8 B2B Marketing Trends for 2013 from hawkeye

Eight B2B
Marketing Trends
for 2013
JOHN
TEDSTROM

Managing
Director,
Insight
&
Strategy

hawkeye

1.  Back to the basics
2.  Old school meets new school
3.  Content quality over quantity
4.  Social CRM delivers more than hype
5.  Taking marketing and sales collaboration to another level
6.  Finding the value in big data
7.  Experience matters
8.  Getting real about measurement
Eight B2B Marketing Trends for 2013
2

It’s easy to be distracted by the hype surrounding new marketing opportunities in B2B marketing.
Content marketing, brands as publishers, social media, apps, QR codes, augmented reality,
marketing automation and sales automation have caused some B2B marketers to lose site of the
fundamentals of developing and implementing a sound marketing strategy. Who is the target – by
vertical, segment and role? What are their needs? What business challenges and pain points do
they face every day? What does their buy cycle look like, and how can you support them through
it? What are competitors doing in their marketing, and what can you offer that competitors can’t?
2013 is the year where getting back to the basics helps make the new tools of marketing work
even more effectively.
§  Understanding the customer and mapping the customer’s journey will be key in 2013
(Forrester)
§  According to a 2013 MarketingSherpa report, only 36 percent of marketers segment based on
behavior. Even fewer, 30 percent, segment based on sales cycle. Marketing Sherpa
§  Targeted and segmented lead nurturing emails generate an 8% click-through rate compared
to general email sends, which generate just a 3% click-through rate. Hubspot
Back to the basics
4

5

Motorola Solutions focused on bringing their brand promise
to life – “we innovate to mobilize and connect people in the
moments that matter” – as well as taking a deeper view of
their customers in order to engage them in a more relevant
and compelling way. In their Rise campaign, communications
focused on segments of professionals, not businesses,
featuring a solution-based narrative showing how Motorola
solutions can improve network functions. Print ads drive
traffic to Motorola’s website to read more in-depth
information on how they can help different segments solve
their issues. The centerpiece of the campaign is a branded
video that shows various critical moments for firefighters,
transportation professionals, industrial works and how
Motorola’s solutions enable them to connect to people
during the moments that matter.
Examples

6

Implications for marketers:
•  Understand your target audiences in detail, their
needs, pain points/business issues and what they
are trying to accomplish. To get their attention,
position your brand as a thought leader and
problem solver for their issues, then show them
how your solutions can help solve their problems.
•  Map the buyer’s purchasing journey. Then look at
the thought process the buyer goes through and
how you can support their decision making.
•  Identify key touch points and develop marketing
pieces that will move the buyer through the
purchase cycle. Content should be customer-
centric and allow the buyer to easily interact with
the brand.

7

old school meets new school

Old school meets new school
8

Today, the lines are blurred between digital and physical, high touch and high tech, marketing/sales
automation and personal selling. B2B decision makers want to interact where, when and how they
choose, on their device of choice. We’re seeing three key trends in this area:
The digital and physical worlds have merged.
Decision makers move seamlessly between channels to access information and content from
partners and manufacturers. Smartphone and tablet use for business is increasing. Marketers are
responding with multichannel marketing campaigns that enable it. To make the most of this,
campaigns must add value and provide a seamless experience across all channels.
Resurgence of personal selling.
Marketing and sales automation have taken off in the last few years as B2B decision makers are
entering the sales funnel far later in the buy cycle and their need for content has grown. But we’re
also seeing the importance of face-to-face contact increase equally. New-school technology can
only take us so far, and then old-school relationships and relationship selling takes over.
Direct mail makes another comeback.
Combining direct mail with digital is an effective lead-generating tactic that lifts overall response.
Dimensional mail in B2B outperforms flat, with the right economics. And the economics work better
because of the higher value of the sale. Today, more companies are integrating direct mail with
online efforts to create a compelling conversation with the customer and drive higher response and
engagement. And in every case, we see performance lift as we add integrated channels to the mix.

9

Nuance Communications, a provider of call center technology,
outlined the buyer’s journey for six verticals and mapped content
to each stage to power a targeted campaign that opened doors
with a personalized, high-impact DM piece. The personalized
direct mail piece drove recipients to a personalized content
portal where they successfully sparked a conversation with
relevant white papers and product materials on how they can
improve their customer call center experience to increase
customer loyalty. A series of emails was also sent that drove
recipients to download specific pieces of content as well. The
campaign achieved an overall response rate of 38%, and $6 to
$10 million in new pipeline revenue makes for a solid bottom
line.

