In this year’s Demand Gen Report on B2B buyers, we learn that more than two thirds (68 percent) of respondents agreed that the number of sources they use to research and evaluate purchases has increased over the past year. As we said last week, many marketers are starting to feel like they’re at the mercy of the self-informed buyer. If a prospect engages with a member of your sales team at all, it happens later in the buying cycle than ever before. With sales representatives largely removed from the process, the direction of business decisions relies more heavily on the marketing department than it did in the past. With the understanding that customer research and evaluation will only continue to rise, marketers must respond. Wondering how to do that? Don’t worry–we’ve got you covered.
If customers are determined to conduct their own research, one strategy is to become a trusted place for them to conduct that research. Use a blog to provide help and data-backed insights that make you the go-to for prospects who have industry-related questions. In addition to a blog, provide valuable content in the form of newsletters, white papers and case studies. If you can, work in some video tutorials too!
Developing a reputation as a trusted source for industry research relies heavily on your content marketing strategy. Be proactive in your attempts to position yourself as the thought leaders on a topic that’s important to your company, and develop a plan to get your content in front of the right audience at the right time. Your strategy should be based in data-driven insights, documented and frequently tweaked based on what levels of engagement are telling you.
Surveys and interviews are not out of style. In fact, in a world where soundbites and screens prevail, personal conversations–or interviews–make a powerful impact. Have your marketing department bridge the gap between marketing and sales, and ask customer service reps to engage with customers over email or social media to find out what customers need to know. They can answer their questions and mine information to inform future marketing strategies and lead to sale.
Photo Credit: Terry Johnston via Flickr Creative Commons
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