\nvacation!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

At ExoB2B, we live this situation with the belief that we can only do better. This is also why we choose to slow down some of our B2B marketing “activities” in order to better create others that we believe are more relevant to the current situation and will have a tangible impact over time.<\/strong> We want it anyway!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More concretely, the objective of this post is to share an experience with a company that preferred to put a brake on its marketing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s the short story:<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

We are developing a new account. The potential client is a very good SME in\nthe IT field and will need to deploy a significant international growth\nstrategy. This growth strategy includes adding a new product to its current\nservice offering and, better penetration of the natural market.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In short, the planned work covers several important issues, including delays in launching this new product in new markets (diversification = higher risks).<\/strong><\/a> As you will have understood, all this requires a fairly careful preparation if you want to be ready for the beginning of summer.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As a result, the digital strategy must also align itself with this diversification.<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Meanwhile, the Coronavirus crisis “<\/a>landed” on Monday morning, March 15th. Some projects are being carried over to a few clients, which is normal. Surprisingly, this particular and very strategic project, is put on hold instantly and all marketing is “off” too.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I understand what is going on, I have a business and I have experienced\nseveral empty passages.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Moreover, I also understand with 30 years of practice, that one of the\nfirst functions that is put on the bench, is marketing. So, we should leave the\nclient on \u2018ice\u2019 and go on the offensive with them. In the long run, the defense\nis able to do little, and everything will collapse.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

More importantly, let’s go back to this company… During our exchanges, we\nunderstood that this was a growth strategy necessary to address short- and medium-term challenges.<\/strong> Something that cannot be improvised.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an ideal B2B marketing world, everything would have gone according to plan. In a disaster scenario, everything stops. This is not the case at the moment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here’s what I would advise this company in a situation as it is now, that\ngives us the opportunity to do what we never have time to do. Even though we know it’s\nimportant!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Start by doing an analysis of your entire digital ecosystem.<\/strong> Then, you can correct the situation<\/strong> according to the expected growth strategy and your results.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your website, blog and rich content<\/h4>\n\n\n\n

Take the time to analyze your reports and\/or performance dashboards: SEO, <\/strong>where your traffic comes from,<\/strong> visitor behavior and conversions, <\/strong>etc.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Is your content aligned with the needs of your new<\/strong> markets?<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your CRM <\/h4>\n\n\n\n

When was your last “housekeeping”\ndone:<\/strong> bad entries, duplicates, oversights, dubious configuration, unnecessary\nreporting, non-existent marketing process (hahaha!).<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Thoroughly analyze your funnels and pay attention to your opportunities,\ncontact them. Stay close to them\nmore than usual, <\/strong>even if they\u2019re not a client.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

It’s hard to talk about CRM without talking about marketing and sales automation.<\/strong> Do you have “scores”<\/strong> developed based on\nthe progress of the purchasing process and the activities of your\ncontacts\/accounts? If so, they should point you to which short-term actions to\ntake.  If you\ndon’t have one, this is a great time to do it.<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

As everything slows down and is uncertain, we strongly suggest that you do “surgical” <\/strong>marketing. Your resources need to be focused and you need to stay alive.  Be precise and agile!<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Your digital channels<\/h4>\n\n\n\n