Junta42 blog

B-to-B Fundamentals Don't Change - The BMA Video

Thanks to David Meerman Scott and Rob Rose for passing this video on from BMA 09 - B-to-B Fundamentals Don't Change.

Why You Need to Publish a Custom Book: Q & A with Eloqua's Steven Woods

I had the opportunity to sit down with Steve Woods (CTO at Eloqua) recently when we were both speaking at Online Marketing Summit - DC. We came to the subject of our respective books (mine Get Content Get Customers, Steve's Digital Body Language) and how they serve as the ultimate marketing tool.

Readers of this blog know that we (Newt Barrett and I) originally self-published Get Content Get Customers in 2008, with McGraw-Hill picking up the rights to the book in 2009. Outside of this blog, the book has been the #1 driver of success for both myself and with the organizations I'm involved.

With that in mind, I wanted to know what Steve's book has done for him, both personally and for Eloqua. Steve was nice enough to share his time and answer my questions below. After you read through this, you, as a professional and a stakeholder in your company, should think seriously about writing a book that positions you as a trusted expert in your field.

IMPORTANT NOTE: Just talked to Steve who said he'd be happy to give away a copy of his book to our readers.  Anyone who comments is automatically entered in a drawing to receive a free copy. So...comment away.  Thanks Steve!

Joe - What was the purpose behind writing the book?

Steve - We’ve been working with marketers for 10 years to understand how they are interacting with today’s new buyer.  These marketers have all realized that today’s buyers have fundamentally changed; they use Google, various online sources, and social media to find their information, rather than interacting with a sales person.  As a marketer, they are looking at how to engage with this new buyer and facilitate their overall buying process, rather than trying to sell to them.  As we’ve helped these marketers, we’ve had a great opportunity to dig deep into what it takes to be successful, and the mistakes you can easily avoid as you evolve your marketing organization.  Every time we spoke with our customers, they were very interested in the lessons of what pitfalls to avoid, what is critical to think through, and how to succeed in today’s B2B marketing environment.

As the space has evolved, there have been a lot of new companies springing up who are suggesting that it’s a problem that can be solved with technology alone.  Today’s marketers know that engaging with today’s new buyer requires a new way of thinking about their business, not just another flashy piece of software.  So many marketers were asking us to help them think through the business problems, rather than just the technology, that we knew we had a story that needed to be told.

Why a custom print book over something else?

I think there’s still something about the format of a book.  Regardless of whether it’s a physical book, or on Kindle (we did both), the length of the format lets you dig into an area more deeply than you would if you were reading a one or two page article online.  We wanted to give marketers something that they could take on the plane, relax, and make their way through, getting immersed in the topic for a few hours.  I’ve had many marketers tell me that that was exactly how they read the book, and when they landed, they had a host of new ideas to take back to their teams and get started on.

I think each format has its own unique characteristics, and they work best when they are used together.

Talk a bit about the process for getting the book written and produced.

That was an interesting  process.  I would say that it took about a year, start to finish, to do the writing of the book.  I still had a day job, so much of that was on planes.  A trip from Toronto to San Francisco gave me at least 3 hours of uninterrupted writing time, for example.  However, I also wanted to share the stories of how various marketers were tackling the challenges of engaging with today’s buyer, and where they were succeeding.  To do that, I had the marketers behind 30 of the most fascinating marketing challenges tell their story, and included those in the book.

The interview, editing, revision, and approval process for those 30 stories took almost as long as the writing itself, but was probably the most interesting for me, as I had the chance to talk with some of the best marketers around.

Interestingly, I found out that you only need cover art and an ISBN number to get your book up on Amazon.  We had it live for pre-order at least 6 months before the books were ready.

Start to finish, it was about 18 months to complete the book.  I outlined a rough time line in a blog post I wrote when the first copies arrived, for those considering the process.

How do you balance the need for not being “promotional” in a book with the need to drive business?

