The desire for clear and efficient communication is a common trait among digital marketing (or Inbound Marketing) buyers across many customer segments. In competitive industries with an endless supply of information available, people won't take the time read and decipher tedious and wordy copy. You must make the problems you solve and how you do them clear on your website and across all communication channels.
Your first mission in clear communication is to explain efficiently what you do and who you serve. When engaging in research, a buyer is quickly trying to figure out whether your company and products are a viable option. If not, or if it isn't immediately clear that they are, people move on.
Assume your business sells an investment research software platform. Prospects should quickly identify on your website that you sell this product, and it is intended for them. If the software is extensive and costly, it likely appeals to a large investor. Make it clear from the beginning (your homepage) how your software offers greater insights and risk reduction versus competing solutions for serious investors.
In technology industries, the marketing messages presented by competitors can often sound the same. Discerning buyers want to understand quickly what makes your particular offering distinct and valuable versus competitive offerings. In many industries, competing products have a base of features and benefits that are constant across all providers of similar solutions. Use your opening message and follow-up communication to emphasize your points of differentiation.
Give readers your calling card, or most significant benefit, immediately on your home page. This initial hook keeps them interested. Use another page to more thoroughly layout your portfolio of solutions and benefits, still focusing on the most impactful.
What you don't say is as important as what you do say in making your value proposition clear. Don't try to cram every benefit you offer on your home page. Similarly, don't feel like you have to address every detailed feature of your solution to accomplish your prospecting goal. Broadening your message too much only serves to distract a buyer from your core functionality.
You have opportunities to explore specific features and benefits as you move along in the selling process. The goal of digital marketing is to attract, qualify and engage a buyer in setting up a successful sales process. If you try too hard to touch on everything your company does from the onset, you distract the reader and impede the likelihood of an eventual sales conversion.
After you have a buyer's attention with a clear opening message, add depth with educational content. White papers and case studies are common types of content that further engage an intrigued buyer. These extended content formats allow you to demonstrate expertise, increase understanding of how your solution works and prove the benefits you outline.
White papers allow for longer content than is typically possible on a web page or in a blog post. For tech-savvy buyers, this tool gives you a chance to show greater depth of understanding of the target user's problem. Case studies illustrate how you have implemented solutions that address a client's problem and helped them reach goals. They add an application to the concepts explained on your website. Buyers may feel like the story depicted in a particular case study relates well to the problem they face.
Educational article: Learn the best B2B content for technology buyers and prospects.
Video marketing is another digital marketing solution that allows you to demonstrate how your product works or to present customer testimonials, especially for the younger audience who are accustomed to learning through Youtube, Facebook and Instagram videos. The art of using video for B2B digital marketing requires a skilled video production company who can help you present your concepts and achieve your goals.
Engaging buyers too early is a common challenge in high-tech B2B industries. Usually, prospects in these sectors want to take their time to research on their own, get a feel for what you do and absorb your in-depth educational content.
Incorporating diverse, effective and contextually relevant calls-to-action on your website pages and blog posts is a good starting point. Invite readers of your articles, white papers and case studies to sign up for your newsletter, a free demonstration, a free trial or other more advanced materials that introduce your solutions. The more of a taste a buyer gets for your solution before actual sales engagement, the simpler and more efficient the selling process will be.
Educational article: Which B2B Marketing Strategies Produce the Highest Sales Conversion Rate?
It is common to implement initial sales calls after you see a prospect engage your content in a deeper way. For instance, your communication flow might include a sales call two days after a buyer downloads a white paper or document. An immediate call makes more sense with someone who wants a demonstration or free trial. These prospects have seen initial promise and are ripe for a more engage presentation of your value proposition. However, visitors who have only downloaded one educational eBook are at the very early stage of their research should be nurtured through email or other website offers until they engage with offers that would demonstrate they are considering your company and solutions.
B2B buyers in industries like high-tech are intelligent, deliberate and efficient in their research activities. They typically want to do a quick analysis of competing solutions and take in the information that sets each one apart. For your part, make it easy for buyers to learn quickly that you have a solution to their problem, and what makes it more valuable than alternatives. Focus on your points of differentiation early and often, and make more educational, in-depth content available to draw the buyer in to engage with your sales team and time your sales engagement strategically.
For more tips on how to attract and engage the right buyers for your business, download our White Paper: 8 Steps to Attract Qualified Leads for your Business.
Bristol Strategy is a full funnel inbound marketing agency and inbound sales agency offering the full complement of services to enable our clients to surpass their business objectives by transforming the way they engage with their buyer on-line. Reach out to us to learn more about how our experience and capabilities can help your business grow.