Is your advertising or trade show budget delivering top notch ROI? Can you attribute sales to trade shows that are commensurate to the dollars and time expended? Do you measure it?
My solution and favorite (clears throat) "latest trend" is...
Collaborative sales and marketing strategy, attribution, and measurement. (Inbound Marketing)
What works best for getting your product or service in front of, and sold to, the right people?
Customer purchase consideration has largely moved to the web and other digital techniques. I would argue that lots of companies still only pay lip service to this. Hey... you've got a Facebook page, right?
Do you have a clear, data driven strategy that connects your online marketing to the bottom line?
When potential customers look for you or your business area online, are you there? Will they find you in the search results and truly appreciate what you offer? Will they self-identify by signing up with an email address? That's a lead to nurture!
Customers easily "commit" to a product or service based on their online and email experiences.
I am all for building a meaningful brand. You must provide engaging content, value and utility on your website, in your email and CRM.
Meet your prospects where THEY are and manage the sales funnel there.
For most small and medium size companies, online content is what moves your prospect beyond "awareness" and into the decision making stages of the sales funnel.
For non-retail company sales, the prospect’s moment of truth is generally going to happen somewhere in your digital communications before ever talking to a sales person… or maybe it will happen on a competitor’s web site.
Today, the front door to sales is...
Strategic, high quality web, email and CRM-integrated selling techniques.
Comprehensive strategy, integrated sales tools and relevant measurements are the fundamentals for smart marketers AND smart sales teams to collaborate and produce tangible results.
Robust SAAS tools are now affordable for small business to do just that. For companies with dedicated sales forces, the tools, techniques, and methodologies of inbound marketing are absolutely a sales manager’s best friend.
The beauty of the web and these new tools is that every action is documented, making it measureable and repeatable and above all..."improvable".
Inbound marketing makes all of marketing (and sales) better. It allows you to get “good” at marketing.
…and then, based on quantifiable data and feedback, transform your company’s marketing from good to great!
More inbound marketing articles:
- WOW! 45% of Marketers Report Lacking an Effective Marketing Strategy
- Do you employ a Marketing Developer?