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The Anatomy of an Effective B2B Landing Page

March 12th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

One of the best ways to generate leads via your website is with landing pages. Landing pages are hidden pages (i.e., they’re not accessible via your site’s menu) that allow a visitor to download or access content – a demo, ebook, whitepaper, etc. – after they fill out a short form.

Whether you have a landing page or want to add one (or a few) to your site, here are the 4 elements you’ll need to incorporate on your page to make it as effective as possible:

1. Clear and visible messaging

The messaging and value proposition on your page should be written clearly and concisely and positioned front and center on your page.

Include the value proposition in the headline
List the benefits of acting on the offer
If the offer was created by an industry expert, let the visitor know what makes that person so great
Make it clear what the visitor will receive

2. Clean layout

Avoid the temptation to clutter the page with graphics, quotes, a laundry list of your products or services, or offers for other content.

Keep design to a minimum – lots of white space is good
Remove a menu or other navigation tools so the visitor stays on that page
Make sure the download button is large and pops off the page

3. Short information-capture form

Decide what information you really need in order to 1) qualify the visitor as a lead, and 2) then contact them. There’s a big difference between must-have and nice-to-have, and the shorter your form, the easier it is for the visitor to access the offer.

At the least, ask for name, company, job title and email
To qualify them further, you could ask for location, company size, website and/or their biggest challenge in a certain area (a free form field)
If an question is optional, make it clear

4. Thank you/access page

OK, so this is technically not part of the original landing page, but I wanted to include it. Once your visitor submits their information, take them to a new thank you page that has a similar look and feel to the landing page.

Say thank you!
Remind them what they’re getting
Provide an access link to the offer, or let them know you just emailed access to them
Provide links to other content or pages on your website where they can find more information on the subject

What else should a landing page include?

Image courtesy of the author

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Tags: landing page design, landing pages, Marketing, Web Design
Posted in Marketing, Web Design | 5 Comments »

A 5-Step LinkedIn Marketing Strategy to Grow Your Business

March 11th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

If you’ve been thinking about increasing your use of LinkedIn to boost visibility, find new leads, and snag more business, this post is for you. I’ve written about LinkedIn before, but it’s changed since then – LinkedIn Answers is gone and the layout now resembles Facebook in that you can like, comment on, or share updates from your network.

To get started, I decided to do some research on just who is using LinkedIn to make a strong case for why we all should embrace it. Hold on to your hats, because the stats I found at Quantcast are pretty awesome.

LinkedIn users are affluent: 54% of LinkedIn users earn more than $60K per year and 36% earn more than $100K.
LinkedIn users are educated: 46% have a college degree and 27% have a graduate degree.
LinkedIn users love the site: Almost 25% use the site at least 30 times per month.

OK, so LinkedIn is definitely a good place to focus time and energy, especially if you have a robust network.

Here’s a 5-step LinkedIn marketing strategy to help you improve your visibility and get more leads as you grow your business:

1. Get in the habit of using LinkedIn on a regular basis.

LinkedIn will not work for you if you don’t take the time out of your schedule to nurture your LinkedIn presence. Whether you choose to spend time on it daily or weekly, get in the habit of sharing curated and original content and liking, commenting on, or sharing the content your network posts. Participate in groups (more on that below) and comb your network for leads (again, more on that below).

2. Expand your definition of who should be in your network.

I’m going to assume you already actively grow your network by sending personalized messages to the people you meet at events, conferences, etc., asking them to join your network. Don’t forget to send invites to friends and social acquaintances – they have networks too – along with clients, vendors, and partners.

3. Join active groups – and participate.

Instead of joining any group related to your industry or composed of your target audience, look for groups that are active with engaged members. Start joining the conversation, adding your viewpoint or expertise where appropriate. Don’t forget that you can also start your own conversations, but always keep in mind, you’re not there to sell your product or service, you are there to help others.

4. Consider advertising.

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that LinkedIn is a better place to advertise than Facebook, because LinkedIn users are highly encouraged to complete their profiles. At Facebook, you’re not, so what users share in their profiles is all over the map.