It’s a good question.  I wanted to make sure that we didn’t talk at all about our technology or solutions in the book so as not to be promotional.  However, in educating the market about what’s possible, how to think about the challenges and opportunities, and what is critical for success, the book has been a big driver of business for us.  I would say that it helps in three ways:

• Early Stage: as marketers are thinking about their plans and initiatives, having them aware of what’s possible in the space, and how they can engage with today’s buyers better and more effectively leads to a higher level of interest in our space in general.
• Mid-Funnel: each story in the book gives readers an idea of what’s possible.  Some of those stories trigger an “aha” moment, and lead to a conversation about a way we can help that marketer’s business that may not have been thought of previously.
• Buying Stage: the book gives marketers a more comprehensive view of all the people, process, and technology elements that are needed to succeed.  Armed with this, they are better able to ask deep questions and get beyond the “pretty demo” phase when they are evaluating solutions.

So, although the book itself is not promotional at all, it definitely helps us in all aspects of the sales cycle.  The more educated potential buyers are about our space in general, what’s possible, and how to truly achieve success, the better we do.

Once you have a book created, how do you best leverage that marketing asset?  How do you get the word out about a book?

It’s a great asset to leverage, and we are using almost every channel to leverage it.  The Digital Body Language blog talks about many of the ideas in the book and both drives awareness and keeps the conversation going.   We use everything from Twitter and email marketing to press releases and banners to drive awareness of the blog as a central point in promoting the book.  Similarly, the book provides a great foundation for webinars with other thought leaders in the industry, relations with social media luminaries like yourself, speaking opportunities, and direct client engagement.

So, what kind of results are you seeing because of the book?

The results have been fantastic so far, and we’re just getting started.  It’s the stories that really help; we’ve had so many examples of people we were talking with who read an example and said it was exactly what they wanted to do.  That led to a great conversation about their business and how we would make them successful.  However, the real indicator of success was when they went out into the market and did their research into alternative solutions.  When they came back to us saying that they had seen a variety of pretty demos, but were now able to ask the hard questions about how their business would get to success, I knew we had succeeded with the book.

Would you do anything different?

Like any first experience it’s a learning experience.  I think that if I did it again, I would start the conversations in social media well before the book launches.  We started the Digital Body Language blog at around the same time as the book launched, which meant that it was still building momentum well after the book was out.  Starting the social media conversation around the topics in a book well before the book launches allows you to build buzz and momentum prior to the launch.

How about a second book?

Definitely something under consideration…   There has been a great response to a lot of the topics I’ve covered on the Digital Body Language blog that were somewhat outside of the book’s main topic.  Not sure of exactly what the book would look like or when, but it’s definitely something I’ve been thinking about very seriously.

Related Article:

• 10 Keys to Writing a Book when You Have Absolutely No Time to Write a Book

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Prepare the Way: We will all be media companies

Sat in on a great panel yesterday with Amanda Watlington (Searching for Profit), Christina Howe (Avid) and Rebecca Lieb (eConsultancy) discussing what the world's leading brands are doing.

The discussion was all about content (loved it!).

One attendee asked this question to the panel. "Right now social media is hot, but what is the next big thing we should keep our eyes on?"

I was the first to answer, and this immediately came to mind, and it will happen (is happening).

Over the next few years (not sure exactly when), we won't be able to tell the difference between media companies (publishers) and companies that off non-informational products and services.

Look at it this way. Advertising and traditional marketing is becoming less and less effective. Engagement is fostered today by delivering consistent, relevant, compelling content to our customers (like P&G) - or - showing them a good time (like Blendtec) [for more on that, check out this custom content post about UPS]. That content creation is the fodder for getting involved in the online conversation and positioning your brand as a trusted solutions provider.

At the same time, media companies that have developed great brands and loyal audiences around delivering content are having trouble selling advertising. They all know that traditional advertising (even online display in some cases) is not going to bounce back. So, they are looking at developing products their readers can buy like data products, online software tools (i.e., Smartools from MarketingProfs), and actual manufactured products ala what Martha Stewart has done.

