The time is now to wipe the slate clean, start anew, reflect on past experiences, and capitalize on what was learned in hopes of new and improved gains. There is a certain aura that surrounds a fresh start that is an excitable feeling and beneficial when harnessed and taken seriously.
For marketers in the B2B world it’s time to hone in on your initiatives and get your business up to speed on what it means to be a working organization in 2012. There are pages upon pages of content about customer experience and what you can do to improve upon your own operations in that realm of things. The trend is clear; 2012 is the year you must start treating the people that fuel your company as just that — people.
P2P – People to People. Nobody wants to be thought of as a number. They don’t want to feel as though they are a mere fiscal digit represented in your bottom line. No, people want you to establish some sort of humanistic relationship with them. Some sort of common ground that both sides can resort back to and feel good about. They want to feel like they’re a contributing member of your company’s culture and brand.
Stop staring at the door and hoping that someone will walk through…
How can you achieve a more personal approach to regarding your clients and prospects as living, breathing entities that help you sustain your organization’s existence?
Creative Business Copy:
Think P2P. Write copy that is engaging. Nobody wants to read long drawn out reports on your products and services. And if they do need this type of thing, they’ll ask for it. Or give them an option to download a PDF within the body of your content. People want testimonials. They want to know how your offerings have worked for others and how they’ll benefit them. Make sure your content shows that what you do is “customizable.” Just because it worked for Party A, doesn’t mean that it’s necessarily going to translate the same with Party B. Everyone is unique. Make room for that. People like it when you approach them as an individual rather than another of the herd. They want a voice that they can identify with. Boring them with mere statistics is going to put them to sleep, which in turn may prevent them from ever reaching whatever your call-to-action happens to be.
Think P2P. Blogging acts as a quality supplement (or perhaps welcome distraction) to more standard business writing. The content included in many blogs is diverse and is a channel in which you can deliver various lines of written communication. Be it a product review, a “best of” list, best practice tips, holiday greetings, etc. Blogging allows for warmer day-to-day interaction with your readers who are able to engage and keep the conversation moving forward – assuming you’ve enabled the option for them to leave comments.
Embrace Social Media:
Think P2P. For many, social media is the front door to your business. People often try to find you on Facebook before even bothering to punch in your actual web address. People want to put a face to who they’re dealing with. Be transparent. Put yourself out there. Through social media you’re allowing your clients and prospects a more intimate look into your company’s culture. Keeping up to date on your submissions to social media outlets such as Facebook, Twitter, Linked-in and YouTube is one way you can make them feel like they’re more actively engaged in your day-to-day proceedings. And please, let’s not act like everyone isn’t on these platforms. With the ability to log into their accounts on a handheld device, people around the globe are very much keeping up to date on what’s happening in their world by logging in multiple times a day. It’s 2012 people; don’t antiquate yourself by doubting it. Industries around the globe are living and dying based on this means of information gathering.
Social media is a limitless springboard to cultivating a far more wide-spread network of clients and prospects than trying to corral folks with a cold call (which is limited to a one-on-one type of scenario). Its power is very serious. If you’re not implementing it into your marketing plans, I’d love to hear if you make it to 2013. Seriously.
Outlook:
B2B marketing is no longer about a box communicating with a box. There are bodies in those boxes. Real live bodies brimming with personality and brilliant ideas. They’re fueling the business world with their every step, every smile, and every breath. Harness the power of communicating as one person to another person. When you offer a variety of engaging content interspersed amongst an array of platforms you’re opening yourself up in two ways: A) Your clients and customers are learning something about you, and B) when done effectively, you’ll find that you’ll take away valuable information about these very people, which will help you fuel future campaigns.
Keep your suit on; we’re not saying you have to show up in a tie-dye shirt, and cutoff jeans. Just have the tailor give you a bit more room to breathe in that thing. It’s an exciting world in which we’re living. Why keep things bland and stagnant when there are so many spices at your disposal? If you aren’t open to embracing change, you’re hard pressed to stay open.
