When it comes to succeeding in business to business sales, it all amounts to identifying and selling to the right decision makers. Every business knows that most decision makers vary by customer. In some, they may be the head of procurement, in others they could be the head of engineering, a product or project manager or even the owner and president of the company. However, in most cases they are different and in some contract negotiations, there can be multiple decision makers in a given account. Given the realm of possibilities, how should marketing focus its message?
Marketing Addresses Concerns and Resolves Issues
Marketing is best able to connect with contacts when it delivers a tailor made message that addresses their concerns and needs. So, does that mean that one marketing plan is all that’s needed, or does it mean that marketing should have one all inclusive message, segmented into separate sub-messages for different decision makers?
Well, if a company wants to make sure its sales professionals are maximizing their customer visits and getting the most of their opportunities, it involves making sure marketing has clearly defined messages for different decision makers. In the end, it's all about appealing to specific individual with specific needs and requirements.
The above video explains the importance of identifying your market's key decision makers. It is taken from the post: B2B Marketing Essentials: Decision Maker Focused Marketing Materials
1. Marketing Messages for Design Engineers
What concerns design engineers? Is it pricing or something else? Well, in the design phase, engineers are most concerned with a vendor’s capabilities and their technical expertise. Design engineers are busy with prototypes and may have multiple programs and designs for one application. Multi-tasking multiple designs and products at the same time allows them to mitigate mistakes and shorten their product development times. Therefore, marketing must provide a message that speaks directly to their concerns. It should include the following.
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Technical expertise of the company
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Summary of core competencies as they pertain to engineering ability, technical support and design support
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Examples of past engineering accomplishments
2. Marketing Message for Product & Project Managers
Are product and project managers concerned with price alone or more concerned with overall budget costs? It’s essential to understand the inherent difference between lower pricing and lowering costs. A product could be more expensive but lower project costs from a cost per use standpoint. After all, a poor quality inexpensive product doesn’t compare to a high quality more expensive one. Product and Project Managers are concerned with product and project costs. Make sure your company understands the difference between lowering costs and providing the lowest possible price. In this case, marketing needs to focus its message on the ability to address budget costs.
- Explain benefits of cost per use
- Explain how product or service helps lower budget costs
- Explain how product or service helps product & project management costs
3. Marketing Message for Presidents, Owners & CEO’s
What are the main concerns of Business owners? While they may be concerned about prices to some extent, overall that doesn’t occupy the majority of their concerns. Instead, their worries involve their company’s own customers, the day to day operating costs of running a business, the market and industry future, and how they can reduce both their fixed and variable costs while maximizing profit.
Starting off the discussion by concentrating on pricing alone is a recipe for disaster. However, if a vendor can help lower the company’s overall cost structure with contractual agreements on supply, reduced freight costs and provide insight into market and industry trends, while ensuring that company is at the forefront of market technology, then that speaks directly to a business owner’s concerns.
- Provide big picture solutions
- Reduce day to day operating costs
- Reduce costs of ownership
4. Marketing Message for Procurement
When companies think of marketing and sales to a buyer or procurement manager, they immediately fall into that trap of having to offer the lowest possible price to secure the business. While some buyers concentrate only on the lowest possible price, a number of them are more concerned with inventory costs and when it comes to inventory, buyers are often dammed if they do, and dammed if they don’t.
A procurement professional's stress comes from having to ensure they buy the right amount of inventory to meet sales forecasts, but not so much that their month to month inventory costs become too expensive. In this case, it’s not just about price but about helping to lower this decision maker’s inventory costs.
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Explain how contractual agreements can reduce inventory costs
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Explain the company's strength in inventory management and levels
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Explain how the company can alleviate the customer's inventory holding costs
The best marketing approach is one that’s tailor made to the concerns of the contact who’ll make the final purchasing decision. When sales professionals establish contact with a given decision maker, they should be able to follow up that contact with marketing materials that are tailor made to address that contact’s specific concerns.
If the salesperson doesn't have these tools, then they're no different than any other salesperson walking through the customer's door. The point here is to distinguish your company's product offering in the eyes of your customers with focused marketing materials. Your company's sales will increase the moment you're able to provide a tailor-made marketing message.
The above video provides insight into five inexpensive marketing strategies.
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