Whether you are a brand that offers products and services or a brand that offers information as the product, this completely changes your business model.

This is coming, and soon.  Actually, it may even be here but we haven't noticed yet.

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Media Armageddon Has Silver Lining

This post by Kirk Cheyfitz over at the postadvertising.com site is truly compelling. Here he summarizes the current media environment:

"The global depression is accelerating this macro-trend [drop in traditional media], but it isn’t the driving reason. What’s happening is that the BIG categories of traditional ad spending are falling off a cliff while much smaller categories of non-traditional advertising are rising like rockets."

If this is at all a surprise to you, you haven't been paying attention.  We've seen this trend since the late 90s, and finally we are seeing big marketers take some serious action, causing havoc to the media world.

But right now, I would argue that there has never been more opportunity in media, particularly for non-media companies.

In my last post, I made the recommendation that large marketers look to buy up vertical trade publications. Non-media companies can (for a reasonable price), buy up the trades and online media sites that make sense with who their customers are. You may disagree with the fairness of this, but buying out talent and brands - and bringing on true content and editorial expertise into a corporate environment makes too much sense today (and without the bad media business model to hold them back anymore).

Rick Barnes had a great post today about how important "filters" will be in the media.  What a great opportunity for marketers?  There's lots of content out there, but not enough people making sense of the noise.  Could that be you?

Talented journalists are getting canned or leaving the media. Talent like this just doesn't appear all the time.  Act fast.

Technology is cheap.

Let's be certain about this. Nothing is wrong with "media" itself.  Consumers are engaging in more content through traditional channels, online resources and social media sites combined than ever before. Buyers are hungry for great information that can help them live better and be more successful at their jobs. The problem is that the traditional media models don't work in today's environment and must be changed.

This problem is the smell of sweet opportunity for marketing professionals. If you can position yourself as a trusted information provider today, sales and profit growth will be there tomorrow.

Sweet sweet content marketing.

10 Content Marketing Tips to Start Now for 2009

One of the reasons I love my job is the different kinds of people I have the opportunity to interact with. Over the past year, I've met with entrepreneurs, thought leaders, agency executives, top marketers, social media gurus, publishing veterans, authors and others - all with particular insights and challenges about how to sell more, do more and be more.

If 2008 was the year social media went mainstream, 2009 should be the year of content marketing, the corporation as media company, the brand as publisher and broadcaster. Why? Because everyone of those incredibly intelligent people I met with, in some way or another, told me that the difference for brands who make it versus those that don't will be relevance. How can we, as brands, be relevant to our customers? How can we create and develop real relationships with them? How do we engage?

As my friend and colleague Kirk Cheyfitz has said over and over - brands can do only two things to create the goal of 100% engagement - we can inform our customers - or give them a good time.

To help, I've put together 10 tactics that I believe you need to seriously consider NOW as part of your 2009 content plan (not in any particular order).

