Category Archives: Uncategorized

The Best Marketing TV show is coming back - sooner or later

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

My TV Show is definitely coming back, but I don’t know when

Hey Tampa/St. Petersburg companies: Follow us on Twitter and Connect with Us on LinkedIn is NOT marketing!

Set your FREE meeting with this award-winning marketing expert today at www.findnewcustomers.com.

The show Marketing Made Simple TV was vastly better than the prior show I used to host for Act-On Software, Mad Marketing TV.

I got started in this because the first VP of Marketing at Act-On Software, David Appelbaum, invited me to host their show and my good friend Craig Yaris of Social Ribbit directed all the show.. When Atri came on to Act-On Software as CMO, he pulled the plug on the show. But my good friend, Jim Burn of Avitage said “Jeff, why do you need Act-On Software? Just create your own show!”  Jim was right and Marketing Made Simple TV was born.Marketing Made Simple TV

Here are three reasons Marketing Made Simple TV was vastly better than Mad Marketing TV..

  1. Video and audio quality became vastly better
    Watchitoo came out with a big new release that greatly improved quality. And I made changes to the show, like eliminating the intro to get viewers to the good stuff faster..
  2. The guests were much bigger and more famous
    One of my goals with the new show was to book big name guests, like New York Times best selling authors and well known marketing experts, like Beth Comstock, CMO of General Electric.
  3. The show was distributed to a much bigger audience
    Our show distribution network kept growing and growing to sites like [email protected] and SocialMediaToday.com.

And we were in the process of finding paying show sponsors when I was badly hurt and in the hospital for 4 1/2 months.  I nearly died from my injuries.l

While I was unable to do anything, the domain marketingmadesimple.tv expired and someone picked it up, rendering unavailable to me.   All of the shows at the show site disappeared.

I really want to bring this show back. Here are my 3 reasons why I want to keep doing the show:

  1. Talking with top marketing experts gives me a world-class marketing education. (Maybe one of you should tell that to Dan Green of VPofMarketing.com. You can email Dan at [email protected]) He has never contacted me even once about one of open jobs - despite the fact that I’m one of the top marketing experts in the USA)
  2. Hosting an online TV show makes me unique. No one else does this and not a single person has created his or her own marketing show.
  3. Free books by top marketing authors come to me all the time and I read and review them.

So the bottom line is this: Marketing Made Simple TV is coming back. It may have a new name, like MMS.tv and we will work hard to line up paying sponsors again.  In fact, I write regularly for the top software company in the USA and they may become a sponsor.

What do you think? I love to read your comments and I appreciate those who share on social media.

What do you think? Love comments here.

This blog is written by the award-winning marketing expert Jeff Ogden, the Fearless Competitor - President of Find New Customers. You can follow me on Twitter Follow @fearlesscomp
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The State of Lead Generation Today (with Jim Dickie of CSO Insights)

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

B2B Lead Generation | The State of Lead Generation Today

(This earlier blog post is mostly updated with current data, but overall, not much has changed. The bottom line: B2B salespeople continue to struggle.)

Jim Dickie

Jim Dickie, CSO Insights

Jim Dickie, Managing Partner of CSO Insights sat down with the Fearless Competitor to share insights and takeaways from their recent Lead Generation Optimization study in which they surveyed 525 companies.   The data were shocking.  Let me summarize it for you here.

CSO Insights has been doing studies for 17 years, so they have great historical information.  What’s going on?

Just a bit more than 1 out of 2 salespeople achieved quota in 2008 — down from 61% in 2007, (6 out of 10 made quota in 2010) but 86%  of companies are raising quotas in 2009. (95% of companies raised quotas in 2011.)

If almost half of salespeople failed to make their numbers last year, how will a higher quota help?

It’s clear that business as usual no longer works. Sales turns to marketing for help.

  • Sales leaders told CSO Insights their most important objective is Optimizing Lead Generation.
  • Marketing leaders told CSO Insights their top priority was New Customer Acquisition.

(Two terms for the same thing.)

The next question CSO Insights asked is “How well is Marketing equipped to do new customer acquisition?”

  1. How well do you do web based marketing programs? — 2 out of 3 said “Needs Improvement”
  2. How well do you do direct marketing? — 3 out of 5  said “Needs improvement”
  3. How well do you leverage media? — Better than 1 out 2 % said “Needs Improvement.”
  4. How well do you do telemarketing? — 2 out of 3 % said “Needs Improvement”

“How does your marketing budget compare to last year?” 2 out of 3 said same as last year or lower.

“With fewer dollars, how well can you leverage that limited budget?”

