Sales teams can be very quick on the draw to reach out to potential leads. That is, after all, their business. But sometimes that sales call may be too soon for the customers. When does that outreach look more like nagging and less like effective nurturing during the journey through the sales pipeline? A recent survey by IDG—a technology-focused multimedia company whose publications include Computerworld, NetworkWorld, CIO, and a range of other magazines—offers valuable insight into the process. IDG surveyed more than a thousand IT decision-makers to get their perspective, and some of the findings should provide some guidance.

Two of the more interesting findings show the difficulty in making the judgment call between nagging and nurturing. Nine out of 10 survey respondents said that speaking with a knowledgeable company representative increased their likelihood of making a purchase. However, before you pick up that phone too quickly, only three percent of respondents want to be contacted by a salesperson after receiving just one piece of content related to that purchase. That increases to 34 percent after downloading between two and four pieces of content. But on average, they need to have consumed five pieces of content related to the sale before they are ready to talk with a sales rep.

Those are numbers worth pondering. This research suggests that every campaign should have multiple selections of content that are timed to educate and inform the buyer. Here’s what Bluetext recommends for our clients’ campaigns:

During the early phases of the decision-making process, IT buyers are determining their needs and requirements, and should be served general information including articles about trends and strategies, management and technologies. This is a good place to be seeding case studies and use case examples.

·         As they move through the process and are trying to narrow down potential vendors and evaluating possible solutions, their needs evolve to information more specific to the solutions our clients have to deliver. Test results, product reviews and independent opinions will keep the vendor top-of-mind when the decision-maker creates their short list. More case studies can also bolster the vendor’s standing.

·         In the later stages, IT decision-makers need to make the business case for their decision. At that point, we recommend ROI tools, product demonstration videos and calculators. Our clients need to make it easy for the customer to get buy-in from their own team.

In our next blog post, we’ll discuss how companies can leverage social media to engage with IT decision-makers throughout the process, and will offer other tips for providing customer leads with the information they want when they want it.

In today’s media environment, the goal with public relations is still to get reporters and publications to stand up and take notice when an organization has news it wants to deliver to the market. Our work with HelloWallet proves that good content and a solid strategy can result in widespread attention, and put a company on the map. Many reporters, and especially those with the trade media, are hungry for company news, product launches, and customer case studies to meet their print, broadcast and online demands. Yet HelloWallet demonstrates that if the four ingredients of a successful story are developed and integrated into the strategy, coverage on a national level can be the reward, even for a brand that is still trying to make its mark.

The Backdrop. HelloWallet is a leading provider of behavioral technology applications that help organizations improve the financial stability of their employees through online tools that lead to better financial planning and preparedness. It was founded by Matt Fellowes, a Brookings Institution scholar who wanted to take what he was seeing in the U.S. workforce and offer a solution to the private sector. As researchers by training, Matt and his team analyze vast troves of government data to find trends that illuminate the population’s true behavior and problems, and lead to possible solutions to those problems.

Because there is a lot of attention being paid to 401(k) retirement programs, Matt wanted to take a look at how employees across the spectrum were using these tax-advantaged accounts. Using consumer data from the Federal Reserve and the U.S. Census, he put together a detailed study showing that more than a quarter of participants in these accounts were cashing out or taking loans prior to retirement—with significant tax penalties. In other words, a large amount of the workforce that was supposed to be helped by 401(k) programs were not using it for that purpose, and instead had immediate financial needs that had to be met. This is a serious problem for organizations which are not seeing the results for their large benefits investments, as well as many employees, who would be far better off with adequate emergency savings than funding retirement savings accounts and then “breaching” them to pay pending bills.

Our challenge was to create a strategy that would bring the maximum attention to these findings, and then to execute on the strategy.

Element #1: The topic has to be of significant interest. HelloWallet’s research hit a nerve for several reasons, and these are all important to keep in mind. First, it had to do with the overall financial health of the U.S. workforce, and given the recession and slow economic recovery, this is top of mind. Second, it had to do with saving for retirement, which is also of interest in light of the inadequate savings that Americans have put away for their future.