1. Tell the Story Differently through Different Media - It's frustrating to watch the sheer number of marketers tell a great story, but repurpose that story the same way in all their media. Ian Alexander over at Eat Media constantly harps (and rightfully so) on the concept that the story you tell in print versus mobile versus website versus video must be told in a very different manner. Seems obvious, but it's not done. Most commonly, this mistake is made from taking a print custom program and just putting it online. Do you engage with content in the same way in print as you do the web? Most likely, you don't. Do not expect more of your customers than yourself.
2. Raid Traditional Media Outlets - As traditional media continues to lay off the best journalists in the world and layoffs and bankruptcies abound, your opportunity to acquire talent has never been greater. Of course, I'm biased a bit that I believe most marketers should outsource their content and find great providers through our service, but this opportunity is too good to be true. First, the talent is available now. Second, expert journalists are very open to working with corporations today. Third, you need great content to survive as a marketer. To do this, you need talent that understands how to tell a story. Go get that talent today while there is still time (and before they all start up their own content marketing businesses).
3. Why Partner with Media Companies, Just Buy Them - Granted, this is for the larger marketers among us, but a great strategy nonetheless. Paul Conley just posted an excellent read on the shape of the media industry, and his #1 prediction was that content marketers may start to buy b-to-b media companies. I've agreed with this strategy ever since I was at Penton (when I thought Penton should be purchased by eBay Business - and still think it's a great idea for both). Remember, a media company is all about connecting buyers and sellers. Corporations need to do that as well, they only want to limit the number of sellers (to one).
4. Time to Start Using Twitter - I will agree with you...I thought Twitter was stupid when I first tried it. Now, it is an indispensable tool, where I've increased my network, formed partnerships, and led to new business opportunities. To understand the true power you need to use a tool like TweetDeck, which is the ultimately reputation management tool if you can't afford a real reputation management tool. Check out this article by Ann Smarty on using Twitter for Business, as well as Shama Hyder's 101 Ways to Rock Twitter. And finally, if you are distributing relevant content, try sending your RSS feeds through Twitter by using TwitterFeed.
5. Get Serious about a Content Audit - In all honesty, this is a huge task and very challenging to look for all the pieces of content in an organization from the inside.  If you are serious about performing a content audit, look to an outside expert to execute it.  For example, they will look at all your forms of communication and the information you are sending out in order to make recommendations on how to create and fine tune a consistent and relevant message to your customers and prospects.  This includes all the content you have on the web and what's circulating around your company.  Just think about your website…is it consistent?  Does it communicate your vision? If you are serious, we have a number of providers in the Junta42 Match system.
   
   The results of the content audit will help define the purpose, context, types, topics, voice and style for your content marketing plan.  With this information, you’ll have a good handle on where you are currently, and where you need to be in relation to your customers. Hat's off to Kristina Halvorson at Brain Traffic for showing me the light on content strategy.
6. No Reputation Management System? - Work on Your Google Alerts: Of all the listening tools out there, Google Alerts is probably the one I use the most (even more than Twitter).  The way Google Alerts works is that I can monitor keywords and brand names, and whenever anyone mentions them on the Internet, I’ll get a notification.  As a rule, when anyone blogs about me, my company, or my book, I want to know about it and comment to them.  Google Alerts helps me find most of this.
   
   But where this is really of value is to find out what people are saying around they topics that are important to you and your customers.  For example, by monitoring the term “content marketing” over the past couple years, I’ve really gained insight into how the definition has broadened and how more people are using the term in general. It also introduced me to thought leaders like Chris Brogan, who regularly posts and advocates the use of content marketing.
   
   We can help shape the conversation through our own content because we know what’s being talked about on other sites.
   
   So, how do you do it?  Google Alerts is a free tool.  The first thing you need to do is create a Gmail (or Google mail account), which is also free.  Once you have a Gmail account, just type in your keywords into Alerts and set your notifications. To use exact phrases (recommended), try using parentheses like so - "content marketing".
7. Assign a Chief Conversation Officer - Whatever you call it, make sure someone is in charge of listening to customer conversations through blogs, Google Alerts, and Twitter.  Have that person be the personality for your brand.  Customers want to talk to other people, so it’s very important that you put a human face on this.
   
   Remember, a successful content marketing strategy is dependent on how well you know the customer's informational needs. Listening is required.
   
