With most companies focusing their social media marketing efforts on Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn, over one-third (36.1%) say they've been able to make a conversion from initial connection to sale via such social channels, according to a new survey from R2integrated. more

Different customers shop for products and services in different ways—even when they're looking for the same thing. And that's why your lead-generation efforts should address various buyer personas. "A buyer persona [represents a] distinct group potential customers, an archetypal person whom you want your marketing to reach," writes David Meerman ... more

As marketers focus on creative development and campaign execution, they often overlook the operational aspects of their go-to-market processes, resulting in the inefficient delivery of marketing materials to intended audiences and, ultimately, weaker frontline performance, according to a study by the Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council. more

In a post at his eponymous blog, Tom Trush tells the story of a client who asked for help after a direct-mail lead-generation campaign failed to yield a single response. His prospects, insisted the exasperated client, were different. "Every time I hear this claim my ear drums rattle," says Trush. ... more

In a brief Take 10 online tutorial at MarketingProfs, Jim Lenskold, president of Lenskold Group, spells out clear guidelines for creating targeted lead-nurturing programs that can help you boost conversions, reduce sales-cycle times and create more profitable and enduring customer relationships. Granted, that's a tall order for a 10-minute presentation, but ... more

"If you're like many professional service providers, you get a lot of business from referrals," writes Barbara Bix at MarketingProfs. But you may not realize how closely the referral process parallels the buying process. "[J]ust as you can accelerate the buying process," she notes, "you can accelerate referrals by anticipating ... more

Though the recession is over and the economy is in recovery, most IT managers are still holding back on their spending—adding even more stress to an already lengthy sales cycle. Some of the stress can be avoided with an effective sales system and a strong game for each stage of ... more

"The Web makes it too easy for your competitor to lure away interested buyers before your people have had a chance to contact them," warns Steven Woods in a post at the Harvard Business Review blog. And that reality, he argues, demands some fundamental changes in the B2B sales process. ... more

With the near ubiquity of online social networks, you might think they're just the thing for your lead generation and nurturing programs. But before you take a spontaneous Facebook plunge, Ardath Albee of Marketing Interactions offers a few caveats. "The problem I find most prevalent is that companies have no realistic ... more

In June, The Wall Street Journal reported a surge in social-media use by law firms interested in connecting with potential class-action plaintiffs. But if you take a closer look, you'll see that many of the approaches used provide viable marketing lessons for businesses of all types. more

As a marketer, you might have noticed a certain ebb and flow in the requests you get from your sales department. "At the beginning of the year when the funnel is looking light and the end of the quarter or year seems far away, eager sales people see their friends ... more

With vast Web-based resources now available to evaluate products and services, tech buyers are no longer dependent on Sales for information about purchases. Buyers don't want or need to engage with sales people until far later in the buying cycle. "Information is power," writes Don Fornes, Founder & CEO of ... more

More than ever, your lead-generation program must include a strong nurturing component. A DemandGen survey, notes Cheryl Goldberg at the High-Tech Communicator blog, found that nurtured leads produce a 20-percent increase in sales opportunities versus non-nurtured leads. And—realistically—many of your leads will require at least a little nurture. "According to Brian ... more

"If B2B sales teams reduce the amount of face-to-face selling time in favor of more efficient sales models using the Web and telephone, will B2B buyers be receptive?" asks Robert Lesser in a recent post at the Acquiring Minds blog. You bet they will, he answers: "In fact, B2B buyers ... more

LinkedIn is "one heck of a community for getting to know your prospects and customers," writes Ardath Albee at Marketing Interactions. "[But it] can also expose a lack of integrity and authenticity in a heartbeat." So if you're using LinkedIn as a lead-generation tool—or for any other purpose—consider this cautionary ... more

Despite dismal economic news overall, some business sectors are showing signs of improvement: Fully one-half of industrial-sector companies are expecting annual revenues in 2010 to be higher than they were in 2009, compared with the 24% of companies that reported the same a year earlier, according to a survey from ... more

B2B marketers continue to shift their marketing mix away from traditional marketing vehicles toward social media and digital channels: 67% plan to increase spending on social media over the next two to three years and 64% plan to increase spending on digital and online marketing over the same period, according ... more

In a post at HubSpot, Kipp Bodnar argues for the integration of your business blog and your corporate website. "Blogs are dynamic; they drive fresh content that prospects and search engines love," he explains. "Traditionally, corporate websites were static; they had traditionally served as digital brochures for businesses. By ... more

"Online lead generation requires you to erect just the right-sized barrier," writes Ian Lurie at Conversation Marketing. "Something [just] big enough to keep unqualified, unpromising leads out, while letting interested potential customers, voters or clients in." He offers a 10-point primer on building a solid lead-generation program, and here are ... more

"Reps selling into complex organizations need to be enabled with at least three levels of detail," Andy Hasselwander writes in a post at the B2B Marketing Confidential blog: "one for the business lead, one for [the lead's] researchers/support in the deal, and one for the technical folks that will [perform] ... more

Large reductions in marketing budgets contributed to dismal sales performance in 2009, but companies are fighting back: Over three-quarters (72.5%) say they are increasing their marketing budgets in 2010, and over 9 in 10 cite customer acquisition as their top marketing objective in the next 12 months, according to a ... more

Despite the proliferation of emerging media channels and ever-tightening marketing budgets, notes Chris McArdle at DemandGen Report, "fewer than 10 percent of B2C organizations are using proven techniques to effectively identify and target prospects." Why? According to McArdle, B2C companies are often daunted by lead-gen components, such as scoring. But, he ... more

US retailers are actively pursuing the mobile channel to enhance customer engagement and loyalty: 73% have some type of mobile initiative in place and 20% of are in the process of evaluating the mobile channel, according to a survey from Forbes Insights, in association with Research In Motion (RIM). more

"Marketing doesn't fully understand how buyers use content," warns Paul McKeon in a Pro article at MarketingProfs. "B2B marketing is no longer just in the business of brand management and lead generation," he states. "It must serve a huge demand for content that spans buyers' needs, from pre-awareness to post-sale." ... more

Salesforce.com has released a beta of Salesforce Chatter, its "real-time collaboration cloud" that offers sales teams "a brand-new way to collaborate with people at work." So what exactly does Chatter offer? "Updates on people, groups, documents, and your application data come straight to you in your real-time feeds," the Chatter ... more