B2B Lead Generation Blog

ITSMA: Elevating Demand in a Crowded World

Generating demand has become a top priority for most companies in today’s slower environment. The most successful programs are much more targeted than in past years and favor quality over quantity.

You're invited to join me at ITSMA's (IT Services Marketing Association) upcoming Marketing Leadership Forum May 6-7, 2008 in La Jolla, CA. I’ll be giving a keynote on “The Playbook for Effective Lead Management” and I'm looking forward to meeting the other speakers.

Please note is there is a fee for this event. ITSMA has extended a their member rate discount to B2B Lead Generation Blog readers. To register this way, select “My Company is an ITSMA Member,” and in the Comments field enter “Brian Carroll Offer.” Register here

They have a great line up of speakers including:

• John Aiello, CEO, SAVO
• Brian Bakstran, SVP, Field Marketing, North America, CA
• Paul Dunay, Global Director, Integrated Marketing, BearingPoint
• Janis Fratamico, Director, Marketing, Global Business Services – Americas, IBM
• Ajit Maira, Senior Vice President, ITSMA
• Julie Meyers, Vice President, Global Marketing, Xerox Global Services
• Jean Ostvoll, Global Marketing Director, Products, Accenture

Fear not! Think like a savvy investor with lead generation

This morning I was talking to a marketing leader about his 2008 strategy and he brought up some concerns he had about the economy and its potential impact on him and others. Can you blame him?

In years past, marketing has been favorite target for cuts by CFOs and CEOs as they look to conserve cash and reinforce their balance sheets for tough times.

I’m less concerned about budget cuts and more interested in opportunities for him and other B2B marketers who choose to bring focus to their marketing efforts. We have to remember that regardless of the economy, sales people are still expected to perform. I seldom find sales quotas are lowered to fit the news headlines.

If you want to flourish regardless of the economic conditions, you need to look for ways to help your sales team execute and improve performance.

I’m convinced that one of the best ways to do that is to focus on lead generation. Yesterday, I read a Kate Maddox's article in BtoB Magazine, "IDC: Tougher times for tech marketing," which supports that other B2B marketers are doing just that.

Much like a savvy investor who buys when the market is down, smart marketers can capitalize on this opportunity (and beat competitors), by bringing focus and attention to their lead generation efforts.

Maddox’s article highlights IDC's recent tech marketing barometer research. IDC showed that fewer tech marketers are increasing their budgets this year compared to last year. But I think the bigger story is how those dollars are being allocated. Maddox writes, “According to the [IDC] report. Lead generation is the top marketing priority for tech marketers this year…”

According to studies, the single biggest issue for contemporary business-to-business marketers is effective lead generation.  Conversely, it has been pointed out that 80% of marketing expenditures on lead generation and collateral are wasted because the leads are ignored by sales people.

For this reason, marketers should direct their budgets away from traditional awareness building campaigns that quickly eat up budget and instead expand and optimize lead generation programs that bring measurable results. Finding better tools and processes for managing the leads or inquires that they already have is also a good investment in a turbulent economy.

You will optimize lead generation immediately if you can honestly answer “yes” to all of the following questions:

• Do sales and marketing agree on what the word “lead” means? 
• Are you tracking the conversion rates of leads to sales opportunities?
• Can you/Do you close-the-loop on all leads that are being passed to sales?
• Does your sales team pass back early stage or "cold" leads back for lead nurturing?

You may also want to check out my complementary webinar archive based on the ebook "The One Piece Of Advice You Can't Generate Leads Without" by RainToday titled, “More Is Not Better If You Don't Know How To Nurture”

B2B 2.0 marketing expo by MarketingProfs

The gang at MarketingProfs put together conference that's worth checking out. Now here's the best part... no conference travel required. The B2B 2.0 Marketing Expo is March 5, 2008 and you can register here.

Alltop a single page blog dashboard of sorts

If you don’t have time to search though multiple blogs I recommend you check out Alltop. The site was launched by marketing wiz, blogger, author, entrepreneur & venture capitalist Guy Kawasaki.

What's different about Alltop? It’s really a selection of the top 50 RSS feeds (i.e. mostly blogs) in 20 categories. All that information is collected listed in a single page. Personally, I’m finding Alltop useful for keeping up with other topics I'm interested in but don't want to spend a lot of time on.

The small business section includes the B2B Lead Generation Blog along with publications like Fast Company, Entrepreneur, Forbes and some of my favorite bloggers like Jill Konrath, Patrick Schaber, Seth Godin, John Jantsch, and Yvonne DiVita.

InTouch Acquired by MECLABS Group, Parent Company of MarketingSherpa and MarketingExperiments

When I started the B2B Lead Generation blog back in 2003, my purpose was to have this blog be a launch pad for practical ideas, not commercials. So that’s why many of you probably don’t know what I do in my day job as CEO of InTouch. But today I’m making an exception. 