Examples

10

Siemens has found that face-to-face conversations at trade shows
are still very effective in establishing relationships with customers.
To generate more face-to-face meetings and start a personal
conversation with healthcare professionals at trade shows, they
integrated SMS marketing, apps and social media. One trade show
smartphone app asks the user to text in a keyword, then the app
asks the user to enter their email address to receive brochures,
white papers and other content.
Siemens offers VIP sessions at their trade show booths, which can
be set up via text message. Their trade show app then sends a text
alert 15 minutes prior to the meeting. The app also guides the user
to specific products at the trade show and connects the user to
content regarding products the user is interested in.

Examples

11

•  Make the most of both digital and physical
worlds by looking for ways to bridge them
together.
•  Look for opportunities to leverage business
professionals’ multiscreen behavior by linking
media options and creating a seamless cross-
channel experience.
•  Understand the new purchase funnel and how
your customers make brand decisions with
today’s information and tools.

12

content quality over quantity

Content marketing has become the most important part of many B2B marketers’ customer
engagement plans. Some research has even suggested quality content may be more
important in customer acquisition than the products themselves. This is a result of the
huge growth in marketing automation and lead nurturing programs, the growing impact of
blogging and social media, the importance of search visibility and changes in buyer
behavior in the buy cycle. But the result has often meant simply more content.
Content marketing leaders are increasing focus on customer needs, roles and stages in
the buy cycle. And more B2B marketers are innovating with a faster-read, visual story
across multiple channels like YouTube, Instagram, Google+, Pinterest, Facebook and
Twitter by using imagery, video, infographics and photography.
•  According to 3M Corporation, 90% of information transmitted to the brain is
visual, and visuals are processed 60,000X faster in the brain than text. Publishers
that use infographics grow traffic an average of 12% more than those who don’t
(Ansonalex).
•  70% of buyers say they review four or more pieces of content prior to making a
buying decision, if the purchase is greater than $10K (Marketing Profs)
•  91% of B2B marketers now use content marketing as part of their marketing mix
(Content Marketing Institute)
•  B2B marketers spend 33% of their budgets on content marketing, and 54% plan
on increasing that percentage (Content Marketing Institute)
Content quality over quantity
13

Cisco’s “Tomorrow Starts Here” campaign used
Facebook, Twitter hashtags, an infographic, a
series of blog posts and a mobile app to guide
customers through the possibilities of the “Internet
of Everything.” Cisco also uses online video and
white papers to help tell their story on the value of
technology and how Cisco can contribute.
14

GE’s Instagram feed gives users a richer look
into the company’s groundbreaking research
and technology, and how they contribute to
businesses. A recent post is an engineer
working on a plane engine inside a Turbulence
Control Structure at the GE aviation facility in
Peebles, Ohio.
American Express engaged small
business owners with their “State of
Women-Owned Businesses Report,”
presented through an infographic
campaign using compelling charts rather
than as a 70-page, copy-heavy report. The
infographic was the most clicked OPEN
Forum story ever and boosted
engagement by 30%.
Examples

§  Implications for marketers:
•  The most effective content reinforces the
brand promise and connects with customers’
issues/challenges/pain points or needs in a
unique way.
•  Content should be compelling, engaging and
differentiated from content your competitors
provide. Photos and video are the most
engaging content; infographics are popular
because they offer the user the advantage of
speed.
15

16

social CRM delivers
more than hype

In the past few years, there’s been a lot of build up around social CRM. Most of the hype has been
from B2C marketers adding social tools to marketing and customer service programs. But B2B
marketers are also seeing value. Social CRM may be the next step in social selling, integrating
social networking into traditional CRM; allowing you to connect to your social networks and your
contact’s social networks, social discovery and engagement and the ability to track and aggregate
this information into contact records regardless of origination points.
Marketers and salespeople should be able to listen and respond to conversations, identify most
valuable customers and prospects and engage them individually to sell additional products and
services, while managing these conversations on multiple channels and associating them with an
individual contact. As the applications add features, 2013 may be the year where companies and
social CRM providers get past the hype and focus on tying B2B social activities to clear and
measurable business.
•  Spending on social applications to help sales, marketing and customer service
processes was expected to pass $1 billion worldwide in 2012 (Forbes)
•  By year end 2013, B2B organizations using social CRM applications will represent 25% of
all projects worldwide, which is an increase from fewer than 10% in 2011. (Gartner)
•  Effective use of sales intelligence (utilizing data from social conversations) increases
revenue productivity per sales rep by 17% (CSO)
Social CRM delivers more than hype
17

