Chart: Greatest Challenges for CMO’s


Lead Generation Companies | Biggest Challenges for CMOs

A few months ago, MarketingSherpa asked this question of 287 Chief Marketing Officers

“Which of the following marketing challenges are currently most pertinent for your organization?”

The answers probably surprise no one - especially if you’ve talked to your sales teams lately.

Generating high quality sales leads is the single biggest challenge in business today. And it’s even bigger than it was last year.

CMO StudyGenerating High Quality Leads is the problem that Find New Customers helps with. We help mid-sized companies (150 to 5,000 employees) who sell complex products to businesses to design, develop and implement world-class B2B demand generation programs to fill sales funnels with high quality sales leads.

I recently sat down with a marketing executive at a 1/2 billion software company and asked “If I were to call a marketing automation software vendor, give them a credit card number and get a log-in, what changed in your business?” The answer: Absolutely nothing.

The key point: For you to fix the challenge of creating quality sales leads in your business, it will take people, processes and plans - and not just software.

Jeff Ogden (@fearlesscomp) is President of the B2B lead generation consultancy, Find New Customers. He presented “How to Build an Awesome Personal Brand” at the 140 Social Media Conference and appeared to discuss B2B lead generation on Sales Lead Management Radio.

Find New Customers helps companies (with between 150 and 5,000 employees who sell complex products to businesses) to implement world-class lead generation programs. As companies struggle to create quality sales opportunities, they turn to lead generation companies like Find New Customers.

The importance of story-telling in lead nurturing


Lead Generation Company | The Power of Story-Telling in Lead Nurturing

reading-timeIf you listened to the VP of Marketing and co-founder at Marketo, Jon Miller, discuss lead nurturing a recent Find New Customers podcast, (to subscribe to these podcasts for free, click those underlined words.”)  you heard why it is so important.

The fact is that many businesses are potential customers that are not ready to buy today, but may buy in the future.

Unless you find a way to connect and build trust over time until they are ready to buy, these prospective customers can be lost forever.

In this article, I explore how businesses should talk to prospective customers, especially highlighting the importance of good stories.

I also invite you to watch a video clip of B2B marketing expert, Ardath Albee of MarketingInteractions talking about story-telling in her keynote presentation at Demandcon:

DemandCon Video: Storytelling Turns Prospects Into Buyers

Aradth says “How many time can I hear ‘We are the leading provider of’” Amen! She’s right when she says it is just noise.

Look at the girl reading a book.  Could she be engrossed in product specs and speeds and feeds?  How about our world-class whatchamacallit?  Is she impressed by we are the leading provider of stuff. No, she’s reading a story that captures her imagination.  That’s what your marketing team needs to do.

The first rule every marketing must embrace when they look at lead nurturing programs is this: Companies don’t buy.  People do. Since we’re speaking to people rather than companies, one must engage on an emotional level.  You need to build trust and confidence in your company and the very best way to connect in this manner is through the use of stories.  People react to stories on an emotional level and trust the companies they connect with.

Think of some companies you respect today: perhaps Apple, BMW, Southwest Airline, and Singapore Air.  In each case, do you think of the technicalies of the products?  Or do you think of innovative designs, a driver’s car, friendly service and pure elegance?  Those are companies that built a brand by telling stories.

There are no hard and fast rules for story-telling.  Don’t take yourself too seriously.  Be patient and gentle.  Don’t overdo it.  Think outside the box.  Don’t be afraid.

I cannot tell you what to write in your story.  But here’s a link to a great e-book by my client/partner on Telling Your Brand Story to Grow Sales.  In fact, maybe you need to recruit differently or outsource it — check out my partner.  But think of how you can engage your prospective buyers with stories and you’ll prosper.

Read my blog on Kindle

Jeff Ogden (@fearlesscomp) is President of the B2B lead generation consultancy, Find New Customers. Find New Customers helps companies rapidly grow revenue by transforming how they attract, engage and win new customers. Contact Find New Customers by calling (516) 495-9350 or send an email to sales at findnewcustomers.com.