After a long partnership with MarketingSherpa as a featured speaker and presenter at their B2B marketing summits, we made the decision to be acquired by MECLABS Group, the parent company of MarketingSherpa and MarketingExperiments. Read the press release.

With this acquisition, nothing will change for InTouch clients, future clients, partners and employees. We'll keep our name, our staff, and office in Arden Hills, MN. I along with our executive team will stay intact and we will continue to focus on building the company.

I often talk about the need for a “human touch” in marketing to overcome this age of automation and depersonalization. I fervently believe the only way to drive sales is to feed this need for relationships.

What exactly does InTouch do? We’re a professional B2B contact center that provides clients with the essential human touch required to develop and convert more leads into sales.

At age 24, I started InTouch (then Carroll Communications) back in 1995 out of my apartment living room with a second hand computer and $350 (I’m not kidding). At the time, I hoped to make a living while making a difference with how companies acquire and grow customer relationships through B2B telemarketing.

In 1999, we acquired one of our clients with which we had developed awfully good synergies, iNETech, an IT consulting Services Company specializing in software application development and I gained two great business partners, Pat Lorch and Brandon Stamschror. The new name of the firm, of course, was InTouch.

Since then, our company has been executing lead generation programs designed to profile sales prospects, uncover viable opportunities and create demand. Core services include: teleprospecting, lead qualification, lead nurturing, lead management, and marketing automation tools. Peg Davis over at MarketingExperiments blog wrote a great post that explains more.

That’s why all of us at InTouch are excited about tapping into MarketingSherpa’s practical case studies and know how, and MarketingExperiments’ online laboratory to discover what really works. Together, we can profoundly change the way people think about lead generation for the complex sale.

Plus, now our research for you will be supplemented by the team at MEC Labs Group. They run an actual laboratory facility in Jacksonville Beach, FL, where they conduct live campaign experiments in partnership with folks such as The New York Times and Reuters.

I want to sincerely thank you all of you for reading this blog. I have learned so much from your comments and our conversations. This blog will continue. And I look forward to us learning, doing and sharing together what really works for lead generation for the complex sale. 

On Alignment between Marketing and Finance

Many marketers are quickly approaching their favorite time of year.  Okay, not really. I'm of course talking about budget time.

When I see the challenge that marketers face when it comes to getting their budgets approved, I wonder why it has to be so hard?

Last year, I highlighted a report  by MarketingSherpa which concludes that marketers need to do a better job capturing and communicating their value.  According the MarketingSherpa research, "...only 17% of B-to-B marketers we queried were sure their CFOs understood the value of lead generation programs."

Last week, I read a short BtoB article by Carol Krol that shows that this continues to be a challenge. Her article summarizes some new research by the Association of National Advertisers in conjunction with Marketing Management Analytics.

Krol writes, "The study found that a relationship between marketing and finance is often lacking. Sixty-one percent of marketers surveyed for the study said there is “some” cooperation between the two departments when establishing metrics and methodologies for measuring marketing ROI, while only 22% said there was “full” cooperation."

Each discipline is vital to the success of the company and they must work together as team. But I believe that most of our colleagues in finance don’t fully understand marketing. It’s not a surprise that financial executives still view marketing as an expense, a.k.a. cost center, rather than viewing it as an asset that creates revenue.

As marketers we need to do more to educate our peers on the value of marketing. We need to act as one team and seek to understand each other better and learn each other’s language. Bottom line: it's the numbers.  So why not begin with that? 

I think the late Dale Carnegie has a great quote in his perennial best seller, How to Win Friends and Influence People that summarizes my point.

He writes, “I go fishing up in Maine every summer. Personally I am very fond of strawberries and cream; but I find that for some strange reason fish prefer worms. So when I go fishing, I don’t think about what I want. I think about what they want. I don’t bait the hook with strawberries and cream. Rather, I dangle a worm or a grasshopper in front of the fish and say: “Wouldn’t you like to have that?” Why not use the same common sense when fishing for people?”

Related post: Budget Wars: Sales & Finance vs Marketing

MarketingSherpa Demand Generation Summit 2007

Click here now to buy a ticket to the Demand Gen Summit and get a copy of my new book: "Lead Generation for the Complex Sale" Register by 9/28 For a $100 Discount

You're invited to join me at MarketingSherpa’s Demand Generation Summit at your choice of Boston (Oct 15-16) or San Francisco (Oct 29-30.) I’ll be speaking on “Blogging, Podcasting, Speaking Gigs, & Book Authorship: How to Generate Leads and Measure ROI as an Authority.”

Some of the other topics include: New B-to-B Search Marketing; Maximizing White Papers, Ezines Webinars & Podcasts; Marketing to Fortune 500; Video, Viral & Web 2.0 B-to-B Marketing; How to Measure & Manage Leads and more.