Marketing data quality was a massive problem.  Only just over 1 out 3 companies said customer data was 90% accurate or better.  (9 out of ten customer records)  And only 1 of 10 companies said prospect data was 90% accurate or better.

We need to build trust, but we don’t do a good job of talking to them and we don’t even know them very well.

Lead scoring also separates the successful and less successful organizations.  7  of 10 companies have no lead scoring or just an informal process.

Lead nurturing — keeping in touch with those not yet ready to buy:

  • 42% said Sales does it.
  • 21% said Marketing has an informal process
  • 20% said Marketing has a formal process
  • 10% no one does it

Bottom line: Only 20% - 1 out of 5 companies - does lead nurturing the right way - with a formal process.  8 out of 10 do it wrong.

Companies that take a scientific approach to lead scoring and nurturing are vastly more successful. (Check out the lead nurturing and scoring services offered by Find New Customers.)

Jim said “Companies are missing a huge opportunity.  Companies that do this right enjoy a much higher return on marketing investment.“

Jim also said that companies need to invest in technology — both for marketing and sales. Good lead generation and management software out there today.  But great content and process are needed too.

The Fearless Competitor asked Jim about customer buying processes and matching content.  Jim agreed and said customer buying processes are very poorly understood. (Please note that Find New Customers has partnered with the Buyer Persona Institute to bring you a series of free educational videos.)

He emphasized that we live in a self-service world today.    The buying process starts long before they talk to a salesperson.

If a salesperson talks about products or features — the customer says “Yes, I know.”  The conversation needs to evolve into a problem/solution discussion.  This is why fixing the website is so important — it must focus on giving the prospect the information he or she needs to solve critical business issues.

“What should people do, Jim?“

Marketing and sales should sit down and agree on what is a lead. Get answers to questions like:

  • Who are our best customers?  (And find more like that.)
  • Where is the customer coming from?
  • What is having the biggest impact?

Track progress and get feedback.

What do you think? We love your comments and appreciate it when you share our content on social networks.
Read my blog on Kindle

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

“If more companies listened to (Find New Customers) a lot more would be sold.” Dan McDade, Pointclear.

B2B Lead Generation: Leads, leads, leads!

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

Megaphone

B2B Lead Generation: Almost all B2B sellers lack enough quality leads to make quota.

Do Salespeople want more leads? Yes, indeed!

No matter how talented your sales team may be, or how much you have spent on sales training — there is one key issue to be addressed:

How does your company keep the sales funnel filled with qualified prospects? And how much do you need to spend on this important activity?

Right now jump over to our Free Tools page and use the How Many Leads Do You Need Calculator. Plug in your revenue goal, average deal size, etc. and you’ll get your answer. At least then, you’ll know how big your problem is.

If you are looking for lead generation companies, look to Find New Customers.

How much does customer acquisition cost today?  A CEO friend told me a well-known marketing automation company spends well over $5,000 per sales opportunity!

Some sales managers look to recruit salespeople with “killer Rolodexes.”  This is a massive mistake. They are confusing relationships with quality leads.

I consider this an admission that those companies stink at developing their own leads — so they rely on their salespeople to create their own.

Lastly, it is so important that you use consistent messaging. Don’t give up too soon. The image below explains it well.

Check this out from the Edelman Trust Barometer - how many times you need to hear something about a company to believe it is likely true.

ConsistentMsgs

What is your thought about the leads problem?

Click to subscribe to Fearless Competitor on your Kindle.

Jeff Ogden is President of Find New Customers “Lead Generation Made Simple” Check out the online show every Friday at 11am ET, “Laugh and Learn with the Fearless Competitor.” Find New Customers is one of few lead generation companies in New York. Follow Jeff on Twitter or download the free white paper on B2B lead generation.

How to Find New Customers

Find New Customers helps companies like yours(with 150 to 5,000 employees and complex products)implement lead generation programs to improve the way you find and acquire high quality sales leads using best practices in onlinelead generation. Quality sales leads matter. In fact, a recent study found that sales teams with fewer, high quality sales leads closed more than sales teams with more leads of dubious quality.

If you wish to do sales lead generation online, contact the B2B lead generationexperts at Find New Customers. Use the form below to send me a personal note or Leave a Reply to post a permanent comment on this article.







What’s so different in Fortune "Best Companies to Work For?"

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

(This post originally ran on 1/13/2006. ) And if you enjoy Fearless Competitor, we also hope you’ll visit the B2B Sales Lounge, the blog we also write on behalf of the Find New Customers client, OneSource.

Fortune magazine coverThis story is based on an intrepid Fortune reporter who actually worked at four of these and what he learned. One of his most important points is that most of the things that make the difference actually cost nothing. Two, the stock prices of the four he worked for trounced the market.