Cisco assembled a team of 1,500 social media ambassadors to seek out conversations around Cisco’s
products and then join the conversation by using social CRM platform Radian 6. Averaging 5,000 to
7,000 mentions per day, with 3% of those being action-based conversations, Cisco created a social
media strategy and playbook so ambassadors know what to do once they have identified
conversations. They prioritize conversations into groups by classifying brand mentions into the following
categories: question, lead, general buzz, critic, support, idea and ambush. The top priorities receive a
response within 24 hours through social media, the second priority group receives a response within 72
hours and the least priority group (general buzz, ideas, critics) receives a discretionary response. Cisco
input specific words or triggers that would have social posts routed to specific teams. By addressing
customers’ needs and issues through social media, Cisco is not only able to nurture leads and close
sales, but create a strong brand experience that generates positive word-of-mouth mentions among the
community.
18

Examples

19

•  Evaluate vendors and tools based on how well
they function on a level deeper than monitoring the
conversation and measuring sentiment value.
•  Look for the ability to integrate social tools with
common CRM functions – allowing tracking and
monitoring of conversations with individuals and
enabling true CRM functions, like contact
management.
•  Tie social media efforts to clear and measurable
business objectives.

20

taking marketing and sales collaboration
to another level

CMOs are spending more on IT. They have more information about every stage of the buying
cycle. Sales wants that information. Because marketing is expected to justify their spending
through ROI or new revenue, they’ll need more frequent and collaborative input from sales to score
leads, track conversions and map them to revenue. To enable the sales conversation, marketers
not only need to provide sales-ready leads in real time, they also need to provide the insights on
the customer to help close them, including all prior marketing touches, critical needs, pain points
and all content interactions.
§  If a lead is not followed up with within 20 minutes, the likelihood of converting that lead to
a sale drops dramatically (MIT)
§  Effective use of sales intelligence increases revenue productivity per sales rep by 17%
(Eloqua)
§  Companies with a fully aligned approach to sales and marketing achieve an average
three-year growth rate of 24% (SiriusDecisions and Forrester)
§  Businesses that have the greatest degree of alignment grow 5.4 points faster than their
less aligned counterparts when compared with business in the same industry, close 38%
more proposals than non-aligned businesses and lose 36% fewer customers to
competitors (Hugh MacFarlane, CEO and founder of MediaMathMarketing)
Taking marketing and sales collaboration to
another level
21

F5 Networks aligned their marketing and sales teams with weekly collaboration meetings
on promotions, feedback on specific leads and marketing programs; used a marketing
automation platform to track, score and distribute high-quality leads; and nurtured high-
quality leads further in the sales cycle. Strong results included an increase of higher-
quality leads (13.2% versus 1.7%) that hit the pipeline in days versus weeks, higher
conversion rates and $38.70 in purchases for every $1 in marketing.
22

Examples

23

•  Involve sales and marketing in building an
integrated go-to- market strategy to ensure they
are working toward a common set of objectives
and targets.
•  Consider managing sales and marketing activities
as a single integrated revenue cycle.
•  Develop a shared understanding of most valuable
customers and how and why they choose to buy.
Define buyer personas, roles and content needs
by segment.
•  Share understanding of customers’ critical
business issues and align the company’s key
capabilities with them.
•  Agree on Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) and
lead scoring criteria and report on a regular basis
so operations and programs can continuously be
improved.

24

finding the value in big data

Although companies have access to vast amounts of customer data, its value comes from how it’s
leveraged. Some of the highest-value uses include mining data from online behavior to drive
remarketing/retargeting programs and using social data to uncover opportunities to engage
customers in real time. Companies that leverage big data are already seeing an increase in sales.
In our own hawkeye testing with clients we are seeing up to 12X performance improvements in
specific big data pilots.
§  With the need to combine customer behavior data from multiple channels, big data will
drive $232 billion in IT spending. More technology companies will be focusing on
launching data services that will make it easier to access and analyze real-time customer
data. (Gartner)
§  Leveraging data can drive 70% more revenue (SiriusDecisions)
§  49% of enterprises are focusing big data efforts on customer insights, segmentation and
targeting to improve overall performance (McKinsey & Company)
§  More systems will be put into place to better capture and control the inflow of data
streams and to segment the data in granular levels in real time (McKinsey)
Finding the value in big data
25

