Author Archives: Toby Marshall

8th April 2013

Converse First. Convert Later.

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If there was one golden rule of B2B social networking that I would pin up as a sign over the entrance door to the Lead Creation offices it would be “Converse First. Convert Later.”

We often get asked by clients for our opinion on why their social networking strategy is not actually converting into sales.

By far the most common reason is that they focus too much on conversion too early in the relationship, without having the necessary conversation first.

Collaborative Marketing

You see, most of your potential customers are not on a network like LinkedIn to be sold to or read advertisements. Continue reading “Converse First. Convert Later.” »

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23rd January 2013

Huge opportunity for Small Business: Big players stink at Social Media

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David vs. Goliath

Before the internet, small companies could not compete with the big budgets of big many advertising and marketing channels were simply out of reach.

But we now have a platform, and the good news? Many of Australia’s top 200 companies are not doing this platform very well. For once smaller companies can, and increasingly do, appear much larger than the real market leaders.

It’s the David and Goliath story with a twist, where David looks ten times more powerful. David becomes Goliath where it matters, on social networks where hundreds of millions are engaging every day. Could your SME be a “stone’s throw” from taking on a Goliath?

Continue reading “Huge opportunity for Small Business: Big players stink at Social Media” »

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18th January 2013

LinkedIn Discussions: The Degrees of Badness

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Where professionals and managers gather, so do those who hunt them, spammers. The result is LinkedIn is now drowning in a sea of junk.

It’s a platform for professionals to network and share their expertise. But Groups, the perfect platform for networking and exchanging ideas, are constantly bombarded by blatant promotions and ‘links to interesting content’.

It’s the last one, the links, that is the biggest cause of clutter. And it is also the rule that confuses most people. They constantly ask “what’s wrong with that, I’m just sharing good content that will help people in the community, I’m not selling anything.” And they are right from their perspective. The problem only becomes clear if you manage a number of groups, and see the same link posted by 3 different people. Who have each posted it to 20 or more groups.

Bulk posting is drowning out the real discussions as it is too easy to do – and Twitter is better for sharing such content if that is your intent (it often isn’t!). If you want to share interesting content on our Groups, tell the community why it is interesting and add your opinions and perspective. Then we’ll benefit and also know that you are not just trying to get your name in front of us!

Help improve groups by getting to know these “degrees of badness”….

Continue reading “LinkedIn Discussions: The Degrees of Badness” »

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10th December 2012

So What’s Stopping You?

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Why Do People Resist Social Networking?

Social Networking has become a well recognised sales tool but regardless there are companies who actively avoid it. The 4 biggest reasons we hear for this:

Continue reading “So What’s Stopping You?” »

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4th December 2012

The Marketing Evolution: From “Tell and Sell” to “Relate and Create”

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Modern man was once in the Neanderthal stage, capable only of using basic tools with little understanding of how the world worked. Man has since evolved and developed smarter, more efficient ways of communicating and getting things done.

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3rd December 2012

Techniques To Stay In Touch and Take The Relationship Offline

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B2B buying decisions occur because of recently, frequency and relevancy, just as they do with consumers. If someone isn’t ready to buy now, you must find a way to stay in touch in a low key way so when they are ready, you are the provider that was:

Continue reading “Techniques To Stay In Touch and Take The Relationship Offline” »

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26th November 2012

Why Cold Calling and Cold Emailing No Longer Work

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1. Even the most ardent fans admit it’s less effective than it used to be.

Everyone’s tolerance of being interrupted whether by phone or by email is falling—there’s too much of it because it’s so easy with all the new technologies. So there is too much interruption, but increasingly we have the ability to filter it out. And busy, successful people do just that. Filter it.

Continue reading “Why Cold Calling and Cold Emailing No Longer Work” »

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19th November 2012

Facebook: For B2B, or not for B2B?

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Social media has completely revolutionised how we communicate and has unlocked new ways to market. Suddenly, we are more connected than ever before, giving businesses greater access to their audience. Businesses are jumping on the bandwagon, creating pages on every possible platform, driven by the fear of losing their target market. But not all social media platforms serve the same function, nor do they target identical markets. So when it comes to social media marketing, is quantity really quality?  Is Facebook right for your business?

Continue reading “Facebook: For B2B, or not for B2B?” »

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19th November 2012

Testing your Social Media Sales Process – How do you make a start?

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Just like Sports, Play the Social Networks to Get Good at them!

I’ve read some great coaching books about my favourite sport, tennis. Helpful? Yes. Made me a good tennis player? Not likely.

Becoming good involves getting on the court and practising with the ball machine, coaches and friends and playing lots of matches. Because the cliché is 100% true: practise does make perfect.

Continue reading “Testing your Social Media Sales Process – How do you make a start?” »

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12th November 2012

Planning & Implementation: It’s ALL that matters

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The world of B2B Marketing used to be very simple: industry magazines, trade shows, conferences and seminars.

Today it’s anything but simple. There are huge numbers of different technologies and media. And very new ways to make the old stuff like trade shows work.

Now it all comes down to two key words: planning and integrating. Continue reading “Planning & Implementation: It’s ALL that matters” »

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