I hope you can make it. Register here

B2B Marketing and lead generation via Social networking

Have you dipped your toe in the water of social networking yet? And if not, should you start? That's a question I know a lot of very busy B2B marketers ask themselves which is why I found Tessa Wegert's ClickZ article on "Facebook as a B2B Marketing Tool" interesting.

In the article, Wegert highlights how some marketers are experimenting with using the Facebook site for proactive marketing and build targeted niche networks and B2B communities.

I've been using LinkedIn for several years because it's geared more for business people. But I’ve heard the audience demographic of the Facebook is now moving from being focused on college kids to becoming a place for adults.

Overall, social networking sites are proving to be great tools for job seekers and recruiting. But I still wonder about the value of social networking tools for lead generation and business development that Wegert's article brings up.

In B2B, I think our reputation matters as much as our brand. Like traditional networks, online social networks must be built on trust and value to be effective. In either case, you can't replace credibility lost, if you fail to use them correctly.

I have a few hundred people in my online social network and more in my off line network. But I've found it takes just as much effort to use social networking tools to nurture relationships online as it does to nurture relationships off line. So in the end, I end up connecting more with my network offline or using old standbys like the phone or email.

Here's my question…

If you use social networking tools, I'd love to get your input. Do you think a typical marketer or sales person (who isn't a good “networker” already) can build relationships and generate sales leads for their company from a social networking tool? Why or why not?

Podcast: Interview with MarketingSherpa's Anne Holland

Would you like some inspiration or some fresh ideas for your marketing and lead generation strategy?

If so, MarketingSherpa just released their “Business Technology Marketing Benchmark Guide 2007-08” and I had the privilege to interview Anne Holland about this year's findings. Very useful stuff. Download the Executive Summary

During our in-depth interview, Anne shares some terrific insights and helpful data on numerous marketing and lead generation tactics.

Three data points that I found particularity interesting:

1. Teleprospecting works. As we all know, tech buyers are a notoriously tough crowd to cold call. Sherpa's findings contradict the "calling doesn't work" line we've heard for years. Their data shows that over 50% of tech buyers admitted to short listing a vendor after receiving a well timed and relevant phone call.

2. Sherpa's data shows that more decision makers (not just influencers) are attending webinars and watching archived events. This indicates the importance of relevant educational events and online content for lead generation.

3. Companies who provided fewer but higher quality "sales ready" leads to their sale people have better sales conversion rates than those that send lots of early stage leads and that creating a "cost per lead" culture just does not work.

Listen to podcast now (31 min MP3)

Show Agenda  

• Benchmark data that B2B all marketers must know
• Fresh ideas and best practices for lead qualification
• Why you should capture and track all web inquiries in your CRM
• How many buyers/influencers in the typical F500 buying process (hint: it's big!)
• Sherpa's unexpected data on B2B telemarketing (teleprospecting)
• Useful data on lead management and lead nurturing
• How webinars are reaching more decision makers than you would expect
• Common email mistakes (and why mobile devices matter more than you think)
• How and why high quality content is important and influential to buyers
• Why fewer leads is better (the CEOs role) and why "cost per lead" budgets fail
• Distinguishing characteristics of top performing marketers
• Unconventional research that will improve your corporate website homepage

The Business Technology Benchmark Marketing Guide features data on numerous marketing and lead generation tactics especially valuable. They also have practical data on search, email, PR, direct mail, lead generation, trade shows, podcasting, telemarketing, budgeting and more. They interviewed over 1000 marketers, plus this year they gathered in-depth research from 4,658 actual business technology buyers.

If you are a marketer for a company that sells technology, I encourage you to get a copy of this report. It will definitely help you better budget, forecast, and benchmark your marketing results.

MarketingSherpa: Business Technology Marketing Benchmark Guide 2007-08

Social Media Pundits Disconnect from B2B Marketing

As someone in B2B, do you feel left out of the social media buzz? I read a good article on "What’s Wrong With Social Media For B2B Marketing" by John Miller who also writes the Modern B2B Marketing blog.

John's article highlights something most of us in B2B marketing have come to accept. B2C marketing gets the vast majority of links and clicks while B2B hears the quiet sound of crickets chirping.

I remember when I started blogging in 2003 and there was only 11 true B2B marketing related blogs. Now there's are over a hundred. John lists about 80 of them on his blog.

John concludes, "The result is that there are fewer pundits and thought leaders writing about B2B marketing, resulting in fewer links to those early adopters who do write about business marketing techniques. And since links mean leadership on the web, the result is that the less-trendy subjects in B2B marketing—like marketing accountability and lead management—get left behind."

Personally, I think the reason B2B marketing receives less attention comes down to time and momentum.

I don't know a B2B marketer who isn’t swamped and time constrained. They often have more projects than hands to do them.