   Here’s an example why you need ownership.  Type in "Kodak" into Twitter Search and you'll find that there are hundreds of people just in the last day that are talking about Kodak in one way or another.  This takes someone’s full time attention to monitor what customers and prospects are saying (which is why Kodak has Jennifer Cisney @KodakCB as their Chief Blogger).  If done right, and with transparency and honesty, there may not be a better way to gain loyal customers than to interact with them in a personal way through social media.  So, I encourage you to take a very serious look at assigning an owner to your social conversation management.
8. Are you BtoB? If so, choose to "Be the Media": Heck, BtoC can do this as well (it's just more challenging). Most brands don’t look at themselves as publishers or media companies right now.  This is starting to change.  Over the next five to ten years, content marketing – or whatever the phrase is – will be the engine behind most of the marketing that happens around the globe.  That’s because buying behavior has changed, and will never go back to the days of mass marketing.  I believe the early movers in providing best of breed industry and educational content will have a clear advantage and be able to position themselves as trusted content providers – which in the long run – will position them for sales and profit growth.  It’s not easy, and right now it takes work to measure, but, as Seth Godin has said, Content Marketing is the only marketing left.
   
   Point is, don't wait for your industry's trade publication or online resource to cover an important topic - important to you and your customers. Go out and develop that information yourselves. Become the trusted content provider in your industry. Not only a good thing to do for your customers and industry, but believe me, it will be good for your bottom line.
9. Find Someone to Be Your Publisher/Media Company - Yes, even though I believe you should grab the journalistic talent when you can, partnering with an organization that focuses on content 24/7 is just a smart move.
   
   You need someone to own your content process.  Select someone to be your turnkey publisher. In my experience, marcom people are not necessarily the most qualified to create story-driven content.  So, if you are serious about growing your business through content marketing, find the expertise now. 
   
   Once you select your publisher or journalist as part of your content team, you should expect them to assist you with the following:
   
   • You can count on this group to help you develop the content plan.  This means that they need to have the best understanding of your customer’s informational needs, and make sure that you have a plan to communicate to each of your customer segments – valuable, relevant and compelling information.  This will involve surveys and discussions with your customers and prospects, and from that you can create a buyer persona for your customer, which is a detailed representation of who your buyer is.
   • Now, Once the content plan is created, you may be asking what types of programs you may need to execute. This will ultimately be dependent on your content plan and the kinds of information that you need them to receive. 
     
     So, you need case studies, interviews with customers about challenges solved. Industry white papers or ebooks that cover a key topic that your customers need to be educated on.  White papers are generally done quarterly by even smaller organizations. For webcasts, you can produce webcasts for resellers, educating them on what’s going on in the industry so they can sell better, or communicate with webcasts/webinars directly to customers.  Key for webcasts is to do it consistently.  Many brands partner with media companies to use webcasts as lead generators.  When done right, there may not be a better lead generator than webcasts.
     
     Believe it or not, custom magazines are still growing, and yes, in print.  Most consumers still enjoy reading print magazines, and even with all the Internet hype, readership in magazines hasn’t gone down.  For distributing in depth information and positioning yourself as a true solutions provider, custom magazines or even online digital magazines are a good choice.  With custom magazines, think retention for your very best customers.
     
     eNewsletters are the most popular content vehicle, and unfortunately most are pretty bad.  You have an opportunity to really position yourself as an expert if you deliver consistently valuable content instead of news release/press release type information. I've always loved what the folks at IMN do with their Pro&Content eNewsletter.
     
     And finally, social media community sites/blogs and content-focused microsites are all growing in popularity.  The key to any successful blog or social media site is this: If you can’t handle customer comments that may be negative in nature, don't go in this direction.  Some companies mask the openness of a blog but don’t allow comments.  My question to that is, what’s the point?  Also, the content needs to be good, and it needs to be personal.  Ghost writing a blog is possible but tough…to make this successful you really need a company personality…but your content provider/publisher can help you get the direction right.
     
   
   Those are just a few…remember, every communication challenge is different, and may require a different content initiative - which is why an expert publisher is so important.  Also, for the most part, none of these initiatives work independently.  For example, there is no such thing as just a custom magazine.  There is always an online component, which may be a microsite, additional web content, white papers and more - and in each of those media channels, the story needs to be told differently for maximum engagement.
10. All this is Meaningless Unless You Measure: Yes, content marketing is a good idea for any size company, but without measurement, how do you have any idea what is working? My former boss at Penton Media, Bill Donahue, used to preach to me all the time that "Hope is not a strategy". Even hope, without an idea of a preferred end result, may actually be defined as insanity.
    