Find New Customers helps companies (with between 150 and 5,000 employees who sell complex products to businesses) to implement world-class lead generation programs. As companies struggle to create quality sales opportunities, they turn to lead generation companies like Find New Customers.

The #Nifty50 Women of Twitter


The #NiftyFifty Women of Twitter

We posted about the #Nifty50 Men of Twitter, but I certainly do not wish to overlook the wonderful #Nifty50 women of Twitter, so I share these lovely ladies here.

Here is what Cheryl Burgess of Blue Focus Marketing wrote about both lists.

Tom Pick (@TomPick), Online Marketing Executive at KC Associates, who blogs at his award winning B2B Webbiquity, and I (@ckburgess – Blue Focus Marketing @BlueFocus360)  present 50 remarkable men on our 2011 #Nifty50 Top Twitter Men list.  These men are indeed using Twitter to rewire and reorient the Web.  But, by no means, is this list complete.

Tom contacted me a few weeks ago with this idea and we’ve been working collaboratively on this project ever since.  So, as promised in Tom Pick’s blog, “2011 #Nifty50 Top Twitter Women”, in honor of mothers, our 2011 #Nifty50 Top Twitter Men now honors fathers.  Just in time for Father’s Day, as we’re pretty certain that every man on this list is a dad, has a dad, knows someone who’s a dad, or some combination thereof.

The Fearless Competitor is pleased to present the #Nifty50 Women of Twitter. We congratulate all of these lovely ladies.