Here are some of the differences:
1) Employee are treated like adults with their own minds. At FedEx, a driver chooses his own route and if it is cold, he or she is given gloves. At the Four Seasons, employees are given a great deal of latitude in servicing customers. They want their employees relaxed and comfortable.

2) Ideas are championed, even from the lowest level employee. At the Four Seasons, employees were continually asked what they think. Contrast this with a large business intelligence firm I worked for. When I presented a great business idea to a senior exec, he said “I could not agree more. I’ve been advocating that for years.” My unspoken thought: If you are an SVP and cannot get your idea considered, what can a peon like me expect? Soon after, this SVP was fired.

3) Be creative. At Hot Topic, a retailer, employees are reimbursed for attending rock concerts, provided they provide feedback on what attendees were wearing.

What shocks the reporter is how so many companies are unable to do the simple, inexpensive things that make employees happy.

This is not rocket-science, folks. You too can do it. As Jim Collins states so well in Good to Great, the Great CEO’s were a combination of confidence and humility.

What do you think? We love comments and people who share.

Jeff Ogden is President of Find New Customers “Lead Generation Made Simple” Check out the online show every Friday at 11am ET, “Laugh and Learn with the Fearless Competitor.” Find New Customers is a lead generation company in New York.

Find New Customers helps companies like yours (with 50 to 5,000 employees and complex products) deliver low cost lead generation developing and implementing marketing lead generation programs to improve the way you find and acquire high quality sales leads using best practices in b2b lead generation. Quality leads matter. In fact, a recent study found that sales teams with fewer, high quality sales leads closed more than sales teams with more leads of dubious quality.

To contact the B2B lead generation experts at Find New Customers, please use the form below.







The state of lead generation today with Jim Dickie of CSO Insights

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

Jim Dickie, Managing Partner of CSO Insights sat down with the Fearless Competitor to share insights and takeaways from their recent Lead Generation Optimization study in which they surveyed 525 companies.   The data was shocking.  Let me summarize it for you here.

CSO Insights has been doing studies for 17 years, so they have great historical information.  What’s going on?

Just a bit more than 1 out of 2 salespeople achieved quota in 2008 — down from 61% in 2007, but 86%  of companies are raising quotas in 2009.

If almost half of salespeople failed to make their numbers last year, how will a higher quota help?

It’s clear that business as usual no longer works. Sales turns to marketing for help.

Sales leaders told CSO Insights their most important objective is Optimizing Lead Generation.

Marketing leaders told CSO Insights their top priority was New Customer Acquisition.

(Two terms for the same thing.)

The next question CSO Insights asked is “How well is Marketing equipped to do new customer acquisition?”

  1. How well do you do web based marketing programs? — 2 out of 3 said “Needs Improvement”
  2. How well do you do direct marketing? — 3 out of 5  said “Needs improvement”
  3. How well do you leverage media? — Better than 1 out 2 % said “Needs Improvement.”
  4. How well do you do telemarketing? — 2 out of 3 % said “Needs Improvement”

“How does your marketing budget compare to last year?” 2 out of 3 said same as last year or lower.

“With fewer dollars, how well can you leverage that limited budget?”

Marketing data quality was a massive problem.  Only just over 1 out 3 companies said customer data was 90% accurate or better.  (9 out of ten customer records)  And only 1 of 10 companies said prospect data was 90% accurate or better.

We need to build trust, but we don’t do a good job of talking to them and we don’t even know them very well.

Lead scoring also separates the successful and less successful organizations.  7  of 10 companies have no lead scoring or just an informal process.

Lead nurturing — keeping in touch with those not yet ready to buy:

  • 42% said Sales does it.
  • 21% said Marketing has an informal process
  • 20% said Marketing has a formal process
  • 10% no one does it

Bottom line: Only 20% - 1 out of 5 companies - does lead nurturing the right way - with a formal process.  8 out of 10 do it wrong.

Companies that take a scientific approach to lead scoring and nuturing are vastly more successful.

Jim said “Companies are missing a huge opportunity.  Companies that do this right enjoy a much higher return on marketing investment.”

Jim also said that companies need to invest in technology — both for marketing and sales.  Good lead generation and management software out there today.  But great content and process are needed too.

The Fearless Competitor asked Jim about customer buying processes and matching content.  Jim agreed and said customer buying processes are very poorly understood.

He emphasized that we live in a self-service world today.    The buying process starts long before they talk to a salesperson.

If a salesperson talks about products or features — the customer says “Yes, I know.”  The conversation needs to evolve into a problem/solution discussion.  This is why fixing the website is so important — it must focus on giving the prospect the information he or she needs.