Element #2. It should challenge the conventional wisdom. Simply telling readers what they already know is never that interesting. Offering insight to a trend that runs counter to that wisdom will get attention. The HelloWallet research found that 401(k)s—the premiere program being used for retirement savings—was actually not as successful as we all thought, and that in fact more than 25 percent of participants were putting the cart before the horse. They really need to establish financial stability for their current needs before locking away savings in a retirement account.

Element #3. The facts of the story must be convincing and beyond question. HelloWallet put forth an academic-style study, complete with footnotes and review, and based its findings on government data. This type of research cannot be readily challenged by competitors or adversaries, and it hasn’t been. Of course, not all stories have this type of research behind them, yet it is important that the information being released to any news outlet be solid.

Element #4. Set a Strategy and Follow It! With HelloWallet, we began in the fall, approaching a broad range of reporters at target publications to introduce ourselves and provide background information to the larger issue in the fall. We let them know that we would be providing some interesting research after the Holidays, and take note of their interest. Next, we contacted a handful of those whose ears perked up the most to give them a heads up several weeks prior to the study’s release. As part of the strategy we offered it to several major publications ahead of time with an embargo date (this included the Wall Street Journal, Forbes, and The Washington Post among others), thereby giving them time to drill deep into the research and prepare for a more in-depth article than if they had less time to consider the study. Finally, as soon as the research was released and published by the Post—on its front page, no less—we did a larger outreach to trade media, larger newspapers, radio and the broadcast networks with a reference to the Post coverage, in order to validate the significance of the research.

While we could never be sure in advance of what the coverage would be (after all, a big storm could easily have sent it to the back pages of oblivion), we nevertheless stuck by our strategy throughout the course of this campaign—precisely because we had confidence that it would give us the best chance of success.

Many of our clients have been calling asking for recommendations on year-end projects to use on expiring budget. If you are in a similar situation and want to maximize your marketing investment, or looking to jumpstart 2013 planning, we thought it would make sense to send out some recommendations. All of these campaigns or concepts could be launched quickly and could help augment 2013 marketing efforts you already have planned this year.

• Build an infographic to effectively position your products or services for 2013
• Audit your website. Is it optimized for lead generation, search, and content marketing?
• Optimize your demand generation solution. Are you maximizing your Eloqua or Marketo platform?
• Optimize your mobile site, as stats are showing that nearly 50% of all web traffic is coming from mobile devices
• Launch a YouTube re-targeting advertising campaign promoting your videos
• Conduct a website analytics review with recommendations and next steps

Those are just some of the ideas we have been recommending. Got a question about optimizing your brand, website, or communications campaign? Give us a call…

Numbers Do Matter
If the recent election results tell us anything it’s that numbers do matter, at least when it comes to public opinion. Whether one side or the other chooses to believe them, the polls proved to be extremely accurate in predicting the final outcomes. And when read carefully even early on in the campaign cycle, they provided a roadmap to public perception and pointed to the strengths and weaknesses of each candidate’s brand in what was ultimately a dynamic marketplace (remember all of the front-runners in the Republic primaries?).

Companies can learn a lot from the political world. Understanding customer perceptions about their brand and those of their competitors is essential to charting an effective market platform and delivering a winning message to core audiences. That’s why we always recommend gathering research through surveys before launching a new campaign. In our experience, clients may believe they know what their customers’ think of them, but it’s not always accurate. In fact, customers may have an outdated view of a particular brand, or not give it enough credit for strengths with new products and services. Or they may not know the company well-enough at all to respond to existing marketing campaigns and messaging.

What’s perhaps a more interesting lesson from the election is that the traditional way of surveying individuals—by calling their home phones—was the least accurate method used by pollsters, according to Nate Silver who writes the FiveThirtyEight blog for the New York Times. Instead, according to Silver, “some of the most accurate firms were those that conducted their polls online.”  This is a new twist. Traditionally pollsters relied only on reaching people on land lines in order to get a true random sample from which they could draw accurate portraits.

