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B2B Monday Myth: Product Demos Are Things of the Past

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b2b product demosThe Myth: No One Wants to Watch Demonstrations of Your Products.

The Truth: 55% of B2B Buyers Rank Product Demos as One of the Most Influential Types of Content.

Before the days of the world wide web, your printed product brochure and instructional materials were more precious than gold to your audience. Without them, B2B buyers had no way of knowing exactly how your products worked, how they were installed and used, or how they differed from your competition’s. Today, while a Google search won’t tell your buyers everything they need to know about your products, they can probably gather enough information to make an informed buying decision without the need for a demo. Right?

A recent study performed by the Content Marketing Institute and SmartBrief revealed which types of marketing content were most important to those responsible for B2B buying decisions. When asked to rank how much influence various types of content had on their purchases, 55% of respondents placed Product Demos in their top two. With over half of B2B buyers turning to product demonstrations to help fuel their purchasing decisions, you should think twice before removing your demo videos from YouTube. After all, you are the expert when it comes to your products.

Now that you know just how valuable B2B product demos are, it might be time to consider freshening up your collection.  Here are five tips to keep your demos up-to-date:

Five Tips for B2B Product Demos

  1. Give it real-world application. Don’t just demo your product arbitrarily. Have it solve a problem that vexes your buyers.
  2. Keep it simple. Though tempting, don’t overcrowd your video with too much info. Stick to two or three of the most helpful features and common uses, and you’ll strike a compelling and digestible balance.
  3. Keep it short. No one has the time to sit through a ten-minute video. Aim for 2-3 minutes – this will not only keep them watching to the end, but them much more likely to share it.
  4. Include a Call To Action. Conclude your video by directing your viewers to action. This could anything from reaching out for a consultation, requesting a sample, or buying the product itself.
  5. Go with pros. If you can, have them done professionally. You know your product inside and out. But a marketing or video production team knows how to make it look good. Capitalize on the benefit of your knowledge and their professional expertise.

B2B product demos are not a thing of the past and marketing videos are only gaining popularity. Invest in your demos, and keep your sales team armed with engaging material that your buyers will want to share – and respond to.  (Want more marketing video tips? Read this.)

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B2B Monday Myth: Sales and Marketing Teams Are Born Adversaries

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Sales and Marketing Collaboration

The Myth: Sales and Marketing Are Born Adversaries

The Truth: Sales and Marketing Collaboration Leads to Higher Revenue

The Problem

Within many B2B companies there is a both sales team and a marketing team. But what you will rarely find is sales and marketing in a healthy relationship that ensures mutual success.

Why is this?

From the marketer’s perspective, their number one priority is to generate leads. They are the professionals when it comes to creating a campaign. Leads only get handed over to sales once they enter the buying process.

On the other hand, salespeople sometimes think that marketers are too far removed from customers and the business. How could they understand what’s involved in closing a deal?

Assumptions and doubt from both teams don’t help anyone. Often, one group thinks they could do a better job than the other.  Add in different tactics, different mindsets, and varying timeframes, and you’re in trouble. What results is a relationship characterized by tolerance at best, and sales and marketing collaboration is not a priority.

What should happen instead?

The responsibilities within the buying process are often presented as a “funnel.” The very top and widest part of the funnel is buyer awareness, and the narrowest part at the bottom is the actual purchase. A marketing team focuses on top half of the funnel, identifying customer segments. They develop the branding and outreach that will resonate with these customers. Then, they circulate materials across relevant channels to get this message across. Responsibility stays with marketing through the “interest” phase of a customer’s process. Once a customer moves into “consideration” or “intent,” they get handed off to sales. At this point, the salespeople are entirely in charge of making a transaction happen.

The line where marketing efforts end and sales begin varies from company to company and is sometimes a little blurry. It’s clear that both teams integrate simply by the nature of their work. They both work to convert a lead into a sale, and some level of collaboration is necessary to make this handoff seamless.

