For any type of construction or renovation you need specific tools to help you get the job done, right? Sales pipelines are no different. You need the right tools to thrive.
In the current B2B market conditions, the process of helping customers move from an attraction to consideration to conversion can be complex.
Yes, you will need your Sales Team and your Partners to drive your pipeline, but there is also another player in the mix that can be seen as a truly resourceful instrument: Marketing.
A marketing strategy can be a game-changing solution for your business. Investing in the right strategy can help you save time, and money while preventing headaches by the end of the month when checking the ROI books.
We see the same demands from our clients every time we work with them: Increasing sales, growing the database, increasing loyalty, and ensuring ROI.
One of the suggestions we share with them is the importance of having a precise and ongoing marketing strategy to rely on. This can take their B2B sales game to a whole new level. Adding the following five steps to their sales strategies can be the difference between making average sales and closing profitable deals with potential long-term customers:
1. Invest in your own branding
You only want to close deals with teams and businesses that you perceive as trustworthy, right? Strengthening your brand perception as a first step could be a guarantee that you will be recognized for the correct reasons. You have the expertise, and you know exactly how to help your customers. It’s time to let them know that.
You can reinforce your business’ identity and trustworthiness with the help of a branding positioning statement and a strong visual identity. You can think of branding here as your business’s personality, qualities, and tone of voice.
2. Identify qualified leads and access referrals
It’s well-known that part of the conversion stage is having the right offer for the right client. However, learning how to differentiate between a lead and a qualified lead can take time and resources. Keeping consistency in your message is key to always surrounding yourself with an accurate portfolio for your brand.
A marketing strategy can help you build the buyer persona profile that your brand needs. One way to avoid wasting resources on trying to convert the wrong audiences is to stop converting them. Save that money for a specific set of clients and most importantly, for their acquaintances. Having on hand a neat database of qualified leads can improve your chances of accessing an extra tool: referrals.
Through marketing, you can provide better, more focused conversations that ultimately lead to high-value connections.
3. Know what your target audience is buying and why
Keeping track of your ideal audience steps through a marketing strategy is easier due to different tools that you can access. These tools enable you to know with accuracy what the next step is. Do you need social media ads in a specific region of the world? What about a digital content marketing strategy? Or perhaps more testimonials about your successful deals? The possibilities are endless and in the world of marketing, the rules are not written in stone. It truly depends on each case.
However, having a structured campaign aligned with your sales goals will let you know what your client’s preferences are when it comes to your brand. You will know for example if they love a certain product but do not understand your service. Finding out if your brand it’s answering all their questions or what could be the area of your company that needs the most improvement.
These are data hints that you need to have to make better business decisions.
4. Follow up, ask questions, and nurture your audience!
Let’s be clear: following up with leads, qualified leads, and regular clients is vital. It needs to be done every single time and we are aware that it is heavy duty.
How to approach the decision-makers? What should we talk about now? Should you be direct with the offer? Can you win back an old customer?
A marketing strategy can help you outline what type of conversation is appropriate for each group of clients. At the same time, it can lead you to discover how to nurture your regular database. This will enable you to win back those who decided to leave – or at least you can discover why they changed their mind about your business.
Some customers prefer daily content on social media or newsletters with articles and updates. Others, just want weekly notifications of your deals, videos, and testimonials. The most reliable way to know this is through the precious outcome of executing a marketing strategy: metrics.
5. Use metrics to keep prospecting
Making sales depends on several factors, including emotional responses from a client to any brand or business. However, owning metrics will help you measure the influence of your brand on their daily commercial decisions.
Monitoring that your Key Performance Indicators are aligned with the real appreciation of your brand can lead to better business decisions. However, even when all the numbers lead you to one specific client, you need to keep prospecting. Keep looking for clients like you have none. Marketing will help you with that.
One of the biggest mistakes we have seen in the industry is that B2B companies are laid back for a moment when they are working on a deal with a big client. The thing here is that there is no guarantee that they will close the deal successfully.
In the meantime, they already lost valuable time that could be used for approaching and converting more qualified leads. A marketing strategy helps you keep in touch with those customers that can be part of a loyal, long-term group. Keep them close!
Overcoming obstacles: focus on quality, not quantity
When it comes to B2B marketing strategies, it’s easy to fall into the trap of trying to implement a random marketing strategy downloaded from the internet. This is because the budget is usually tighter.
Focus resources on a millimetric, tailor-made strategy that can help your business. Regardless of the size, all companies look to make profit and create a connection with their audience. Combining your insights with the vision of the right marketing strategist can lead to a successful, fulfilled, and wider pipeline.
Check out our success stories on marketing strategies and learn how our team has helped companies all over the region to grow and thrive.