The problem with land lines, of course, is that fewer people have them, especially at the younger end of the age spectrum. In addition, thanks in part to caller ID, fewer individuals answer when they are called. As a result, pollsters relying only on home calls have to project very few responses to a larger population and all its different demographic varieties. Cell phone numbers are hard to get. They typically aren’t published anywhere, and individuals are even less likely to take those calls.

That leaves on-line surveys, which often target “panels” of customers with job responsibilities that map to a target customer profile. For example, for an enterprise technology company, that could be IT professionals with decision-making responsibilities at their job. These panelists often volunteer to take these types of surveys in exchange for compensation such as access to the survey results or even to gift cards. As a result, these types of panels are not as randomly selected as a statistician might prefer, and the margin of error may be higher than would be appropriate for a political poll.

That type of margin, often around five-to-six percent for sample sizes in the 150-200 range, isn’t particularly significant when determining a brand footprint in a market. We’re not trying to predict an election result, but rather just making sure that we understand perceptions and preferences of potential buyers. Using on-line panels, we can deliver useful market survey results as an early step in a campaign without breaking the bank.

One of the survey tools that our clients have found particularly effective is the use of “word clouds” to display important attributes that audiences ascribe to a brand. A word cloud simply enlarges the words used in relation to how frequently they are mentioned in the survey. Here’s an example of a word cloud that we created from a survey of soldiers asked to recall brand names of equipment or products they used while serving in combat zones:

This type of graphic allows companies to quickly assess both recall and the relative strength of that recall when compared to other relevant brands.

Market surveys can effectively remove the blindfolds and allow companies and other organizations to implement a marketing strategy that responds to the perceptions and the needs of their target audiences—and gives them a better chance of meeting their campaign goals.

Now that the election is finally over, Washington officials have to get back to the job of governing, the first crisis on their plate is the mandatory budget cuts that will be enacted if a fiscal deal can’t be reached quickly. If there is a silver lining around the upcoming sequester that’s threatening to hit our shores on January 3, 2013, it’s that there is an actual date for it on the calendar. Unlike a natural disaster or even cyclical economic recession, this one is entirely man-made and there’s even a countdown to it. While that gives government contractors the opportunity to prepare, it’s hard to know exactly what to prepare for, and how to get ready for it. That’s the classic recipe for fear and paralysis across the government contracting ecosystem, and arguably could result in economic consequences for companies as bad as the sequester itself.

What we’ve been counseling our clients in the Federal market may sound counter-intuitive: this is not a time to retrench from your marketing and communications efforts, but rather an opportunity to distinguish yourself from the crowd. The pressures of sequestration will make government customers look for the best solutions from the most nimble contractors at the best value for the agency.

It’s not a time to rely on being the incumbent, or to promote the big contracts that you’ve won. The message that every Government contractor needs to deliver is that we have the right solution to solve your problem efficiently, effectively, creatively, and within your budget constraints. That’s the business strategy that is going to succeed over the next four Federal fiscal quarters, and it requires a solid marketing plan that supports that message.

I heard a little story the other day that made me smile. One of our earliest clients, which selected Bluetext for a digital platform and website overhaul as well as marketing and social media strategy, has seen their business go through the roof since executing the campaign with us. What makes me happy is that this client was very hesitant to spend the money, skeptical about the potential results, and had never done any impactful marketing. Thinking back to this early project, I think it’s instructive to explore why working with this reluctant client turned out so well.

First, we did our homework on its industry and competitors, and designed a digital platform that demonstrated to the market that it was serious about the future and committed to the business of its customers. As a rule, when designing websites and digital platforms, you have to understand the user experience, how your customers interact with your business, and what they can and should expect when working with you. Many businesses organize their websites around how they operate instead of how their customers want to consume content. And many businesses think that a new website is merely lipstick on a pig.

Second, the client spent the money on a custom photo shoot, which we strongly recommended and helped to execute, as its products lend themselves to having their customers see them and get a clear sense for what they are going to get (as opposed to, for example, a software product). Sometimes, creating a sense of something tangible in the digital world can be very important.