26

HP uses a data management platform (DMP)
in order to personalize content and send
targeted communications to customers. The
company uses analytics to understand what
and where they buy and to understand their
relationship. HP remarkets to people by
executing a specific email or targeted offer
through direct mail or banner advertising to
customers who have shown previous interest.
Their remarketing efforts have yielded a much
higher ROI since it meets the needs of the
customer in a way that a mass direct
marketing campaign does not.
Once a customer relationship is established,
value-added content that the customer finds
essential is sent to them online and through
email in a format the customer prefers.
Data on user behavior is also being used to
drive a better overall brand experience. In
addition to improving HP’s marketing
communications, the value of customer data
has enabled them to better serve content on
its website.
Retargeted banner ad
on LinkedIn after the
customer, Chris, made
an HP purchase.
Behavioral targeted B2B e-newsletters drove a 300%
open rate and a 600% click-through increase.
Examples

27

•  Involve centralized data collection and usage as
much as possible.
•  Get as much information on who you are selling to
and what you are selling them. Have a strong
understanding of their reasons for purchasing
from you.
•  Capture and analyze behavior in real time instead
of focusing only on previous purchases and
behavior because customers’ interests, intentions
and goals consistently change during the year.

Experience matters
29

The customer experience may matter even more in B2B than B2C. Business professionals are
researching products and seeking products and solutions on websites and via tablets and
smartphones. They have come to expect an optimized user experience, just as a consumer would.
And given limited time availability, it’s even more important to help them get in, find what they need
quickly and get out.
B2B marketers who have been active in optimizing the experience across the customer lifecycle
have seen greater sales and loyalty than those who haven’t. Mobile-enabled companies including
Siemens, UPS and Intuit have generated a significant competitive advantage. With touch screens,
GPS navigation and video functions, mobile provides new and creative ways to interact with
business professionals. IBM created an app that incorporates video chat to allow customers to
troubleshoot a problem with a technician in real time. Siemens launched a service app that allows
customers to scan a barcode for any industrial equipment and pull relevant facts and manuals for
the product right on the spot.
§  There is a strong correlation between a company’s customer experience index score and
purchase intent/ customer loyalty likelihood to recommend (Forrester)
§  A two-second delay in website response time reduces customer satisfaction by 3.8% and
a 4.3% loss in revenue per visitor (Microsoft)
§  72% of smartphone owners report that they want mobile-friendly sites, 67% are more likely
to buy on mobile-optimized sites versus ones not optimized and 74% will return later to a
mobile site that functions well (Google)

30

IBM has shifted their marketing efforts to
become more mobile and social in order to
adapt to their customers’ behaviors.
According to Forrester Research, 38% of
enterprise c-suite executives already access
vendor websites through a smartphone and
28% use a tablet. IBM launched an
optimized mobile website, focusing on
simplicity and ease of use, allowing access
to case studies, interactive demonstrations
and images of software screens on how IBM
helps businesses in various industries drive
better business decisions.
Drop-‐down
navigaKon

First
page
“Help
us
gather
data
on
big
data”

Full
website

Examples

31

Intuit changed their strategy and optimized
their website, Facebook page and small
business insights blog so it can be viewed on
any device or platform, and recently launched
global-ready training for QuickBooks Online
for small business owners that can be viewed
on any mobile device. The company has seen
that trained users are twice as likely to
recommend the product. The experience has
created the halo effect of “Hey, I’m using your
software and I’m able to access software via a
mobile device or an iPad or iPhone.” Their
training apps feature social sharing tools so
users can post to their social media network
that they have been certified and completed
the training program.
Examples

32

•  Always take a user-centered view – understand
customer needs, behaviors and preferences
across touch points. Understand how competitors
serve them. Know their most important tasks and
ensure a simple, straightforward and high-value
experience for those tasks, regardless of platform
or device.
•  Look for opportunities to deliver brand clues that
differentiate the experience and strengthen the
unique value of your brand.
•  Optimize apps and websites so they are accessible
from any mobile device. Provide options for people
to upload comments and photos from any device.
Driving users from a mobile social media campaign
to a web page that is not optimized for mobile is a
recipe for irritation and disaster.
•  Use customer surveys and other feedback tools to
continue to improve the experience.

