With fewer than 1/2 of all salespeople making quota (CSO Insights) and almost 7 out of 10 saying they don’t have enough high quality leads (MarketingSherpa), it’s painfully obvious that times have changed and companies need to adapt. How can more salespeople make quota, CMOs get more job security and shareholders prosper?

What should you do? In my quest to improve the world of B2B marketing, I distill it down to 6 things. Do these 6 and your business will prosper.

1. Simplify
   The data shows people only read 28% of the words on a website. Cut it down drastically. Less is more today.
   Check the home page at Find New Customers. Look how simple it is. Check out VisibleGains for another incredibly simple site.
   Use graphics like this Infographic from Content Marketing Today.
2. Entertain
   Do you ever go to a trade show and watch the attendees? They scan your booth and instantly size you up - barely even slowing as they walk past. They do that online too. You have seconds.
   So stop the boredom.  Make it fun.
   For examples, look at HubSpot and Kinaxis. HubSpot does a campy TV show every Friday afternoon and Kinaxis produced the hilarious SuiteMates series.
3. Educate
   David Meerman Scott says “No one cares about your products and services except you. “ David’s right. But most websites tell what we do and what services we provide. Instead, focus on buyer problems and answers. Teach them a better way to serve THEIR customers.
4. Serve
   Content is king, queen and prince today.  Not only do you need content, but you need to craft it in a story-telling, problem to solution format.  You need to offer it in many different media and in many different places and not just on your Resources page. In essence, you need the ability to deliver the right content at the right moment to the right person.  Avitage has a great explanation on their Content Strategy and Execution site.  Patiently serve buyers over time, by gently nurturing them.
5. Listen
   8 out of 10 buyer say they found the seller.  If buyers are talking, listening becomes critical. Twitter, Facebook, Linkedin, etc. are all places where you can listen and communicate.  You need to be there.  Look into social media listening platforms like Radian6 and Visible Technologies.
6. Share
   Give away great stuff.
   Make it easy.  No long registration forms.  Don’t be a jerk.

That’s it.  My 6 keys to B2B Marketing success today.

What do you think? Do you have others?

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Jeff Ogden, the Fearless Competitor, is President of Find New Customers “Lead Generation Made Simple.” He’s also the author of two highly acclaimed white papers, How to Find New Customers and Definitive Guide to Making Quota, as well the e-book, Prospect Driven Marketing (and he’s about to start on his third white paper) and holds a BBA in Marketing from theUniversity of Notre Dame.

Find New Customers helps business develop and implement programs to drive more sales leads by improving the way they find and acquire new customers using best practices in lead generation.