Critical Path to Purchase

Beyond Buyer Profiling To Buyer Personification

Segmentation has been a staple of business marketing and sales for several decades.  The concept of breaking down a potential market or industry into smaller target segments is a standard technique taught in business schools and used by many organizations.  Beginning in the 1980’s and 1990’s, we began to see a shift to individualism.  The …

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3 Ways CMOs Can Achieve Deeper Insights Into The Customer Journey

As CMOs look ahead, gaining greater clarity into how buying behaviors are changing is becoming one of their most important aims.  Never more pressing as digital channels expand and become more immersed in the conduct of commerce.  At the same time, the ability of marketing to influence and support the entire customer lifecycle continues to …

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7 Big Questions For B2B Marketing Leaders in 2014

The New Year is underway.  The first quarter is nearing an end.  Some of the best-laid plans have already vaporized due to unexpected events.  While some plans are either tracking on-target – or – will be missed.  Each year, B2B business must meet the challenge of our time – keeping up with rapid new developments …

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Why Are 76% of Content Marketers Forgetting Sales Enablement?

24%.  That is it.  At the recent Hubspot Inbound Conference in August, this percentage was mentioned.   It represents the percentage, from Hubspot’s recent State of inbound Marketing report, of marketers surveyed who do have agreements with sales on defining lead responsibilities.  Very surprising and no wonder there have been increasing indications of content marketing ineffectiveness. …

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Lead Optimization Study: The Right Prospect, The Right Message, At The Right Time

Generating leads is a big deal.   Acquiring new accounts and customers an even bigger deal.  Getting both of these right is a very good deal.  Getting them wrong – well – can be a very bad deal. Recently, I reviewed the interesting findings from the CSO Insights Lead Optimization Study.  The study’s primary focus was to …

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The Gap. Can You Fill It? 3 Ways You Can.

How the world has changed.  Yet, how things remain the same.  One thing remaining the same is the gap.  And, how the gap is filled. What Is The Gap? Customers and buyers, no matter the market or industry, are in constant motion to fill the gap.  You see, they have a gap between what is …

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Is Your 2014 Sales Strategy Already Doomed By Lack of Information?

Right around the corner, the laborious and angst filled process of planning for 2014 begins.  2014 will be different.  While economic growth will remain sluggish (according to the Congressional Budget Office), businesses are starting to release the chains put around growth spending.  A lot has changed since the meltdown of 2008.  In these short five …

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Follow the Road to Content Marketing Effectiveness with Buyer Persona Story Mapping

(This is part three of a three part series on the use of Buyer Persona Stories™, Buyer Persona Scenarios™, and Buyer Persona Story Mapping™ to drive effective content marketing strategy.) Getting to see the big picture about customers and buyers today is not easy.  It can be like sitting in an old stadium trying to …

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Does Your Organization Have What It Takes to Catch Up to Evolving Buyers?

Today’s buyers are afforded sources of information, systems, and tools, which help them to make the right purchase decisions.  Depending on the complexity of challenges faced, buyers may be seeking simple answers or complex custom solutions.  For B2B buyers, the nature of buying itself has changed.  This puts pressure on B2B marketers and sellers to …

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Is Content Marketing Ineffectiveness Changing Buying Behavior?

The pendulum has been around since 1602 when Galileo invented it.  It was the world’s most accurate timekeeping device right up until around the 1930’s.  The concept is one of our natural laws of the world.  We may be experiencing the effects of the pendulum in sales and marketing. Despite the pronouncements of buyers not …

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