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

Happy New Year!

As we bid farewell to the challenges of the past year, we step into 2024 with renewed optimism, energy, and a commitment to achieving unparalleled success. I trust you had a relaxing holiday season and are ready to embark on a year filled with growth, prosperity, and… the same old sales and marketing tactics??

With AI being the current buzz… it’s tough to imagine marketers relying on the tried and tested (and existing) strategies. But I’m hearing that from many in the industry… do they continue to focus on the same old, same old?

It makes me think of this cool (and appropriately titled) song by Aerosmith – give it a listen as we see what the experts are saying this week.

Same Old Story

As I discuss 2024 plans with clients, the Forrester B2B Revenue Waterfall (formerly known as the SiriusDecisions Demand Waterfall) invariably comes up.

What is it about the waterfall that makes it so useful? Sure – it’s a common language between sales and marketing when you’re discussing demand generation and activity stages. But it’s not new. Even when it was introduced way back in the early 2000s, it wasn’t a new concept. Same old story… but with a new twist, right?

Sometimes it’s not about reinventing yourself or your processes. A new year doesn’t ALWAYS have to be a new you! Maybe it’s just a tried and tested campaign or process – and it’s all about focus for the upcoming year.

Concepts like ABM have been around forever in B2B – are they going away? What are you seeing at your organization? Maybe you’re changing things up by trying out new tech and tactics. Or is it more about putting a new spin on those same old channels and campaigns?

Same Old Song (and Dance)

I’ve been seeing a ton of stats about the state of music sales and consumption in 2023. The BBC’s coverage of it highlighted a startling stat: not a single new album released in 2023 made it to the list of the year’s top-selling albums, OR achieved platinum status!

A positive angle on this could be that the recorded music market has grown explosively, so consumption is more fragmented than ever. Another might be that we’re moving into a “post-superstar” age, where new artists simply never reach the long-term stability and success of Madonna or Prince.

2023 being the first year in the UK that not a single new album graced the Top 10 is something we all need to think about. For catalogue owners, especially major labels with extensive back catalogues, all consumption translates to revenue, making this a positive business scenario… but this short-term win is arguably at the cost of a longer-term (and greater) loss.

The bigger concern is what this means for music and culture in general, and what it means for things like live music and festivals which may, in years to come, find themselves struggling to secure noteworthy headliners.

Is this failure to outsell catalogues because of A&R (artists & repertoire), investment in marketing, strategic error… or simply circumstances beyond everyone’s control? Are we seeing this same fragmentation in our B2B world?

Ain’t gonna change it, can’t rearrange it… so if we in B2B are staring down these challenges too, then we need to pivot to meet them head-on. Think back to those changes for the new year – whether it’s new tech and tactics, or a new spin on the tried and true, how will you take on these changes?

Let me know what you think… and 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 New Year, Same Old You… But With a New Spin! 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!

On this date…

…something exceptional happened.

What, you may ask? Well – there’s always SOMETHING – google it and you’ll get a huge list of big moments on any given date.

How about this week – listen to the song I’ve chosen, and see how you can tie it in to our weekly theme, and perhaps some specific event. Deal? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

Now give this song by Tom Petty a listen with me as we see what the experts are saying this week!

B2B Flip-flop

Since I started my career in marketing I’ve seen what I call the B2B flip-flop happen every year. Usually starts in January, when sales complains that a) we don’t get enough leads from marketing or b) we don’t get enough QUALITY leads from marketing. Strategies are developed, lead definitions changed, and marketing initiatives engaged! That’s the flip.

Then, invariably, 2-4 months later, based on feedback from sales, the strategy is reversed. That’s the flop. It’s a very reactive strategy, and unfortunately – this misalignment between sales and marketing continues all these years later.

Do you have anyone in your B2B life that causes you all sorts of grief because of their shortsightedness? Maybe it’s a business partner with too much focus on revenue and an ignorance of what’s best and ‘right’ for the organization. Maybe it’s a client focusing on immediate results and not thinking about the longer-term benefits.

According to Clayton Christensen, that’s a dangerous way to build a strategy:

“In your life, there are going to be constant demands for your time and attention. How are you going to decide which of those demands gets resources? The trap many people fall into is to allocate their time to whoever screams loudest, and their talent to whatever offers them the fastest reward.“

Seth Godin says that,

“when you hustle a colleague or a friend, they can tell. They can tell that you’re being selfish, angling for a short-term win and trading something precious for something now.“

So as you plan for 2023 and kick off the new year, keep these things in mind. As we know, sales and marketing programs – especially in B2B – take time. If you don’t give your programs a chance to run before you pivot, then you’ll never be able to ramp up properly and achieve any real success.

What’s in Your Junk Drawer?

On this date in 1839, daguerreotype was announced and became the first publicly available process of photography. (See? I can google too!) For the following 20 years daguerreotype was the most commonly used process – but of course, we know that photography processes have changed many times since.

I was cleaning out my ‘old tech’ drawer the other day – the place where old phones, external drives, and media players go to die. It’s astounding when I think about all of the different pieces of technology I embraced (and then subsequently tossed when they became obsolete). And even more astounding when I start tallying my total spend on these gadgets!