With that said, you can highly target your ads to exactly who you want to reach – by industry, company, company size, location, title, etc. Once you start advertising, make it a habit to continually improve your ads to boost their effectiveness.

5. Look for leads and ask for introductions.

You’ve built a network for a reason, so use it! You can find leads within your network, in the newsfeed, on LinkedIn company pages, and in recommendations. Look for connections, and ask the people in your network for introductions. Immediately follow up with that person and let them know why you’d like to meet them and how working with you will benefit them.

Any other tips on using LinkedIn that I missed?

Image courtesy of simplyrest.com

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Tags: LinkedIn, Marketing, social media
Posted in Marketing, Social Media | 10 Comments »

How to Turn Difficult Customers Into Marketing Success Stories

March 7th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

When you run your own small business, you will inevitably work with a difficult customer (believe me, I have!). Difficult customers come in all shapes and sizes, whether they are perpetually grumpy and hard to please or come to the table with unrealistic expectations – and expect you to figure everything out for them.

No matter how difficult or easy the customer, your goal is to do a great job, thus turning the project into one more marketing success story. Here are some ways that I have turned difficult customers and projects into marketing successes:

1 – Put a detailed plan together

Putting together a detailed plan before you start working with a customer is the best way to avoid any misunderstanding or conflict. In your plan, detail the goals of the project, your responsibilities, the customer’s responsibilities, how you will perform the work, how you will measure success, the timeline, and the cost.

Why this will lead to marketing success: When both you and your customer sign off on the plan, you should be on the same page and in full agreement. If this is a long-term project, revisit the plan at regular intervals to make sure everything in it is still correct and relevant.

2 – Never get defensive

When a customer criticizes you or your work or makes a bunch of changes to what you worked so hard on, don’t take it personally. Instead of getting defensive, take the high road and just listen to them.

Why this will lead to marketing success: Listening to your customer is advantageous for a few reasons: People like to know they’re being heard; you can repeat back to them what they said to ensure you understood correctly; and you have a chance to clarify expectations.

3 – Thank them

This may sound counterintuitive, but once you apologize, thank your customer for pointing out problems or mistakes. Use it as an opportunity to revisit the plan and make adjustments as needed.

Why this will lead to marketing success: You will show your customer you care, you want to fix the problem, and you value their input.

4 – Get them involved

I have found that most conflicts with customers are due to a lack of understanding and/or expertise on their part, simply because their expertise lies elsewhere. Put forth a plan on how to fix things, what you will do, what they can expect, and ask them for their ideas.

Why this will lead to marketing success: People hate to feel powerless. By giving your customer some power over how to proceed, they will feel more invested in the outcome.

5 – Put yourself in their shoes

When all else fails, just put yourself in their shoes. Maybe their business is struggling, their job is on the line, or their personal life is a mess. Try to be as empathetic as possible – even if you want to run away from them as fast as possible.

Why this will lead to marketing success: It could turn your attitude towards them around, making you more inclined to do the best job possible.

Do you have a bad customer horror story? How did you turn it around and come out on top?

Image courtesy of thewrestlingtalk.com

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Tags: Customer Service, Marketing
Posted in Marketing | 19 Comments »

Facebook Says: These Are the Brand Strategies That Increase Engagement

March 5th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

When I saw the email from Hootsuite for their HootSuite University presentation, Facebook Brand Pages: Rules of Engagement with Jason Li, Lead Strategist with Global Creative Solutions at Facebook, I thought, “This could be all about how to spend your money advertising on Facebook, or how to really use Facebook from the company that makes it.”

Guess what? It was mostly the latter. Here’s what I learned:

1 – Focus on growing your fan base

The absolute biggest thing you should focus on with Facebook is growing your fan base. As Li said, “Without a fan base, you have nothing.”

Spend some time on Facebook Insights and look at the days and times when your audience engages with your posts. Schedule your posts for those times to reach as many fans as possible. When your fans interact with your posts, their friends will see it in their news feeds, thus allowing you to reach a bigger audience and grow your fan base.

