Category Archives: Business to Business Marketing Strategies

Tips for improving your business to business marketing strategies and campaigns. Learn how to find a market niche, and why having a niche is so important. There are also posts about finding your ideal client (and why you need that too). Trying to market to everyone only leaves you “spraying and praying” without actually hitting anything.

These pages also cover common business to business marketing mistakes (made by companies both large and small). If you’ve made one of these, you’ll learn how you can fix the errors you’ve made (and avoid future gaffes).

Need more clients? Or better clients? Check out the posts on lead generation, how to set and negotiate higher fees, and what red flags to look for when prospecting for new work.

Finally, there are posts on creating your brand and your company’s “story.” What you are selling isn’t necessarily what you think. The way you present your products and services can make a big difference in your results.

The Secret Word Every Marketer Should Know

Posted on September 30, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

We can all agree that we want more sales. But did you know that there’s a word that can help you get more sales, more inquiries, and earn more money?

What’s the word?

It’s “free.”

If you saw a sign in front of a store that said “Free beer” or “Free cake,” you’d go over to check it out. Right?

Why does this work?

It turns out our brains are wired for it. Research conducted by a scientist from Duke University found that people offered a Lindt chocolate truffle for 15 cents or a Hershey’s kiss for 1 cent took the truffle 3 out of 4 times. However, when the prices were reduced 1 cent, making the truffle 14 cents and the kiss free, the numbers changed drastically. This time, over two-thirds of the people chose the kiss.

Free Shakespeare, classical musical concerts, and opera in Central Park attract thousands of people in New York City every year. We stand on long lines to get tickets, or wait for hours to get a good spot on the grass.

It works with fancy cosmetics companies too (spend $35 on face cream, get a tote bag with blush, mascara, and lip gloss for free). You buy the face cream just to get the tote bag full of goodies; even if the colors don’t suit you…you can always give them to a friend.

If someone is handing out free samples, you take them (even if you don’t use the product).

Tomorrow, how to get more business using freebies.

Original Photo:D Sharon Pruitt

What Every Email Marketer Should Know Before Hitting “Send”

Posted on September 23, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

You probably know about how email marketing can lead to big profits. It’s cheap to use, targeted, and easy to do. Just type in your message and hit send. Right? Well, it’s a bit more complicated than that.

Before you start, there are four email marketing tips you should know about that can drastically affect the results you get.

1. Deliverability

This is the percentage of people on the list who actually received your email. If nobody gets your email, they won’t open it, read it, or buy anything.

Why email bounces:

a bad address (just like snail mail)
an ISP with a bad reputation
spammy content (make millions, free satellite TV, weight-loss pills)

Protect yourself by using a reputable email marketing company (I recommend AWeber. Use this link to sign up, and I’ll get some milkshake money) to deliver your email, cleaning your list regularly, and checking your content for content that can trigger a trip to the spam folder. Use double opt-in (asking first for the email address and then for verification) to stop spammers.

2. Open rate

This is the number of people who open the email you sent. You can increase this by:

using a from field from a real person (your name or company name), rather than something spammy (Acai Weight Loss Marketing)
writing a great headline that promises value and solutions to problems
make the first few sentences worth reading, since many people read email with a preview pane

3. Click through rate

This is the number of people who click through to the Web site with the rest of the sales pitch and the ordering information. Click through is affected by:

copy – building up the benefits, what people will get from your product, how you solve a problem
the offer – what they actually get when they click, such as a free report, details about a conference, or a video
formatting – whether the paragraphs are long or short, if you used bullets, where the line breaks are

4. Conversion rate

The number (or percentage) of actual sales, leads, or opt-ins generated by the email. Remember to use a landing page, not your home page, to make the rest of the sale. The email “pre-sells’ the offer: why you’re sending it, what you’re offering, what it will do for them, why they need to click now, what they should do once they get to the landing page.

5. Be human

Put a human, personal face (like your own, or the person who handles the account) on your messages. Include a name, photograph and contact information. Your customers will feel as if you’re talking directly to them. If you have a sales staff, they’ll feel more connected to “their” subscribers. It’s more personal, it creates a connection, and it establishes accountability.

Tomorrow, how to boost your email conversion rates and get more sales.

Photo: wikimedia

The 1920 Guide to 21st Century Marketing

Posted on September 17, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

You’re probably wondering how anything published in 1920 could possibly be relevant in 2009. No twitter tips? No super-networker’s secrets on using LinkedIn? Not one.

The closest thing they had to social media were dead-tree newspapers and radio. And, hey, the music and the clothes were weird.

