by William Walsh | Jul 1, 2024 | 2024
By Scott Gillum
Estimated read time: 3 Minutes
Want to take your ICP’s to the next level? Try using personality based marketing to understand corporate cultures.
Here’s why. Above are 2 SaaS companies in the martech industry. Our client is selling to the same buyer in each company. But the company situations are vastly different.
The first company is growing aggressively and has a corporate culture that is full of “Dominate” personalities.
The second company is under attack and has lost significant revenue and market share during the last two years. The corporate culture is skeptical, given the prevalence of “Consciences” personalities.
So what does all this mean?
First, it impacts the positioning of the value of your product.
Second, it helps you identify the right set of the sales and marketing assets.
In company 1, you position the value of the offering to help scale growth.
You communicate that through case studies with ROIs. Given their “dominant” culture, they are heads down operators so use relevant case studies that align, as closely as possible, to their situation.
In company 2, you position the value of the product on what it can do to drive efficiency.
This is a company fighting for its survival. It needs ideas on how to improve operations. As a result, use cases showing potential cost savings (business cases) are most important.
And given the culture, use data and research to support the use/business cases which is essential for building credibility in selling to an organization like this.
Before you even speak to a buyer you can understand the environment in which they operate. It allows you to create a connection — optimism for company 1, empathy in company 2.
ICP’s are not just an acronym, they’re people. Decisions are influenced by emotions. Motivations cause decisions, and personality dictates both.
The more you understand this the higher the likelihood of getting engagement, interest, and a decision. It’s a 1, 2 punch.
by William Walsh | Jun 10, 2024 | 2024
As previously published on 6/4/24 in MarTech
6 Things you need to consider now to catch up with your audience
In the movie “Gone in 90 Seconds” Nicolas Cage and his crew have to steal 50 cars in a night. The goal is to steal the car in less than a minute and half to reduce the chances of getting caught. The car is there one minute and literally gone the next.
It’s eerily similar to visitors on your website. They’re there, and then they’re gone. You have to look no further than your Google Analytics report to see it.
We intuitively know that social media, in particular scrolling, is impacting attention spans. We also know that our consumer habits soon become our business habits. And that means the speed at which audiences are moving through content and digital is accelerating everyday.
The question is by how much, and how does that impact our efforts as marketers?
According to Gloria Mark, professor emerita at University of California, Irvine, and author of the book “Attention Span” it’s not a pretty story.
From 2004 to 2020, the last year the data was collected, time on screen has shrunk to a third of what it had been and it’s not a stretch to assume it is now under 30 seconds.
Additionally, according to research from Emplifi you now have 26 seconds to keep someone engaged with video.
With visitors’ need for speed, you should be taking a hard look at the following areas and asking the following questions.
- Mobile – with mobile viewing growing, how fast can your audience move through your content? Consider ways to lighten the cognitive load through the use of images and video. Research has shown that social media can impair deep focus and make visitors more susceptible to cognitive overload.
- Video – speaking of video, reexamine those videos you created a couple of years ago. The rule used to be under two minutes for an explainer video. They now probably need to be under a minute. How long are your videos, how visually engaging?
- Website – our research has shown that you typically lose 50% of your visitors below the first two folds of your website. So consider where you position your CTA. How fast can visitors find what they are looking for, and how easy is it for them to digest and understand your services?
- Blogs – microblogs are the new blogs. Blogs used to be 800 to 1200 words, or longer, in length. Now they need to be between 400 to 600 words with at least 2 images. Why images? Because they allow the brain to “rest” enabling it to process the information it just read. Think of it as a palate cleanser.
- Social Media – how are you grabbing the attention of your audience given their need for speed. How eye-catching/stopping is your creativity? Can you catch their attention when they are scrolling?
- Brand – which leads us to the impact on branding. In the past, we sought consistency in our branding. The “brand police” ensured that our website looked like our sales presentation, product slicks, trade booth, etc. Brand consistency now works against in the digital world.
Oh, and don’t forget, by next year, time on screen will shrink again. In fact, time on screen is shrinking constantly, and in all channels. But it’s not just about attention spans, as the bullet points above point out. It’s also the effect digital social habits are having on our brain, as well as our behaviors.
We’re more likely to be multitasking while viewing social feeds. Our attention jumps from small to large screen and then back again. Retention of information is being impacted, heavy cognitive lifts are being skipped all together.
Now add this to the equation, we are getting more content to view, not less. With generative AI more content is, and will be, produced. The primary channel or “pipe” is getting smaller because email is no longer effective.
LinkedIn (e.g. the primary pipe) is highly crowded and will get more crowded, and the end audience’s capacity and desire to take all of this in is…well, you know the answer. It’s also a self fulfilling prophecy.
