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The Sales Cycle Has Become the Buying Cycle
B2B marketers have come to understand the need for content very well–so much so that they find themselves in the role of publisher for their own brand, creating a steady stream of new information, and participating in virtual conversations. Yet it is no secret that B2B marketing content is still falling short. For example, in a recent survey by spiceworks.com, a full 75% of IT professionals say they no longer register for white papers and other content that is pushed to them. More than likely, this audience has been inured to the deluge of boring, hard-selling content awaiting them behind the form.
So, if you are like many B2B marketers today you find yourself with great content delivery tools—in the form of marketing automation or campaign management software—but a short supply of effective content to push to the market. What are the reasons, and what can you do about it?
Reason #1: Marketing Myopia
Many marketing departments are driven by their own internal events; new product launches, user conferences, the CEO’s latest initiative are often reasons to launch a flurry of marketing activities.
Here’s the painful truth: your prospects couldn’t care less about your CEO’s latest initiative. Due to the web and social media, they move through the sales cycle at their own pace, based on their own needs and pressures. If your company ignores this fact, you risk “marketing myopia,” the condition of becoming so narrowly focused on your own agenda that you forget to communicate with your buyers.
In fact, it is not even accurate to call it a sales cycle anymore. It is really a buying cycle—and the buyer is in control. Therefore, the most effective content, and thus the most effective marketing, must meet the buyer’s needs, not yours! Your CEO may have internal pet projects, but he will love you at the end of the day if you bring in a slew of new prospects.
Reason #2: Underestimating How Buyers Use Content
The second reason, and the one that is covered most extensively in this paper, is marketing’s lack of understanding about the buying cycle, and how buyers use content throughout that cycle.
Buyers now have access to any information they need in the buying process. As a marketer, your best odds of guiding them towards considering your solutions is through creating great content that connects with them at each stage of their buying process. Failing to make that investment in top quality content means that your competitors are that much more likely to attract the attention of potential buyers. Steven Woods |
A few years ago, marketing handled brand image and awareness. A few marketing departments would handle the tougher tasks of lead generation, and then throw the “leads” over to sales.
But now that the buyer—not your sales team—is in charge of the buying cycle, marketing has a much more important role. With the advent of social media and marketing automation software, B2B marketing is finally becoming what many have felt it should be: sales in large numbers. While the sales department manages a few dozen active prospects at any one time, marketing juggles hundreds or thousands. And matching the right digital content to each of those prospects, at the right phase of the buying cycle, is critical.
Content is the New Fuel that Drives Decisions
First, acknowledge that your prospects’ agendas are not the same as your corporate agenda. Second, understand how the B2B customer moves through the buying cycle. Then, you are free to develop an intelligent content strategy that will drive more leads and convert more sales. Your content strategy becomes your marketing fuel. It forms the foundation of your planning and budgeting, and drives your decisions and priorities.
Many B2B companies still spend a great deal of money on content but don’t get close to their money’s worth because they accept inconsistent and disconnected editorial standards rather than putting the time in up front to build a customer-focused strategy on the types of content that matter most. Rob Leavitt |
One of the keys, as Brian Halligan of HubSpot says, is to “think like a magazine publisher.” Give them the content they want!
We go one step further: give them the content they want at each phase of the buying cycle.
The Four Stages of the Buying Cycle
Like the B2B sales cycle that preceded it, the B2B buying cycle has recognizable stages and milestones. Each of these four stages requires a wholly different content approach.