Chris Koch

DECEMBER 29, 2009

Honestly, why do we think that sophisticated B2B buyers are going to follow our brands on Twitter or become our fans on Facebook? That would seem enough to end the debate about B2B social media participation right there. Actually, B2B buyers would probably love that but we’d lose millions and get fired.). The answer is we don’t.

Enterprise Management 100

Enterprise Management B2B Marketing B2B Thought Leadership Marketing Management 100

Chris Koch

NOVEMBER 24, 2009

One of the cornerstones of a social media strategy is having a clear set of corporate social media guidelines or policies. Here are some recommendations based on a cross-section of social media policies from B2B companies, including social media policy examples from some leading B2B companies. Tweet This Post.

Social Media 100

Social Media Media Guidelines B2B 100

Chris Koch

MARCH 19, 2010

I’d like to create a guide for how to use social media in B2B that does not involve talking about the specific tools—as least not in the top line. B2B buyers value peer connections above all else. Using mobile applications to engage with others is going to become important in B2B in the coming years. Get people together.

Social Media 100

Social Media B2B Thought Leadership Peer-to-peer Media 100

Chris Koch

FEBRUARY 26, 2010

The number of B2B buyers who are ready to buy as soon as they engage with our marketing is small—and social media will make it even smaller. Before Nurturing a New B2B Lead, Ask the Golden Question (thecustomercollective.com). There is no social media strategy, only marketing strategy (thecustomercollective.com).

Social Media 100

Social Media Lead Generation B2B Thought Leadership Generation 100

Chris Koch

MAY 21, 2010

But I will tell you that this week I attended an excellent event run by Silver pop called the B2B marketing University in Boston. Because of my Twitter interactions with people in the B2B realm, I had all the information I needed to be able to approach four people I recognized at the event (if you’re reading this, you know who you are!)

Privacy 100

Privacy B2B Marketing Lead Ranking B2B 100

Chris Koch

MARCH 4, 2011

This cartoon making the rounds online captures the frustration journalists have with their online plight--and reveals the opportunity B2B marketers have to fill the content gap. But if you step back and think about where the real opportunity is for B2B marketers, it is idea marketing. Marketers always struggle with what to do next.

B2B Thought Leadership 100

B2B Thought Leadership Advertising Agencies B2B Marketing Paid Search Agency 100

Chris Koch

JUNE 26, 2009

My job is to learn about how to become a better B2B marketer and to share what I learn with others. To get better, you should think of yourself as part of the emerging guild of B2B marketers in social media. I think of Paul Dunay as one of the model citizens of this online B2B guild. B2B Marketing POSTs by Laura Ramos.

Social Media 100

Social Media Social Marketing B2B Marketing Personalization 100

Chris Koch

AUGUST 16, 2011

Obviously, this is less of an issue in B2B than B2C. Cookies help us learn more about our website visitors, but you won’t learn nearly as much about the spending patterns of B2B executives through web cookies as you do with B2C buyers. Privacy is a concern in B2B, too. It may seem facile, but social media are the answer.

B2B 100

B2B Privacy Click Rate Internet Marketing 100

Chris Koch

AUGUST 16, 2011

Obviously, this is less of an issue in B2B than B2C. Cookies help us learn more about our website visitors, but you won’t learn nearly as much about the spending patterns of B2B executives through web cookies as you do with B2C buyers. Privacy is a concern in B2B, too. It may seem facile, but social media are the answer.

B2B 100

B2B Privacy Click Rate Internet Marketing 100

Chris Koch

JUNE 25, 2009

That’s why it’s important for us to start building our expertise in social media today, even if social media isn’t yet at the top of our marketing agenda (and our research shows that among B2B marketers, it is not). Posted in Social Media Tagged: B2B marketing, Marketing ROI, Social Media, social media strategy.

Social Media 100

Social Media Paid Search Agency Social Marketing B2B Marketing 100

Chris Koch

NOVEMBER 11, 2011

Taglines are the last bastions of a classic, one-way marketing messaging strategy, preserving marketing’s perceived right to tell customers what to think. In B2B marketing, we’ve never been given the right to tell customers what to think, much less the budgets to pound a tagline into their minds. The power of we. The power to do more.

Social Marketing 100

Social Marketing Tactics B2B Thought Leadership Enterprise Management 100

Chris Koch

NOVEMBER 11, 2011

Taglines are the last bastions of a classic, one-way marketing messaging strategy, preserving marketing’s perceived right to tell customers what to think. In B2B marketing, we’ve never been given the right to tell customers what to think, much less the budgets to pound a tagline into their minds. The power of we. The power to do more.

Social Marketing 100

Social Marketing Tactics B2B Thought Leadership Enterprise Management 100

Chris Koch

OCTOBER 7, 2011

This week I was asked to speak on a panel about social media to a group of B2B marketers in financial services. Social doesn’t happen in B2B without a culture change. When we surveyed B2B marketers last year, 50% said they do not have a social media policy. But you can’t tweet a 50%-off coupon in B2B.

