The buying process or “cycle” is an interesting process to say the least. Why do customers buy? What goes through their mind before, during and after a purchase? Why do they choose what they do to buy? How do they process all the information about products and services available to them? Marketers, as well as sales and business development professionals alike all seek to answer these questions to yield success.
The buying cycle can viewed as having 5 phases, as indicated in the graphic below
For the purposes of this discussion, we will focus on the first phase – Problem Identification. (Have no fear, we will discuss the remaining phases in the next series of blogs.)
The buying cycle begins when either (1) the buyer notices a problem is starting to arise, or – which happens more often than not – (2) the buyer begins to see the effects of a problem without knowing what the problem is exactly. For example, a car dealer who wants to communicate frequently and maintain a relationship with customers fails to employ a reputable CRM. They notice that their customer retention is low and can rightlyfully attribute the problem their CRM system. On the other hand, you have a car dealership who uses the best CRM system available in the industry and has a consistent direct marketing schedule but they also notice customer retention is low. This dealership is left scratching their head as to why their customers aren’t returning to their store for service needs and/or to purchase another new car.
This begs the question: how can companies who have products and/or services that can solve a particular issue reach prospects who are in the “problem identification” stage of the buying process? One suggestion that we strongly recommend is to have stimulating and engaging conversations online to get yourself infront of prospects who are in the midst of the buying cycle.
We’re not simply recommending that you jump on the social media bandwagon and create profiles on all the major social networks (i.e., Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn). Since a “build it and they will come” mentality does not succeed in social media, we urge companies to get their hands dirty by really getting involved online after profiles are created. You should ask thought-provoking questions to prospects, answering questions posed by prospects online, offer up “best practices” and tips and provide concrete information that will get prospects thinking more about their problem and how it can be solved. This can be done on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn and YouTube…and each can drastically improve your business development processes by generating qualified sales leads.
Don’t believe us? According to DemandGen’s recent report “BtoB Buyer Transformation Survey,” social media activity on networks such as those named above are “having a growing impact with business purchases.” In fact, they reported:
Over 20% of buyers connected directly with potential solution providers on social networks
Almost 40% posted questions on social media sites with the intent of looking for suggestions and feedback
A majority of respondents said Twitter and LinkedIn influenced their purchasing decisions during the “Problem Identification” phase
The results of this survey clearly indicate that social media has a significant impact on the b2b buying cycle and provide evidence to our recommendation above. Though “Problem Identification” is still the first step in a sometimes long and frustrating buying cycle, remember that engaging with prospects early in the game and building rapport throughout will improve your chances for a sale in the end.
For more information and recommendations, please watch as Gateway partner Jason Bahnak elaborates in the video below:
It’s often times easy to get very anxious about new business – the first thing you want to do is quickly pick up the phone and call a prospect – stop.
There’s a few steps you need to follow in order to ensure your call will actually be returned by a decision maker. First a foremost you must remember: Do not use your voicemail as a sales pitch.
Watch as Gateway partner, Jason Bahnak, explains the steps you must take in order to get a response from your voicemail.
When you’re trying to get new customers, your search engine ranking is critical.
Don’t discount websites you think your target market isn’t on. Though they may not be actively searching on social networking sites like YouTube, Twitter, or Digg; Google is actively searching for your content on them.
In most cases, prospects aren’t going to scroll through five pages of Google looking specifically for your company. They’re searching for an industry and clicking on pages that wind up on the first few pages of a search engine – it takes less effort and the closer to page one on Google, the more credible the business appears.
Create a Hybrid Marketing Strategy: Old School and New School.
You’ve currently tailored your online marketing strategy to your target market – which is good, it’s what we marketers have always been taught.
In a time where search engine ranking is becoming increasingly important, it may be time to let go of some of the tactics you’ve grown accustomed to. Now, it’s not only matters who sees your message, but what sees your message. Search engines are ALWAYS looking at content online; they’re tirelessly working to determine which information is credible, and relevant to its particular industry. The more content your company posts in a place that’s discussing news current to your industry, the higher your site will tank on search engines.
Take Twitter for example; the more tweets and retweets your company posts that link back to your website, the quicker your search engine ranking will increase.
Gateway Partner, Jason Bahnak, explains this process in depth in this video.
A Case Study:
Nearly two years ago, Gateway Business Development Group created a promotional video to display on our homepage. The video was professionally produced and explained what we do, how we execute business on a daily basis, a self-proclamation of how great we are.
Since the video has been posted, Gateway has had two to three companies inquire about our services after watching the video. That’s roughly one inquiry every 182 days.
As we grow and change, so do our marketing tactics.
A little over a week ago, we posted a new video on our Facebook and YouTube pages. It was simple- just Jason Bahnak, a Partner at Gateway, getting interviewed by Rise to the Top’s David Siteman Garland. Jason candidly discussed what Gateway can offer companies, and a few words of advice. The interview was very laid back and gave viewers an opportunity to put a face to the company name.
Since the video has hit the web, it’s gotten over 20,000 views, and Gateway has received 5 inquiries has 4 proposals for new business. That’s roughly one inquiry every 2 days.
Prospects are looking for raw, honest information. They’re not looking for a ten minutes sales pitch about the great things you’ve done, they just want to know how you can help them make more money.
For business owners, creating web videos is a win-win situation. The cost of creating these “interview-style” videos won’t blow your budget, and the reach is very extensive. Not only will they humanize your company, they can be fed through a variety of outlets that will, in turn, improve your search engine ranking. You have the ability to strategically place your video on networks and platforms and tailor the message to the network’s demographic.
With the help of a company that specializes in social media, your web video can be marketed in the most efficient way.
Take a look at our newest video blog for Jason’s full take on web videos.
This blog was created to share our thoughts on B2B customer development in the hopes that this information will be useful for organizations working toward increasing new sales opportunities.
