Jul

Today’s online marketers have no excuse for being the last to know

written by Stan Carlberg

By now, you’ve seen at least one of those hilarious AT&T network commercials where a person with a painfully slow Internet connection receives a text message minutes after everyone else. By the time they open the message, everyone with a faster connection either looks annoyed or are embarrassed for them, making for an awkward situation.

As marketers, finding yourself behind the competition is the last place you want to be. When it comes to social media, corporate marketers no longer have an excuse for being the last to know. Today, not being up to speed on the latest news or trends in your respective industry gives your competition an edge. (more…)

Tags: blog content, makreting content, makreting strategy, social media
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10

Dec

You don’t have to be an ambulance chaser to produce valuable blog content

written by Stan Carlberg

Over the past few weeks, there have been millions of blogs written about WikiLeaks. Rightly so. It’s the hottest topic on the planet. But why are so many people blogging about it? What’s the motivation? I figure there are two reasons: First, they want to get in on the conversation of the day. Second, and what might very well be the driving force behind the first, tying their content with timely material will drive higher blog traffic.

While commenting on popular topics can potentially drive more traffic to your blog, as B2B marketers, it should not be the driving force behind your content development. From a sales and marketing perspective, if your material is not attracting your target audience your efforts will be all for naught, no matter how much you increase your blog traffic.

The strategy for any corporate blog should be to deliver valuable content to your target audience, whether it’s educating them about a relevant topic or generating interest in a solution that solves their problems. This works for both lead generation and lead nurturing programs. While discussing your customers’ business challenges and demonstrating how your products or services solve their problems is relevant material for your readers, attracting a broader audience sometimes requires all little creativity such as getting into the mix of timely stories that are relevant to your industry. (more…)

Tags: blog content, content marketing, marketing content, marketing content strategy, Mindlink Marketing
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22

Oct

If you love writing headlines, you really gotta read this

written by Stan Carlberg

I love headlines. It’s really that simple. I love reading them, love creating them, and I love to edit them. I have to say coming up with an engaging headline is one of my favorite things to do. I see headline writing as a very calculated puzzle of words that, when done right, can double your readership. Not in the way that those trashy supermarket rags do so well, but in a way to connect businesses with their target audience.

While the process of writing headlines for your B2B marketing materials is both fun and challenging, writing an effective one is not as easy as you would think.

The goal of every headline, of course, is to grab the reader’s attention. If your headline doesn’t make a good first impression that motivates your readers to want to read more, don’t get me wrong your article will still be read, but not by as many readers as you had hoped for. But a well-written headline that strikes a chord with readers can significantly increase the amount of readers that are compelled to read on. And for your B2B marketing and lead generation programs, that’s a beautiful thing. (more…)

Tags: B2B marketing, content marketing, marketing strategy, Mindlink Marketing
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7

Oct

When it comes to content marketing, it’s best to focus on what you do best

written by Stan Carlberg

Businesses are built around simple, straightforward ideas that are supported by compelling value propositions. Unfortunately, the original vision often gets lost or loses sight of why they got into business in the first place.

As marketers, we’re always trying to keep it simple. We know that if the message gets too convoluted, it can impact how the industry perceives your brand, not to mention the success of your campaigns.

I once worked for a niche company that did a few things great. As a result, they quickly earned a stellar reputation within the industry. Their clients trusted them so much that they begin asking if the company would take on additional services that were outside the scope of their core offerings. To make their customers happy, the company invested in the resources and began offering the new services to other customers. Over time, however, they couldn’t deliver on the expectations for the additional services. As a result, they began to lose the trust they initially earned with their clients. Then they realized, instead of being a jack-of-all-traits, they needed to reel things back in and rescaled their service offerings. They got back to what they did best.

The moral of the story is to focus on what you do best. (more…)

Tags: content marketing, content strategy, marketing strategy
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5

Oct

Why are you selling Kobe beef to vegans? Don’t market to the wrong audience.

written by Scott Olson

I was out shopping the other day and I came across this car in the parking lot. A Hummer Hybrid in it’s full ecologically conscious glory. As a marketer, I think there is no greater crime than marketing your products to an audience who doesn’t want them.

In this case, Hummer built their product for the wrong group and failed to understand their brand. The Hummer brand is built on gas guzzling excess. Trying to suddenly change directions and market to energy conserving, environmentally conscious groups was bound to fail.

This is an extreme example, but could you be doing the same thing? See if any of this sounds familiar:

Do you send emails to your sales database without segmentation?
Do build features to meet new market needs instead of prioritizing the needs of your true fans?
Do you build a generic website that doesn’t speak to the specific needs of your primary audience?

Take the time to understand your value and your audience. Lots of companies say they are applicable to a broad horizontal market, but often this is evidence of the company not wanting to take the time and make the hard choices to decide who they really are selling to.

It’s better to delight a smaller group and grow from there then try to please everyone. That is a sure path to failure.

