Strategy

Double down on competition for 2 times growth [video]

Double down on competition to double your growth. I've always been a fan of ignoring the competition, but you can double your growth by having a smart focus on competition. https://www.youtube.com/embed/xlRU4rGYGU4 The hard data We have around 1700 active plans in our two databases (860 + 851). I analyse those plans almost every day and find so much gold! And every week, I share the best nugget I've found in that week. Here's something you're going to want to know about: You can include or exclude competition analysis in your Funnel Plan - it's an READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

5 x growth from a 5 day update [video]

Want to 5 x your growth in 5 days? I just analysed 1700 sales and marketing plans in our Funnel Plan database, and found a gem I think you're going to want to know about. https://www.youtube.com/embed/Y_-d7AV1wDA Grow 5 times more with this simple action We've got around 1700 active sales and marketing plans in our 2 databases. I analyse these plans almost every day and find so much gold! And every week, I share the best nugget that I've found in that week. Here’s something you’re going to want to know about: In a simple split READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

3 ways to optimise your sales and marketing process

If you want your sales and marketing process to be awesome, don't build it alone. I've got 3 great tips on how to improve and optimise your sales and marketing process. https://www.youtube.com/embed/NI5G9-16Mn4 3 Effective ways to optimise your sales and marketing process Use free resources; Use your friends; and Hire a professional. Kind of obvious, right? Let me offer you a few rapid-fire tips on the best way to get the most out of each of those 3 resource types. #1 Effective ways to optimise your sales and marketing process Use free resources Read READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

What’s the role of artificial intelligence in planning? [video]

I recently found a great new service on Product Hunt. My new PA is an artificial intelligence (AI) application – Amy - and she's insanely clever. Let me show you how to save hours on scheduling using this service, and then I’ll ask you a question about how AI should be applied to planning. I would love to hear your feedback. https://www.youtube.com/embed/GZ55qScQpfI Below is the test email exchange between my new AI personal assistant (Amy) and myself, as well as a couple of my internal colleagues (Nick and Brett), to set up a meeting that is READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

The magic of recurring revenue [video]

How would you like to increase your revenue every year without increasing your sales quotas? Steady - I'm not selling some networking marketing method, or even a product. I just want to show you something obvious that you can do in your own business without paying anybody, or signing up for some crazy system. This is business 101. https://www.youtube.com/embed/Hz2PK_lxS4w The answer is simple and probably obvious. To grow revenues without increasing sales you need recurring revenue, which comes from selling recurring products/services. Below, I will make a very quick case for recurring revenue. This will be READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Why you don’t need more segments [video]

How finely should you segment? Asked in another way, how many segments should you have for your plan? We're always told of the value of segmenting, and that we should compartmentalize our activities. Yet, the data doesn't actually support this theory. Let me show you why. https://www.youtube.com/embed/NpEdvGIrlJA After looking at a couple of thousand plans in the database, I found that the data was unambiguous. The net conclusion is that you need more plans, not more segments per plan. Let me show you the data, and what this means for us when we’re thinking about planning READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Generate B2B leads in 6 steps [video]

How do you generate B2B leads? I looked at 2,000 plans that we have in the database for Go-To-Market. I looked at 500 Go-To-Market projects that were done over the last nearly 20 years, and every single one of them is really different, and yet the pattern is super-clear. There are just 6 steps. Let me share them with you now. https://www.youtube.com/embed/gChxzK3V3gI Firstly, B2B is different than B2C, and I just do not know what works in consumer marketing, but I do know what works to generate more B2B leads, and there are just 6 steps. Get READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Mature markets – fight your way into the corner [video]

You are in a mature market and everyone’s margins have eroded but yours are worse. Your margins have eroded even more than your competitors. So what do you do? Your back is up against the rope! Do you fight your way out of the corner? The answer is no. Rather, find a new corner to fight your way into with a mature market strategy. https://www.youtube.com/embed/qKTZyPdKgh4 In a mature market, the margins start to thin out. Why? This is because your product or service is pretty much the same as everybody else's. Subsequently, price is the easiest READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

What’s the cost of content marketing?

What's the cost of content marketing? I'll assume that you've bought into the need for content marketing, and you just want to know what it should cost. https://www.youtube.com/embed/ZF7CQk-FjBs Conclusions Content marketing is just a part of your total marketing, and your marketing spend should be somewhere between 2 -5% of your gross revenue. You should allow for the following: Planning ($25,000): $5,000 for an external audit. $20,000 to build your strategy. Execution: Insource for $80,000 per person, on average. You're going to have some younger team members, and some more senior, and therefore wages will change; READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|

Buyer’s journey: A framework for strategy

The buyer's journey started as a framework for choosing tactics and we still use it for that purpose. It turns out though, it's got a really big strategic impact as well. Let me share that with you. https://www.youtube.com/embed/_mDXmg3pQcw Buyer’s journey Let's start with the buyer's journey. The transition between gap and need turns out to be the most important transition, that is how you shape the buyer's concept. I'm going to dive into that quite a bit and explain the impact that all of that has on your strategy. The transition between gap and need READ MORE ›

By Hugh Macfarlane|Strategy|