33

getting real about measurement

CMOs are under pressure for accountability, and ROI is the prevailing metric cited. We would
expect strong internal organizational pressure to get the necessary data to measure across
channels. We would also expect strong near-term pressure to develop ROI baselines as soon as
possible, and then begin measuring against that baseline.
But the challenge for most organizations is that the need for immediate results is not generally
tolerant of the time needed for changes to the measurement process. Once a process is
baselined, it must be repeated. But CMOs don’t have a year or more to develop the full funnel of
measurement.
We recommend to clients that they wait to baseline ROI until they have true full-funnel attribution
visibility. In the meantime, they should negotiate small areas of ROI accountability where the data
is accessible and attribution can be understood (e.g., online-to-online remarketing, DM/EM second
touch campaigns). Simultaneously, marketers should dislodge small percentages of siloed
marketing budgets for centralized measurement pilots (e.g., ask for 5% of annual DM budget).
They can use those pilots to develop multitouch conversational campaigns with relevant offers,
and the necessary measurement strategy in place. This dual strategy will show some
measurement success and help create a baseline ROI measurement and a business case for
broader implementation of integrated multichannel marketing.
§  Two-thirds of CMOs believe marketing ROI will be their top effectiveness measurement by
2015 (IBM)
§  Only 42% of marketers say they can “see” the total marketing funnel with multichannel
attribution and understand the value of multiple marketing channels to a conversion (BtoB
Magazine study)
Getting real about measurement
34

35

ING Bank gained a 3X lift in its response rates by placing a focus on
personalization and analyzing responses across multiple channels to
determine, prioritize and deliver next-best actions to customers across
multiple channels. And the bank reduced its marketing costs by 35%.
The bank personalizes marketing communications based on historical
client data and recent interactions. Campaigns are coordinated across
inbound and outbound channels, which channel selection based on
customer activity and past response. ING maintains norms for
minimum response levels for each next-best action proposition to
ensure that offers are moved across channels based on minimum
response rates.
Instead of focusing entirely on ad hoc campaigns, ING runs its
campaigns on a continuous basis. By collecting customer responses
from different channels and feeding them back into its marketing
analytics platform, the bank can continuously optimize and personalize
offers made to customers.
ING uses a detailed marketing campaign dashboard that monitors all
campaigns via all channels on a daily basis. Campaign responses,
sales and net present value are monitored through the entire sales
funnel and are available in one report. The bank also has a
comprehensive stimulation tool to test the performance of each
campaign before it goes live.
Examples

36

•  Analyze conversion pathways. They can be a
useful window into the confusing and complex
set of marketing strategies in play. We are
learning that a large volume of conversions
come to clients’ sites because of a specific
banner ad or paid search result. Knowing this
we can construct a more relevant conversation.
•  Simple measurement for simple strategy. The
multichannel measurement strategy must follow
multichannel marketing strategy. There is a
tendency in the marketplace to piece together a
story where one was never intended. Create
and execute a strategy, then measure it.
•  Design of experiment. Successful measurement
requires an integrated design that accounts for
proper volumes through each channel. In a
status quo environment, quantities are dictated
by budget (and making sure to spend it all).

we create extraordinary experiences that matter.
§  hawkeye: Integrated.digital.agency. We create extraordinary experiences for clients
and their customers using insight, analytics and innovation to develop ideas that drive brand
affinity and business success. Through social, mobile, digital, event and direct channels,
we help clients inspire action to accelerate brand growth.
§  We don’t talk at people. We engage them with breakthrough experiences in the right channel at
the right time with the right message in the right context. We help you figure out who your
consumers are, what they value, where they look for it and how they prefer it to be offered.
Using integrated digital capabilities and creative solutions that drive results, we inspire your
customers to act by clicking, tapping, emailing, texting, calling, participating in an event, joining
the conversation, making a purchase through digital channels or going to a brick-and-mortar
store. And, we measure everything to give you the results you need.
§  For additional insights, email us or give us a call.
www.facebook.com/hawkeyeagency JOHN TEDSTROM
www.twitter.com/hawkeyeww Managing Director, Insight & Strategy
www.youtube.com/user/hawkeyeww jtedstrom@hawkeyeww.com
http://www.linkedin.com/company/10388?trk=tyah c) 970.376.0269 0) 970.476.2071 X5301
About hawkeye
37

8 B2B Marketing Trends for 2013 from hawkeye

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