Nowadays it’s not enough to just push your message out into cyberspace and hope your customer follows up. As a b2b marketer, your communications strategy needs to account for taking the next step to proactively engage your audiences.

Engagement marketing is about partnering with your customers for success and having a two-way interaction with them to create dialogue. This type of marketing approach can help your organization connect and form better relationships with customers and prospects.

Marketing engagement strategies should include:

• Intelligence gathering – know your audience, understand the purchasing cycle and determine what success looks like for your company.
• BOLD, need-focused messaging – cut through the clutter and develop content that speaks to the needs of each audience within the channel and at the right time within the buying cycle.
• End-to-end communications – create customer-friendly programs that utilize a variety of tactics (Web sites, e-mails, call programs, etc.) to help close the communications loop and ensure end-to-end engagement with your audiences.
• Measurement – implement metrics to determine ROI and evaluate your tactics to see what was most effective in moving the needle.

What are you doing to attract and engage your customers? Looking for a b2b marketing partner?

Image courtesy of Coroflot.com.

In the world of social media, it seems that companies are increasingly interested in Tweeting, creating a Facebook fan page, launching a blog or starting a Linkedin group. It appears that everyone is concerned with being part of the social media movement. But, when it comes to social media, is an all-in approach really the best answer?

In my experience, biting off more than you can chew when it comes to anything, especially social media, can lead to poor performance, lack of engagement and abandoned efforts. In fact, statistics show that only 21 percent of Twitter users are active. To avoid this, I think it’s better to start small. Start with a couple social media sites and do those well before expanding your efforts.

It’s also important to have a well-thought-out plan for each social media network before starting. Within that plan, you need to evaluate your target audiences, designate specific employees to oversee social media efforts, determine the type of content you’ll post and decide how frequently you’ll update your sites. I think you’ll find that the chances of success are greater this way.

How have you started social media efforts? Do you think it’s better to dive into multiple sites or get a grasp on a couple before expanding?

As a PR coordinator, one of the fun parts about my job is taking pictures of celebrations and events at Canyon, and posting those pictures to Twitter or Facebook. It allows me to give people a glimpse into the agency culture here at Canyon.

Working at a b2b marketing agency, I’ve learned that capturing a company’s culture with photos and using those photos to promote the company through social media outlets like Twitter and Facebook, can be a great way to build relationships with prospective customers and employees. Moreover, in my opinion, b2b relationship marketing efforts, like sharing a company’s culture, can result in a significant impact on a company’s business performance. Do you agree?

Recently, there have been a lot of birthdays to celebrate at Canyon including Emily, Amanda, Megan and Savannah—and I’ve been busy snapping photos to share with our followers and fans on social media sites. Check out some of the delicious desserts that we’ve enjoyed while celebrating these Canyonites’ special days.

Do you think sharing photos of you company’s culture is a good way to build relationships with prospects and potential employees? What do you do to give your social media followers a glimpse into your company’s culture?

In the world of B2B, who has the majority responsibility to circle back with a prospect—marketing or sales? In my experience, they are two separate entities. Yet, I find B2B marketing professionals must act knowing that sales will need to react. Basically, one cannot exist without the other. And truly, both parties must circle back to the prospect or end-user for a company to be successful.

What many people don’t realize is how important it is to circle back and have something meaningful to circle back with—and something that reiterates the original marketing message.

In your marketing program, it’s important that the follow-up and communications strategies by the marketing and sales person are decided before hand. And, the method—whether it‘s a personal phone call, a targeted e-blast that follows an initial direct mailer or a simple reply Tweet—must be uniquely thought out ahead of time and support your brand.

Are you looking to add value to a lead or customer through circling back? Read this great article on the power of circling back with something valuable and brand-enforcing. It’s perfect for the sales person and marketer in you.