blog

When you’re launching a business-to-business (B2B) corporate blog, the worst thing you can do is look to the likes of TechCrunch, Mashable and Technorati for a starting point. The mass media blogs that are so popular — and which may have inspired your own initiative — are fundamentally different from what you’re about to kick off. Don’t get me wrong: I read mass media blogs regularly (and even write for a few), but the dynamics are wholly unlike what you’ll encounter with a corporate blog. If you have visions of turning your corporate blog into the next Gawker-sans-edge, take a look at the four tips below.

1. Volume, volume, volume
When you have a dozen writers each contributing at least one post a day, well, you’ll have a lot of content. When you have one writer who’s also toiling away at other marketing tasks, you won’t. Committing to a blog post every day is a challenge for a business, especially if your blogger wears other hats.

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As expected, social media marketing results vary across the B2B space. The general theme, according to the latest study by MarketingSherpa, is that, in general, social media marketing has been somewhat effective. What’s most encouraging, though, is that for most categories, few respondents indicated that social media initiatives were not effective at all.

For brand-related, traffic and PR efforts, more than 40 percent of respondents for each category indicated that there social media marketing programs were very effective, with those indicating “somewhat effective” ranging from 47 percent to 54 percent. Respondents saying that social media had not been effective for them amounted to 5 percent and fewer.

In areas where a connection to the sales cycle was included, social media was not deemed to have been as effective. Customer support quality and cost initiatives were generally somewhat effective to ineffective. Social media-driven lead generation, sales revenue and the containment of new customer acquisition costs, on the other hand, were generally somewhat effective.

[Source: MarketingSherpa]

I’ve ghost written for a number of executives and companies, and the issue of voice always comes up – especially for corporate blogs.

I read a great article by Mark Herrmann (PDF) a few days ago about this (via WSJ). Before he took his current job, as chief litigation counsel Aon, he ran an excellent legal blog, Drug and Device Law Blog, in conjunction with his law practice.

Herrmann emphasized the importance of developing a voice. Focusing on voice over content, however, is among the greatest barrier to progress you can face when trying to get a corporate blog off the ground. Instead, you should focus on information.

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Steer clear: Five charcteristics defetive marketing partners: A few weeks ago, we discussed what to look for in a marketing partner. While it’s always best to shoot for the ideal, it’s also prudent to know what to avoid. There are many mistakes waiting to happen, and being able to spot the warning signs can save you time, budget and a whole lot of aggravation. Here are five characteristics to look out for — and actively avoid — when checking out a potential IT marketing partner …

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Five reasons why corporate blogs fail: Corporate blogging has become incredibly popular in the business to business (B2B) sector. Industries that were once thought inhospitable to blogs, these tools are not only popping up but are making a profound difference in marketing, relationship cultivation and client interaction.

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Chart: Adoption of social media marketing metrics: The latest research from MarketingSherpa indicates that businesses using social media to promote their products and services — and fill their lead streams — are employing a variety of measures to gauge the effectiveness of their initiatives. Of course, the metrics you’d expect have been most widely adopted, but there are some important stats being watched by a small group of companies that signal where social media marketing is headed.

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enter:marketing has a new look!: enter:marketing is excited to show off our new website! Our redesign, which includes fresh content to help IT solution providers and manufacturers find the information they need quickly and easily. As we have grown, we’ve found new opportunities to showcase our services and help the entire IT sales and implementation community to use innovative marketing practices to drive demand, cultivate leads and increase revenue.

Read the article >>

Most Popular Keyword: IT marketing

And, you may have missed …

Five tips for marketing and selling disaster recovery and business continuity solutions: Disaster recovery and business continuity solutions should be easy to sell. Everybody needs them, and some businesses are required by regulatory bodies to meet specific and demanding standards. They also represent a place where IT solution providers and manufacturers can distinguish themselves because DR/BC is not only a cost, but one that will show a benefit only rarely. So, a company that can shorten backup and recovery times, consume less storage space and lessen demand on datacenter staff is likely to find a willing audience.

Read the article >>

Corporate blogging has become incredibly popular in the business to business (B2B) sector.

