Photography and video have an immense impact on customers' purchasing behavior because they enable customers to visually connect with products before they buy. Learn how compelling visual content can help drive sales. more

In April, the McKinsey Quarterly published "Demystifying Social Media" for businesses. The article illustrates how using social media right can enable "targeted marketing responses at individual touch points along the consumer decision journey." Here are four steps to take to meet consumers along the way and achieve social touch-point engagement: Monitor. Make learning what's said about ... more

In a guest post at the Modern B2B Marketing blog, Joby Blume shares his lessons learned about implementing marketing automation in a B2B setting. First and foremost, he says, it's important to have a well-defined marketing process in place before adding any tech. "If you don't have a marketing process, marketing ... more

You've got a strong marketing mix—but does it include public speaking? "Whether used to promote a company report or in-house expertise, or simply to engender brand awareness, public speaking is a powerful—and often economical and organic—way to get your message to key influencers and decision-makers," writes Heather Rast at MarketingProfs. ... more

It became immediately apparent to Howard J. Sewell that something was terribly wrong with his client's lead scoring system. "The most glaring symptom was the absurdly high scores: hundreds of contacts had lead scores of more than 1,000, even though the supposed threshold for a sales-ready lead was a mere ... more

Do you think a prospect responds better to your marketing message because you've based it on a customer persona? Unfortunately, that is not the case. To craft effective messaging, you need to address four essential questions. more

Creating a great call to action that gets results can be tricky, unless you have a few tricks up your sleeve. Here are 12 essential tips for optimizing your calls to action to ensure they compel potential customers to act. more

Despite their critical contribution to a business, sales reps can often get in their own way. Here are three of the biggest ways sales reps kill leads—and three solutions that'll help turn prospects into customers. more

These days, B2B sales teams are carrying their product demos, order forms, cool presentations—you name it—with them in handy tablet form. And the tablet of choice is often the iPad. Dealmaker 365 blogger Donal Daly has been using the iPad on sales calls since the first model was introduced—and over time, ... more

How would you rate your company's all-around lead gen game? "Some companies are good at generating B2B sales leads [and] others are good at qualifying and closing those leads," writes Christopher Ryan at Great B2B Marketing, "but the top performing companies are those that leverage B2B lead management techniques and ... more

Marketing automation systems offer a veritable multitude of capabilities. But don't let all those features overwhelm you. Learn five ways to jump-start your marketing automation strategy without getting stressed out. more

B2B marketers recognize the need for a data-driven approach to marketing and fully eight in ten (80%) say they are spending more time and resources on critical marketing metrics in 2012, according to a survey from Pardot. more

Imagine having a switch that activates your buyer's brain and gets her to pay attention to what you say—and to take action. Learn how "engagement energy" can help you craft stronger sales and marketing messages that get results. more

Improving the lead-to-sales handoff at your company—and setting lead follow-up guidelines—can significantly boost ROI and help close Sales. Learn four invaluable handoff techniques you should be implementing. more

Though buyer personas loaded with biographical details might help salespeople manage relationships, they don't really help marketers segment and target B2B leads. To get the most marketing bang from your buyer persona buck, buyer personas must do four things. more

Best-in-Class B2B companies generate on average 17% of their leads from social media channels, roughly 230% more marketing-generated leads than other companies (5%), according to a new report by Aberdeen Group, which examines the social marketing strategies of top-performing B2B companies. more

B2B salespeople spend roughly two-thirds of their time selling in virtual environments—via the Web and telephone—yet most companies haven't adapted their sales skills or content marketing tools to deal with this new reality, according to a new report by Corporate Visions. more

You have a good product and great branding, but how do you get the buyers of large retailers to notice your brand? Here are four effective ways to be resourceful when trying to get your product on store shelves. more

"Lead generation is hard," writes Cliff Langston at MarketingProfs. "Why make it harder by doing it without a strategy?" But vague goals and loosely articulated objectives aren't enough—it's important to document what you plan to do, and how you plan to do it. Especially since you can craft a solid ... more

Public speaking is a powerful way to get your message to key influencers and decision-makers. Want to be a sought-after speaker? Learn what it takes to master the organizational and marketing side of public speaking. more

When you hear about an out-of-town conference you'd like to attend, the cost-benefit analysis can be intense. Is attending an in-person event worth your time and money? Here are four reasons the answer is yes. more

Some 61% of B2B marketers say generating more leads is their biggest marketing challenge in 2012; however, nearly two-thirds say their marketing mix does not meet sales pipeline demands (32%) or they are unsure of whether their marketing mix is effective (31%), according to a new report by BtoB Online ... more

"Nearly every marketing expert will agree: For a [website] visitor to become a customer, you must take the visitor through three basic stages," writes Sookie Shuen at MarketingProfs. "Those stages are know, like, and trust." In other words, a potential customer won't become a paying customer until she knows what ... more

The use of social networks, particularly LinkedIn, among engineering, technical, manufacturing and industrial professionals continues to rise: 55% of surveyed tech professionals now use LinkedIn, up 18 percentage points, or 48.6%, from the 37% who did so a year earlier, according to a report by GlobalSpec. more

Those of us who spend a significant amount of time watching online video are likely smitten with the inspirational TED talks. But the local TEDx events are equally enchanting, and they offer great lessons in experiential marketing. more