Industrial Marketing Today

SEPTEMBER 24, 2012

Generating leads is always the central theme in my daily conversations with manufacturing, engineering and industrial companies. However, a qualified lead means different things to different people and it is rare for me to find too many of these companies to have a clear definition of what a lead means to them.

Lead Ranking 60

Lead Ranking Marketing Qualified Leads Paid Search Agency Sales Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

OCTOBER 21, 2010

If you believe everything you read (and lately there’s been a lot) about marketing automation, you’d think it is the killer app to solve all your lead generation problems. Then there are scores of B2B marketers who swear by inbound marketing as the path to lead generation nirvana. Let’s take a closer look at both.

Marketing Automation Services 60

Marketing Automation Services Inbound Marketing Marketing Automation Top of Funnel 60

Industrial Marketing Today

SEPTEMBER 1, 2015

Sales people have been using BANT (Budget, Authority, Needs, and Timing/Timeframe) criteria to qualify leads and prospects for a long time ever since IBM first coined that acronym. Visit my website for more content on industrial marketing.]. This is only a content summary. This is only a content summary.

Sales Qualified Leads 60

Sales Qualified Leads High Quality Lead Leads Lead 60

Industrial Marketing Today

OCTOBER 25, 2011

B2B and industrial marketers are usually tasked with two main responsibilities: Fill the top of the sales funnel (ToFU) with high quality leads. Maximize the middle of the funnel (MoFU) for converting more leads into sales opportunities. Lead generation has always been a top priority in industrial and manufacturing marketing.

Top of Funnel 60

Top of Funnel Marketing Funnels Content Marketing High Quality Lead 60

Industrial Marketing Today

OCTOBER 7, 2010

Lead scoring has become very important in today’s B2B marketing. Marketing’s role in interacting with prospects has expanded and goes further into the buy cycle than before. Lead scoring, a key component of lead nurturing and management, is an effective tool for aligning sales and marketing.

Lead Ranking 60

Lead Ranking Lead Scoring Sales Qualified Leads Marketing Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

AUGUST 11, 2011

They now find themselves in uncharted waters where they have to think of and appreciate marketing as something more than mere sales support. It is time to get out of your comfort zones and rethink your industrial marketing strategies and tactics if you want your company to survive and thrive. Quality over quantity).

Word of Mouth 60

Word of Mouth Telemarketing Paid Search Agency Sales Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JULY 16, 2012

In today’s uncertain economy, manufacturing and industrial companies are taking more than a hard look at their marketing spends. These companies have always thought of marketing as sales support, so it requires a lot of convincing to change that mind-set. According to them, that has always been a job done by sales and not marketing.

Lead Ranking 60

Lead Ranking Lead Scoring Marketing Management Paid Search Agency 60

Industrial Marketing Today

MAY 7, 2012

In my last post, I talked about using content to convert website traffic into leads and customers. In this post, I want to continue with a similar theme and talk about why your content marketing must have a purpose. See Content Marketing: Think Like a Publisher, Act Like an Investor ). See Problem-centric Industrial Marketing ).

Content Marketing 60

Content Marketing Planning Content Sales Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

OCTOBER 1, 2011

In my conversations with industrial companies about inbound marketing, I find my audience agreeing with me up to a certain point and then there is a big disconnect. I see heads nodding in face-to-face meetings or hear plenty of “Uh-huhs” on the phone when I talk about the benefits of inbound marketing.

Top of Funnel 60

Top of Funnel Inbound Marketing Bulldog Solutions Lead Scoring 60

Industrial Marketing Today

AUGUST 1, 2012

Business as usual is not working – referrals are trickling in, if at all and the pipeline of leads is running dry. Next, they try a series of marketing tactics without a strategy or a plan, hoping something will produce results. In short, they are now looking for Cheap Miracles or may be, Industrial Marketing Made in China.

Tactics 60

Tactics Planning Paid Search Agency High Quality Lead 60

Industrial Marketing Today

NOVEMBER 10, 2011

Content marketing has become indispensable for addressing this changed buyer behavior. That does not mean that content marketing has reduced the role of industrial salespeople to mere order takers. On the contrary, it makes them more productive by providing valuable insight into the lead. Content marketing cannot do it all.

Sales Qualified Leads 60

Sales Qualified Leads Content Marketing Leads Lead 60

Industrial Marketing Today

APRIL 2, 2012

If done right, they can be very effective in content marketing for manufacturers and industrial companies. In the early stages of lead generation, you are primarily dealing with “suspects” – people who you have not yet qualified as prospects or leads. Videos that are non-product oriented. Infotaining” stuff.

Top of Funnel 60

Top of Funnel Ideal Customer Profiles Content Marketing Planning 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JANUARY 14, 2011

Thriving in today’s content-driven online marketing world, demands that you think like a publisher. That’s the battle cry among content marketers. Just as publishers start by learning everything about their target audience and what information they want, content marketers must realize it is not about them but about their customers.