    Before you launch any content initiative, create the content strategy around your marketing program, and be very specific with how you will measure success. Use numbers whenever you can to quantify your plan. Then, have your management buy off on those numbers to support your content plan. Although we finish with this strategy as our last, it probably should be the first. Successful content marketing plans need at least six months just to get any traction at all - so plan for a minimum of 12 to 18 months and continually modify your plan as you gain customer intelligence.

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Google's Sam Sebastian on B-to-B Content Strategy

I had the pleasure of seeing Sam Sebastian speak at the recent ABM/FIPP conference in New York. Sebastian is director of b-to-b and local markets for Google, and provided some interesting luncheon comments for the international group of publishers.

Here is a link to Sam's PowerPoint presentation, with thanks to ABM.

Sebastian started the presentation by discussing what is important to b-to-b marketers during this current economic downturn. According to Sebastian, 66% of marketers interviewed by the Association of National Advertisers (ANA) in 2008 indicated that their marketing plans have been impacted and are changing as a result of the current economy. His solution to this was three points:

1. Continue investments in search and online
2. Tap into the marketing value of online communities
3. Experiment with new ways to create and share content

Another interesting statistic - According to Forbes.com and Gartner, 67% of CXO's cite the Internet as the most influential and important source of information. In addition, Enquiro research found that 70% of executives use search as their primary research tool.

If you've been following this blog, these stats are nothing new, but they continue to show the importance of content. Sebastian's biggest point was that success for b-to-b marketers lies in the quality of their online content. His advice to the crowd was to "build mountains of content" and distribute to customers and prospects in a targeted manner.

Sebastian also noted the success of online communities such as Salesforce.com's Successforce and TheITRoom.com sponsored by Dell.

My Takeaway - Google gets it. It's about content for buyers at the right time during the buying cycle. It's about thought leadership content to position your company as an expert business resource. It's about having a conversation with customers, and getting let in that conversation by providing trusted information.

Knowing this, even though Google says they are not in the content business, they will be someday. They themselves see the importance of distributing content (since that's what they do for everyone else).  Tools like Orkut and Knol are just the start. Watch for more to come and see how Google will start to move away from it's "content distributor" statement and morph into something different.

Related Articles

• Do What Google Does with Your Content Marketing
• Will Cuil's Search Engine Dent Google's Armour?
• Add Content to Your Website without Adding Content - Google Custom Search

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Content News Flash from Forrester: Marketing Must Be Compelling and Make the Buyer Smarter

I had the pleasure of hearing Mr. Peter Burris, principal analyst from Forrester Research, speak today at the ISBM (Institute for the Study of Business Markets) conference at Penn State University.

Outside of some interesting statistics regarding business-to-business marketing, Peter's take on what marketers must do to survive really hit home with the audience of mostly btob CMO's and product managers.

Core research findings from Forrester state that new product adoption success, now managed by the buyer and not the seller (not new news here), is solely dependent on the quality of the need-matching effort. More specifically, Burris states that "marketing has to be compelling and must be a source of intrinsic value unto itself."

Burris continued with the idea that "the buyer or prospective buyer must feel that they are smarter or more certain of their buying decision after they engage in the marketing."

We've been talking about this for a while, and go indepth about it in our book, but this is one of the first times I've heard the analyst community discuss this concept in detail.

Although he never came out and directly said it, Burris implies that btob marketers must generate significant amounts of high-quality information throughout all stages of the buying process.

So much so that Burris used an example from one of his CMO clients, where they are now looking for employees that have journalistic backgrounds who understand how to create high-quality editorial content, which is now the essence of today's community marketing programs.

For most btob companies, products cannot provide all customer value. Marketing must be a source of value to the customer to ultimately get the most revenue out of the product and service offerings.

