Know-How Exchange : Strategy

I don't know of any surveys or statistics... And I've just done a deep search on line and come up with nothing of any consequence that answers the question... But this is a very interesting area.

Why not construct a survey to ask a range of senior executives in your target industries or companies what vehicle most prompts them to respond favorably?

I suspect you will find that there are a broad range of vehicles that create a call to action in the target group.

The key to triggering a response is the relevance of the message to each particular executive. A message that resonates with one executive may not strike a chord with any others because they aren't thinking about that particular issue at the time.

If this hypthesis is correct, this means successful approaches to senior executives, initiated by a marketer, whether direct or via a medium or vehicle, are probably largely a matter of luck.

As a marketer, how can you reduce the risk of being unlucky? How can you add a level of skill and ingenuity to outweigh the level of luck?

- By targeting executives with a particular mindset or problem at a particular time, for example, at a conference dealing with the issues to which they may be seeking and you may be offering a solution.

- Or by selectively approaching executives whose businesses you have researched, or whom may have responded to some research that tells you they have an existing (perhaps hidden) need for your product or service.

Hope these ideas help.

ChrisB