Plus, there are more B2C marketers than B2B marketers. Why? There are simply more consumer buyers than business buyers. And as consumers, it’s easier to understand B2C marketing experiences, concepts and ideas. There’s just more to write about, more people and thus there’s more momentum.

B2B is more complex. Complex things are harder communicate and take more time and effort to build momentum. For example, my business partners and I were talking at lunch about why Steven Hawking is less known at this stage of his life than Albert Einstein (don't ask why were talking about this). One person said, "You can put Einstein's E=mc2 on a t-shirt and then a consumer will buy that. You can’t do that with Hawking.”

My point? Those who spend more time talking about the trendy marketing mediums (ie. Blogs, podcasts, WOM, etc.) are easier to link to than those who are talking about the strategy and execution aspects that B2B marketers really need. It’s a momentum thing.

B2B marketers may never have the same amount of buzz as those in B2C and that's okay. B2B marketing isn’t a popularity contest. It's about results. Without us, B2C marketers wouldn't have anything to sell and our economy would suffer. That's a fact. And that's why I love it.

The Difference Between ROI and Marketing Accountability

What's the difference difference between ROI and marketing accountability? My post a few weeks ago, "On B2B Demand Generation tools and Lead Generation Dashboards," started an email exchange between me and Jeffrey Eisenberg on the subject. Our exchange spawned an article by Bryan Eisenberg over at ClickZ.

Bryan writes, "Measuring the ROI of lead generation isn't the same thing as full accountability. If marketing is a profitable activity, it still doesn't mean that what it is communicating to the universe of buyers is building the business. I've seen lots of marketers sacrifice early and middle stage buyers because they had to show an immediate ROI on each campaign they ran. Who is accountable for all the potential business they lose by saying the wrong the thing to the right people at the wrong time?"

I agree with Jeffrey. I think our "instant gratification" culture is the main culprit. We're a Fast Food Nation, and this mindset has permeated into how we do business.

For example, most CEOs feel that they aren't getting enough activity at the top of the sales funnel. Marketers are constantly reminded that more leads are needed...now!

So here's the challenge that most marketers face...they want to think long term but keep getting sucked in by the more immediate and pressing issue of a not having enough high quality sales leads.

We all want our ROI, and we want it now! So who's to blame? The CEOs who cower to the will of their investors, boards, analysts and media? The investors who applaud short-term returns in their portfolio? The analysts who predict the future success of a company and then punish them for falling short? The media who criticize leaders for thinking long-term?

In addition, we can't ignore research showing the average tenure of a CEO is six years. But for a marketing leader, it's less than 24 months. So I think fear plays a role, too.

Bryan replies, "So many companies are still scraping the bottom end of their sales funnel while many potential prospects are left unsold. The soution?"

Continue reading at ClickZ:The Difference Between ROI and Marketing Accountability.

B2B Lead Generation Blog is today's TypePad Featured Blog

Greetings and welcome new readers! I'm honored that the B2B Lead Generation Blog was chosen as today's Typepad featured blog. I've been using Typepad to power my blog since October of 2003 and I think it's a super blogging tool.

Their write up is quite glowing (aw-shucks) and it's fun to be recognized. And, I'm even getting a cool t-shirt to boot. Thanks TypePad!

TypePad Featured Blogs: B2B Lead Generation Blog

Now Announcing the "Start With A Lead" Podcast Show

I am pleased to announce that I'll be hosting a new podcast show called "Start with a Lead" debuting in April. 

The show will have content specifically for marketers and those who care about B2B lead generation, sales leads, and marketing strategies focused on the complex sale.

In the show, you’ll hear from thought leading experts on a variety of marketing and lead generation topics. You'll get the latest tips and strategies; and learn what really works and what doesn't to generate high quality leads in the complex sale.

Why a new show? Over the past few years, I’ve experimented with podcasting, (you can see my old podcast here) but now like Emeril, I’m ready to 'kick it up a notch’ and apply what I’ve learned from experience and listener feedback. 

Also, I’m  going to “open the phone lines” to listeners who’d like to ask questions in advance of the show so we can be more interactive and get your specific questions answered.  I’m looking forward to learning with you as I interview leading experts (and ask your questions) to get the latest contemporary thinking on lead generation. Stay tuned!

Podcast: What Sales Really Needs From Marketing

John Jantsch, small business marketing expert and author of Duct Tape Marketing recently interviewed me and sales expert Jill Konrath, author of Selling to Big Companies about what sales really needs from marketing.

This podcast was conducted for the marketing alliance partners for Sage Software, makers of ACT!, Peachtree and SageCRM software.  John originally hoped that Jill and I would debate or lock horns (Jill from the sales viewpoint and me from the marketing viewpoint). Instead, we could almost finish each others sentences : )

This is one of my favorite podcasts. I share more ideas on what marketing can do to create and nurture leads before handing them off to the sales force.