In talking with a few senior marketing executives after his speech, this is still a relatively new concept to most large business-to-business companies. Although, one large components manufacturer I chatted with said that while traditional programs usually find no internal support, customer content programs are almost always approved as part of their overall marketing budget. We are making progress!

We are in the middle of a content revolution. Most companies are still battling with the technologies and the implications of social media, but haven't yet realized that the key to their marketing programs will ultimately hinge on how valuable the information is that they send to buyers, and the types of conversations that content creates.

One step at a time.

To see a similar PowerPoint presentation from Forrester on this topic, click here.

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Attract and Retain Customers with Content NOW - A Complimentary White Paper

Today’s Internet-savvy buyers are hungry for content. And not just any content...valuable, relevant content that offers solutions to their problems and helps them lead successful, productive, enjoyable jobs and lives. However, they are also inundated by thousands of marketing messages every day, most of which they ignore. To get through, you need to communicate differently—you need to do more than just sell products and services. You need to provide information. Smart marketers know this and are creating strong brand relationships by providing good, authoritative, even leadership-type content.

For that very reason, Junta42 is offering this complimentary white paper entitled, "How to Attract and Retain Customers with Content NOW."

The majority of companies are set up to sell products and services, not to create valuable, relevant and compelling content on a consistent basis. To deliver content that has a chance to create long-term relationships with customers and prospects, businesses need to develop a new content mindset.  This free white paper will help you get there.

Here are just a few of the content marketing issues that are covered in this white paper:

• Content marketing defined
• Why companies have to "Be the Media"
• Six reasons why you need to begin today
• How to develop a content strategy
• Putting the plan in motion
• How to measure your success
• Content + Marketing = Customers

We also include a few case studies from leading brands that are making it work today.

If you are signed in as a Junta42 member, you'll go straight to the white paper.  If not, your name and email address will direct you to the white paper download.

Download your complimentary white paper now! For all you media types and publishers out there, make sure you check out the sister-white paper to this document - "The New Rules of Custom Publishing: Nine Strategies to Create a World-Class Content Marketing Organization." Enjoy.

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The Art of the Free Sample - Content Survival Tips

Every month our investment club meets to review our portfolio, make stock purchase decisions and, hopefully, learn a little. This month our meeting was held at Whole Foods on the east side of Cleveland, Ohio. Previously, this was a Wild Oats, and it was the first time I'd visited the store since it was renamed and re-branded as a Whole Foods.

The difference was notable as soon as we walked in.  I have two words for you - Free Samples.  There was a worker at the door giving out samples of organic peaches and mango. There was another stand set up next to our meeting room area that was giving away complimentary organic coffee. It made quite an impression.  I plan on stopping back and picking up some more of those mango.

Giving away free samples to consumers has been an age-old marketing practice. The idea is to let prospects try it. If they like it, they'll come back for more. From Crest toothpaste to the new Frosted Flakes Gold, consumer marketers with smaller-ticket items use free samples to drive their businesses.

Business-to-business marketers and high-ticket consumer marketers have a bit more difficulty giving away free samples.  "Yes sir, please try out our new forklift, no questions asked." "Yes maam, we'll send over your new Pontiac Vibe today.  Keep it as long as you like." Just doesn't work.

So what to do?

Your content is your free sample. Give your customers and prospects a taste of your brand by delivering great information to them on a consistent basis. Instead of giving them that forklift, how about a video series on green shipping practices? Instead of delivering the Pontiac, how about a custom magazine showing Pontiac owners how they can get the most out of their car and their lifestyle?

This is not rocket science, it's survival. Interruption marketing is near-death. Consumers are tuning out more and more marketing messages. To survive, you have to be relevant. You have to provide constant value in order for your customers to pay attention...even just a bit.

There is no social media strategy without content

I was talking with a marketing consultant today, and we chatted about simplifying the idea of social media. Look at it this way. You are having a one-on-one conversation with your customer. If you are only talking about how wonderful your products and services are, how long do you think they will pay attention to you?

