They’ve got to be convinced you can make it work. Tweet CSO Insights , which interviews thousands of chief sales officers to benchmark B2B sales best practices, has tracked an alarming trend. Over the past six years, forecast deals are closing at a lower and lower rate, and a dramatically higher percentage are ending up with the prospect making no decision at all. In the technology industry, for example, “no decisions” have jumped from 17% in 2006 to a whopping 26% today. That’s more than one in every four deals! No deal = broken sales cycle. Interview your customers. warns Dickie. MORE >>

They work with their public relations agency , one that specializes in the telecom industry, to come up with ideas which: Relate to their audience’s most pressing issues and problems. It will save you a lot of work if you use your industry analysts and journalists to do the thinking, questioning, writing and framing of the issues in your study,” Stenitzer advised. Our industry journalists are well-known and respected by readers; they know how the industry works – there’s a lot of expertise we capture there.”. The rock in that slingshot is controversy. MORE >>

This means everything that works for consumer marketers online can also work to optimize business purchases.”. What she has learned in the process reflects Burns’ observation: B2C digital marketing techniques she and her team discovered during their off hours work very well in B2B. 'Tweet Regardless of whether you’re selling to people who are purchasing something for their workplace or themselves, you’re still selling to people – especially when it comes to digital marketing. We’re dealing with people, and all people behave the same. Testing is about mindset,” Burns said. MORE >>

The idea proved so successful that Zhivago began refusing to work with clients unless she could interview their customers first. Tweet You could be racing the finest Formula One car, but if you’re always steering in the wrong direction, even a horse and buggy will beat you to the finish line. So it is with marketing. Too many marketers think they can lead the pack by leveraging the hottest channels, software and platforms. But these tools, like race cars, are only effective when they’re steered in the right direction. Steer Toward Your Customers. Are our prices fair? she laughs. MORE >>

The ingredients of lead nurturing and how they work together. Tweet Imagine this scenario: Boy meets girl. Boy asks girl out. On their first date, boy asks, “Will you marry me?” Girl says no. Boy promptly sends her phone number to the bottom of his list. Six months later, boy calls again. Want to marry me yet?” he asks. Girl rolls her eyes, hangs up and blocks his number. fully realize this is a silly scenario, but it’s really not unlike what sales professionals do when they call prospects every few months to “touch base” and ask “whether they’re ready to buy yet.”. Tip #2. Tip #3. MORE >>