Third, it got aggressive with social media in a market where it originally believed it was not important to prospects. The client committed for the long haul to develop new content and push it out via all channels.

Everyone wants happy customers that benefit from the work you do for them – in this case, a major investment which was met with skepticism has significantly benefitted the bottom line. That is the kind of success that makes me and the entire Bluetext team smile.

Bluetext is very excited to announce that it has been chosen by the Meridian International Center as its official Branding and Marketing Partner for Meridian’s 44th Annual Ball and Global Leadership Summit, to be held October 12, 2012. The Annual Ball has been named one of the top five social events of the year by The Washington Post, and attracts more than 1000 political, diplomatic, and business leaders from the Washington community. This is the first year for the Global Leadership Summit, and one of our assignments is to help make that a valuable and memorable event.

“We look forward to working with Bluetext to prepare for the 44th Annual Ball and Global Leadership Conference,” said Greg Houston, Meridian’s Senior Vice President for Development and External Affairs. “It’s vitally important that those who attend and enjoy the Ball every year recognize the value that Meridian brings to the global community, and Bluetext will help us develop and convey that message.”

Hosted by Meridian in partnership with Gallup and the Ronald Reagan Building and International Trade Center, the Summit will feature presentations from The Gallup Organization and from Fred Smith, the legendary CEO of FedEx. This year’s Ball and Global Leadership Summit will be co-chaired by Mr. Jay L. Johnson, chairman and CEO of General Dynamics, and Mrs. Sydney McNiff Johnson. The Summit will convene a cross-section of international and domestic policy makers, corporate and diplomatic leaders, academics, and members of the media to explore more efficient, effective ways to address global economic and social challenges.

While the Ball is well-known in Washington, the inaugural Global Leadership Summit preceding the Ball will bring leaders from Congress, the Administration, the diplomatic community, and the corporate world together to discuss issues that are central to the challenges they are facing. Part of Meridian’s mission is to bring leaders together to interact with and learn from each other, because leaders make better decisions through shared experiences.

We are honored and excited to be working closely with Meridian on this year’s events. Our brand and marketing experience gives us a unique opportunity to help Meridian deliver to its attendees a great understanding of what Meridian achieves for the international community, and how its members can engage with the organization to further that mission. We want everyone who comes to the Summit and Ball to leave there with a greater sense of global purpose, and also to have a great time.

The Meridian Ball is one of the most prestigious annual events in Washington. Now in its 44th year, the Ball brings together policy makers, private sector and cultural leaders, and the diplomatic corps to celebrate Meridian’s ongoing efforts to strengthen international understanding through the exchange of ideas, people, and culture.

Traditionally held in October, the Ball in known for its intimate dinners, each hosted by an Ambassador at his or her Residence or Embassy, in addition to a dinner hosted by Meridian at its White-Meyer House. After dinner, all guests convene for dancing, dessert, and dialogue at Meridian House, an architectural treasure listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Ball is well attended by public officials including Cabinet secretaries, Supreme Court justices, and members of the U.S. Congress, as well as prominent media figures, foreign Ambassadors, and representatives from the international business and cultural communities.

Are you a fan of the network hit, “The Good Wife?” I knew the show was popular, but quite honestly I had never watched it until this Spring, when I was asked to help tutor the show’s writers on crisis management for the upcoming season. I did catch a few episodes before meeting with the entire writing team this month to talk about how crises and scandals are handled by professional damage control experts in the real world.

Without giving away the potential plot line, suffice it to say that one of the characters is going to find themselves in a situation where crisis management will be required. I can say that both the writers and myself learned a few things. The writers learned that handling crisis in today’s internet-driven news cycles is extremely difficult, and that there are few elements of how the story plays that a real person has control over. One of those, I told them, is timing, and the other is location. If you know that something bad is going to come out (and in television, it always does come out), then you can control when it is made public, and in which publication. If you don’t take advantage of those elements, you effectively seed the only things you have power over to your adversaries.