Jennifer AakerJennifer Aaker – @aaker
Jennifer is the General Atlantic Professor of Marketing at the Stanford Graduate School or Business, and author of The Dragonfly Effect: Quick, Effective, and Powerful Ways To Use Social Media to Drive Social Change.
Diana AdamsDiana Adams – @adamsconsulting
Diana is a USC grad now based in Atlanta. She heads up Adams Consulting Group, a technical services firm specializing in Apple Macintosh desktops, servers and laptops. Diana writes for BitRebels.com and InkRebels.com, and as noted above, her post on Twitter’s Top 75 Badass Women was one source of inspiration for this #Nifty50 list. She’s smart, personable, sometimes controversial and never dull.
Alicia ArenasAlicia Arenas – @AliciaSanera
Hailing from San Antonio, Alicia is founder and CEO of Sanera, a professional development and training firm for sales and business leaders. She describes herself as a “small business coach, speaker, corporate trainer, blogger, singer, lover of life, dreams, family and God.” Alicia is a warm and outgoing social media pro and creator of March Marketing Madness. (I was honored to participate in March Marketing Madness with my article “How to Do Great Marketing with (Almost) No Money.“)
Allison MooneyAllison Mooney – @allimooney
Allison lives in the New York City area and works with the Marketing team at Google to explore the changing face of media, mobile and consumer behavior, drive new thinking internally, and communicate Google’s visionary concepts to wider audiences.
Ambal BalakrishnanAmbal Balakrishnan – @Ambal
Ambal is co-founder of ClickDocuments, based in Silicon Valley. She’s an entrepreneur, marketer, blogger, and alum of Wharton and Purdue. Her Connect the Docs blog – frequently featured on the B2B Marketing Zone – is a platform for her own thought leadership content as well as frequently solicited insights from other B2B bloggers.
Amber BuhlAmber Buhl
@amberbuhl
Director of Sales for @klout. Though fairly new to Twitter, Amber is active and highly engaging, and her following is likely to grow quickly. A USC grad, Amber’s past includes stints at Hulu, Yahoo!, and the E! Entertainment Network.
Amy NelsonAmy Nelson – @AmyPioneerPress
Amy serves as social media editor for the St. Paul Pioneer Press as well as the Features/Travel editor for the newspaper. She’s an informative and prolific Twitterer, and active in Twin Cities social media.
Ardath AlbeeArdath Albee – @ardath421
A B2B marketer, strategist, writer and Author of eMarketing Strategies for the Complex Sale. Friend, mentor, and source of inspiration. Also an expatriate Minnesotan now living in southern California (we miss her, but can’t blame her). (Ardath is my favorite B2B marketing expert.)
Angie SchottmullerAngie Schottmuller – @aschottmuller
Interactive Minnesotan skilled in web strategy, conversion rate optimization (CRO), e-commerce, SEO, social media, QR codes (she knows a lot about QR codes), design, UX, analytics and inbound marketing.
Becky DennistonBecky Denniston – @Becalynd
Expert Community Manager with the Focus Expert Network, a network of thousands of leading business and technology experts who answer questions and post thought leadership content. Becky is also an MBA Candidate at San Francisco State University with a strong appetite for Social Media and Marketing.
Jenara NerenbergJenara Nerenberg – @bopsource
Jenara is an Asia-based filmmaker, organic farmer, and freelance journalist for Fast Company magazine and CNNGo, as well as a Harvard and Berkeley grad. She’s interviewed the famous and not-so-famous from high fashion superstars to up-and-coming designers to UN leaders, literary giants, cashmere producers, and royal mistresses, and her work has also appeared in TIME, BlackBook Magazine, and NextBillion.
Maria PopovaMaria Popova – @brainpicker
Brooklyn-based Maria calls herself an “interestingness curator and semi-secret geek obsessed with design, storytelling and TED.” She’s also the editor of Brain Pickings and writes regularly for Wired UK magazine, The Atlantic and Design Observer.
Connie BensenConnie Bensen – @cbensen
Connie is the Community Strategist for the Alterian (formerly Techrigy) SM2 social media monitoring platform. She’s been named by Forbes.com as one of 20 top Women Social Media & Marketing Bloggers. Connie recently migrated from the frozen tundra of northern Minnesota to much balmier climate of Minneapolis.
Deirdre BreakenridgeDeirdre Breakenridge – @dbreakenridge
Diedre is the president of Mango! Marketing, author of PR 2.0: New Media, New Tools, New Audiences and Putting the Public Back in Public Relations: How Social Media Is Reinventing the Aging Business of PR, an adjunct professor in the New York city area, and co-founder of #PRStudChat.
Deborah WeinsteinDeborah Weinstein – @DebWeinstein
Deb is a journalist-turned-PR pro. She’s president of Strategic Objectives, an award-winning PR agency in Toronto. And she’s energetic and inspirational on Twitter. (Big fan of Deb!)
Eileen O’BrienEileen O'Brien@EileenOBrien
