The Short Guide to Business2Business Marketing And Making it work for you

An overview of the fundamental marketing tactics, which to choose and how to make them work for you

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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About the author:

Anthony Byrne, Managing Director

Anthony is a graduate of UCD Michael Smurfit School of business and has fifteen years Business Development, Sales Management and Business Management experience both in Ireland and the UK. Prior to founding Product2Market Anthony was involved in the start-up and growth of two successful Irish software companies selling into some of the UKs biggest FTSE listed companies. Before working in the Software Industry, Anthony worked within the Irish Media Industry. Anthony works very closely with our clients helping them to achieve strategic goals by providing consultation on Sales & Marketing, Market Entry and Export Strategies.
Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie 02

Outline of Product2Market Services Offline Marketing

Lead Generation Event Attendee Management Data Cleansing Inbound Call Handling

Online Marketing
Marketing Consultancy Email Marketing Social Media Strategy Website Content Audit PPC Campaigns

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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Its 2012 and theres more ways than ever to market your businesss product or service to its intended audience both locally and internationally.

The purpose of this e-Book is to outline some of the most widely used Business to Business marketing practices available and to give the reader pointers on how to implement some of these strategies with maximum effect. Mark Zuckerberg (founder of social networking site facebook) stated in 2011 that he aims not to build a platform but to be across all of them. Product2Markets position is that no one marketing strategy is the best strategy to use, it is a combination of tactics; which will get your name out there.

In fact, we believe that the most effective marketing strategies are ones, which encompass a number of marketing tactics, which cleverly reinforce each other while sharing a cohesive and consistent message. Over the last decade, how marketing is done has changed immensely as factors such as the emergence and development of the Internet, Globalisation and increased consumer expectation due to higher spending power have had an incredible impact on how businesses target and capture the attention of their customers. This is especially true of the Business to Business world.
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Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

My definition of B2B Marketing is:

What is B2B Marketing?

Business to Business marketing differs greatly from Business to Consumer marketing. This applies to factors such as potential target market size, value proposition and consequently, decisions and approaches used by marketing managers. In the past, Business to Business marketers had a (more) straightforward approach to winning new business.

.. a tra ns action betwee n two bu si ne ss es. Tran sa ct io ns m ig ht be se rv ices su ch as co ns ulti ng whe re a co m pa ny of fe rs its expe rt is e to an ot he r co m pa ny. In ba sic te rm s B2 B M ar keti ng is whe re on e co m pa ny se lls its prod ucts to an ot he r co m pa ny.

This was because of less competition in the marketplace, a more simplistic approach due to less tactic options and fundamentally- a focus on relationship marketing (ensuring loyalty and repeat business). Essentially, having so many marketing resources in 2012 has meant Business to Business marketers have a less clear path in terms of what is right, wrong and going to bring the best results.

So, out with the old and in with the new? No. Mix it up a bit- understand what the options are then start building a strategy.

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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The options on the table

A dvertis in g sa ys to pe op le, H eres what weve got. H eres what it will do fo r you. H eres how to get it.
Leo Burnett, quoted in 100 LEOs 1995

Will I p ut a n a d in t h e pa pe r ?

Its clear, advertising is typically the most traditional form of marketing available. In our consumer driven society its very hard to undertake any activity that isnt impacted by some type of Advertising. Through the mediums of television, radio, press, magazines and the Internet there is almost limitless possible avenues your Business could use to advertise.

Advertisings returns can sometimes be hard to quantify so its important to have a quantification process in place.

1 Be specific. Sophisticated

Advertisers sometimes use specific telephone numbers or advertise offers with redemption codes all for the purpose of tracking the return of investment.

The location of your advertising campaign can be influenced by your industry. Is there an industry specific publication with a strong readership?

2 Location, location, location

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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Get inside their Mailbox

Direct mail, mail-shots, mailers. Weve all heard, seen, read these as theyve landed on our desk. In todays Marketing world, the Internet has affected the medium used to deliver marketing messages, which would have traditionally been delivered through the Mail (Postal) system. This has become a positive for direct mail as a marketing method as decision makers arent being bombarded by endless mail- shots. Less is more.