Listen to podcast now (MP3 60 min 45 MB)

P.S. I just read John Jantsch's new book, Duct Tape Marketing. If you're a small business owner (or plan to be one in the future) you'll want to put this book on your reading list. It’s great. If you decide to get a copy, you should check out his bonus offers. I'll be posting my Amazon review soon.

Podcast: Sales and Marketing the Six Sigma Way

It's been well documented that quality of collaboration between sales and marketing directly impacts ROI. 

The challenge that many organizations face is that their sales process is a black box.  No one except the sales team knows what is going on inside the black box until a proposal or sale happens.  Worse still, 80% of the leads that go into the sales black box are rarely seen again. 

This makes it particularly challenging for marketers who are trying to measure their revenue contribution and lead generation ROI.  So what can be done about it? 

Process mapping is a well-known technique for creating a common vision and shared language for improving business results.

I had the chance to interview Michael Webb, founder of Sales Performance Consultants and an expert on sales process improvement on his excellent book, Sales and Marketing the Six Sigma Way. Michael gives some great input on how sales and marketing can use the six sigma process to create better sales and marketing results. 

Show Agenda

• How is six sigma relevant to the sales and marketing process?
• How can sales and marketing apply a six sigma process and what are some problems the process can address?
• What are the barriers in helping to create the six sigma process?
• How do you encourage people in sales and marketing who have tried to create a process that hasn’t worked, to give it another shot and how can you help them create one that works?
• Provide examples of companies with complex sales that applied six sigma to the sales and marketing process.

Listen to podcast now (MP3 24 min 5.5 MB)

E-mail and the phone have high response rates, DMA report finds

BtoB Magazine points out some interesting findings in the DMA 2006 Response Rate Trends Report which includes data for more than 1,500 campaigns received in 2004, 2005 and 2006. 

The DMA report found that the phone and e-mail produced the highest response rates respectively—among direct marketing media channels in terms of generating leads.  In fact, the phone has been number one during the past four years according to this report. 

The report also found that e-mail continues to have a high response rate too.  This is good news if you are using e-mail and the phone in combination (using e-mail along with the phone is critical in the lead nurturing process too).

BtoBonline:E-mail, telemarketing garner highest direct marketing response rates

How to Become a Thought Leader and Attract Customers

Would you like to be more visible and generate sales leads on a limited budget? Become a thought leader! Thought leadership gives you an edge to combat commoditization and attract more business. 

RainToday recently released the results of a new, year-long research project called How To Become A Thought Leader. The report was written for service providers but I believe the core ideas also apply to most companies with a complex sale.  Thanks goes to Britton Manasco for reminding via his blog post, "It Pays to Be a Thought Leader."

As I wrote a while back in my post, "in defense of thought leadership," there are just a few select thought leaders in every industry and field of study.  So everyone can't be one. But if you have the vision, desire and passion to do it, this report tells you how. 

I was humbled to be interviewed, along with eight other business leaders, and to be able to contribute to this report, which includes:

• 100 Pages of expert analysis on how to become a thought leader in your field
• 95 Pages of stories and advice from thought leaders in professional services
• 20 learning checklists and questions for self-evaluation
• Down-to-earth views of how passion, relevance and reach work together for you

Download my 14-page interview on thought leadership (243K PDF)

Get more info on the report at http://www.raintoday.com/thoughtleader.cfm

Podcast: Marketing and Sales for Big Complex Selling (pt 3)

I wanted to share the final installment from the podcast series I did with 800-CEO-READ.  In this podcast, Todd interviewed me and Jill Konrath on the critical interface between marketing and sales. 

Here's what Todd says about it:
"Here is the final installment to our podcast series on marketing and selling to big companies. We again have Jill Konrath and Brian Carroll talking about the topic. What we try to spend time on in this call is "space" shared between marketing and sales. Brian leads the call with the stat - "80% of leads sent from marketing to the sales organization are lost, ignored, or discarded." You can see why this is a good topic to explore."

Listen to podcast now (MP3 35:56 min 24.68 MB)

Visit 800-CEO-Read Podcasts to hear the complete three part series

Lead Generation for the Complex Sale Listed Among BtoB Magazine’s Best Marketing Books

Ellis Booker, editor of BtoB Magazine, posted a short list of five of the best marketing books published in the past 12 months, as well as a couple due out imminently. My book, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale, along with friends Bryan and Jeffrey Eisenberg's Waiting for Your Cat to Bark? and Debbie Weil's The Corporate Blogging Book, were included on the list. Very cool!

Read BtoBOnline.com: A summer bundle of marketing books

E-books: A Hip and Stylish Younger Sibling to the Nerdy Whitepaper

If you’re reading this, it’s likely that you are a reader of other blogs. As such, you’re probably aware of the growing number of e-books available. So what's the deal? 