Eileen has more than 14 years of digital healthcare marketing experience. She is an opinion leader on social media, and has been invited to speak at industry conferences and quoted in publications. As @eileenobrien she moderates the #SocPharm tweetchat on Wednesdays at 8 pm EST which discusses pharma marketing and social media.
Ekaterina WalterEkaterina Walter@Ekaterina
Oregon-based Ekaterina is a corporate social media strategist as well as a “speaker, connector (and) passionate marketer.” She’s also a frequent guest-poster who’s written bookmarkable pieces like 9 Ways to Sell Social Media to the Boss.
Ellen Hoenig CarlsonEllen Hoenig Carlson@Ellenhoenig
Based in New Jersey, Ellen is focused on simplifying consumer and healthcare marketing for “elegant solutions in a complex world.” Though she writes mainly on pharma-related subjects, her blog topics also include branding, family, fundraising, innovation, leadership, and Twitter.
Ellen McGirtEllen McGirt – @ellmcgirt
Ellen writes for Fast Company magazine and helps run the 30 Second MBA site.
Elise SegarElise Segar@Esegar
Connecticut-based Elise is active in social media, an enterprise technology sales and business development pro who is passionate about inside sales and sales strategy. She’s a fellow member of the #Lebronians team “drafted” by Robert Rose in FollowFriday & Who’s The Lebron In Your Strategy ñ Maybe It’s You.
Gail NelsonGail Nelson – @gail_nelson
CMO with Siegel + Gale, a brand strategy, customer experience and design consulting agency in New York.
Gini DietrichGini Dietrich@ginidietrich
CEO of Chicago PR agency Arment Dietrich, author of spinsucks.com, Vistage member, author, speaker, communicator and writer of amazingly entertaining and insightful rants like Get Rich Quick! Lose Weight Tomorrow!. (Gini helped me out on a client project!)
Gretchen RubinGretchen Rubin – @gretchenrubin
Based in New York City, Gretchen is the best-selling author of The Happiness Project: Or, Why I Spent a Year Trying to Sing in the Morning, Clean My Closets, Fight Right, Read Aristotle, and Generally Have More Fun, the account of the year she spent test-driving studies and theories about how to be happier. On her blog, she shares her insights to help readers create their own happiness projects.
Heidi CohenHeidi Cohen – @heidicohen
Heidi is a fascinating marketer who shares practical advice about marketing and life from New York, NY.
Jill KonrathJill Konrath@jillkonrath
Minnesota-based keynote speaker, sales trainer, motivator, creator of fresh strategies for selling to crazy-busy people; author of SNAP Selling (#1 Amazon sales book) and Selling to Big Companies. (What can I say about Jill? I could write a book! In fact, Jill and I did! - Get Back to Work Faster!)
Judy GrundstromJudy Grundstrom – @justjudycreate
Minnesota social media rock star, Business Development Director at Pixel Farm Digital, founder of the annual Twin Cities Top 10 Titans in Social Media awards, talk show regular on myTalk 107.1, and never boring.
Karen EmanuelsonKaren Emanuelson – @KarenEman
Karen heads Reciprocate LLC, a small business marketing consultancy in Minneapolis. She’s an expert in social media marketing (particularly LinkedIn optimization), a small business advocate, trainer, speaker and coach. She’s active in local community and business organizations as well as social media.
Katie RosmanKatie Rosman
@katierosman
Katie reports on technology and pop-culture for one of the world’s greatest newspapers – the Wall Street Journal – and is the author of If You Knew Suzy: A Mother, a Daughter, a Reporter’s Notebook.
Eve Mayer OrsburnEve Mayer Orsburn – @LinkedInQueen
Eve is the author of Social Media for the CEO: The Why and ROI of Social Media for the CEO of Today and Tomorrow and CEO of Social Media Delivered, a firm that helps companies leverage LinkedIn, Twitter & Facebook & blogs. And yes, she really knows LinkedIn.
Lisa PetrilliLisa Petrilli – @LisaPetrilli
Based in Chicago, Lisa is CEO of C-Level Strategies Inc, CEO Connection Co-Chair, Leadership & Executive Marketing Consultant, and #LeadershipChat co-Founder. Like Elise Segar and Cheryl Burgess, Lisa is a star of the #Lebronians team.
Liz StraussLiz Strauss – @LizStrauss
Liz is the founder of SOBCon, a brand strategist and leadership trainer based in Chicago. She’s also an insightful, prolific and generous social media presence.
Lorna LiLorna Li@lornali
Officially, an expert in inbound marketing, online visibility and personal branding, via social media, SEO and SEM. Also big on green business marketing. Unofficially ñ friendly, smart, and writer of many highly bookmarkable blog posts.
Lucretia PruittLucretia M. Pruitt – @LucretiaPruitt
Living in and tweeting from beautiful Denver, Lucretia refers to herself as a “random muse, speaker, ex-CIS Professor, social media devotee, geek, mom, wife, & insomniac.” Lucretia is a highly engaging and sophisticated observer of technology developments.
Lisa GrimmLisa Grimm – @lulugrimm
