Strategy

Partner Enablement & Channel Strategy: Mapping the Maturity Curve

This is a duplicate of an article first posted on LinkedIn and updated live there. Posted here to rope our web audience into the debate. We'll eventually update this blog post too. Partner ecosystems have become a defining competitive advantage for large technology vendors. While most vendors recognize the importance of partners, building a self-perpetuating ecosystem is an entirely different challenge As companies scale, their partner strategy must evolve—from early-stage opportunistic alliances to structured, value-driven ecosystems. However, the maturity curve of partner enablement is often poorly defined, leading to misalignment between vendors, partners, and market needs. We READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

The Future of Partnership: Transforming Ecosystems into Growth Engines

For most vendors, partners are a handy addition to sales and marketing capacity or delivery capacity once their growth is on track, but this leaves significant money on the table. Your ecosystem can be the cause of, or at least a serious accelerant of, that growth. Partners support growth As major vendors mature in their growth planning, they will often seek partner-sold or partner-attached deals to represent 40, 50, 60, 70, even 80 percent of total revenues. Crossbeam's '2023 State of the Partner Ecosystem' report showed that partner-influenced and partner-sourced revenue are common key performance indicators (KPIs) READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Personas and Segments: Let’s Not Get Them Twisted

Alright, let's have a chat about something I've noticed cropping up a lot in B2B marketing discussions - the terms 'persona' and 'segment' being used almost interchangeably. I get it; they both help us describe and understand potential clients. However, they serve quite different roles, and it's high time we put a pin in the confusion and clearly define what each one stands for. First, let's talk about segments. In the grand scheme of things, segments are our starting point. Picture them as big, overarching categories that group businesses based on common characteristics, like the industry they READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Road Testing a Problem Statement with B2B Customers: Two Paths to Consider

The centre of your go-to-market strategy is not your products or services, but the problem that you solve with these products or services. The problem choice informs messaging, of course, but also market selection, the shape of your sales channel, and even the products or services themselves. So you need to get it 'right'. How, though, can you make sure that your theoretically wonderful problem statement will stand up when exposed in the market? You need to 'road test' your language. Not the problem you are in the business of solving - that's a decision for your READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Does size really matter? How to size your funnel in uncertain economic times

What changes about your sales and marketing funnel when the market is in turmoil? Here are some tips on how to size your market, funnel, and resources accurately - so no matter the change in market conditions, you'll be able to plan a sales and marketing strategy that will enable you to maintain the required number of leads (and conversions) to deliver on your revenue goals. First, confirm your market size Market sizing is often done with a degree of rigour. But far less rigour is applied to the task of sizing your sales funnel. The proposition READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

New year, new plan: Building your 2023 B2B marketing strategy

A new year’s resolution is not just for personal ventures; it can (and should) involve your business goals too. We always start the year off by reviewing our clients (and our own) marketing plans and looking for opportunities for improvement for the year ahead. Why? The start of the year is when predictions are set and trends are established - plus, our minds are fresh. So it's the perfect time to do some self-reflection and start investing in your new strategies, reach out to new markets or even look into rebranding if that's something you've been considering. READ MORE ›

By Chloe Fung|Strategy|

How to price in an inflated market: Communicating, executing & optimising price increases

The 2020s continue to throw businesses into new and challenging situations. The economic landscape in Australia is pointing towards higher costs for the foreseeable future: the CPI is predicted to peak at 7.75% at the end of this year, and the Reserve Bank's efforts to curb inflation mean that interest rates will likely continue to rise. While the government is doing its best to combat the growing economic tensions and skills shortages, business owners should be preparing accordingly - including a proactive approach to reviewing and updating their pricing strategies. This was the topic at this quarter's READ MORE ›

By Alice Antonov|Strategy|

6 things to consider before using B2B LinkedIn ads

B2B LinkedIn ads have the potential to be a goldmine for B2B businesses, but it can be difficult for businesses to know whether this is the right platform to use (and how to use it). And while LinkedIn ads can be a gamechanger for businesses, the platform’s growing popularity means that more time and effort need to be put into getting ads just right. So what do B2B businesses need to know before they dive into advertising on LinkedIn and how can they get the most out of this platform? We sat down with Nick Steffens, align.me’s READ MORE ›

By Alice Antonov|Strategy|

Is B2B branding more nuanced than we thought?

In his introduction to April's Referrers' and Thank You Lunch, align.me's Co-founder and Executive Director, Brett referenced the stage musical Les Mis for its excellent branding. Part of what makes Les Mis so memorable is its striking colour, music, and movement. Every time the curtain goes up, each audience member, new or old, sits in their chair and expects to see a brilliantly produced performance. The Les Mis brand is a 'promise', and the cast and crew for each city's Les Mis production deliver on the promise in every performance. So, much like this iconic musical, B2B READ MORE ›

By Alice Antonov|Strategy|

Why you should tailor your sales messages to the buying influences

Every day it's getting harder and harder to get marketing cut-through. Consumers are becoming savvier to sales messaging and advertisements and more reluctant to reach out until later in their buyer's journey. And while it's now easier and cheaper to get your messaging in front of consumers, it's also easier and cheaper for your competitors (and their competitors… and so on). Need proof? You just need to look at some of these recent stats: A global average of 37% of Internet users now block ads 79% of buyers wait until after they’ve fully defined their needs to READ MORE ›

By Alice Antonov|Strategy|