Content Marketing 60

Content Marketing High Quality Lead Planning BtoB 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JANUARY 10, 2011

According to a new report released by the Content Marketing Institute, manufacturers have some of the highest adoption rates for content marketing tactics as compared to other industries. According to the same report, 82% of B2B manufacturing respondents indicated that they rely on content marketing to build brand awareness.

Video Marketing 60

Video Marketing Content Marketing Co-Registration High Quality Lead 60

Industrial Marketing Today

DECEMBER 7, 2011

…fall back on tried-and-true marketing tactics that they have relied on for years. In the current tough economy, cutting edge and innovative marketing is taking a back seat to proven strategies for lead generation. Those three marketing channels received the largest allocation of the budget. See chart for details.

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B2B Marketing Trade Show Allocation B2B 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JUNE 5, 2012

In my daily interactions with manufacturing, engineering and industrial companies, inbound marketing or content marketing is a popular topic of discussion. Not that I’m complaining, this gap means more business opportunities for me as an industrial marketing consultant. Does that mean content marketing is useless for you?

Top of Funnel 60

Top of Funnel Content Marketing Planning Buying Cycle 60

Industrial Marketing Today

AUGUST 1, 2011

Notice how discussions about content marketing are full of words like engagement, helpful, sharing, nurturing and community building. However, have we gone too soft with content marketing when it comes to selling industrial products and services? And that is… content marketing must deliver a real business value. I thought so.

Sales Qualified Leads 60

Sales Qualified Leads Content Marketing Planning Paid Search Agency 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JUNE 22, 2011

I’ve heard some of my manufacturing clients call their subscribers free content leads. I’ve also read articles by other industrial marketers where they recommend using free content to generate new leads. That is good advice and it is a proven tactic for inbound marketing.

Sales Qualified Leads 60

Sales Qualified Leads Lead Scoring Lead Ranking Top of Funnel 60

Industrial Marketing Today

APRIL 3, 2011

Building strong customer relationships is probably a close second only to lead generation for most manufacturers and industrial companies. It makes perfect sense then to put a good deal of effort into nurturing new leads and building strong relationships in order to convert them into loyal customers.

Planning 60

Planning Work Management Marketing Automation Services Marketing Management 60

Industrial Marketing Today

FEBRUARY 3, 2012

If you want your industrial website to generate qualified leads and drive sales (Who doesn’t?), In my daily conversations with manufacturing and industrial companies, I find the mindset is still very much centered on marketing the old way. Read my post, Inbound Marketing Must Set the Table for Industrial Sales ).

Top of Funnel 60

Top of Funnel Process Marketing Websites Sales Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

MAY 7, 2010

Organizations are spending considerable amounts of time and money on tracking and measuring lead generation metrics. However, the role of B2B marketers is changing and evolving more into revenue generation. In order to meet new revenue and ROI goals, marketers need to improve their strategic skills (50%) and sales skills (40%).

Lead Generation 60

Lead Generation Sales Qualified Leads Web 2.0 B2B Marketing 60

Industrial Marketing Today

FEBRUARY 24, 2012

Every manufacturing or industrial company that I talk to wants more leads. However, there is a serious disconnect between sales and marketing when it comes to defining a qualified lead. Google sales and marketing disconnect and you will find thousands of articles written on this topic. This is not a new problem.

Lead Generation 60

Lead Generation Sales Qualified Leads Lead Ranking Marketing Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

MARCH 16, 2012

Talking to manufacturers and industrial companies on a daily basis has convinced me that when they say they need help with their lead generation, they really want more RFQ (Request For Quote) opportunities. Generating new leads, qualifying and nurturing them until they turn into a RFQ is too much work for them.

Lead Management 60

Lead Management Lead Ranking Lead Scoring Sales Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JULY 9, 2010

Of course, Marketing Automation alone cannot live up to those hyped up expectations and has to take the brunt of the blame. That is unfortunate because Marketing Automation software is a very useful tool and in my opinion, a necessity these days. However, is improving efficiency enough to justify investing in Marketing Automation?

Marketing Automation Services 60

Marketing Automation Services Lead Ranking Marketing Qualified Leads Marketing Automation 60

Industrial Marketing Today

OCTOBER 2, 2010

And that reality of the flooded inbox is very evident from steadily dropping response rates of only 1% to 3% range for traditional email marketing. The old email marketing strategy of batch and blast or spray and pray is no longer effective. The old email marketing strategy of batch and blast or spray and pray is no longer effective.

Email Marketing 60

Email Marketing Planning Web 2.0 BtoB 60

Industrial Marketing Today

DECEMBER 7, 2010

Here’s the shocking reality of B2B lead generation – 79% of marketing leads never convert into sales opportunities. Source: Marketing Sherpa/ KnowledgeStorm). B2B marketing and lead generation experts point to a lack of lead nurturing as the primary cause of this poor performance.