Fellow e-Book author David Meerman Scott just wrote an article for MarketingProfs.com that's really helpful. Titled E-books:  A Hip and Stylish Younger Sibling to the Nerdy Whitepaper, it’s an interesting and educational read about the nature of the phenomenon, its purpose, style and definition. He gives some great advice on how to create your own eBooks too.  BTW - I'm using the spelling of e-books and eBooks interchangeably until we all agree on how to spell it. 

Just like blogs and podcasts, e-books are a terrific way to spread ideas, engage conversations and generate demand.  David not only compares them to the older whitepapers, but also discusses their use as a valuable marketing and lead generation tool. My e-book was even included on his list successful of examples of the genre.  So “get hip” and read this article. 

Speaking at MarketingSherpa's B-to-B Demand Generation Summit 2006

I'm speaking at MarketingSherpa's Demand Generation Summit being held in Boston and SF this fall.  I've worked out a special promotion with MarketingSherpa -- you’ll get a complimentary autographed copy of my book and a $300 discount on the Summit if you register by August 31st.

This should be just in time to inspire you during your fall budget and planning season. Meet experts; mingle with your peers; and discover new data, strategies, and tactics (includes search, podcasting, email & microsites). 

Please note, you must click on this link to register so you can get the discount and free book (that's the only way our good friends at MarketingSherpa can identify you as qualifying for the complimentary, autographed book offer).

Webinar: Lead Generation Strategies for the Complex Sale

Join me for a complimentary webinar this Thursday, August 17, 2006 at 1pm EDT.  This action-oriented session will provide tips and best practices that you can put into practice immediately.

When you leave this session you will:

• Learn 3 proven lead generation strategies that deliver results
• The most effective ways to get sales and marketing alignment
• See the most effective tactics used for an integrated marketing program
• Know how to identify and prioritize your best prospects
• Hear what's working to develop a dialog with executive level buyers

Register here

This event is sponsored and hosted by WebEx Communications, the worldwide leader in online meeting applications.

How Podcasts Impact B2B Purchase Decisions

A key aspect of lead generation is to engage people as early in their buying process as possible, because that's where you can make the biggest difference. Simply put, engage early and often. 

An excellent way to reach people early is by developing thought-leading content. Yet most companies lack thought provoking, educational content; instead, they emphasize sales content. Sales content is most relevant in the later stages of the buying process. 

Your content should be specifically designed to help support and pull your potential customer through each stage of their buying process. How? By helping people find the answers to their questions and being a resource to them, regardless of their timing to buy.  Also see: Using Thought Leading Content as a Lead Generation Tool

Podcasts are a great way to share your thought leading content which is why I found this report by KnowledgeStorm and Universal McCann very compelling.  They just announced the results of a joint research study on the emerging role of new media, particularly podcasts, on B2B technology purchase decisions. 

Key Findings from the Study Include:

• 41 percent of survey respondents claim they have listened to podcasts on more than one occasion, while 13 percent stated that they “frequently” download or listen to them.
• 32 percent of survey respondents stated their usage of podcasts has “Increased” or “Significantly Increased” in the last six months.
• 72 percent claimed that they have downloaded or listened to podcasts on technology topics on more than one occasion; 23 percent do so “frequently.”
• Nearly 60 percent of respondents said that information on business or technology topics, currently delivered as white papers or analyst reports, would be more interesting as podcasts.
• 55 percent of respondents would be more likely to consume white papers and analyst reports if they were delivered as podcasts.
• 57 percent of the frequent podcast users stated their biggest challenge with podcasts is the scarcity of interesting content.
• 65 percent responded that they listen to podcasts for both personal and business interests.

To learn more about the Emerging Media Series study visit, Podcast Study Report. 

Sales Leads Are Too Valuable For Sales People Alone

David Meerman Scott's blog post, "Sales Leads Are too Valuable for Sales People," is worth a read. He shows the folly of marketers who throw sales leads over the wall and expect sales people to catch them. This is an ongoing pattern for lead generation failure. 

I've written that consistent, patient, long-term contact with sales prospects results in better ROI. The reality is that early-stage leads, which are often lost, ignored or discarded by sales people, represent between 40 and 70 percent of missed sales!

Because the sales team is responsible for much of the customer’s perception of the company, concerted care must go into developing the ongoing, relevant communications that the sales team will employ as it builds relationships with customers.

Marketing should nurture leads via a relevant and consistent dialog with prospects, regardless of their timing to buy.  A key aspect of lead nurturing is the ability to provide valuable education and information to prospects up front, so that you become more than an expert; you become a trusted advisor. 

Kate Maddox's article in BtoB Magazine, "Integration Key to Lead Generation," emphasizes the need for close sales and marketing integration. The article is based on a recent white paper, as well as research by CSO Insights. 