Industries that were once thought inhospitable to blogs, these tools are not only popping up but are making a profound difference in marketing, relationship cultivation and client interaction.

Yet too often, the full potential isn’t realized. Corporate blogs either don’t deliver on expectations or, worse, are left to suffer a quiet, lonely death. When this happens, of course, blogs themselves are blamed, with little consideration given to the fact that execution (rather than platform) was flawed.

Read the rest of this entry »

A few weeks ago, we discussed what to look for in a marketing partner. While it’s always best to shoot for the ideal, it’s also prudent to know what to avoid. There are many mistakes waiting to happen, and being able to spot the warning signs can save you time, budget and a whole lot of aggravation.

Here are five characteristics to look out for — and actively avoid — when checking out a potential IT marketing partner:

Read the rest of this entry »

What social media marketing metrics are you using?

The latest research from MarketingSherpa indicates that businesses using social media to promote their products and services — and fill their lead streams — are employing a variety of measures to gauge the effectiveness of their initiatives. Of course, the metrics you’d expect have been most widely adopted, but there are some important stats being watched by a small group of companies that signal where social media marketing is headed.

Read the rest of this entry »

enter:marketing has a new look!: enter:marketing is excited to show off our new website! Our redesign, which includes fresh content to help IT solution providers and manufacturers find the information they need quickly and easily. As we have grown, we’ve found new opportunities to showcase our services and help the entire IT sales and implementation community to use innovative marketing practices to drive demand, cultivate leads and increase revenue.

Read the article >>

Tools to click on: What prospects want to see in promotional e-mails: Marketers have the right idea, when it comes to e-mail marketing, but they tend to be a tad optimistic. While they definitely have a sense of what resonates with prospective buyers, according to the latest research from MarketingSherpa, marketers overstate the value of the measures they take to improve click-through rates.

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Want to increase clicks? You need to SELL something!: Content-based marketing has the singular goal of driving clicks, very specific clicks, in fact. You want to draw users into the sales cycle as quickly and easily as possible, ensuring that when they reach your sales force, they are ready to move toward a purchase. The longer the process, the greater the risk that your prospects will fall off.

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Think like an IT buyer: Choose the right IT marketing content: Is your blog filled with the content you want to see there? That’s probably a mistake, according to the latest survey from MarketingSherpa. Too often, IT marketers are publishing what they think is appropriate, instead of using the materials that are most likely to drive a prospect to click and enter the sales cycle.

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You need more than IT expertise to help your clients: If all you’re selling and implementing is technology, you’re going to have a tough time in today’s market. Your clients don’t need technology — well, they don’t need technology without an attendant business driver. This means that you need to have more than a passing knowledge of your clients’ business, and any solution you are selling should correspond directly to a business need. Of course, the more you know about your clients’ business, the better you’ll be able to make the connection between problem and solution.

Read the article >>

Most Popular Keyword: IT marketing

And, you may have missed …

Five tips for marketing and selling disaster recovery and business continuity solutions: Disaster recovery and business continuity solutions should be easy to sell. Everybody needs them, and some businesses are required by regulatory bodies to meet specific and demanding standards. They also represent a place where IT solution providers and manufacturers can distinguish themselves because DR/BC is not only a cost, but one that will show a benefit only rarely. So, a company that can shorten backup and recovery times, consume less storage space and lessen demand on datacenter staff is likely to find a willing audience.

Read the article >>

Is your blog filled with the content you want to see there? That’s probably a mistake, according to the latest survey from MarketingSherpa. Too often, IT marketers are publishing what they think is appropriate, instead of using the materials that are most likely to drive a prospect to click and enter the sales cycle.

Most marketers have a clear bias toward educational content and free research reports, with 92 percent believing the former will drive clicks and 86 percent supporting the latter. Best practices content? Marketers lean on it 79 percent of the time.

The reality is much different.

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Marketers have the right idea, when it comes to e-mail marketing, but they tend to be a tad optimistic. While they definitely have a sense of what resonates with prospective buyers, according to the latest research from MarketingSherpa, marketers overstate the value of the measures they take to improve click-through rates.

Read the rest of this entry »