The one thing you don’t have control over, I reminded them, is the facts. That’s why good crisis managers look for every bit of context that they can wrap around the facts to put them in the fullest perspective. I also told them that very often, damage control experts didn’t have access to all of the facts. Individuals lie, hide information, neglect to tell you important details, and otherwise obfuscate. Never draw a line in the sand that you have to walk back from.

And I learned that a television show must have conflict, tension, uncertainty, and a limited number of characters that it can focus on. Sounds a lot like the real thing. And I won’t really know happens in the show until it airs next season.

Quora’s rise is all the buzz as the digitally savvy crowd try out the latest social media phenomenon. I find it to be a great site for research and participation. We see thought leaders from Steve Case to Vint Cerf using the tool to get there messages out, answering questions that involve their brands, and enjoying the search optimization visibility benefits the emerging platform delivers to its aggressive user base.

First, what is Quora?

Quora is “a continually improving resource of questions and answers created, edited, and organized by everyone who uses it. The most important thing is to have each question page become the best possible resource for someone who wants to know about the question.” Like Wikipedia, Quora is a collaborative effort, where users are meant to document the world around them. Over time, the database of knowledge should grow until almost everything that everyone wants to know is available in the system. Over the last couple of weeks, Quora’s traffic has doubled, likely making it the “breakout site” of 2011.

After extensive research, I am confident in saying that B2B, B2C, and B2G companies should become Savvy with Quora as it is likely the social networking site will become increasingly more important as part of a holistic digital media strategy. Here are some ways that Quora could benefit B2B social media engagement and further business development:

Establish thought-leadership within your specific industry

Asking and answering important and timely questions about your industry shows other industry leaders, prospects and clients that you keep yourself informed about market research and other key developments. The beauty of Quora is that it preserves its participants’ thought-leadership, as it banks questions and answers forever. Also, because attention to quality questions and answers is fundamental to the success of Quora, the Quora team ensures that you always sound professional by enforcing proper spelling, grammar, punctuation and style. People can also vote on your answers, which can elevate you to an “expert” status.

The user interface and user experience approach and how it integrates with social media is some of the genius that they deliver. Smart integration with Facebook. Sound policing systems to avoid a spam filled environment, and other smart techniques are driving great quality consistently across all topics for all industries.

Connect and build relationships with industry experts, prospects and existing clients

If you are going to use social media in your digital media strategy, you must be present everywhere people could reasonably expect you to be. I mentioned previously that Quora is on the rise. There are already thousands of individuals to connect with from multiple industries participating on the site. Like any social networking site, engagement with fellow industry experts, prospects and clients offers many rewards, including brand awareness, loyalty, promotion and business opportunities. Demonstrating thought leadership on Quora can also help you expand and develop your community based on the exchange of helpful and insightful professional information, which consequently encourages others to turn to you for professional assistance.

Also, while individuals interested in your business may not expect to find you on Quora immediately, as they may Twitter, Facebook or LinkedIn, it is still important for you to keep it on your radar. I am hopeful that applications like Posterous and other social shrapenal tools will integrate Quora so that content produced on Quora can be published elsewhere with ease. Keep in mind that early adopters of new media tools can get the first-mover advantage over those who join late. For example, if you are quick to answer questions related to your industry, you have a good chance of earning loyal followers, an opportunity that other businesses may miss. Also, if Quora becomes a sensation over the next few months, you will already have a firm enough grasp on the tool to be able to participate competently right away.

SEO

More often than not, people turn to Google to find answers to their questions. Quora has a solid SEO platform that ensures questions and answers from their site surface on search engines. By being a regular contributor to Quora, you have a better chance of surfacing in a search of questions related to your industry.

Get your urgent questions answered by experts

The purpose of Quora is to ask questions which require immediate answers. There are currently thousands of experts from multiple fields participating on Quora. Use their expertise to ask hard and specific questions. If you run into an issue, especially if it’s technology-related, chances are someone else has experienced the same thing at one point or another. Post it on Quora to receive fast answers and connect with others who share your experiences.

So, do you plan on leveraging Quora in your marketing strategy? Try it and let me know what you think. Its my pick for the hot web brand of 2011. Any questions?