INTERVIEW WITH
Peter Isaacson
Chief Marketing Officer
B2B Customer Acquisition: The role of human engagement in a world of digital-first enterprise marketing
As a result of buyers completing more research and diligence independently, businesses have had to improve the quality of their online content offering - otherwise they just won’t be considered as a potential supplier.
How have buyer expectations changed in recent years and what can businesses do to meet these expectations?
There is a wealth of data out there that indicates up to 70% of a B2B purchasing decision is made before the first contact with a sales representative. It’s easy to point to the global pandemic as the cause of this high figure, but in reality B2B buying habits have been changing over the last ten years as buyers now complete more of their journey independently before contacting a sales representative. All the pandemic did was simply accelerate this change. As a result of buyers completing more research and diligence independently, businesses have had to improve the quality of their online content offering - otherwise they just won’t be considered as a potential supplier. Although there will always be at least some human engagement in B2B sales processes, a great way to ensure your online presence is adequate is to hypothetically think of the buyer’s journey as entirely self-serve. If they didn’t actually speak to somebody at your company, would the content available to them online move them all the way along their journey from initial awareness through to decision making? If the answer is yes, then you’ve cracked it! If the answer is no, identify the stages where you are likely to lose the prospect and improve your content accordingly.
When creating case studies or other content based on your solution, think about how you can customise the output based on industry, use case and even the persona of the buyer.
Where can businesses improve their sales and marketing efforts?
The need for highly relevant and engaging content that is specifically targeted for individual prospects continues to grow. Generic case studies are simply not enough anymore to successfully win B2B sales. When creating case studies or other content based on your solution, think about how you can customise the output based on industry, use case and even the persona of the buyer. This can mean that you have several variations of the same content, which can feel like overkill during the production process, but it will ultimately allow you to open up meaningful conversations with highly relevant prospects. Targeting software for sales and marketing is so advanced now that you can be confident your content will reach the right people at the right time. And when you consider how, as mentioned before, that the majority of a buyer’s decision is made before first contact with a sales representative, it is not hard to see the value in content which directly shows a prospect how you will solve their pain points.
Turn your most loyal customers into rockstars. Imagine them telling peers and colleagues how your solution helped to build and advance their career - that’s an incredibly powerful referral!
PETER ISAACSON
Chief Marketing Officer
REPLICANT
What role does helping buyers improve their social capital play in new business?
Helping to improve your buyers’ social capital is hugely valuable at any company, but can be particularly beneficial for early and mid stage companies. Turn your most loyal customers into rockstars. Imagine them telling peers and colleagues how your solution helped to build and advance their career - that’s an incredibly powerful referral! Starting the process of improving your customer’s social capital is as simple as inviting them to take part in one of your webinars. By doing so you help them to establish authenticity and credibility as a thought leader, whilst simultaneously giving them something to share on LinkedIn with their professional network. Lists are also a powerful way to build social capital, a real example we’ve done is top 50 customer service thought leaders. We produced a personalised, digital card for everybody featured on the list that they could feature on their LinkedIn. So not only did they have some great social proof of their career achievements to boast about, more importantly they also had a feeling of gratitude that will forever be associated with us. This means that if they ever get asked for a recommendation for a solution like ours or perhaps move jobs, they will think of us first and foremost.
Replicant helps companies automate their most common customer service calls while empowering agents to focus on more complex and nuanced customer challenges. Replicant’s AI platform allows consumers to engage in natural conversations across voice, messaging and other digital channels to resolve their customer support issues, without the wait, 24/7. Replicant is serving some of the largest contact centres in the Fortune 100 and growing rapidly.
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info@techpros.io
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+44 (0)1273 256495
info@techpros.io
