Companies invest a lot on marketing communications. In the United States alone, in 2019 businesses spent more than $197 billion on marketing. In B2B companies, marketing grabs an average of 11.5 percent of the total budget. But is all that money well spent? And more fundamentally, does marketing actually work? A marketing ROI analysis can help answer those questions.
It’s an understatement to say that 2020 has been a challenging year. And to make matters worse, the dust hasn’t settled yet. When it comes to global health crises, social upheaval, major job losses and business closures, the resulting social challenge and economic hardships are overwhelming. “We’re all in this together” is the common refrain. Yet, knowing that we aren’t alone in these struggles is not particularly comforting.
A reputable and robust brand is essential to any company’s marketing arsenal. However, a brand is much more than an eye-catching logo and color scheme (although those are important too.) A brand represents the totality of who the company is as an organization. It captures and communicates the values it holds and shares with its stakeholders.
Multicultural consumers represent approximately 40 percent of the population, yet only five percent of marketing spending is multiculturally oriented. When executed well, multicultural marketing—the targeting and reflection of different ethnicities and cultures within a brand’s overall audience—can unite people, empower groups and capitalize on culturally connected populations. When executed poorly, it can lead to backlash and a potentially devastating brand image.
The business-to-business marketplace is built differently than its business-to-consumer counterpart. B2C sells products or services directly to individuals. B2B targets organizations where the sales process can be longer and more complex. This reality makes the B2B marketplace more resistant to the sometimes whimsical, flashy or ostentatious marketing tactics used in the B2C space.
Similar to other marketing outreach initiatives, LinkedIn is not a one-and-done tactic. To get the most from it requires constant time, attention and learning to keep up to date with its newest features, algorithms and technologies. Here are some recent LinkedIn engagement changes that will give you more and better ways to take advantage of this powerful platform.
Imagine if you could see into the minds of your target audiences and uncover their needs, values, concerns and desires. Fortunately, behavioral marketing allows us to explore those characteristics and the actions that are innate to human nature. This helps marketers develop better targeted and more effective messaging that resonates with your audiences.
Advertising can be one of the most effective channels for building brand awareness, generating leads and making more sales. That said, it also can be one of the most expensive tactics and is often a challenge to get right. At the core, B2B marketers are faced with the task of balancing brand and transparency with concise and attention-grabbing calls to action. Before starting your next advertising campaign, here’s a six-step guide to help you maximize your advertising effectiveness.
Between KPIs, ROIs and CRMs, the acronyms we use in marketing seem to be endless. One acronym you may not consider right away in marketing is SCM, or supply chain management. And yet, SCM’s connection to marketing is more pivotal than first meets the eye.
Marketing’s role has expanded in recent years. Not only does it encompass addressing a company’s vision, brand, and strategies but also the content a company creates and distributes along with its interactions with prospects, customers and stakeholders on all levels. As marketing evolves and its practices become more diverse, the areas within it grow more specialized. There are experts in niches such as social media, public relations, SEO, trade shows, media outreach, influencer marketing, print advertising and digital marketing. However, technical know-how only accounts for a portion of the necessary marketing skills to become a good marketer.
Contrary to popular belief, strategy is not the same as planning. Ideally, planning involves the identification of growth strategies based on goals, but does not ensure it. On the other hand, a strategic approach starts with a collaborative dialogue and decision-making process about “how” the company will achieve its goals.
Savvy marketing professionals are lifelong learners. They know the trends, technologies and advancements in their industry. They don’t want to part of the crowd; they seek to be two steps ahead, ready to anticipate changing marketplace needs. In addition to reading, attending tradeshows, engaging in meaningful dialogues with peers and others, participating in marketing webinars is a valuable tool for staying at the forefront of innovation.
In the past, traditional advertising outlets were limited to radio, TV, print publications and outdoor signage. With the new economy, however, savvy marketers add digital outlets to the mix. As a result of the multitude of advertising platforms available today, it’s important to know which ones to choose based on the likelihood of attracting the greatest response from prospects and customers.
In marketing, new trends, evolving technologies and the ability to tap into customer preferences require marketers to continually refine their methodologies. But methodologies alone don’t separate winners and losers. In a saturated marketplace, it’s equally important to demonstrate the behaviors and values that customers and prospects expect and demand from your company and its products or services. The two most important are honesty and transparency.
Emails are one of the most relied-upon and widespread forms of business communications. In fact, 59 percent of B2B marketers say email is their most effective channel for generating revenue. But nothing hurts a company’s marketing efforts more than having emails wind up in the spam folder where subscribers won’t receive their information, offers and announcements. Whether you’re sending a monthly newsletter, building a drip campaign or distributing promotional content, your emails need to comply with regulations to avoid the dreaded spam folder.
Marketing is often referred to as the face of the business. As such, a well-established team that shares a commitment to being the best it can be has the ability to outshine and outperform the competition. To maximize performance, here are 12 vital goals all marketing departments should strive to achieve.
With an average of 11.3 percent of a B2B organization’s budget allocated to marketing, ensuring a return on investment (ROI) is a constant challenge for marketers. Without a doubt, marketing impacts the bottom line. But are marketers quantifying their contributions to the business in ways that are meaningful and valuable?
When General Motors released the Chevy Nova in the 1970s, it performed poorly in South American countries. One reason was due to the name, which loosely translates to “no va” or “doesn’t go” in Spanish. Although since proven to be an urban legend, the story gained popularity as a cautionary tale about understanding foreign markets and cultures before entering them. With the proliferation of digital communication, today’s global marketplace is even bigger, but selling globally still requires time, research and consideration of cultures, languages and buyer personas. This process is known as localization, and if your company works internationally, it needs to be a well-thought-out part of your marketing strategy.
User-generated content (UGC) is defined as any type of content created by users of an online platform, whether they are individual consumers or business representatives. This type of content results in others promoting your brand rather than your brand promoting itself. Content can range from product images, blogs, tweets, videos, reviews and other social media posts.
Understanding the needs and market research challenges of your target market is vital to the long-term success of any business. Logically, that knowledge should come from facts, not fiction and be based on extensive research and the careful analysis of the data collected. But market research is only effective when utilized in context and via informed and proven processes.
For decades, B2B marketing techniques relied on the same basic principles as consumer marketing. But over the last 20 years, B2B marketing has gone through an evolution and emerged as its own discipline with unique strategies, practices and metrics of success. The way marketing and business has changed over the years mimics the ways our values change as a society. If we compare the two, we discover greater insights into why we make the purchase decisions we do.
As marketers, nothing is more important than interacting with your target market. We’ve discussed ways to identify, interact with and grow a specified target market and communicate with an interactive audience, but the next step, segmenting the audience, is just as important. Segmentation ensures your content and outreach are relevant to your prospects and clients.
When we think of “gamers” we often picture teenagers, headphone-clad in a dim room, palming a controller for hours on end. According to a 2017 study, however, 64% of the general US population consider themselves “gamers.” Video game technology and usage have grown exponentially since its inception in the 1970s. As a result, video game technology has infiltrated sectors far beyond the entertainment industry.
Marketing is a rapidly changing and evolving discipline. New technologies, social and behavioral norms, digital marketplaces, business trends, global and cultural influences and communication methods change almost every day. Yet, we expect marketers to not only keep up with the pace, but also count on them to be experts too. While this is a tall order, it is possible to develop high-performing, agile marketing departments.
