Is any type of marketing collateral or activity appropriate to use when connecting with prospects? Of course not! Early in the buyer process, you might want to use more informative and educational materials, while later in the process you might want to become more specific about your solutions. The real question is how do you know when to use a specific type of collateral or engage in a specific activity?
I’ve been working with demand generation guru Jeff Ogden, president of Find New Customers, on exactly that question.One thing we’ve determined is that, similar to the way end users are in control of generating content on the web today, so too is your prospect in control of the buying process.
From our many discussions, Jeff and I have developed and co-authored a new eBook called “Prospect Driven Marketing.” Our premise is very simple:
Prospect Driven Marketing is a way of marketing to the rightprospect at the right time with the right content!
In this eBook, we walk you through the Seven Stages of Buyer Behavior, discuss Active Buying Behavior and Passive Buying Behavior, and point out the best, most Effective Marketing Collateral and Marketing Activities for reaching buyers and influencing their behavior as they move through the buying process.
We’ve also developed a brief presentation which you can view here (that’s Jeff narrating). I encourage you to download a copy of our free eBook at Find New Customers.
Jeff Ogden is President of Find New Customers, a lead generation consulting firm that makes Lead Generation Simple. He’s also the author of the acclaimed white paper, How to Find New Customers. For companies looking to drive fiscal results though improved lead generation practices, Find New Customers is the place to turn.
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Jeff Ogden
heheh I would think buyers are always control of the buying process, since it is up to you to get them to open up their wallets…
No one is interested in speaking to sales people until they’ve completed their research and have selected the vendors they believe can solve their problem.
As a business owner, I’ve seen my sales people send out emails, make the introductory calls, and attend networking events with results that did not provide me the visibility I needed into the prospect or their problems.
The question I had that I think that is on the minds of most CEOs and sales and marketing executives, is how to begin to understand and implement a process the produces revenue when the decison making dynamics has shifted to the buyer.
Active prospects engage me differently than passive ones. Active buyers go through 2 to 3 months of understanding their problem, seeking information and seeking a solution before they contact me.
I wanted to reach out early to those activity seeking a solution and to be quite frank I didn’t want to spend more money on old style programs that weren’t producing results.
Since I’ve been working with Jeff at Find New Customers I now have a mechanism for tracking prospect behavior on line and capturing prospect information by offering white papers, case studies and other information sources that demonstrate my solutions that benefit active prospects.
We worked through a process that he termed as a “lead generation assessment” and he gave me specific recommendations that produced results and revenue. He came in, looked at my “dead” leads and revitalized some of them so that they’re in a lead nurturing program or an active sales cycle.