Our audience’s only option to dealing with the proliferation of information is to move faster and to skim the surface. So if you haven’t considered or evaluated the areas I mentioned, you need to and you need to do it planning for your audience a year out.
Ask yourself and your team, how will you stand out? How will you win what little mindshare that is available. Keep these insights in mind as you are creating social posts, content, and campaigns.
That is, if you made it all the way through this post without bailing. How many seconds do I have left?! Is there anyone there, and where is my car?
by William Walsh | May 8, 2024 | 2024
By Scott Gillum
Estimated read time: 2 Minutes
The image above is a simple illustration of how people with different personalities would write a statement to answer a question.
We’ve trained ChatGPT to write in the voice of different personality types (using DISC segmentation). We then gave it a prompt to create a sentence on water conservation.
As you can see, it is very easy to note the differences between the personalities. Notice how the sentences start, the tone, the emphasis, or how to achieve the goal.
You can get a feel for the personalities. One is blunt, another inspirational, a third is focused on the community, and the last is analytical.
One topic, four very different responses.
Now think about how you’re writing emails and content. It’s one size fits all…but your audience is made up of different personalities.
It’s not a mystery as to why our email and content marketing campaigns don’t produce the results we hope for or expect.
Luckily, you don’t have to write content for four personalities. Our research shows that in every industry there are 2 dominant personality types that make up 65-75% of your audience.
You just need to know which ones….we can tell you, and how to write your content to connect with them.
by William Walsh | Apr 30, 2024 | 2024
As previously published on 4/15/24 in MarTech
Creating memorable experiences goes beyond integrating AI. Focus on small touches, employee empowerment and anticipating customer needs.
What will customers remember after they experience your website, product, service or people? What will they tell their friends or colleagues about their experience — will they even mention it?
A tremendous amount of investment and resources are being focused on integrating AI into the customer experience, from automating responses to comments on social media to improving the call center experience. And who knows where OpenAI’s Voice Engine will eventually take us?
Do you think customers will talk about how they were “wowed” by their AI experience? I’m willing to bet they probably won’t notice. Whatever experience is created from AI will lean more toward “expected” than “exceeding.”
So, how do you create a customer experience worthy of conversation? I was determined to answer that question as I went on vacation a few weeks ago.
Discovering a 5-star customer experience
After seeing Dan Gingiss, author of “The Experience Maker,” at a recent event and with his book in hand, I headed to a resort off the coast of South Carolina to find out how it earned its AAA Five Diamond award and Forbes five-star rating.
It began with a room upgrade because I had booked our stay through American Express. I’ve had this perk for years, yet I rarely receive an upgrade at other hotels we’ve stayed at. And it wasn’t just any room; it was oceanfront with a million-dollar view. Boom, at least one star, maybe more, accounted for in less than 10 minutes.
The next day, at breakfast, we met Lincoln. Lincoln wasn’t just our server; he was our vacation coach. He asked us what we were hoping to get out of our vacation. He then reminded us to slow down, breathe and enjoy our time at the resort. It was a much-needed reminder that we were on vacation and to take time to reset, be present and enjoy our time together.
He also asked, with genuine sincerity, if there was anything he could do to make our stay more enjoyable, which we would later take him up on. Another star earned, thanks to Lincoln.
With our mindset adjusted to vacation mode, we set out to see the resort and walk on the beach. We went to the hotel room to find another surprise that really brought home the art of “wowing” your customers with the little things.
Anticipating and exceeding customer needs
My wife is a member of a neighborhood book club. She, like me, brought her book with her to read and enjoy our newly found free time. The book was left on the ledge of the bathtub and the person who provided the cleaning service to our room noticed that she didn’t have a bookmark.
There, carefully placed on top of the book, was a resort-branded gold tassel bookmark. Impressive! If that attention to detail doesn’t earn you a star, I don’t know what will.
A couple of mornings later, Lincoln was once again our breakfast server. This time, my wife was trying to decide between two tempting items on the menu. Lincoln offered to take the most appealing items from each and make a custom breakfast specifically for her. After all, he asked what he could do to make our stay more enjoyable. Mission accomplished.
His final act occurred on the last day of our stay. We mentioned that we’d be checking out later that day, and Lincoln prepared a “goodie bag” for our trip, complete with utensils. This is a perfect example of going “above and beyond.” We were impressed and touched.
During our stay, it was clear that the resort empowered its employees, from room service to spa to restaurants, to make decisions that benefit the guest experience. Taking a page out of Gingiss’s book, they noticed the little things, like a book without a bookmark.
Delivering exceptional experience through a customer-centric culture
As the bookmark illustrates, experiences can be shaped without even interacting with customers. The power of observation, anticipation of needs and the willingness to act all shape the experience without engagement.
The resort earned its high ratings because employees bought into its mission. They all lived it. It wasn’t one or two things or one or two people; it was everyone. They knew what business they were in and it wasn’t hospitality — it was the experience.
