Rarely does B2B digital marketing convert prospects on the first point of contact. That means success will require engagement over time.
Building the required relationship is not always easy. Prospects often bounce from fire to fire, and even when the urgent does not crowd out the important, priorities change and, as marketers, we need to stay “on the radar” until our prospects are ready to make a purchase.
Of course, there’s a fine line between remaining visible and being a pest. Here are a few ways you can make sure your digital marketing efforts are staying on the right side of that line.
Provide Value
There’s no substitute for this. Forget emails, phone calls, social media posts or anything else that even vaguely resembles “just checking in.” That check in is all about you – as in, “Hey, you got any business for me” – and has nothing to do with your prospects’ needs.
Ideally, you’ll offer them information or tools that help them in their business – and that reinforce your own expertise and value. At the very least, you should be sending information or making connections that have the potential to help their business and that show that you’re engaged in their success as well as your own.
Ask the Question
Stop dancing around the $64,000 question and just ask.
“I think we can help you, but I don’t want to be a pest. Would it make sense for me to reach out again in 60 days or when you’re planning for your next budget cycle? No problem if we’re not a good fit.”
Make your question positive and specific. Invite them to let you go so you can move on to prospects who are more likely to become clients. Clearly, this is a tactic that requires some level of personalization, even if it’s “mass personalization,” so be sure you’re segmenting your audience channels appropriately by activity, content consumed, etc.
Do the Research
If you have a particularly promising prospect, do the research you need to provide information specific to their situation. Clearly, this does not easily scale, but you’ll be surprised at how often the results of your research can be quickly adapted to similar prospects.
Ultimately, achieving engagement over the time it takes for prospects to complete their buyer’s journey is about being present and being helpful. That’s no guarantee that you’re the best fit or that you’ll ultimately be selected, but if your digital marketing doesn’t help you show up and show that you offer value, you’ll be out of the running right from the start.