Time with Best Selling Author Bryan Eisenberg

My good friend, Bryan Eisenberg and I met up while he was on his book tour in Minnesota.  Like many visitors to Minnesota (Land of 10,000 Lakes), Bryan wanted to see the Mall of America. Being married with two daughters, I'm a highly qualified mall tour guide ; )

After walking around the mall a few times, we stopped by Barnes & Noble to sign the remaining copies of our books.  We both wished we had a camera to capture this event... I mean how often do two friends have their books come out on the same day and then get to autograph them together! 

Later, we met up with our friend, Dan Janal, of PR Leads fame for dinner.  Dan brought his camera along so now I can share the pictures with you.  All three of us had a great time exchanging ideas on marketing, life, business and books.  Thanks for treating us to dinner Dan! 

Well, Bryan's new book, Waiting for Your Cat to Bark, just hit the Wall Street Journal, New York Times and USA Today Best Sellers list all in the same week!  Congratulations to Bryan and co-authors Jeffrey Eisenberg and Lisa Davis! 

The B2B Lead Generation Blog Wins Best B-to-B Marketing Blog in MarketingSherpa's Readers' Choice Awards

Thank you all for voting! I won the best B-to-B Marketing Blog in MarketingSherpa's Readers' Choice Awards!  I’m humbled and thrilled that so many readers have found the content valuable and informative enough to cast their vote for my blog. 

MarketingSherpa writes:

"Our readership is 65% B-to-B marketers, so this was a hotly contested category. Brian won honorable mention last year and has moved up a notch, sharpening his game. That's tough in a world where blog fatigue can all too easily set in. Brian's new book on the same subject was released in May 2006 by McGraw Hill, so he's having a banner year all around!"

After winning honorable mention in same category in 2004 and 2005 this feels great.  I appreciate for your support and will continue to work on keeping this blog a positive resource.  Congratulations to all of the winners and nominees.  Cheers!

MarketingSherpa’s Top 10 Best Blogs & Best Podcast of 2006: Readers’ Choice Award Results

Podcast: Interview on the Cullinane & Green Report

I was interviewed by podcasting experts Joe Cullinane and Roger Green on the Cullinane & Green Report. I encourage you to check out their other interviews with Mike Bosworth, author of Solution Selling and co-author of CustomerCentric Selling and Jackie Huba co-author of Creating Customer Evangelists too.

During this podcast, I share my thoughts on how to use technology tools like podcasts, blogs and RSS for new business development and lead generation. 

Listen to podcast now (36:26 minutes)

Podcast: Duct Tape meets Lead Generation for the Complex Sale

I'm a guest on the Duct Tape Marketing Podcast today hosted by John Jantsch.  John's Duct Tape Marketing Blog was chosen as a Forbes favorite for small business and was twice named "Best Small Business Marketing Blog" by the readers of Marketing Sherpa. While you're visiting John's blog, be sure to subscribe to his newsletter. It's terrific. 

Listen to podcast now

How a Blog Turns Into a Book Deal: The Story of my book, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale

With my book just being released, I’ve had a lot of people ask me how I got my book deal.  I’m delighted to tell them that it all started with my blog. A number of bloggers I know have become or are in the process of becoming published authors after starting a blog.

In this Podcast, which is part of a PRWeb podcast feed, I give the scoop on how it all came together for me.

Listen to How a Blog Turned into a Book Deal (MP3 7:43 min 7.12 MB)

Also, an interesting article "It's Not Too Late To Start Blogging (But It Will Be Soon),"was just published on RainToday.com by Larry Bodine. If you're still debating on starting a blog sure to read it.  His Professional Marketing Blog is good too. 

Optimizing Lead Generation - What's the Payback?

A dilemma faced by many senior executives is whether to put more money into sales or into marketing. Often, they feel it is better to hire more sales people to increase sales than investing more money into lead generation programs.

Contrarily, my research shows that for the complex sale, it is far more effective to support proven sales people with good lead generation than hiring additional sales people.

A new white paper by CSO Insights supports my research and shows that companies that support their sales teams with lead generation programs have higher conversion rates and increased sales effectiveness than those who don't.

I interviewed Barry Trailer, Partner of CSO Insights about their White Paper, "Optimizing Lead Generation - What's the Payback?" He said, "Our findings support that improved lead generation positively impacts sales team effectiveness and revenue.  When companies increase the quantity and quality of their leads, they increase the odds of winning sales." 

Among other things, CSO Insights data from 1,275 companies shows that those excelling in lead generation gain the following advantages over companies that do not:

• Win rates are 7 percent higher
• Number of sales representatives making quota is 9.3 percent higher
• Conversion rate from leads to first calls is 16.5 percent higher
• More than 10 percent decrease in ramp up time for new sales people

I expect there will be more research on this very important subject. 