2 – Understand social behavior

If you want to create quality engagement, you must understand – and then marry – two things:

Why do customers love your brand in the first place? Li said, “If you look at Starbucks’ wall, there are a lot of images – of their logo, packaging, storefronts, employees. People have an emotional connection to Starbucks and respond to those images.” To figure this out, you can ask your fans what they like, but you can also look to see what posts they have responded to the most.

Why do people share content on Facebook? Li explained that sharing content extends beyond sharing to liking, commenting on, and creating content about your brand. This is a trickier question to answer, so see below for Li’s 4 fundamental reasons that people share content on Facebook.

3 – Learn why people share content on Facebook

We share content on Facebook to:

Make our lives easier – Help your fans learn something new, discover something inspirational, or reward them with savings or tips.
Build relationships – Start a 2-way dialogue by prompting your fan base and asking for meaningful responses, recognize/celebrate your fans, make your fans smile. Li said to think about your significant other and how you grow and nurture that relationship; apply those same ideas to your Facebook fans.
Help others – Ask your fans for feedback and be open and transparent. Li basically said, “Take advantage of the fact that people like to share what they think.”
Craft our identity by sharing what we like – Enable your fans to express who they are, and think about how can you help them do that.

4 – Two final tips

Don’t create posts simply to fill space. Post at least 1-2 times/week but no more than 5 times/week. “My friends don’t post more than 5 times per week,” said Li, “and neither should your brand.”
Use Facebook Insights. Improve your use of Facebook by looking at how many people you reach, how many people engage with your posts, what time you should post, your demographic base, etc.

Li shared a lot of examples of how brands engage with their fans on Facebook, so the presentation is worth watching if you’d like to learn more.

I have to say, a lot is written about Facebook, but this is probably some of the best advice I’ve ever heard/gotten. Will this information change the way you use Facebook? How?

Image courtesy of funny-pictures.funmunch.com

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Tags: Facebook engagement, Jason Li, Marketing, social media, Thought Leadership
Posted in Marketing, Social Media, Thought Leadership | No Comments »

7 Ways to Make Cold Emailing Work For You

March 4th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

I have a confession to make: I have always been outgoing and perfectly comfortable talking to total strangers. I have walked right up to famous people I wanted to meet (mostly pro snowboarders and startup founders whose companies have gone big-time) and introduced myself. For some reason, though, cold calling and cold emailing are much harder for me to do, so I always give kudos to people who not only do it, but do it well.

When I was the editor at Tech Cocktail, I got pitched a lot via email. Whoever did a great job got my attention, a reply, and usually an article out of it. Now, I get pitched by companies selling a service I might be interested in, either as a small business owner or marketer.

If you want cold emailing to work for you, here are all the things your email must contain to grab the recipients’ attention:

1. Get basic information right

I cannot stress this enough: Make sure you get my name, company name, industry, location, and any other basic information about me that strengthens your pitch right.

2. Customize the message

Because you did your homework to confirm I am in your target market, throw in references to the industry and what I do to build trust and credibility.

3. Get to the point

If your email is long, there is no way I’m going to read it. Explain exactly why you are emailing me in your opening sentence.

4. Name name

If we have a friend, acquaintance, or client in common, tell me who it is rather than saying, “We have a mutual friend.” Say, “We have a mutual friend, Mark Zuckerberg*.” If Mark told you to contact me, let me know why.

5. List the benefits

Definitely let me know why I should meet with you, do business with you, or buy from you. How will working with you benefit me? And how, in turn, can I help you?

6. Offer meeting times and days

If you want to meet with me in person, let me know when and where you are available to meet. If you are so inclined, offer to pay for coffee or lunch.

7. Follow up

Acknowledge that I am busy, and offer to follow up in a week or so. You can also ask our mutual friend Mark Zuckerberg to follow up if you’d think it would help.

* I do not know Mark Zuckerberg, but if you do, feel free to make an email introduction.

Do you use cold emailing regularly or on occasion? What have you found works best for you?