Do you have a tech ‘junk’ drawer? Is it because we’re tech enthusiasts and innovators and just want to try the coolest new gadget? According to Vox, it’s partly because our tech stuff is just plain worse now – and the cult of consumerism has ushered in an era of badly made products. Amen! And don’t get me started on trying to get support or return a tech product nowadays…

And if you’re a tech geek like me, you’ll appreciate this video of rare and bizarre media types. Long play microgroove? 500k floppy disks? LaserDiscs!! Check it out here. How many of these are in YOUR junk drawer?

How does this impact B2B? No matter how awesome and revolutionary your technology is, use these bygone technologies as a reminder – markets change, your customers’ needs change, and technology changes. Don’t rest on your laurels to become the disruptor that gets disrupted – always be innovating!

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 Need to Succeed? Allow Ramp-up Time! 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!

When’s the last time you thanked a client for being a customer? Your clients have many options and they chose you! Do you even know why they chose to work with you?

If you live in the Great White North like I do, this weekend is all about thanks – and I thank YOU for reading and for reaching out and sharing with me! Give this song by Alanis Morisette (also from north of the border) a listen with me as we see what the experts are saying this week.

Making the most of on-demand B2B content

On-demand content has become the go-to source of information and entertainment for consumers. Just think of all the on-demand content you consume on a daily basis at home! How can we translate this to B2B, and how can we make the most of its potential?

According to DemandBase, there are three key steps:

Become a media company. With geo-targeting, digital marketing, and data absolutely everywhere, companies must be excellent storytellers and their own media companies.

Empower ‘Click & Go’ purchases with content. Make it as easy as possible for folks in a variety of roles to purchase what you sell, and then use content to cross-sell and upsell.

Focus on quality. Content being available on-demand isn’t enough; it must be good.

Bring these three steps together: Become your own media company, generate content with a focus on quality over quantity, and make that content truly on-demand – easy for whoever needs it to get it. Then you’ll be able to reach buyers, build trust, and grow your business.

And speaking of on-demand content…

Hot Takes (almost) Live!

In case you missed it, our friends at breadcrumbs.io ran a kick-ass event that I was happy to be part of. Hot Takes Live had 30 top SaaS leaders dishing out hot takes and harsh truths on product-led growth, RevOps, marketing, and sales – and I was one of them!

Blunt, in-your-face, and engaging – what a great event! You can check out the replay (on-demand) here.

Giving thanks

Here is a fun, short list of songs our team has put together about giving thanks – feel free to give a listen… enjoy!

ZZ Top – I Thank You

Fall Out Boy – Thnks fr th Mmrs

Queen – You’re My Best Friend

Dido – Thank You

The Radio Dept. – A Token of Gratitude

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 On-demand Content? Focus on Quality over Quantity 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!

It’s hard to believe it’s late September already. The days are still sunny and warm, but things get a little bit back to a routine. School is back in session, trips have been taken and we’re starting to gear up for fall – and many of us can’t stop thinking about Q4!

Give this song by Red Hot Chili Peppers a listen with me as we see what the experts are saying this week…

Addicted to the shindig?

Last week was the first ‘live’ #dreamforce conference in three years. I’ve been to my share of these events, and boy can Salesforce throw a party! The first time I saw Foo Fighters was at Dreamforce way back in 2008. As someone that’s been a Salesforce user since the beginning, I’ve followed their rise closely.

With a reported in-person attendance of 40,000, it was significantly smaller than the peak pre-pandemic numbers of over 150,000, when every hotel in San Francisco would sell out, but it was still substantial. And if you count the 110,000 who watched some part of the event online (including myself), the numbers are pretty impressive.

Is it lingering COVID fears? Economic worries? Complexity of foreign travel? Whatever the reason, the numbers were closer to Dreamforce attendance from 10 years ago – when the Red Hot Chili Peppers (this year’s entertainment) first played at the conference!

How ’bout you? Were you at Dreamforce this year? And if not, what kept you?

Music the great communicator

We’ve all misheard lyrics before. Even searching lyrics online for favourite songs can bring up inaccurate transcriptions. But when you listen to Nirvana’s “Smells Like Teen Spirit,” have you ever heard Kurt Cobain sing…

With the lights out
It’s Las Vegas
Hear me all now
Entertainers

According to WordFinder by YourDictionary, it’s incredibly common for people to mishear lyrics, a phenomenon known as a “mondegreen.” The concept first came around in 1954, as defined by writer Sylvia Wright as “a word or phrase that results from a mishearing especially of something recited or sung.” Some of the most common examples include “Hold me closer, Tony Danza” and “Excuse me while I kiss this guy.”

How does this apply to B2B? When you go write your message on the pavement, are you sure your message is clear… that your audience knows exactly what you’re saying? It’s always a good idea to take a step back and review – you might find something in need of clarification!

Have plans tomorrow? Join me!

Outbound Isn’t Dead (You Just Suck At It) – that’s my session at breadcrumb.io’s Hot Takes Live online event on Sept. 27.