You just can’t tell a customer what your brand stands for. They have to experience it, just like our experience at the resort. We felt the service and experience that earned its well-deserved high rating.
Every touch point shapes the experience. You can’t fake it and customers can feel it. You also have to know what business you are really in. It isn’t a technology you’re selling, but what it does for the users. It’s what it enables or produces, not the feature or functionality.
CX beyond AI: Focus on delighting customers
AI-enabled customer experiences will not be about what the technology can do but what job it does for the user. As an emerging technology, I see early signs this thinking isn’t happening.
Currently, the application seems more about what it can do for the company. Perhaps that’s a valid first step, but it needs to quickly move to the customer experience.
It’s still too soon to know, but in the meantime, there are many things you can do without it. Focus on the small things that delight customers, train and empower your employees and find opportunities to exceed their expectations. Sounds simple and intuitive, but is it happening consistently and across the organization?
What did we tell our friends and family about our trip? Was it the food, weather, beach and the resort’s beauty? Perhaps a little. But what truly captured the essence of our experience was the story of the bookmark — proof of earnest attention to detail.
We didn’t even have to explain it; people just got it when they heard the story. That’s how you build a good reputation and earn high ratings.
by William Walsh | Mar 24, 2024 | 2024
As previously published on 3/12/24 in MarTech
Gain insights on transforming social media from a tactical afterthought to a strategic revenue driver for B2Bs.
This year marks the 20th anniversary of Facebook. For the last two decades, B2B marketers have tried to figure out how to use social media to reach buyers.
There have been starts and stops along the way, but we are now seeing social media being used strategically. As a result, CMOs are getting questions from the CEO regarding the role and importance of social media in driving business impact.
Here’s a list of key things CEOs should know about social media in business marketing. The starting point is to determine if social media can have a measurable business impact.
Is it important? Can it impact our business?
It depends on the industry. Your goal is to investigate the possibilities. To do that, you must invest in finding the connection. It won’t just appear, it’s not clean and simple like other marketing channels.
It can be done. For example, if you are in the business of selling expertise, like professional services, here’s a freebie: the answer is yes.
We found a link between online activity and the revenue performance of attorneys. By studying the LinkedIn behaviors of more than 500+ equity partners in a law firm we were able to show a link between the size of partner networks and activity, with billable revenue. Top billers had 47% larger networks than others and 74% higher social scores.
But each industry, business and segment is different. The business impact may be enhanced credibility, increased awareness, improved content distribution and engagement, etc. But if you don’t look…you won’t find it.
Is it strategic?
Social media is now considered the most effective B2B channel for driving revenue, per the 2023 State of B2B Digital Marketing report (download required). Let’s let that sink in. They said “for driving revenue,” not some perceived “fluffy” marketing goal like driving “likes” or engagement. It’s now driving revenue.
Authors of the report, Wpromote and Ascend2, found that 60% of respondents said that social media was the most effective channel topping email, search (paid and organic) and display advertising.
As a result, we now see companies like McKinsey, AWS, Novartis and SAP using very clear social media strategies to drive engagement and content dissemination at scale.
Why? Because it’s where the eyeballs are and social media is quickly becoming (and in certain industries, it already is) the preferred content channel for millennial buyers.
Do we have a strategy? Do we need one?
This one is easy: ask your CMO to see the social media strategy plan for the year. Ask them to explain why you are using certain social channels and what is the goal of each. You may see a look of shock and surprise come across their face.
Even worse, and this happens too frequently, ask them to ask their social media agency what the strategy is for the year and why. And the answer is not because “that’s what our competitors are doing.”
For too long, we have been throwing money and content at social media channels without much thought. Social is often an afterthought and, as a result, incredibly tactical. Do you need a strategy? The answer is yes, for many reasons.
For one, to transition from tactical to strategic, you need time to plan. Producing good content and creative that aligns with a bigger strategy takes time. So, start with having a quarterly strategy and plan.
Effective social media execution takes a village. Start with increasing visibility and changing mindsets. Social must be considered in producing any marketing asset — video, white paper, case study or event. How can social be used to promote these assets? And what will be required or created to support the execution in those channels?
Thinking and planning for those needs helps identify individuals or functional areas that can support building content for social channels. Instead of being behind the “eight-ball” scrabbling for something to post, marketing is now collaboratively building a monthly content calendar.
Regarding the “village,” based on our research and experience, there are four parts of your organization that need to be involved in supporting social media:
- HR for recruiting and retention.
- Sales for new customer wins.
- Product for new product/solution announcements.
- Corporate communication for community outreach, diversity initiatives and causes the organization supports.
They should have input into the plan and stake in producing content to fill the calendar, as well as clear goals they want to achieve. That is, if you believe social media is strategic, if not, then you don’t need any of it.