Image courtesy of colourbox.com

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Tags: cold emailing, Email marketing, Marketing
Posted in Email Marketing, Marketing | No Comments »

4 B2B Marketing Blogs From People Who Walk the Walk

February 28th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

Because marketing is an ever-evolving industry, I am always looking for new sources of information, ideas, and insights. I did a little research to find some new B2B marketing blogs that are worth reading.

Here are 4 to consider subscribing to – happy reading!

B2B Digital Marketing

Author: Eric Wittlake, a digital marketer

Why you should read it: Great marketing insights that make you stop and think from someone who does digital marketing for a living.

On B2B social media use: “Instead of debating if something works, the discussion needs to move to when things work best and why so we can move the discussion about the best use for each tactic forward.”

Blue Focus Marketing

Authors: Mark and Cheryl Burgess, social media consultants

Why you should read it: Each blog post is chock full of tips, how-to’s, and actionable advice.

“As a small business working to leverage social media, focus on communicating what you do, not what you sell. Social media forces you to think differently. This isn’t about pitching products and product details. Engaging content works like the North Star, guiding your audience toward your brand. Remember: A good story points customers to your business.”

New Incite

Author: Jennifer Beever, a Chief Marketing Officer for Hire

Why you should read it: Short blog posts full of useful information and actionable tips from someone who is hired by companies to help them grow.

“Don’t sell, nurture. What? Nurture? What does that have to do with marketing? It means that instead of pushing solutions on your prospects and customers, you put valuable information online and attract qualified prospects.”

B2B, in a B2C World

Author: Maureen Blandford, a revenue strategist who helps big companies make more money

Why you should read it: Maureen’s blog is funny and conversational, and she relishes debunking myths and setting the record straight.

“’70% of the buying process in a complex B2B sale is already complete before a buyer will talk to a seller.’ If you ever hear some version of this whopper from anyone, you should immediately discount the person as either willfully ignorant, woefully ignorant, or a purposeful skewer of data to sell their own stuff (and if you’ve ever misquoted this and then never did it again, you’re my superhero!). Generally this fake stat is followed up with some pronouncement about “If you’re not using social, search, automation, whatevs – HOO BOY, what a loser you are missing all sorts of opportunities. If you’re not doing X, you won’t be successful. <sigh>”

What is your favorite marketing blog, and why?

Image courtesy of babymed.com

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Tags: b2b marketing blogs
Posted in Marketing | 4 Comments »

4 Lessons On How Customer Service Is Your Brand

February 26th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

It’s not a secret that your brand is very closely tied to you and your employees. The customer service you provide speaks volumes about your company and values and leaves a very strong impression – for good or for bad.

Scott Stratten, President of UnMarketing and author of The Book of Business Awesome, put together a great Slideshare presentation for Citrix about how you can take your company from good to awesome. It’s worth reading, as I am not really going to share what is in the presentation.

What I am going to share is 3 lessons in branding via customer service that he provided – as well as one of my own. All of the stories drive home the fact that you and your employees are a critical part of your brand.

The Ritz-Carlton Goes Above and Beyond

When a little boy left behind his favorite stuffed animal, Joshie, following a family vacation, the Ritz-Carlton didn’t just mail it back posthaste. Nope, the employees took photos of Joshie enjoying his extended vacation – on a chaise lounge by the pool, on the golf course, hanging with friends, getting a massage, etc. When Joshie arrived home, the photos were enclosed, along with his own Ritz-Carlton employee ID. As you can imagine, this story went viral.

A CEO Saves the Day

A few years ago, my husband went to Neiman Marcus to buy me a Tom Binns necklace as a surprise birthday present. When the jewelry counter employee refused to help my husband track down the necklace, my husband went straight to the source: Tom Binns. The company’s CEO was horrified by my husband’s experience, and she personally packed and mailed the necklace, including a handwritten note. My husband and the CEO are now on a first-name basis, and we tell this story every time I wear the necklace. I am not a big jewelry person, but I am a big Tom Binns fan.

A Delta Flight Attendant Said What?