“What should people do, Jim?”

Marketing and sales should sit down and agree on what is a lead. Get answers to questions:

  • Who are our best customers?  (And find more like that.)
  • Where is the customer coming from?
  • What is having the biggest impact?

Track progress and get feedback.

For companies looking for marketing campaigns in b2b lead generation who wish to improve the way they acquire new customers, Find New Customers is the place to go.  CSO Insights says companies need to improve the way they generate sales leads through great marketing campaigns and implement processes for business to business lead generation.

Jeff Ogden, the Fearless Competitor, is a demand generation expert and sales leader, as well as the President of Find New Customers, a lead generation company, who helps businesses create marketing campaigns for lead generation and continually publishes the best lead generation ideas, so his readers can determine the best lead generation strategy to find new customers.


Web Leads - Pounce, Pause, Nurture or Wait?

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

Guest post by Mike Damphousse of Green-Leads.  Bio below.

A few weeks ago I published a product review of Leadlanderr. Since then we’ve had a great experience using it. For what it touts itself to be, it does a great job. It did raise a question though, and before I put much thought into it I decided to ask 7 of my colleagues in the b2b demand gen/sales/marketing space.

My question: Within a day or two of sending an initial email to someone, leaving a phonemail or posting an interesting blog article or tweet, I see they (or someone from their company) have clicked into and visited our site.

Now, how aggressively do I go after them? Do I pounce immediately? Do I pause and call shortly thereafter? Do I just nurture them? Do I wait a couple days then call?

Results were based on their comments, not hard answers, but the end result is categorized into:

Pounce - Call immediately
Pause - Give it 15-30 minutes, then call
Nurture - Let the visitor keep educating themselves, educate them softly if you can identify them
Wait - Wait a day or two, then casually call

It was also unanimous to not tell them how you knew they were on the site (too big-brother-ish). Also unanimous was that whatever the style or timing of the followup that is made, it better be valuable for the prospect.

What do you think? (comment below)

Pounce Pause Nurture Wait
Anneke Seley • •
Craig Rosenberg
 •
Jeff Ogden • •
Jill Konrath

•
Mac McIntosh
•
 •
Miles Austin

•
Nigel Edelshain • • •
Trish Bertuzzi

•
 •
My Gut: • •

My gut suggests there is a combination of all the opinions, although I opt for a more immediate (non pouncing) type of followup. In fact, the typical style of me and my team is to see if we can’t research the person a bit, learn a little about their company, see if we may already know them or someone that knows them, and then proceed. So the results of my informal survey were confirming our gut.

Sound Bites:

Anneke Seley: “If the volume isn’t overwhelming, I suggest calling…The nurturing option is a great one if you have too many responses to call (don’t we wish!)”

Craig Rosenberg: “Net Net - the key is to capitalize on the moment.”

Jeff Ogden: “I believe the best approach is an aged and gentle follow up with a subsequent action 3 business days or more out.”

Jill Konrath: “I hate being pounced upon…(but)…I know there is research that supports getting in touch with a person immediately after they visit your site. Strike when they’re hot. The key to success is in the how.”

Mac McIntosh: “In addition, put these prospects on a more frequent nurture track, spoon feeding them info (by email as you know they are getting it) once a week, then calling them again in 3-4 weeks if they haven’t responded.”

Miles Austin: “A bit of discussion that gathers a better understanding of the urgency and motivation for their contact, their selection process and time-frame, etc. can typically move your odds of a successful sale ahead positively.”

Nigel Edelshain: “My instinct so far is call or email soon with some value-add (since leads go South fast) but not make direct reference to your tracking for fear of scaring them off.”

Trish Bertuzzi: “Your nurture campaign should include more frequent human touches for those that visit your site more regularly. It is not a one size fits all strategy…that is the beauty of Sales 2.0. The buyer designs the sales process.”

My PhotoFounder, CEO and CMO of Green-Leads, writing frequently about b2b marketing, demand creation, appointment setting, lead gen, living green, cooking, family, and other in-your-face topics.

Ask your toughest questions. Live Q&A with the Fearless Competitor 6/24/09

Posted by Jeff Ogden on

As businesses struggle to drive revenue in this tough economy, marketing and sales professionals face big challenges.

They will soon be able to ask anything they wish of a real expert, the Fearless Competitor.

This Wednesday, June 24th, from 9am to 5pm ET, you can Tweet any question you wish to @jeff_ogden with hashtag #fearless and you’ll get an answer.

It’s totally free and you don’t even have to register.  Take advantage of this free resource this coming Wednesday!