Tags: content marketing
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1

Oct

Isn’t it time sales and marketing got reacquainted?

written by Stan Carlberg

As marketers we’re always focused on the message. What do we want to say? How can we make it more engaging? While we are constantly tweaking the message, how often are we communicating these ongoing changes to the sales team? Weekly? Monthly? Quarterly? Dare I say…

Aside from your marketing campaigns, your sales force is the front line of your company. They are out in the field talking to your customers and prospects, following up on the leads you’ve provided them. Because of this, it’s critical that both sales and marketing are on the same page. If there’s a disconnect in what each party is saying to customers it can impact the success of your campaigns and the ability to close sales. (more…)

Tags: content marketing, Mindlink Marketing, startup strategy
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16

Sep

Startup marketing strategy: Building thought leadership

written by Stan Carlberg

We’d all like to be recognized by our peers as thought leaders, someone who promotes innovative ideas to help others and move our respective industries forward. Building a reputation as a thought leader within your industry is not easy. In fact, it’s an ongoing process that starts with you and continually evolves through industry perception. This can be especially challenging for startups staring into a blank marketing canvass and asking themselves, “Where do I begin?”

The key to turning on the thought leadership engine is by focusing on your company’s strengths, experiences and differentiators, and delivering something of value to your audience. When developing content for a thought leadership program, there are a few things you need to consider, including:

Industry expertise. Having a deep understanding of your sector is the first criteria for thought leadership. Since startups are formed by individuals with vast knowledge and experience in a particular field, this is something you should focus on to demonstrate your expertise and start building confidence with your audience.

(more…)

Tags: content marketing, content marketing strategy, Mindlink Marketing, startup marketing, startup marketing strategy, thought leadership
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10

Sep

Setting the right tone is critical to your written communications

written by Stan Carlberg

With my kids’ school now in session, I recently received a volunteer email to rally the troops for the upcoming year. The intention of the writer, I think, was to motivate volunteers to donate their time and money for various programs. However, the extra large red font and capitalization came across as a scolding rather than an invitation to a great new year of volunteering. Instead of getting out my checkbook, I wanted to run the other way. The funny thing is, I’ve met the copywriter and the email couldn’t have been more opposite of her positive and cheerful personality.

This got me thinking about how we communicate with each other online. While certain social media tools such as video blogs, webinars, and audio files allow for certain inflections in our voice to set a proper tone, written communication is missing one of the most important components of communication — body language. With any in-person conversation, a smile or friendly gesture speaks volumes to your demeanor. It’s different with emails, blogs and Tweets. As copywriters, we’re often too focused on what we have to say that we don’t invest the same level of time and energy in how to say it. As a result, there’s potential for our message to get misinterpreted.

The challenge for every content writer is to communicate in a way that is as natural as talking to someone in the same room. While the subject matter is important, the tone on how you deliver your message plays a critical role in connecting with your audience. For example, with email there’s no affirmation to emotionally support what you are trying to say. The wrong tone, or even lack of tone, can distance yourself from your readers. Here are a few things you should think about when drafting your next email. (more…)

Tags: marketing content, marketing email, social media, web content
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19

Aug

Lead nurturing: It’s a matter of trust

written by Stan Carlberg

Trust is the foundation of any healthy personal relationship. The same applies to business relationships, too. Without trust, there is no foundation for a lasting relationship.

For B2B marketers, a key part of your lead nurturing program is establishing your business as a trusted resource for information that’s relevant to your customers’ needs. The last thing you want to do in your marketing efforts is come across as another tunnel-vision marketer trying to force feed your message down everyone’s throat. Each marketing touch — whether it’s through a personal email, company blog, newsletter, or any other social media tool — should position your company as a knowledgeable, thought leader that provides useful information that helps prospects in their decision-making process.

While my last post provided tips on how to attract customers in a hurry, nurturing those relationships takes time. Building the foundation for a strong business relationship starts with an open dialog that not only shows that you understand your customers’ problems and concerns, but that you are there to help. Here are a few things B2B marketers should consider when developing a lead nurturing program:

Demonstrate that you understand and care about your customers’ needs
Communication should be conversational
Content should include timely, relevant information your customers can use
Make yourself readily available
Reply to inquiries and follow up in a timely fashion

Today’s customers are hungry for information, and they’re turning to the Internet to find it. By establishing yourself as a trusted industry resource they can turn to, they will pay attention to your future lead nurturing efforts. Once you’ve done that, you’ve set the foundation for a trusted business relationship. After all, most business deals aren’t won through the products and services, they’re earned through the trust of the people behind them.

Tags: B2B marketing, lead nurturing
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Startup Marketing Content Services | MindLink Marketing

Archive for the ‘Messaging Strategy’ Category

You don’t have to be an ambulance chaser to produce valuable blog content

If you love writing headlines, you really gotta read this

When it comes to content marketing, it’s best to focus on what you do best

Why are you selling Kobe beef to vegans? Don’t market to the wrong audience.

Isn’t it time sales and marketing got reacquainted?

Startup marketing strategy: Building thought leadership

Lead nurturing: It’s a matter of trust

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