Jack Welch, the late Jack, used to say that if the rate of change is faster on the outside than on the inside, the end is near.
Many companies wait for their “business” to return to normal rather than shifting to thrive in a new environment. Could this explain why there are 50-80%+ revenue and sales drops?
C-19 stops virtually everything to create what Roger Sanford, Co-Founder of Stop the Sales Drop, has called the “Great Pause.”
It was crucial for marketing and sales to take a moment to reflect on what the market wants and what companies should do. Now is the right time to change the business, marketing communications, and approaches.
It is time to chart a new direction for growth in the strange world. You will move from the “Great Pause” to the “Great Shift” today. Your future market position will be determined by the actions you take today.
This is why I am bringing together 50+ experts, CMOs, Sales VPs, and advisors for a 5-day Stop the Sales Drop summit, where many opportunities exist to grow and shift. The meeting will include panel discussions, expert conversations, and interactive experiences.
In addition to the 5-day summit, participants will receive post-event networking opportunities and peer groups, strategy sessions, and a roadmap to help them implement the ideas from the forum.
Companies must be open to new methods of marketing and selling rather than reacting with an “Oh, that won’t work” attitude to any new ideas or concepts they can use on digital platforms. Clients are discovering that the promotion calendars no longer work as clients and prospects have changed priorities, and the old rules don’t apply anymore. Her client gained 150 webinar registrations in three days, compared to the previous three weeks it took to promote a webinar. This resulted in new sales cycles.
Lisa advises that marketing teams be bold when speaking up when prospects and clients need them most. She also recommends that they use interactive content and get aggressive with their lead generation and demand gen programs. In her “Sneak Preview Interview,” Lisa shared data from the past 100 years of economic downturns that show that companies who increase their presence in these times are more likely to make a more robust and faster recovery.
Marketing organizations are often seen as an expense and a necessity rather than a financially viable and valuable asset. You cannot make cuts when you are an asset. Investments rise.
During his sneak preview interview, Brenner stated that sales and marketing are responsible for demonstrating leadership and that marketing is and will continue to be an asset in achieving organizational goals and KPI growth.
The second conversation sales and marketing should have about the customer journey. This means we must focus on all aspects of the customer journey, not just the buyer making the decision (or, in many cases, delaying it).
It is essential to pay attention to the influencers surrounding that buyer. This means sales and marketing need increased top-to-bottom engagement. Teams can move forward when sales and marketing have these internal communications.
Marketing has changed with ABM and personalization. However, Lee Odden of Top Rank Marketing says that B2B marketers still rely on “status quo demand gen” and lead gen tactics. They are promoting e-books and webinars to generate metrics rather than creating experiences.
Everything is at stake now, with everyone working remotely and lots of uncertainty. There are no live events. Field marketing is not available. There is no in-person experience. B2B marketers must create a digital experience that is unique, trustworthy, authentic, relevant, and valuable.
Customers can now interact with B2B companies in new ways. They can bring back old methods, such as user-generated content, and give it a contemporary twist. This is how companies can build a community that buyers want in a world where everyone is socially distancing. Lee Odden has a sneak preview interview where he discusses some innovative ways to create a digital experience using your content.