Talking about a new campaign, a client’s sales director recently said to me, “I’m the guy you call when the customer says “no.”

It got me thinking … this guy’s on fire!

We proceeded to have a productive conversation about all of the ways the company’s product solved problems, and provided ROI, for the customer.  Manna from heaven for a marketer!

And, an instant and provocative perspective to apply for evaluating content and promotional ideas – even brainstorming new ideas.

The first question to ask yourself:  How TRULY hard-hitting are the reasons you have for how your product or service fits your market?

If you were to use “no” as the answer to your company’s main pitch, where do you go from there? (A great question for sales training!)

To probe further:

• How well are you appealing to your customers’ pain?
• What about the ROI they can expect from buying your product or service?
• How are you DIRECTLY addressing the real-world issues they’re facing?

Taken one by one and measuring against “no,” do all of your marketing and communications with your target stack up?

My guess … there is always room for improvement.

The Passion, or Human, Element

The purpose of what we marketers do each and every day is to find the most effective ways to educate, inform and persuade.

What I got from this sales director was passion, pure and simple. Passion and enthusiasm are almost as important as the facts we can present to support our sales pitch.  Passion comes from knowing our subject – not just the skinny about our own products or services, but our knowledge about the customer’s reality.

Passion also comes from personality.  We’ve all interacted with some really tremendous sales folks, and some not-so-tremendous.  How our pitch is presented, whether in person or some communications vehicle – can also convey that passion and personality.

So, what’s your company’s marketing personality? Is it coming across?  Can you better leverage it … capture a single rep’s passion … make it more interesting or fun … make it better than it currently is?

Where are your prospects and customers going for information?  And, what non-commercial information are you sharing?

 • Know your audience

As described in our previous post (Part One: Who Cares?), know what your customers want and why they buy. Where possible, augment that with anything more they should know before they buy. Then use all of this in your marketing content.

For example, our client, CAPSYS Technologies, recently published an entire book applying this exact principle.  “ECM Buyer Beware: Real Insights and Answers for Decision Makers” encapsulates more than 20 years of knowledge, insights and real-world solutions facing companies trying to manage paper and electronic data using  enterprise content management (ECM) hardware and software tools. 

The author, Paul Szemplinski, methodically walks readers through the in’s and out’s of many aspects of these systems, sharing truly helpful details on every page.  Anyone that manages or makes budget decisions on IT systems will find the book a goldmine.  He did it without blatantly touting his own firm, introducing a breakthrough SaaS service from his company only in the very last chapter.

The tone?  Educational and forthright.  Paul knows the business and therefore shared what he knows, for the benefit of the reader.  Period.  The reader draws his or her own conclusion.  Whether or not numerous new customers result, he has done them all a service.

 • Create a program that regularly provides valuable information

The new mantra is value, not just a sales pitch.  While we all know the primary purpose of marketing is to sell, in today’s densely crowded marketplace, we simply must give our target more reason to listen to our story. 

The obvious example of this: Traditional ads are increasingly ignored.  Relevant ads (i.e., Google search) are growing exponentially. If we provide valuable, non-commercial information to both current customers and prospects, we build an environment of trust. People appreciate the expertise, and seek it out when the time to buy comes.

Map out a new program that reaches your targets at least quarterly; or find ways to fold non-commercial content into your existing tactics.

  • Let your target talk back to you

Involve your customers in the conversation.  Use online and/or social media tools to create a “user community” that talks to each other.  With every exchange, you are building your brand.

For tips on brainstorming dozens of valuable subject matter ideas for your company, read the white paper: Information: The New Marketing Currency, Go to our homepage www.rurelevant.com, and click the banner.