What Do B2B Marketers Do Now? is an ongoing email. Join the mailing list to be the first to receive these weekly insights!

How often do you check your rear-view mirror? It’s impossible to safely drive a car while focusing on that view – and only seeing where you’ve been is a terrible way to figure out where to go.

But it’s unsafe to go forward with no idea of what came before. Somewhere in between is a useful set of tactics, right?

Give this especially poignant song from Pearl Jam a listen as we see what the experts are saying this week…

HubSpot Benchmark Data

Throughout the pandemic, HubSpot published some great data and trends from their user base of 70,000+ client companies. We may want to look back at some of this data – and perhaps see things so much clearer for B2B in 2023!

The last update published was in February 2022. Here are some of the trends:

• Deals Closed had risen to 24% over benchmark vs. 20% in January
• Sales Emails were continuing to increase – way up YOY
• Sales Conversations were showing a healthy increase (53% over benchmark)
• Contact Growth had dropped vs. January, but still 30% over benchmark

HubSpot may not be publishing these trends ongoing anymore, but they did recently share an overview of all of 2022.

So how have those trends changed?

• 2022 web traffic struggled to outpace 2021. With the worst of the pandemic in the rear-view, people sought to disconnect more. But part of the dip was also affected by…
• Marketing emails dropped by 4% and open rates by 12.89%! Both sales and marketing emails saw big increases over the pandemic, so email fatigue probably caught up with some prospects. But despite these drops…
• Marketing leads and conversions went up year-over-year. Web conversions saw an 11% increase, with inbound leads up nearly 7%.

What does this all mean for the road ahead as we gather speed through Q2 and beyond? Marketing lead and conversion plays are more important than ever – and aligning with sales activities.

And what about you? Do your strategies for 2023 match these trends? Or maybe the trends have made you wise on where you’re missing out!

Streaming’s Generational Blind Spot

A really fascinating point in this article: as an industry, we need to focus on engaging with (and finding value in) any demographic being under-served by dominant platforms. It’s not enough to check our rear-view mirrors – we need to be checking our blind spots, too!

Knowing that 25-34s grew up amid the transition from physical music to streaming, we might expect them to be well-adapted to the new format. But in reality, these consumers seem reluctant to give up the listening methods of their upbringing. 25-34s in the US spend the least time streaming music of any segment under 45, and the most on other formats, such as CD, radio, and vinyl.

What about B2B? As this age group rises in the ranks of your customers, this might impact your sales and marketing strategies. Are there older technologies they’re not yet willing to let go of once and for all? And if so, how do we, as marketers, adapt?

As always, don’t hesitate to call me to brainstorm or just say hello!

Looking forward,
Rick

Rick Endrulat, President | ricke@v-causeway.com | www.linkedin.com/in/rickendrulat

The post Check your B2B Rear-view and Blind Spots appeared first on Virtual Causeway.

What Do B2B Marketers Do Now? is an ongoing email. Join the mailing list to be the first to receive these weekly insights!

A close friend of mine always tells me not to overthink things. Easier said than done, right? When we face pressure and stress from all angles, and we’re just trying to get by, it’s easy to make mistakes or be paralyzed by indecision or delays. And then we may miss the opportunity of a lifetime! What’s the way YOU get by?

Give this super cool song by Spoon a listen with me as we see what the experts are saying this week…

HubSpot June Data – for Informed Decision-Making

It’s been ages since we’ve discussed the HubSpot Industry Benchmark data – so let’s dig in! As you know, this data compares current stats from HubSpot CRM against pre-COVID benchmark levels. It’s a great indicator of trends and sales & marketing activity.

• Marketing Email Sends – they’ve stopped reporting on this – what’s up with that?!?
• Deals Created in June dropped over May – this could be the typical end-of-quarter trend
• Closed Deals increased over April and May – and were slightly higher than the end of Q1
• Sales Email Sends continue at 100% increase over benchmark
• Sales Email Responses continue trending downward
• Sales calls are the highest since this started – 107% over!
• Contact Growth holds steady at 32% over
• Conversations are 32% over – strongest numbers since the pandemic

So what does this all mean? Well, as the economy continues to open up, we’re seeing increased levels of activity and some good positive trends in terms of sales conversations. But we continue to see that as sales email sends increase, responses decrease. Surprised? Not me.

There’s so much noise out there… as always, I prescribe a multi-channel approach for sales – digital, email and live conversations! Put faith in your concerns! In B2B, that bi-directional, live conversation is integral for qualifying a prospect!

Like Nothing You’ve Ever Seen – Millennials, Gen Zs & Digital Audio

The latest Spotify report is out. This is the advertising department’s annual study for potential ad buyers to know who they’re reaching. They’re forever analyzing the music consumption patterns of users, and given that Millennials (ages 26-40) and Gen Zs (ages 15-25) are Spotify’s biggest consumers, it’s always interesting to learn what the streaming giant has discovered:

• 78% of Millennials and 71% of Gen Zs use music to reduce stress
• 74% of Millennials consider audio to be a mental health resource
• 73% of Gen Zs say they feel ‘more centered and generally happier’ when they listen to their favourite music every day
• 61% of Millennials and 51% of Gen Zs consider audio to be a more ‘wholesome’ type of content vs. visual
• 40% of both groups trust podcasts more than other media sources, including national TV news, newspapers, and radio

How does this impact B2B? Do these trends impact your Ideal Customer Profile (ICP)? Even if they’re not your target market, trends we see with these cohorts definitely impact the overall market – and as you know, B2C influences B2B heavily. How do podcasts fit in your overall marketing mix? Is that the way to your buyers’ hearts?

As always, don’t hesitate to call me to brainstorm or just say hello.

Looking forward,
Rick

Rick Endrulat, President | ricke@v-causeway.com | www.linkedin.com/in/rickendrulat

The post Does Digital Audio Impact Your ICP? appeared first on Virtual Causeway.