Strategy

The power of B2B marketing metrics: demonstrate your value

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... Does B2B marketing receive the recognition and support that it deserves in your company? Some B2B marketing professionals find themselves having to justify what they do to the rest of their organisation, when they could be making more headway with their marketing campaigns. One way of gaining back this time is to implement an effective process for measuring what you do. To do this, you first need to know what it is exactly that you should to be measuring. So, as Laura Patterson asks, “Does your marketing plan and metrics pass READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Prevent leads leaking in your B2B marketing Funnel

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... Both demand generation and closing a sale are often a strong focus in B2B marketing strategies. But there is much to be said for what happens in between. This is where leakage can occur, and if your B2B marketing strategy doesn’t include a plug for leakage in the middle of the funnel, then those leads that you nurtured at the top will have been a waste of time. Does your company have a plan for the middle of the Funnel? Carlos Hidalgo, CEO Annuitas Group, has helped clients identify READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy, Velocity|

B2B marketing leads: born from opportunity or relationship?

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... While it is the stuff of frequent debates between Sales and B2B marketing professionals, this is a bit of a chicken and egg argument, because of course they’re interdependent. In B2B marketing, this means figuring out how to optimise leads regardless. Sales relationships require human contact, so even if B2B marketing automation techniques are generating a healthy flow of leads to your company – the process doesn’t stop there, (and probably didn’t start there either). So how do you know you’re doing enough chicken and enough egg? Donna J READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Science at the top of the B2B marketing Funnel

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... Do you know how to use the internet to find B2B marketing leads? If you’re reading a B2B marketing blog, then your answer is likely a yes. But then comes the other obvious question: are the leads you find via your internet searches of the right quality? There are some great technology solutions designed to help you scour the information on the web for leads, but the biggest costs are incurred by the sales force well after the leads is landed. So how do you get a quality list READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy, Tactics, Velocity|

How to build a revenue playbook for B2B marketing

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... In B2B marketing it pays to have a plan. The problem is that often companies recycle ineffective plans based on traditional B2B marketing, rather than revenue marketing. A successful transition from one way of doing things to another depends on having the right information to guide you. Even better, if you can follow a proven, well-worn path, you will get to the main road a lot faster than you would alone. If one path is growing revenue and the other isn’t, you need to know which one is which, and READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy, Tactics, Velocity|

Top of Funnel data strategies for B2B marketing – choosing demand generation technology

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... What value does demand generation technology add to B2B marketing? There are so many complex technology solutions out there that it can become overwhelming to think about which fit your needs well (and that’s once you know what you need). B2B marketing professionals can be forgiven for holding back, but risk seeing their competitors stride ahead, taking early advantage from new technologies. So how do you choose the right platforms for your company? At DemandCon in San Francisco next week, Michael Bird, Chief Revenue Officer of Netprospex will READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy, Tactics, Velocity|

B2B marketing keynote – See Far, Go Fast!

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... B2B marketing is my passion, and one of the biggest challenges for B2B marketers is alignment. While we're all busy trying to get Sales and Marketing on the same page, the goals often go and shift on us. And this can be even before most of us have reached the half-way mark! The crucial thing is that the need for alignment has broadened. It's now about getting the whole business and your partners pointing in the same direction. Sounds logical. So how do you do it? If you’ve been reading READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy, Tactics|

Making loyalty pay in B2B marketing

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... In B2B marketing we know the importance of serving our best customer first, right? Maybe! Demand generation and B2B marketing in general is often about acquisition, not retention. Sound familiar? Steve Bernstein, Principal of Waypoint Group, and fellow speaker at DemandCon, puts it this way: “Wouldn’t it be great if all of your customers were truly loyal, buying more from you and referring their friends and colleagues? Using real examples from leading companies, we will share lessons-learned from sales and B2B marketing experts that have successfully leveraged and improved READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

How to do your network for success in B2B marketing?

Hugh Macfarlane, Founder & CEO of align.me, writes... How do you make a conference on b2b marketing and sales pay big dividends? ’Networking opportunities’ are one of the major reasons cited for attendance at conferences, conventions and seminars. B2B marketing companies know that most people never take full advantage of these networking opportunities by actually achieving meaningful connections with the other people in the audience – as amazing as those other people may be. So how exactly do you network for success in b2b marketing? At DemandCon in San Francisco this May, Thom Singer will serve as your READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy, Tactics, Velocity|

Inbound marketing adoption data: are you getting left behind?

Chris Fell, Managing Director of g2m Solutions, writes... The majority of B2B organisations are increasing marketing budgets for inbound marketing tactics: social media, virtual events and webinars, SEO and PPC. When considering outbound marketing tactics, such as telemarketing, direct mail and print advertising, the majority of B2B organisations are either not changing, or they're reducing budgets. The growing trend to use inbound marketing tactics is due to the cost-effective reputations of these marketing channels. Applying these with established Sales Funnel processes that include a lead-nurturing stage for non-sales-ready leads, and lead scoring methodologies to determine when a lead is ready to READ MORE ›

By Chris Fell|Strategy, Tactics|