But the key is that not only does the integration of sales and marketing need to be acknowledged. It needs to be capitalized on. If sales and marketing efforts are completely aligned, your company can improve sales substantially. In fact, the Digital Marketing Institute reported that sales and marketing collaboration potentially generate 208% more marketing revenue for a company and 36% higher customer retention.

So how can this be accomplished?

 There are several steps you can take to ensure your marketing and sales efforts are aligned.

  1. Bridge the communication gap: It sounds cliche, but in this case, communication really is key. If sales and marketing aren’t communicating frequently and efficiently, valuable leads can get lost in translation. On the other hand, constant contact will ensure that both teams are up-to-date on what the other is doing. No one is left in the dark. It can also help each side to hold the other accountable for producing and accomplishing what they should, and making sure they report it correctly.
  2. Collaborate and socialize: In order to eliminate some of the negative assumptions sales has about marketing, or vice versa, it helps if both teams get to know each other. This doesn’t mean everyone has to become good friends, but genuine face-to-face conversations can create more authentic relationships and a better understanding of what everyone’s role is.
  3. Create uniformity: There are few things more effective than a consistent message. If sales and marketing are able to synchronize, their combined efforts will be much more powerful than either would be on its own.  This may actually mean that some things cross over between the two groups. For example, marketing can adopt some of the quantitative metrics used by sales, and sales in return can use some of the more qualitative marketing techniques when it comes to retaining customers.

Sales and Marketing Collaboration – Mutual Success is Possible

You ultimately may not be able to eliminate all of the tension between your sales and marketing teams. Any two groups within an organization who operate under different strategies and perspectives are naturally going to butt heads every once in a while. But following these tips can help you begin to bridge the gap between two teams who are executing very important work for your company’s main goal.

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Worth Their Weight: Marketing Videos for Manufacturers

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Marketing Videos for Manufacturers B2Bs Marketing Videos for Manufacturers

Video content is king these days, and the manufacturing industry is no exception. If you’re a manufacturer and have passed on the video spend, it might be time to rethink. A quick glance at the stats, and you’ll see why marketing videos for manufacturers are an important sales tool:

Lower-cost technology like drones, the GoPro, and the high-def filming options on digital SLR cameras make it possible for your marketing partner to produce video with much lower spend. But because video is now relatively simple to make, it’s easy to overlook the details that count. A well-crafted video can position your company as a trustworthy authority and become a lead-generation workhorse. In contrast, a poorly done video can have the reverse affect; looking like an amateur never helped a bottom line.

Before you sink any money into video, here are 3 things to consider:

  1. The Importance of a Well-written, Professional Voiceover. The narration of your video has an end game: persuasion. A good voiceover sets the mood, whether it be light-hearted, trustworthy, or authoritative, to move the viewer to action. Don’t leave that to the amateurs.
  2. Rich Visuals and Clean Edits. In other words, for a video to reach its potential, don’t use your smartphone. You don’t need Steven Spielberg, but you do need high-quality production to look professional and gain credibility. (You can use your smartphone for live video though).
  3. Music Selection. There’s a trove of good-quality, inexpensive stock music available these days. A seasoned ear can match up the right sound for you at very little cost.

What kind of videos work for manufacturers? Lots.

  • Explainer Videos: These vids explain who you are and how you solve a problem. Tip: a simple animated short can simplify a complicated manufacturing process.
  • The How To: The beauty of a how-to video is you can position yourself as a trustworthy industry resource, and feature your product or service at the same time without taking too much of a promotional tone.
  • Facility Tours: Let your audience get to know your facility, and the people that work there. This gives your company credibility, humanity, and lives well on all the social networks. 
  • Products and Services: A succinct, digestible breakdown of your offerings is a great way to get in front of a busy decision maker, perhaps one that is a little further along on the sales cycle. Your salespeople can use these as a tool when trying to convert a lead.
  • Customer Case Studies: A strong case study is the proof of your value. Video gives more depth to your case studies, making them more impactful.

No matter what type you choose (and you should strongly consider producing several), marketing videos for manufacturers can live virtually anywhere. Video has a home base on your website, but serves well as an independent sales tool, in a company newsletter, and can be especially compelling on social sites. Need help building a video strategy? Give us a call.

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