Stratten was waiting on an impossibly long security line on his way to a Delta flight at JFK. He was nearly at the front of the line, when a crew of Delta flight attendants pushed their way to the front of the line, bumping and pushing Statten without a word. When he said, “Come on now. Not even an ‘excuse me?’” he got a nasty retort from one flight attendant, “We said excuse me. Why don’t you open your ears?” Stratten jumped on Twitter, where he has more than 135,000 followers, and got a reply and apology from Delta pretty quickly.

FedEx Employee Plays Catch

This is another story that went viral. A FedEx employee was caught on video chucking a computer monitor over a gate at someone’s house. Instead of ringing the bell and walking it up to the house, he decided to play catch – with the ground. FedEx had to go into major crisis control mode. They responded super fast and published a blog post on their corporate page titled, “Absolutely, Positively Unacceptable” and their senior vice president of U.S. operations recorded a video to apologize. The response was overwhelmingly positive.

So, how do you ensure your employees represent your brand more like the Ritz-Carlton and Tom Binns and less like Neiman Marcus, Delta, and FedEx?

Be passionate about your work and customers
Show your employees how they make a difference
Empower your employees to help customers – and then recognize or reward them for it
If you need to apologize, do it swiftly and genuinely

How has customer service improved or hurt your experience with a brand?

Image courtesy of postcardmania.com

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Tags: Branding, Customer Service, Marketing
Posted in Branding, Customer Service, Marketing | No Comments »

5 Reasons Content Curation Is Important to Your Marketing Strategy

February 25th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

While content creation has gotten a lot of buzz and attention over the past year, content curation – gathering valuable and relevant news, trends, tips, and advice and then sharing it – is just as important.

Why? Here are 5 reasons content curation is important to your marketing strategy:

There’s a lot of good content getting lost online, including yours
Curation is a no-brainer way to supplement and complement your original content
Curating the best of what’s out there is a huge value-add for your audience
Curation positions you as a go-to expert on your chosen topic
You become a news hub, with people coming back for fresh content

You don’t have to be big company to curate content. Thanks to the folks at Curata, I discovered 4 examples of small business content curation from their 2013 Look Book Ebook:

Oregon Wine Newsroom

To keep in touch with and promote local wineries, the Oregon Wine Board started curating all Oregon wine-related info, including events. It’s a perfect way to keep winery information in front of local businesses, tourists, wine bloggers and the media.

Everything Tile and Stone

East Coast Tile’s site focuses on tools and trends in the tile and stone industry, which is a great example of how to curate an entire industry and turn into a source of research and ideas. The site is used by consumers, but also contractors, designers, and architects.

Change Velocity

Have you ever heard of change management? Well, you can find out everything about it on Morris Communication’s site, which is for organizations looking for information and expertise on the subject. The site curates trends, news, the latest ideas and tools, and advice.

Healio

I can’t imagine being a doctor who needs to keep up with the latest news and technology for my own specialty along with the general healthcare landscape. That’s where Healio comes in. They break down information by specialty into videos and blog posts, making it easier for medical professionals to keep up with the latest discussions and innovations.

Have you seen other small businesses using content curation?

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Tags: content creation, content curation, Marketing, though leadership
Posted in Marketing, Thought Leadership | No Comments »

7 Quick Fixes for Common Email Marketing Mistakes

February 21st, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

Because we’re human, we are going to make mistakes. Unfortunately when it comes to email marketing, if you make some big mistakes, you could lose subscribers.

The best way to catch a mistake in your email marketing messages is by sending out test emails to a few people who can check for formatting, grammatical, and spelling mistakes. Before doing that, though, run through this checklist to make sure you avoid these 7 common mistakes to begin with:

1 – Messing up email personalization

If I had a dollar for every time I got an email that said, “Hi [FirstName]” – well, I wouldn’t be rich, but I could go out for a very nice dinner tonight. While it’s not necessary to personalize greetings, it is a really nice touch. Just make sure email personalization is set up properly in the email marketing program you use.