Above the Sales Funnel by CSO Insights

PR Has New Rules for Reaching Buyers Directly

In launching my book, I didn't want to rely on the same time-worn lead generation tactics as everyone else. A normal book launch involves sending press releases to the media and then hoping and praying that overworked and overwhelmed journalists (who doesn't know you exist already) will suddenly see you on the radar...I mean, come on. That's so “book launch 1.0” (thanks for the idea, Debbie Weil). 

Simply put, the web has changed the rules for press releases. You can now reach your potential customers directly with your PR. This is called PR 2.0. 

Has your PR firm told you about this yet? If not, the reason may be this...many PR professionals resist direct-to-consumer PR. Just like many marketers resist changing the way they do lead generation from “campaigns” to “conversations.” 

Another important reason is that it's hard to admit you are powerless to start, control and mold your message. Just like you can't dominate a conversation without risking that people may tune you out. The key is that you need to listen first, ask the right questions, participate and be relevant. 

David Meerman Scott, author of Cashing In With Content, wrote a post on direct to consumer press releases today as discussion leader on the IAOC blog.  He features my recent book launch as a direct to consumer news release case example.  It all began in this conversation, Direct-to-Consumer News Releases: Do they suck?

If you have not read it already, I recommend you get David’s free e-book “The New Rules of PR." It explains how to create a press release strategy for reaching buyers directly.  It’s made a world of difference to me. 

New Book: Lead Generation for the Complex Sale is officially released

The wait is over! My book, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale, was released this morning. You can read the press release or listen to my podcast about it. 

I liked what Bryan Eisenberg, New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of Call To Action and the new book Waiting for Your Cat to Bark? had to say: 

"The lead generation game has changed in the age of the Internet. If you don't have this new playbook your competitors will. Brian Carroll closes the loop on lead generation, taking you from defining a lead, thinking like your prospects, tactics to increase lead generation, passing leads from marketing to sales, measuring the results, and nurturing the leads for increased revenue. If you don't read and then apply lessons from Lead Generation for the Complex Sale, then let me know how things work out for you."

Read the book announcement press release

Listen to the book release podcast (7:43 min 7.12 MB)

Download a free chapter

For the real thing, order on Amazon. You can find the book at your local Borders or Barnes & Noble and other bookstores. For multiple copies, order on 800-CEO-Read (Call Meg at 800-236-7323 ext. 206 CST.)  For the buzz on the book, read reviews and news. More about the author.

Update:  The book made its debut in Amazon's top 100 (sales and marketing books) today.  Debbie Weil author of The Corporate Blogging Book calls my book launch an example of Book Launch 2.0. 

Lead Generation for the Complex Sale on wsRadio.com

I just did a 40-minute live interview on the Online Marketing show with RSS Ray broadcast by WS Radio.com, the world wide leader in internet talk radio.  A podcast version of the show is available via iTunes or the host website RSSRay.com.

During the interview, I share new ideas for generating B2B customers and talk about my book, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale, that's being released next week.

Click here to listen to the recording. 

Book Cover and Advanced Praise for Lead Generation for the Complex Sale

We're quickly approaching the official release of my book, Lead Generation for the Complex Sale : Boost the Quality and Quantity of Leads to Increase Your ROI.  Also, my book got a new cover!  (click image to enlarge) 

I'm humbled by the incredible endorsements that I've received for the book so far. You can read the advanced endorsements here, more here, and via my new book website before they're posted on the major on-line bookseller websites. 

For those who pre-ordered the book, it will arrive with the new cover in June.  I just got my first shipment of author copies and they look great!  Thanks again! 

Podcast: The Innovative Marketer

Steve Gershik of the Innovative Marketer Blog interviewed me for his podcast on the subject of lead generation.  During the interview I talk about my early roots in marketing, some of my philosophy, my upcoming book, and what marketers should be thinking about about to develop effective B2B lead generation programs.

Listen to podcast (right-click to save to your desktop)

Link: The Innovative Marketer: Podcast #4 - Brian Carroll, Author of Lead Generation for the Complex Sale.

Lead generation with Podcasts

The audience for podcasts is tiny, when compared to other marketing mediums, but growing especially, in the context of the complex sale.  Podcasting is proving to be a great way share multimedia content because your audience can fetch it automatically or when it fits their schedule. 

Podcasting is already successfully used for:

• Talk radio complete with topic and call-in listeners where voice mail boxes can play the audio into the podcast.
• Ideas or tips of the day.
• Short interviews with thought leaders and industry experts.
• Recording speeches or teleconferences for later distribution. 

A new article in BtoB Magazine by Karen J. Bannan on podcasts caught my attention.  Bannan's article examines how John Costigan Cos. is using podcasts to generate sales leads and revenue for their sales training events. 

I'm going to share some ideas on how to use podcasts for lead generation with podcast expert, Joe Cullinane over at the Cullinane & Green Report some time in the next week.  Joe just did did an interesting podcast with best selling author, Guy Kawasaki.

Link: BtoBOnline.com: Firm showcases owner's personality with podcasts.