The Neglected Audience B2B Marketers Should Be Targeting
February 6, 2015
When enterprise companies invest in new software, they typically focus on how a particular product or service will help them address a key functional pain point (i.e., marketing automation to optimize marketing campaigns). Before signing off on a deal, however, those companies also typically consult another key part of their team: IT.
After all, it’s one thing to decide if a SaaS solution addresses a specific functional pain. It’s quite another, says Continuum Managed IT Services Senior VP and CMO Jeanne Hopkins, to decide if that solution jives with the company’s existing technical infrastructure. Watch the video below to see why Hopkins believes marketers must be aware of these technical decision-makers’ needs and create messaging that intelligently addresses them.
Keys for Marketing to Technical Buyers (Even If You’re Not So Tech-Savvy)
- Enterprise sales involve multiple decision makers: And someone from the IT department is often among that group. They need to ensure that whatever solution is chosen can be easily integrated into the company’s technology suite. Don’t forget to address their needs and concerns.
- Avoid the temptation to dumb things down: If you fail to convey a certain degree of technical aptitude, you’ll lose the respect of the technical decision maker. To be successful, Hopkins says marketers must be able to speak with some technical fluency.
- If your marketing team doesn’t have that capability, hire someone who does. While Hopkins may not be the most tech-savvy person in the world, the marketing team she’s built is more than capable of having intelligent conversations with senior IT leaders. Like many aspects of being a successful marketing leader, this comes down to recognizing your strengths and weaknesses and bringing on board people who compliment you and can help cover your gaps.
Bonus: Free Guide to Developing Buyer Personas
Photo by: Ricky Romero