But more importantly, there are 30 other top SaaS leaders dishing out hot takes and harsh truths on product-led growth, RevOps, marketing, and sales. Trendy marketing and sales strategies emerge seemingly every day, but – far more shocking than anything I ever knew – many of them don’t really live up to the hype! It’s free, and you can register here.

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 The B2B Live Event – A Comeback Story 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!

Is it worth marketing to your audience when most of them are celebrating a holiday? Or is it important to keep up the routine and schedule? Not sure… but I sincerely hope that if you’re celebrating Memorial Day you are NOT reading this!

But if you are… give this song by The Cranberries a listen with me as we take a quick peek at what the experts are saying this week…

Zombie Prospects

The zombie company could finally be expiring. The number of business insolvencies rose in March, coming just shy of February 2020’s count. This rebound could mark the end of one of the great economic paradoxes of the pandemic: During one of the worst economic contractions in history, the number of insolvencies fell dramatically.

Dan Kelly, president of the Canadian Federation of Independent Business, believes there were thousands of debt-burdened “zombie companies” that were effectively defunct but were technically staying in business with the faint hope that they could rebound once pandemic restrictions were lifted.

But they must have been mistaken, and these hopes are obviously fading fast.

This article really got me thinking – what about zombie prospects? Do your sales teams keep opportunities alive because – in their head – they could one day magically turn into revenue? Has COVID impacted your opportunity pipeline and led to many more zombie prospects than usual?

Perhaps it’s time to put the ‘stake through the heart’ (or the zombie equivalent) of some of your prospects or opportunities and move on.

Fun Facts – Richest Musicians

The Sunday Times is one of those publications that loves to keep tabs on the rich. The paper just released its 2022 list of the wealthiest musicians in the UK.

1. Paul McCartney, £865 million
2. U2, £625 million
3. Andrew Lloyd Webber, £495 million
4. Elton John, £395 million
5. Sting, £320 million
6. Mick Jagger, £318 million
7. Keith Richards, £303 million
8. Olivia and Dhani Harrison (George’s wife and son), £295 million
9. Ringo Starr, £285 million
10. Ed Sheeran, £260 million
11. Calvin Harris, £220 million
12. Brian May (Queen), £218 million
13. Rod Stewart, £215 million
14. Roger Waters (Pink Floyd), £210 million
15. Michael Flatley (yes, the Riverdance guy), £206 million
16. Roger Taylor (Queen), £198 million
17. Eric Clapton and Robbie Williams (tied), £195 million
18. Tom Jones, £180 million
19. Shirley Watts and family (Charlie’s widow), £175 million

Some of the inclusions on this list haven’t been active in some time – but it’s the same old theme, and their massive success has kept them on this list!

Is there anyone you’re surprised to see (or not see) on this list? I’d love to hear your thoughts!

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 Facing Down the Sales Prospect Zombie Apocalypse 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!

I couldn’t come up with an intro this week. Not sure why, but it was tough. And I feel like I need to make it good since my colleagues did such a great job of covering for me last week. However – admitting my writer’s block is, in essence, creating an intro. A compelling one? You tell me!

Give this song a listen with me, and see how this band got over their writer’s block by writing a song about writing the song! (Too ‘meta’ for you?) Plus… who hasn’t pulled an all-nighter to meet a deadline – am I right?

Staring Blindly into Space

Sometimes you need some hard facts to help centre you and get you focused. If you want to increase productivity and revenue at your organization, you have to focus on metrics that matter.

Revenue teams have become increasingly more data-driven, which makes it easy to get bogged down in tracking every little data point. B2B Marketing Zone provides a guide to help you stay data-driven while avoiding data overload by focusing on four categories:

• Sales enablement
• Sales effectiveness
• Sales readiness
• Sales engagement

I like how these are defined and some of the tactical examples. Some are pretty standard (such as win rate, churn rate, and time to close), while things like impact to discounting, lead velocity rate, and contact instances per demo are some metrics I’ve seen used much less frequently.

Many organizations simply accept that these are qualitative metrics and don’t measure them. But if you’re looking to scale your teams, you need to build a strong data-driven process.

How do you track these categories? DO you track them?

Searching for Something to Say

Sometimes, as a musical artist, it’s better to let the audience fill in the blanks. Who hasn’t been at a concert where the singer stops singing and lets the audience sing the chorus? Those can be magical moments at a show and really solidify the bond and engagement between the artist and the fans.

Now, how about songs where the audience creates their own lyrics to complement the song? A great example of this is the song “Mony Mony” – most notably, Billy Idol’s cover version. Being a high school student in the late ’80s, I can remember every time this song came on, and the lewd lyrics that were sung in response to Billy’s chorus vocals. How did they start? How did it spread across the world?

Interestingly, Alan Cross has been studying the origin of these ‘special lyrics,’ and shares his fascinating findings.

This shows how a little bit of myth and legend can make something bigger than it seems. It adds all sorts of magic and mystique to the song and increases audience engagement. And ultimately, helps sell more albums for the artist!

Should I try to do some more? Maybe there is some way – a little nudge – that you can get your customers to expand on your service offerings (hopefully in a positive way) and increase engagement.

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 Make Your B2B Marketing the Stuff of Legends appeared first on Virtual Causeway.