Social Media 100

Social Media B2B Thought Leadership Media Peer-to-peer 100

Chris Koch

OCTOBER 7, 2011

This week I was asked to speak on a panel about social media to a group of B2B marketers in financial services. Social doesn’t happen in B2B without a culture change. When we surveyed B2B marketers last year, 50% said they do not have a social media policy. But you can’t tweet a 50%-off coupon in B2B.

Social Media 100

Social Media B2B Thought Leadership Media Peer-to-peer 100

Chris Koch

MAY 15, 2012

We all know the increasing importance of ideas in B2B marketing. Every B2B company has subject matter experts (SMEs) who are working with customers to solve problems and have deep backgrounds in customers’ processes, industries, and functions. The big strategy consulting firms have been doing this for decades.

FAQ 100

FAQ Custom Publishing B2B Sales Work Management 100

Chris Koch

JANUARY 8, 2010

There is too much wringing of hands and gnashing of teeth about social media objectives and strategy these days. Let’s sit down and figure out our unique objectives and strategies before we do anything. I’m not saying we shouldn’t have objectives and strategies for social media. Now don’t get me wrong. The rest is promotion.

Social Media 100

Social Media B2B Thought Leadership Thought Leadership Media 100

Chris Koch

DECEMBER 2, 2011

I’m a content guy and I think thought leadership is the best way to build nurturing relationships with contacts in B2B marketing. Marketing automation vendor Eloqua released a SlideShare entitled 10 ways to “solve” Facebook for B2B. Can campaigns coexist comfortably with a thought leadership lead nurturing strategy?

Social Media 100

Social Media Campaigns B2B Thought Leadership Media 100

Chris Koch

DECEMBER 2, 2011

I’m a content guy and I think thought leadership is the best way to build nurturing relationships with contacts in B2B marketing. Marketing automation vendor Eloqua released a SlideShare entitled 10 ways to “solve” Facebook for B2B. Can campaigns coexist comfortably with a thought leadership lead nurturing strategy?

Social Media 100

Social Media Campaigns B2B Thought Leadership Media 100

Chris Koch

OCTOBER 8, 2009

Posted in Marketing Strategy Tagged: B2B marketing, ITSMA, Marketing Processes, Marketing Strategy, social media strategy. Tags: Marketing Strategy B2B marketing ITSMA Marketing Processes social media strategy. What else are you doing to improve marketing? How are you surviving these times?

Practices 100

Practices Best Practices Paid Search Agency Marketing & Strategy 100

Chris Koch

MAY 14, 2010

Shameless plug here: My favorite B2B blogger Paul Dunay is going to talk about how Avaya uses social media for customer support at ITSMA’s Marketing Leadership Forum on May 25-26.) That means that marketers need to integrate social media with the larger marketing and business strategies. What do you think? Anything to add?

Organic Leads 100

Organic Leads Social Media Social Marketing Organization 100

Chris Koch

OCTOBER 16, 2009

Earlier this year I surveyed B2B marketers about their approaches to corporate blogging. Their strategies take two basic approaches. The blogs are an integrated part of the corporate marketing strategy and are usually hosted on the corporate website. How are you handling your corporate blogging strategy? Tweet This Post.

B2B Thought Leadership 100

B2B Thought Leadership Blogger Thought Leadership Word of Mouth 100

Chris Koch

JULY 31, 2009

As we in B2B focus more and more on trying to pull in prospects through thought leadership, we need to understand that our life’s blood is the Epiphany Stage of the buying process. He or she emphasizes one revenue generating process that both groups contribute to.

B2B Thought Leadership 100

B2B Thought Leadership Paid Search Agency Work Management B2B Sales 100

Chris Koch

NOVEMBER 12, 2010

You can’t do what one B2B company did: require that subject matter experts submit tweets to PR for approval two weeks in advance of posting. Tags: Latest Post Marketing Strategy B2B marketing Facebook LinkedIn PR PR Strategy Press release Public relations Social Media Social network Subject matter expert Twitter.

PR 100

PR Peer-to-peer Press Public Relations 100

Chris Koch

MARCH 5, 2010

Why B2B marketing will become more visual, vocal, and mobile (christopherakoch.com). Tags: Mobile Marketing Social Media Apple B2B marketing Business Content Management ITSMA marketing Mobile Computing Site Management social media management social media strategy. What do you think? Related articles by Zemanta. Tweet This Post.

Wiki 100

Wiki Urgency Marketing Mobile Marketing Content 100

Chris Koch

JULY 10, 2009

Now that may be due in part to the fact that most B2B marketers have only recently begun using Web 2.0 Indeed, some B2B early adopters are seeing 10-15% of their lead totals generated through social media, according to this survey by DemandGenReport. Check out the B2B Marketing Zone. In our recent Web 2.0 What do you think?

