This is the fourth in my series of how the Imperatives of the Marketing Revoloution apply to Business-to-Business (B2B) marketing. This imperative is titled "Engage Customers with Conversations." I've included a link to posts on the first three imperatives at the bottom of this post.
Engage is the new “overused” word but it sounds so right…engage, discuss, talk openly. We have to include our prospects and customers in product design and input. We have to listen to the issues they are having…not only with features and functions but with usability, services, support or maintenance. We’ve all heard that product management is changing….Communities are changing the way we get and process feedback. You have to get involved…there are free mechanisms funded with, as Jeffrey Hayzlett former CMO of Kodak and industry thought leader puts it, OPM – Other People’s Money. Of course I mean Twitter, Linked In and Facebook to name a few. Get in and start listening at least.
Our engagement with customers used to be restricted to our annual customer event, occassional on-site visits, and fly bys at industry trade shows. Now, thanks to the availability of networks like Linked In and our own private communities, we have the opportunity to be in almost constant dialog with our customers. You are making key decisions on everything from Product and Marketing strategy to paid search. Wouldn't it be great to have customer input? I think many are concerned about tipping their hand, impacting deals in the sales pipeline or not responding to every piece of input customers provide. But, in reality, customers feel better when you listen and they generally understand that you can't do everything. The end result of listening has relationship benefits on a 1:1 basis and great benefits on the overall decisions you make. I think the face-to-face events are still a key piece of the puzzle but the new online community can fill in the long gaps.
The best executed Marketing Automation tactics will fall short if they don't reflect the needs of your customers.
The tools are there...Engage!
Here's a link to the previous posts -
- Marketing Must be Accountable
- The CMO as a Change Agent
- Let Go, Customers Control Your Brand