Catch them for a meeting

T h e re is n o s u ch t hin g a s s o ft s e ll a n d h a rd s e ll. T h e re is o n ly s m a rt ll. s e ll a n d st u p id s e
Charles Browder (1958), president of BBDO, quoted in James B. Simpson, Contemporary Quotations 1964

What we mean by Direct Sales is a companys Sales resources, which contact the target market directly. Whether following up on enquiries or making cold calls your companys sales people should be responsible and accountable for growing their pipeline and deals closed. Direct sales people give your company focused growth by hunting for leads and opportunities.
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Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

Its always worth considering that the most effective use of a Sales Persons time is closing deals with the right type of prospect. This means that marketing to generate leads for Sales people to close is key if you want to optimise a sales & marketing relationship.

While they are doing something else marketing

Did you know that in 2012 - checking email is most popular online activity to engage in while watching tv? It is also the most effectively adopted and cost-effective marketing resource in the Business to Business sector. The best way to think about e-mail marketing is to think of direct mail delivered by email instead of the traditional postal system. Used correctly, e-mail marketing can be a very useful tool which can offer very significant return on investment.

E-mail marketing holds some extra tangible benefits over its generational forerunner.

1 e-mail marketing allows compa-

because of clever innovations in this space, e-mail marketing allows its senders to track the effectiveness with most established E-Mail Marketing systems by having the capability of reporting on the receivers and readers of a campaign.

nies to market on a very large scale, to a large audience in a large number of locations.

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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80% of internet

1 Those searching for specific items.

o m e rs Y ou ca n t a s k cu st d t ry wh at t h e y wa nt a n y t h e it g ive it t o t h e m. B , t h e y ll t im e y ou g et it bu iltw. wa nt s o m et hin g n e
Steve Jobs, C EO, Apple

users have a facebook account in 2012

The Internet has connected all sides of the world and made it much smaller. It links people to people and business to business. Business uses the web to reach two very different types of web traffic:

Using certain keywords, shoppers look for specific items and suppliers - ensuring your company appears in search engines for terms/names to your business is very important if you want to harness the web. Understating areas such as search engine optimisation is key to successful execution.

specifically looking for your type of product/service - but using the web as a tool of suggestion to this segment can generate interest in a market that wasnt specific sourcing your company.

2 Potential buyers who are not

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Getting your marketing strategy right

So you know the main options available to you - how do you decide which to start with and how to execute them? Look at the past, present and future - analyse and quantify. Market Research- Knowing whats happening in the marketplace especially with your competitors is imperative. Figure out where they are advertising and where their name seems to be known. Once you know what appears to be working for them (and not working), this can help you figure out what will work for you.

Resources- Are you a one-man band or part of a multi-national organisation? Do you have a 50 or a 500,000 budget? Figure out how many staff members, dollars in the bank and additional resources are available. Know-how- Do you have the expertise in-house to execute campaigns? Theres no point in making a plan to design a state of the art billboard if you dont have designers in house to do it! Put it on ice until you are ready or if you have funds, talk to the experts!

Know what to expect/set your targets realistically- Having clear targets in place will mean that you are working towards something very specific and always keeping the end in mind. A short, medium and long-term strategy will allow you to identify trends weekly, monthly and annually if carried out correctly. Using Analytics systems will mean that you can clearly understand your targets and objectives in terms of your marketing activity. This will also mean you can make amendments to your plan based on trends identified.

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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Increasin gly, the mass marketin g is turning into a mass of niches.

Most of the Business to Business Marketing strategies adopted in Business are a complete or subset of what we have discussed in this e-book. Whats very important is to try and put yourself in the seat of YOUR target market. A good acid-test to ask yourself is if I were in position of the target market, how would I perceive my Company and message?. This will ensure you are looking at your strategy from both sides of the fence!

Chris Anderson Author of the Long Tail

I wish you well on your Marketing journey and leave you with one last factor to consider... as your target market will always evolve, to stay ahead of your competition make sure you always alter your Marketing message. As your position in the marketplace changes, so should your Company/Products message.

Product2Market are here to help if you would like suggestions, ideas or just a second opinion please reach out to us !

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | + 353 (01) 544 5775 | info@product2market.ie

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Additional B2B Marketing Tools and Resources

http://www.hubspot.com/marketingresources/ http://www.marketingprofs.com/ http://www.irishmarketingjournal.ie/

Product2Market Sales and Marketing Agency | +35315445775 | info@product2market.ie

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Contact Product2Market

www.product2market.ie
P: + 353 (01) 544 5775 E: info@product2market.ie

Second Floor Suite 16, The Mall, Beacon Court, Sandyford, Dublin 18.

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