Web 2.0 100

Web 2.0 B2B Thought Leadership Ideal Customer Profiles Thought Leadership 100

Chris Koch

APRIL 16, 2010

That means that if we are to keep up with our competitors, we’re going to have to take the lead on developing a strategy not only for marketing with social media, but for getting the rest of the organization involved as well. But the real successes I’m hearing about in B2B use social media to support and extend more traditional tactics.

Social Media 100

Social Media Work Management Marketing Management Social Marketing 100

Chris Koch

JUNE 16, 2009

And it’s in this sense that Twitter is a goldmine for B2B marketers. The two subject areas I’m most interested in in my role at ITSMA are B2B marketing in general and social media in particular. Every B2B marketer interested in learning more about their profession should have a Twitter account. .&#. Follow to learn.

Twitter 100

Twitter Web 2.0 Social Media Communities 100

Chris Koch

APRIL 17, 2009

Posted in ITSMA Research, Marketing Strategy Tagged: B2B marketing, Collaborative Account Planning, Marketing and Sales Collaboration, Marketing Processes, Marketing ROI, Marketing Strategy. Why aren’t more companies working like this?

Planning 100

Planning Process Work Management Verticals 100

Chris Koch

MAY 6, 2011

I’d like to suggest that we look at influence as part of an integrated marketing strategy. This is where the strategy comes in. For example, many ITSMA members are companies that began by selling B2B products but are now trying to become known as full-service solution companies. The two most important components of influence.

Social Media 100

Social Media Social Marketing Work Management Media 100

Chris Koch

SEPTEMBER 18, 2009

These brands all start to sound the same and there are so many variables at play—the usual business stuff like VC funding, marketing, strategy, management, funding, M&A, etc.—that Right now, given that B2B buyers are just beginning to adopt social media, I think the viral model clearly gives us the most bang for the buck.

Social Media 100

Social Media Viral Marketing Tools Media 100

Chris Koch

SEPTEMBER 23, 2011

For these reasons, pundits say that Twitter isn’t much use for reaching B2B customers. These days, my audience is B2B marketers and my goal is to help you learn. I have a search column in TweetDeck for “B2B.” Then I click through to see if the content is something that I think B2B marketers might learn from.

Twitter 100

Twitter Broadcasting Social Media Advertising Mediums 100

Chris Koch

SEPTEMBER 23, 2011

For these reasons, pundits say that Twitter isn’t much use for reaching B2B customers. These days, my audience is B2B marketers and my goal is to help you learn. I have a search column in TweetDeck for “B2B.” Then I click through to see if the content is something that I think B2B marketers might learn from.

Twitter 100

Twitter Broadcasting Social Media B2B Marketing 100

Chris Koch

AUGUST 21, 2009

Recently, I was asked by a former ITSMA client to help put together a plan for a thought leadership program for a B2B technology company that sells both products and services. It forced me to think about all the components necessary to build and sustain a thought leadership strategy. Most people start with strategy.

Thought Leadership 100

Thought Leadership B2B Thought Leadership Network Marketing B2B Sales 100

Chris Koch

MAY 7, 2010

Why B2B marketing will become more visual, vocal, and mobile (christopherakoch.com). Tags: Mobile Marketing Apple B2B marketing Handhelds IPad iPhone iTunes Marketing Strategy Operating system Smartphones Sony. Related articles by Zemanta. Where is your mobile marketing center of gravity? christopherakoch.com). Tweet This Post.

Mobile Marketing 100

Mobile Marketing Wikipedia Communities B2B Marketing 100

Chris Koch

JULY 31, 2009

As we in B2B focus more and more on trying to pull in prospects through thought leadership, we need to understand that our life’s blood is the Epiphany Stage of the buying process. He or she emphasizes one revenue generating process that both groups contribute to. Tweet This Post.

B2B Thought Leadership 100

B2B Thought Leadership Paid Search Agency Work Management B2B Sales 100

Chris Koch

JULY 24, 2009

I’ve been working on a report for ITSMA clients this week about analytics and it got me thinking about the proverbial bigger picture of B2B marketing. I haven’t seen a better articulation of what marketing should be doing in B2B than Brian Carroll’s marketing funnel concept. using data to determine and predict customer buying patterns.

Lead Qualification 100

Lead Qualification Marketing Automation Services Lead Ranking Lead Scoring 100

Chris Koch

JANUARY 15, 2010

We wrote about the typical concerns of a C-level executive, such as strategy, leadership, organizational design, and change management. Today, more salespeople are able to have business and strategy discussions with customers and take the time to listen to their needs. Kind of a Fortune magazine for IT executives. Tweet This Post.

Social Media 100

Social Media Work Management Marketing Management Marketing Automation Services 100