AWARENESS

AWARENESS in the business to business (B2B) marketing spaces and functions has definable and usable meaning that impacts your choices and actions to create relationships with prospects and turn them into customers and clients.

And often it is a state of being that we desperately want to skip so we can shorten the sell cycle and get on to a deeper place in the customer relationship making process. But wait a minute cowboys and cowgirls! You just can’t fathom what evil lies in your path if you attempt this jump to light speed without first getting the attention of the prospect. Reminder – that old icon of the great era of Madison Avenue ad guys (think Mad Men), David Ogilvy did get it right – “I can’t buy from you because I don’t know what your selling, who you are, if I can trust you and if you have something I need!”. Well there’s a wake up call.

Even if you, your team and your company are currently among the category leaders in your space, the marketplace scenery is changing . . . almost daily. This is your opportunity to get grounded. You are marketing to and selling to a person . . .a human being. And, as we know, human beings are creatures of habit. And there are a bunch of people out there who are in the habit of thinking they know what they need and are good at getting those needs satisfied! Without you!

You can choose. You can choose to be curious about what this person really looks like and what she or he needs to be more successful and feeling better that they currently are and do. You might talk to a professional who has tons of experience and expertise in profiling and targeting really good, qualified prospects. You can find out more . . .

Or you can launch your CRM software and blindly follow the process or contact steps based upon the reach created by the number of names (not yet real prospects) in the database. Marketing automation is a valuable technology and process. But CRM and lead conversions “with a soul” is a lot better.

1. Create a profile of your most desirable prospect or customer/client.

2. Ask them what they need. Phone or email survey or a conversation based upon open-ended questions.

3. Then choose to match those needs with your most relevant, resonant messages and a frequency that overcomes their nightly 8 hours of sleep. Channel choices come soon after.

People engaged in branding seek to develop or align the expectations behind the brand experience, creating the impression that a brand associated with a product or service has certain qualities or characteristics that make it special or unique. A brand is therefore one of the most valuable elements in an advertising theme, as it demonstrates what the brand owner is able to offer in the marketplace. The art of creating and maintaining a brand is called brand management. Orientation of the whole organization towards its brand is called brand orientation. The brand orientation is developed in responsiveness to market intelligence.

Careful brand management seeks to make the product or services relevant to the target audience. Brands should be seen as more than the difference between the actual cost of a product and its selling price – they represent the sum of all valuable qualities of a product to the consumer.

INTEREST comes next . . . in another blog post. Until then . . .be aware.