Lead Nurturing 60

Lead Nurturing Lead Generation Sales Qualified Leads Marketing Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

OCTOBER 9, 2012

A Value Proposition plays an important role in differentiation, which in turn affects lead generation. There are experts who are more qualified than I am in crafting a Value Proposition that is so unique to a company that it cannot be easily duplicated by others. Webinars for middle to late stage lead nurturing content.

Top of Funnel 60

Top of Funnel Differentiation Lead Scoring Lead Ranking 60

Industrial Marketing Today

FEBRUARY 12, 2012

Lead nurturing plays an important role in industrial lead generation programs because it is rare that an industrial sale is completed on the first call or the first visit to the manufacturer’s website. Forrester, CSO Insights and Marketo reported that lead nurturing produced much better results. Still not convinced?

Lead Nurturing 60

Lead Nurturing Sales Management Top of Funnel Sales Qualified Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

MAY 11, 2010

A vast majority of the survey respondents reported that outbound tactics outperformed inbound initiatives for generating qualified leads. I am wondering if it is a result of the age-old disagreement between sales and marketing on the definition of a qualified lead. This one caught me by surprise.

Sales Cycle 60

Sales Cycle Lead Ranking Marketing Qualified Leads B2B Sales 60

Industrial Marketing Today

FEBRUARY 21, 2011

Needless to say, industrial and B2B marketers are constantly looking to improve the relevance of their content but are not always successful, as recent studies have shown. This is true no matter where the content is used – Websites, email campaigns, webinars or marketing collateral. The qualified lead comes from being designed in.

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Relevance Sales Qualified Leads Sales Leads Leads 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JULY 2, 2012

Manufacturers usually want their industrial marketing to generate leads that result in RFQs as quickly as possible. Inbound marketing tactics such as SEO and other content marketing strategies do fill the top of their sales funnel. Design wins lead to prototype and production orders.

Lead Ranking 60

Lead Ranking Top of Funnel Sales Qualified Leads Buying Cycle 60

Industrial Marketing Today

SEPTEMBER 20, 2010

Home Marketing Matters About Contact B2B Marketing Store Company Website B2B Lead Generation Using a Business Blog by Achinta Mitra on September 20, 2010 in B2B Lead Generation , Industrial Marketing Blog In B2B lead generation, quantity versus quality is probably the biggest challenge faced by industrial marketers.

Lead Generation 60

Lead Generation Business Blogging Lead Scoring Lead Ranking 60

Industrial Marketing Today

MAY 14, 2010

Home Marketing Matters About Contact B2B Marketing Store Company Website 7 Strategies for Using Content to Market Industrial Products by Achinta Mitra on May 14, 2010 in Content Marketing , Industrial Marketing & Web 2.0 , Industrial Marketing Blog I am a big fan of Content Marketing or as some people like to refer to it as Inbound Marketing.

Webinar Metrics 60

Webinar Metrics Marketing & Strategy Marketing Strategy Product 60

Industrial Marketing Today

SEPTEMBER 6, 2011

The idea of combining a website with the benefits of a blog is very appealing to many industrial marketers. Blog sites as inbound marketing hubs. Industrial companies have realized the importance of inbound marketing and its impact on lead generation. Read my post Don’t Let Lack of Content Stop You from Blogging.

CMS Development 60

CMS Development Curation Inbound Marketing Marketing Management 60

Industrial Marketing Today

MARCH 12, 2012

Whereas the study (2011 Social Media in Industry Survey) conducted by Semplice Industry Marketing states, “Of those who used Twitter in 2011, 78% found it somewhat to very useful.”. However, after the initial phase, you have to focus on providing meaningful content if you want to convert your success in phase 1 into qualified leads and sales.

Social Media 60

Social Media Tactics ROI Paid Search Agency 60

Industrial Marketing Today

JUNE 3, 2010

Home Marketing Matters About Contact B2B Marketing Store Company Website How Lack of Marketing Content Can Derail Your Website Redesign Project by Achinta Mitra on June 3, 2010 in Content Marketing , Industrial Websites , Search Engine Optimization (SEO) , Website Design & Development What comes first – site content or site design?

Marketing Websites 60

Marketing Websites Web 2.0 Work Management Buying Cycle 60

Industrial Marketing Today

SEPTEMBER 2, 2012

It is not surprising then that many of these industrial web redesigns are nothing more than a cosmetic facelift with copy-pasted content from their old site and/or outdated marketing collateral. I’ve had people call me and start the conversation by saying, “We’ve spent a lot of money on a site redesign but it hasn’t produced any leads.

Design 60

Design Wikipedia Content Sales Qualified Leads 60