Integrate your marketing for better ROI
This article originally appeared in the IABM Journal, issue 105 which is available to view online here
Written by Rob Ettridge, Partner at PR agency, Red Lorry Yellow Lorry
On my recent (24th!) trip to NAB Show, it struck me that the industry hasn’t moved on from a traditional model of marketing through trade shows and press releases to get news out to the world.
Of course, the media is still a hugely important channel for the M&E sector. And it continues to play a vital role in building brand awareness. But it’s just one channel in a sea of opportunity – and if you don’t adopt a more integrated approach to marketing, you will miss out.
Target your content
In the past, the media used to be the only influencer. You took a journalist out for lunch; they wrote a nice story. Job done. But today that’s not necessarily going to ensure you reach everyone you need to.
Buyers will have researched your business before a salesperson has even picked up the phone. Digital gives us the opportunity to identify and engage potential customers and influencers directly. Who are your potential buyers? Where are they, what are they reading, and what’s the best way to reach them? A good place to start is by speaking to your customers/ex-customers or your sales teams. But also listen by tapping into data.
[bctt tweet = “Buyers will have researched your business before a salesperson has even picked up the phone. Digital gives us the opportunity to identify and engage potential customers and influencers directly – IABM Article – Integrate your marketing for better ROI”]
Free tools like Followerwonk,combined with b2b tools like Oktopost and LinkedIn Sales Navigator can help.
When you’ve pinpointed your audience, produce content that speaks to each of them in the right way. For example, an engineer will need very different information to a general manager. Think beyond the static press release to tell your story. Consider other more dynamic activities such as video demonstrations and case studies, blogs, VR experiences, social media or infographics. Include comments from others like customers and industry experts in your content – if an influencer contributes it builds credibility and expands your reach.
Market your content
Next, think about how to promote your content and get people to read it.
As part of our ‘brands to business’ philosophy, we create integrated marketing campaigns to attract potential customers to landing pages using a mix of SEO, media, social media, marketing automation and targeted paid campaigns. Once a prospect lands on your page, they will stay longer if the content is curated, targeted and informative. So add whitepapers or blogs on similar subjects. The key here is to think about how you can nurture prospects further down your sales funnel by driving them to an event, trapping emails or getting more content to them.
[bctt tweet = “Think about how you can nurture prospects further down your sales funnel by driving them to an event, trapping emails or getting more content to them – IABM Article – Integrate your marketing for better ROI”]
Measure the success of your content
Make sure you track what matters to gain insights from data like website visits, sources of traffic, leads, engagement and social followers. It’s almost a crime if you don’t use free tools like Google Analytics but equally paid tools like Hootsuite, Trendkite and Brandwatch can help. This takes time and experience. Don’t just look at the positive data. A run of forum complaints could help with product development.
What’s clear is marketing professionals need to encourage companies to embrace the new. Do keep working with the media as they are enormously influential in our industry. But use media as part of a wider, more integrated marketing strategy, and you’ll get so much more out of it. PR and marketing moves on, and sticking with the same tired approach won’t always yield the best results. Surely it’s time for a change?
[bctt tweet = “PR and marketing moves on, and sticking with the same tired approach won’t always yield the best results. Surely it’s time for a change? – IABM Journal 105”]