Technology has changed, but basic marketing principles are still the same. Debates rage over long or short copy now (as they did then), some companies try to sell to everyone (while others focus on a niche), and everyone looking at your ad, reading your blog, or scanning your letter wants to know what’s in it for them.

Should my copy be long or short?

Write as much (or as little) as you need to tell your story. Long isn’t better, and short isn’t better. Better is what works with your customers.

Use headlines, bold type, and bullets. Break the copy up into chunks, so it’s more readable. People will skim, but if they’re interested, they will read more closely.

Sell to your target market (not everybody)

You are talking to thousands of people. Some will be interested (some won’t). The response of people “in your industry” doesn’t matter. The response of your potential customers does. Try to strike a chord with them. If you are advertising cars, you have no use for non-drivers.

Nobody will read your entire ad to find out if your product is appealing. They will glance at it, and decide based on the headline or the picture. Talk only to the people you seek as customers.

Be specific, not vague

Saying “the best in the world” or “lowest prices” or “reliable” simply states the expected and obvious. They often lead readers to discount what you say, rather than believe you.

Instead, be specific. If the exhibits you designed attracted 37% more traffic, say so. There’s a reason why Ivory Soap is marketed as 99 44/100% pure.

The book? It’s called Scientific Advertising by Claude C. Hopkins. Click here for your free copy.

Photo: ClevelandSGS

9 Steps to Writing a Better Blog

Posted on September 16, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

Blogging can be a bit scary (especially when you first start out). Staring at that blank screen can be intimidating. What do I write? Will anyone read it?

Here are nine ways to make your blog better.

Write a great headline. Some say write the headline first, others suggest doing it last. Either way, the headline is what draws people in and gets them to read more.

Use subheads. These are little signposts that point out new, important points. They’re helpful for people who skim (rather than read every word), and also for search engines. Use <h2> tags in your subheads to signal, “hey, this is important stuff.”

Write short paragraphs. They’re much easier to read online than long blocks of text.

Use short, easy words. It’s tempting (especially if you’re a writer) to show off your vocabulary, but don’t do it. Write conversationally instead. Pretend you’re talking to a friend.

Build a series of posts. They’ll keep people reading (and coming back) to see what happens next. Think of soap operas or cartoons (tune in next week, when Penelope says….).

Take that series and bundle it into a free report (I shamelessly stole this idea from Problogger).

Be passionate about what you’re writing about. If you’re bored, your readers will be too.

Encourage comments. Ask readers what they think, to make suggestions, or to share their own experiences.

Respond to the comments you get, and interact with your readers. It’s OK if people disagree; if someone gets nasty you can delete them.

What are your blogging tips? Share them here.

Photo: cecio

The Two Most Important Words in Online Business

Posted on September 15, 2009 by Jodi Kaplan

There are two words that are critical to success if you’re doing business online.

Why are these important? Because you’re dealing with people who can’t physically see or talk to you. So, you’ve got to build up these two words.

The First Word is Trust

If people trust you, they’re more likely to believe that you can help fix their problem, and will be more willing to pay you to do it. It’s like making deposits in a bank.

Here’s how to do it.

Listen harder

First, as Chris Brogan says, grow bigger ears. Start listening to what potential customers are saying. Subscribe to appropriate blogs and join forums in your niche.

Tools to help you listen:

Google Alert: set up alerts to monitor what people in your chosen niche are saying. They’ll be emailed to you automatically.

Google Reader: monitor blogs and read about what your potential market thinks, and the problems they have.
Twitter Search tools
Listen First, Sell Later (just a plain link). The author, Bob Poole, was a successful salesman for years. Instead of a pushy, hard sell, he chose to listen – and find out what his customers really wanted and needed. This book tells how he did it.

The Second Word is Authority

You build this by demonstrating your expertise in your chosen niche. If people believe that you are trustworthy, understand their problems, and know their business, they will be happy to pay you to help them.

Here’s how to build authority.

Answer questions on forums

Use whatever links or biographical information are allowed to send traffic to your site or blog for more information about you. Don’t forget to fill out the forum profile too.

Write guest posts

Make intelligent comments on those blogs, and get the attention of the blogger. Offer to make a guest post on a topic that is relevant and helpful to the blogger’s readers.

When you do, say something nice about the blogger and how much you enjoy his/her blog. Don’t grovel or gush, just be polite and genuine. Include a brief bio at the end of your guest post, with a link back to your own blog.

Don’t have a blog? Tomorrow’s post will have some tips to help you start one.