And yes, customers are searching via digital technologies that are generally considered inbound (search engine optimization, social media, blogs, useful content, etc.). You use SEO, social media, etc. How different is a highway billboard with your company’s URL from your presence on a social media site?  And yes, social media is flexible, enables conversations, and so forth. We are perplexed by the endless debate about whether or not inbound marketing is better than outbound marketing. Still others speak to active (outbound) versus passive (inbound) marketing. MORE >>

This is the first in a series of blog postings about sick sales funnels, a notion that IDC popularized in 2011. You invested in offline advertising (billboard, TV, print) as well as online channels (SEO, PPC and a social media campaign). ll explore this malady by explaining how to recognize warning signs, perform a diagnosis, and treat underlying causes. We view a funnel as a sales process owned jointly by sales and marketing. Both organizations – as well as contributors in other places – fill it at the top with prospects. Does your funnel show any of these symptoms? MORE >>

There are endless numbers of essays, articles and blogs in printed media and on the Internet about why 7 Habits made us (or should make us) better marketers.  So, why are we discussing this in a blog about marketing? Here at LeadFormix we mourn the passing of Stephen Covey, author of 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and other books that brought together essential wisdom for improving the quality of human existence.  In some cases, the book was mandatory reading.  Companies sent entire departments to week-long training courses based on the book’s principles. MORE >>

Social Media is witnessing a phenomenal increase in the number of Enterprise users. B2B Companies are finally realizing the great potential offered by social media in closing the distance between them and their customers. It is no surprise then, to see companies incorporating at least some bit of social media activities into their overall marketing plans. personally believe, that social media’s exponential growth and the benefits it offers are hard to ignore, even for the most conservative marketers. Lead here is defined as an enterprise visitor. MORE >>

Some blog posts and articles from GigaOM , Tippingpoint Labs , and Marketing Week fuelled our discussion of this complex set of issues. Here’s another interesting (if tangential) facet of this discussion:  Adrian Ott, in a Fast Company blog post, reports on career expert Kathryn Ullrich’s new book that describes career paths to the CMO/VP Marketing position. The analytical background might be a surprise, but it makes perfect sense with the current emphasis on search engine marketing and social media. What accounts for this? CMO’s emphasis on more abstract values (e.g., MORE >>