2 – Emailing the wrong people

After you add contacts to your email marketing program, segment them into groups, such as company executives, small business owners, VIP customers, partners, etc. That way, when you send out an email, you know it is reaching the right people with the message you wrote specifically for them. Before you hit send, doublecheck that you selected the right group (or groups).

3 – Forgetting to add an unsubscribe option

It is actually illegal to not offer an easy way for your email recipients to unsubscribe to your email list, so make sure every email contains this option. But make it easy – let people click on a link to unsubscribe rather than forcing them to email you back with “unsubscribe” in the subject line or body of the email.

4 – Offering only HTML versions of your emails

Despite all the incredible advances in browser and mobile technology, some programs and devices just cannot handle HTML versions of emails. Always include a text option to make sure you can reach everyone on your list.

5 – Not adding links

You send out emails to increase sales, so make it easy to convert “maybes” into “yeses.” Link back to products, services, and downloadable content on your website, and, if you include an email address, hyperlink that as well so people can email you with one click.

6 – Leaving out social share buttons

At this point, forgetting to add social share buttons to any of your marketing communications is like forgetting to add your company name or signature. If you want to grow your social media audience and extend the reach of the content you share, always include those buttons.

7 – Not including contact information

This is my biggest pet peeve across online communications – hiding contact information. Make it super easy for people to contact you – via phone, email, snail mail, fax, carrier pigeon – whatever. Display that information front and center. Your customers will thank you.

What other mistakes have you seen?

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Tags: Email marketing, Marketing
Posted in Email Marketing, Marketing | No Comments »

6 Easy Ways to Boost Your Revenue This Year

February 20th, 2013 :: Monika Jansen

If you are a typical small business owner – like me – one of your business goals this year is to boost your revenue. Below are 6 ways you can grow your business in 2013 – or any year.

1 – Use a suggestion box

Because you never really know where the next big idea is going to come from, set up a physical or digital suggestion box for employees and customers, and encourage them to use it. Sift through it regularly, and if you find a suggestion you like, set up a meeting with the person whose idea it was to brainstorm some more.

2 – Create new revenue streams

Whether you sell products or services, think about complementary items you can offer, and whether or not it makes sense to bundle offerings or add service packages. If, like me, you are a service provider, think about products you could sell – or products you could create, like a detailed, hands-on guidebook.

3- Differentiate based on value

Your products and services add value to your customers’ lives, so differentiate yourself by stressing those values – location, customer service, innovation, quality cost-savings, responsiveness, etc. If you’re not sure what customers really love about doing business with you, just ask.

4 – Hire a salesperson

While this may not be feasible for you, hiring an ace salesperson who can bring in new business and take good care of customers is one of the best investments you can make. You’ll have more time to focus on what you do best – which is good, because you’ll need to spend that time servicing your new customers.

5 – Set big, hairy, audacious goals

Try setting a goal that scares and challenges you, and then figure out how to meet it. Look at your marketing campaigns first – what has worked best, and how did you land your best customers? Then revisit your sales cycle – are there improvements you can make to turn leads into customers faster?

6 – Embrace analytics

The sooner you get comfortable analyzing your marketing efforts – especially online – the better. Sit down every week and look at your social media activity – what was shared and commented on the most? What days and times of day got you the best results? Look at your website analytics, too. What search terms are you being found for? Where are they coming from (search engines, social media, etc.)? What pages are your visitors spending the most and least time on? What are they downloading?

The better you understand your online marketing successes, the better your online presence will be.

What have you done in the past to grow your business? Share your tips below!

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Tags: analytics, Marketing, sales
Posted in Marketing | No Comments »

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Author Archive

The Anatomy of an Effective B2B Landing Page

How to Turn Difficult Customers Into Marketing Success Stories

7 Ways to Make Cold Emailing Work For You

4 B2B Marketing Blogs From People Who Walk the Walk

4 Lessons On How Customer Service Is Your Brand

5 Reasons Content Curation Is Important to Your Marketing Strategy

7 Quick Fixes for Common Email Marketing Mistakes

6 Easy Ways to Boost Your Revenue This Year