Social media works the same way.  You won't be allowed into the conversation without coming to the party with something of value. This is the golden rule on social media sites, as well as your own website. How long do you think your customers will stay on your site that includes only information about your products? What would you do if you were in their shoes? Would you stay more than five seconds?

Get to know your customers informational needs. Then, provide content that solves those needs. It's that simple. This strategy is not just something nice to do, it's communication survival 101. Go out and create great content.

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Driving Business with Content Tools: A Motorola Case Study

Had the pleasure of sitting through a presentation by Eduardo Conrado, Corporate VP of Global Business & Technology for Motorola at the Business Marketing Association annual meeting today. Most in attendance were amazed that 50% of Motorola's revenues come from B2B ($36.6 billion in total revenues, $18 billion in B2B). They are #1 or #2 in market share in 80% of their B2B customer segments.

There were some really interesting stats and takeaways from this presentation on Motorola B2B Marketing.  The key takeaway is that Motorola is investing in the creation and execution of valuable and relevant content (mostly online) to become a trusted partner and resource to customers.

Here are the highlights:

• According to Eduardo, Motorola's key challenge right now is communicating technology trends to the specific needs of their customers. They define all their businesses today by customer segment, not by product. In selling their solutions, they start with the needs of the customer, and then look for an overall solution, that may combine new solutions with those from their current portfolio.
• The two most important objectives for Motorola in getting new business: 1) Customers must trust Motorola first and 2) Motorola must show the human element (not the technology) in order to sell products and services.

Key Statistics that Motorola has Found in Their Marketing

• 80% of technology buyers use the web as their primary purchasing decision tool.
• 85% of business managers turn to search engines first.
• The #1 reason technology buyers visit the web: case studies and white papers.

Online is the Key for Motorola

• Motorola has increased headcount five-fold in the last few years.
• All campaigns now start with the online component first.
• Motorola's B2B site gets 1.3 million visitors per month. 34% get there through search engines (Eduardo feels this should be higher).

Content Tools Drive Conversion

With every type of demand generation activity (PR, Events, SEO/SEM, Advertising, Direct Marketing) there is a specific tool and landing page to tell the story. These include microsites, video showcases, video libraries, ezines (digital magazines), online communities, and widgets. From these, they look to convert information seekers into prospects to get through to the sales cycle.

Content Examples (specific to the Government Market)

Video Case Studies: Motorola has a huge library of video case studies. For each one, customers can also download a pdf version of the written study, as well as share with colleagues. Users spend an average of 8 minutes on the site.

This linked example is a YouTube type system that will bring up relevant videos based on vertical segment.

Motorola eZine: 17% open rate, 48% click-through rate. Users spend an average of 17 minutes on the eZine site.

Motorola Second Nature: This is a virtual city specific to government decision-makers (fire fighters, police, FBI, government IT and more). This is a digital experience that provides real-world examples of how these decision-makers can best leverage technology to get their jobs done. Worth the trip to see this.

With the computer-generated examples comes links to real-life videos, case studies and white papers of how actual companies are dealing with the same kinds of issues.

How They Do It?
Motorola has aligned with "best-in-class" agencies to help them create and execute these content programs. They also have 300 business-side marketers which doesn't hurt either.

Three Corporate Objectives
Motorola's three key business marketing goals are:

1. Differentiated positioning (address customer need for each segment)
2. Distinct, flexible creative platform
3. Cutting-edge marketing mix (create tools for their customers)

Summary

1. Everything Motorola does revolves around the customer. They align by customer segments (needs), not products.
2. Online first. Print and events are integrated, but the plan and creative are pulled from online.
3. All marketing leads to the creation of informational tools for customers segments. Online content marketing drives everything for Motorola.

Relevant Articles

• The Future of B2B Marketing - Ed Abrams from IBM
• Microsite Scorecard - Citi, Fidelity, IBM
• Microsite Scorecard - Chevron, Shell, FedEx

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