Digital PR Specialist for the Mall of America in Bloomington, Minnesota, Lisa describes herself as “a gal constantly awed by the intricacies of human behavior. Love my family, peeps, dogs, film, food and learning.”
Mari SmithMari Smith – @MariSmith
Mari (like Ferrari) describes herself as a “passionate leader of social media, relationship marketing and Facebook mastery,” but most of us know her as the ultimate guru-ess of Facebook marketing and co-author of Facebook Marketing: An Hour a Day. Formerly Canadian, now living in San Diego (nicer weather, but even worse taxes). (Big fan of Mari too!)
Missy BerggrenMissy Berggren – @MissyBerggren
A phenomenally busy yet amazingly prolific blogger, Missy is a marketing pro at healthcare network Allina, co-founder of the Minnesota Blogger Conference, and is also active social media as the MarketingMama.
Martine HunterMartine Hunter – @martinehunter
Idea generator, b2b marketing professional, creative director, process engineer and writer at MLT Creative in Atlanta, as well as a mother, friend, sister, daughter, diabetic, crocheter and jazz fan. She’s also really nice.
Sally ChurchSally Church – @MaverickNY
Sally is a scientist with Icarus Consultants in New Jersey, a pharmaceutical / biotechnology-focused marketing strategy firm. She blogs about marketing strategy, market research, science, oncology, hematology and immunology.
Michelle TrippMichelle Tripp – @michelletripp
Working and tweeting from New York, Michelle is a creative director, brand strategist, and author of The BrandForward Blog. She spends her time exploring the future of advertising, social media, and emerging technologies and just being pretty cool.
Jennifer PrestonJennifer Preston – @NYT_JenPreston
A staff writer for the New York Times, Jennifer writes about the use of technology and social media in politics, government, and real life.
Susan Kang NamSusan Kang Nam@PinkOliveFamily
Splitting her time between New York, Andover (MA) and elsewhere, the dynamic Susan Kang Nam is founder of Cebisu Research Inc., a member of Andover’s Harvard Club, founder of Boston-based career club Salty Legs, “an entrepreneur, former recruiter and non-profit advocate who grew up in Asia (Korea, Japan) and US (Hawaii, California, New Jersey, NYC) and since 1994…using the world wide web exploring different platforms to engage in various of conversations” – and a classical pianist.
Laura FittonLaura Fitton – @Pistachio
Prolific Twitterer, Bostonite, CEO and founder of the oneforty social business software hub, as well as co-author of Twitter For Dummies.
Rebel BrownRebel Brown@rebelbrown
Rebel has been a marketing and business consulting for more than 20 years, is a popular speaker and author of Defy Gravity. She’s also a self-described “spiritual seeker, horse crazy, ski freak, and animal lovin’ nature gal.”
Rebecca CorlissRebecca Corliss – @repcor
Based in Boston, Rebecca is a singing Inbound Marketer with all-in-one marketing software platform developer HubSpot. She’s also a founder of a cappella group Common Sound. And yes, she is a rock star. (Another one I know and like a lot.)
Rosabeth Moss KanterRosabeth Moss Kanter – @RosabethKanter
Harvard Business School Professor, author of SuperCorp: How Vanguard Companies Create Innovation, Profits, Growth, and Social Good – a look at how a new generation of values-driven businesses do well by doing good, and a living legend in the world of business strategy.
Stacey AceveroStacey Acevero – @sacevero
A social media communications manager for PR/social media monitoring provider Vocus in Washington DC, Stacey runs the popular monthly #prwebchat on Twitter. She is a former model, auxiliary member in the U.S. Air Force, and a self-proclaimed “SEO nerd” who loves NASCAR, steak and rock n’ roll. Definitely one of the most awesome and unique bios in social media.
Anita CampbellAnita Campbell – @smallbiztrends
CEO of Small Business Trends, an online small biz community reaching over 250,000 each month. Anita tweets from Cleveland, Ohio, the hometown of rock n’ roll.
Liana EvansLiana ‘Li’ Evans – @storyspinner
Liana describes herself as “an online marketing geek girl who loves all things social media.” She’s a top expert in social media and SEO, and the author of Social Media Marketing.
Wendy BlackburnWendy Blackburn@WendyBlackburn
Wendy is a blogger and digital marketer focused on the pharmaceutical industry. She’s an executive vice president at at Intouch Solutions, a marketing agency serving the pharmaceutical, animal health, medical device, and similarly regulated industries.
Wendy MarxWendy Marx – @wendymarx
Based in Trumbull, CT, Wendy is an award-winning PR and marketing communications executive who helps B2B companies become well-known brands, and a truly engaging social media personality. (A fan of Wendy and honored that she downloaded How to Find New Customers and raved about it on Twitter! Thanks, Wendy.)
There you have it, the Nifty 50 Women of Twitter for this year. To keep it to 50, we had to leave off some deserving names – it was a tough call. Maybe next year…