Should I be involved?
Now for the important piece: should you, as the CEO, participate in social media? That is a question that your organization will need to answer. For many CMOs, the vision of Elon Musk’s tweets dances in their heads when considering involving the CEO in social media.
If the organization decides it is a good idea or you are already active, the question is the extent of your role. Are you best suited to be a content creator or a thought leader, or is the organization better served by having you as a sharer of content? Even just liking content will increase the awareness of your content and, most likely, engagement.
Once your role is defined, the next step is training. Detailed coaching on the proper way to create, share and engage with social media content. This is true for the entire C-suite. We’ve interviewed many senior executives on this topic, and they were the ones who requested to be trained.
Now, you need not only a strategy and a quarterly plan but also social media training. But you don’t have to have it all at once.
Now that I know this, what do I do?
Social media is not considered strategic in many B2B organizations because it’s tactical. It’s tactical because it’s not planned. It’s not planned because no one has created a plan or calendar.
There is no plan or calendar because there is no strategy. There is no strategy because it’s not considered strategic. It’s not strategic because it hasn’t been connected to business impact. There, that’s what you do.
by William Walsh | Mar 10, 2024 | 2024
As previously published on 3/7/24 in MarTech
Every year, B2B marketers gather in Scottsdale, Ariz., to mingle and talk shop. This year, they talked a lot about AI.
The B2B Marketing Exchange (B2BMX) conference takes place annually in late February or early March at The Phoenician hotel in Scottsdale, Ariz. I was in attendance, along with a good 250 to 300 marketers. It was my first event since before the COVID-19 pandemic. Toss in representatives from about 75 vendors and the event was thick with pitches, presentations and promotions.
My goal for the three-day event was to check out and learn more about new technologies from the sponsors and gain insight into the top issues that practitioners are wrestling with day-to-day.
Here are my takeaways:
The major themes of B2BMX 2024
Artificial intelligence was everywhere
AI was everywhere — the vendors in the exhibit areas, the presentations and in conversation. That said, I didn’t really see anything that knocked my socks off. A bunch of generative AI content tools were on the vendor floor and featured in presentations, but nothing that was game changing.
Vendor consolidation
Vendor consolidation was not necessarily an official event theme, but martech consolidation was a definite vibe. From what I heard from vendors and marketers, the day of reckoning is upon us. Marketers are drilling into ROI, contract terms, spend and functionality. Ironically, Scott Brinker’s Chiefmartec newsletter came out during the event and announced that SaaS martech stacks shrunk 8% from 2023 to 2024. I expect that number to be much higher next year.
My favorite sessions
Keynote
Dan Gingiss, author of “The Experience Maker,” presented a lively and entertaining discussion of his WISE framework for creating notable customer experiences. Here’s the key point from his presentation: If something is expected or “normal” do the opposite. But to do that, you have to make time for it. Too many people are just going through the motions. To create truly memorable experiences, you have to take the time to think about it. It doesn’t have to be complicated. It can be as simple as how you respond to a customer on the phone. In fact, one of his examples was hold music.
Favorite workshop session
My favorite workshop was called “From Strategy to Tech Stack.” I actually never got to see the presentation — they couldn’t get the projector to work. So it became a “fireside chat” with Megan Crone from Palo Alto Networks and Amy Holtzman from CHEQ. The topic centered around cybersecurity for marketers, specifically protecting pay-per-click campaigns from bots. We’ve long known that bots are a nuisance on blogs, etc., but AI bots have become much more sophisticated in evading standard bot protection mechanism like CAPTCHA.
Most interesting vendors
- Writer. Writer is probably the best LLM (generative AI content) provider of the bunch with an impressive client list to boot. The template-driven approach was smart and well thought out.
- CHEQ. CHEQ is the vendor I didn’t know I needed. It’s ugly out there, and getting more dangerous every month. This is the tool you need to protect your marketing investments.
- The B2BMX event app. To me, the most impressive technology I experienced was the event app itself. The app allows you to customize your agenda, reach out and connect with others, download the presentations, track your points for visiting with vendors and apply the points you earned to SWAG.
Best vendor SWAG
Speaking of SWAG…
I don’t know if it was the “best,” but I will say it was the most usual giveaway I’ve seen at an event: an eye mask. But here’s the funny thing, there is no company branding on it so I don’t remember the vendor. A stand out giveaway with no branding… hello, marketing?!
Final word
B2BMX is an event for practitioners: managers, senior managers and director level attendees. I was surprised that many of the sessions didn’t reveal new insights (particularly relating to ABM) despite the fact that I hadn’t been to a conference in nearly five years.
It left me with the impression that we are still chasing the shining new technology instead of performance improvement. As an example, the sessions with the highest attendance (from what I observed) all had AI somewhere in the title or description.
