12 Marketing IT supplement
B2BM MAR 08 – www.b2bm.biz
something they probably don’t want to buy, they or don’t think of the channel to begin with. 8. “Be passionate about your subject”
have to feel that you really understand them Keep that Monday morning scenario front of Fiona Shepherd, MD, April-Six
and what their desires are within the business. mind, maintain a focus on where your audience
Truly knowing your customer matters is and where you want to take them. Technically, we all
whether you’re selling fizzy drinks, terabyte know the rules. Know
servers or consultancy services. 6. “Don’t forget about the brand” your customer, get
The difference between those positionings is By Liane Grimshaw, MD, Pavilion behind the business
that in technology marketing you have to make Communications issues, cultivate
fairly complex, sophisticated arguments brands while
meaningful. These sales cycles can stretch on My experience tells me that, whenever we have generating leads
for 12-18 months. This is why marketing run a campaign for (who can afford one
technology should be hard. And it’s the reason an IT company, without the other?),
why saying ‘why don’t you just buy another they will always try measure and learn.
widget’ isn’t a terribly interesting argument. to shoehorn some But there’s only
kind of lead one thing that really makes technology
4. “Avoid the commodity trap” generation into the marketing work. You have to love it. If you’re
James Trezona, MD, Mason Zimbler work. This is fine, not passionate about it, it shows. And if you’re
but it should never not passionate about it, why should the
I would love to say be at the expense of audience be interested?
something cutting some good brand If you love it, you’ll find the emotional
edge about blogs or building. appeal that makes the difference between
Web 2.0, but I am Essentially, having a good solid brand is going information and call to action. Technology is
not sure that’s the to get you through the door and into the the most important, ubiquitous, fascinating,
really fundamental decision making process. powerful thing shaping the world today. It’s a
issue in technology This is especially true with large privilege to market it.
marketing. organisations. The decision makers here might
I would urge all be the CIO or a C-level executive of some hue; if 8. “Keep your enemies close”
tech marketers to they haven’t heard of you, you are not going to Phil Ledger, MD,
avoid falling into the get past page one. Ledger Bennett
commodity trap. Don’t just talk product to the Technology
wrong people. Understand the value of the 7. “Listen to your customers”
brand and how that can create value and long Mark Roper, director of planning, Volume Technology brands
term loyalty. We have a graph that talks about don’t exist in a
loyalty over reason, and that’s hugely important Technology bubble. Personalised,
and has been forgotten about in IT. I probably companies are more relevant, creative
give a sermon about it every week. and more reluctant brand campaigns
to run focus groups. must be a given to
5. “The Monday morning problem” They’re saying ‘why deliver customer
Paul Everett, marketing director, The do we need to hear return, but a beautifully crafted campaign is
Marketing Practice what we already meaningless unless it’s developed in context of
know. I’ve always the current competitive environment.
Marketers have to pushed the fact you Put simply, if you can’t out-perform your
imagine that the have to listen to your competitors in reaching, influencing and
people they are trying customers. People committing target customers your marketing will
to influence are don’t feelthey have the time, but it doesn’t have get nowhere. Whether customers like your brand
driving to work on a to be taxing. A simple way of doing it, whether or not, they don’t de-select competitor messages
Monday morning and through your distributor or your call centre, is to and they can’t avoid making comparisons.
there is something get them to upload 20 interviews or discussions IT marketing is smartest when you know
nagging them, with customers as a digital file. You probably exactly what your competitors are up to and
something they have have 20 minutes downtime, when you’re this insight translates into intelligent strategy
to sort out. travelling, each day. Listen to your call centre or that keeps you one step ahead of the pack. A
In IT marketing, the propositions are long distribution centre actually talking to customers truly differentiated, customer-driven
term and complex, therefore to get your and hear the issues. It’s amazingly instructive. proposition is far more effective than a
company’s foot in the door marketers need to We don’t spend enough time talking to and blinkered, ‘it’s all about our brand’ approach.
chime in with what the purchaser’s key issues listening to customers; and therefore gaining Sure, people buy technology and
are. This requires a different level of thinking. good insights that enable us to drive marketing ultimately people buy brands, but they
You are marketing the foot in the door as much forward. Listen to what your target market is might decide not to buy yours if a competitor
as you are marketing the product. In support of saying, it will give you great insights into how to gets there first and gets it right more often
a complex sale, I would say ignore the channel, market your product. than you.
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