Well, as you can tell from the date of my last post, I have not had much time to write lately. I actually still don't feel like I have much time right now either, but was inspired to write after reading a couple of posts by Geoffrey James on BNET. I like to read about marketing and get different perspectives and I sometimes like the articles on BNET - but this one got me going a bit. Since I had too much to say to post a reply on the BNET article, I thought it would be best to simply write my own post.
I will try to not be as self-serving and one-sided as Mr. James - as I post a different view of Sales and Marketing roles. By the way Mr. James - have you ever heard of a Product Manager or a Product Marketing Manager?

Here are a few of my picks for organizational dos and don'ts related to Marketing:
1. Sales and Marketing should always be under the same leadership

2. For any business with more than $5million or so in Sales, Sales and Marketing Departments should also have a Product Management function.

3. No matter what the 'experts' tell you - it is still important for someone to focus on the 4Ps of marketing - Product, Price, Place and Promotion.

4. In a perfect world, the Product Manager sets the rules on Pricing, determines, with Sales, the product mix and looks to Sales to determine the 'place'. Marketing takes care of the promotion piece.
BTW, if pricing is set by Sales, it will inevitably be too low. It is easier to sell things when you can beat competitors prices. Like it or not, it is a rare company that offers commissions based on margins.

5. Promotion can mean just about anything, but a good Marketer can figure out what is best based on the company goals, the product mix, the market being targeted and the demographics of the decision makers. Promotion does not mean booking a booth at a show or running an ad and walking away. A good Marketer can also craft a message correctly to help Sales. ALthough B2B selling is largely based on relationships and reputation, everyone needs to find new leads and provide messaging that will engage these propects.

6. Marketing should talk to Sales and Sales should talk to Marketing - regularly. It does not have to be an us vs. them situation.

7. Anyone in Marketing should have to go on a few sales calls and to a couple of trade shows. Talk to customers and look at competitors - figure out what everyone needs and does.

8. Anyone in charge of Marketing at a high tech company better know the products. If you do not have a technical background, get one. You have to be able to understand what your product does and why it is worth buying. There are few Marketing professionals who can market a product they don't understand.

9. Branding and Strategy are important elements to Marketing, but here is the problem - people get too caught up in trying to define and work out these elements until they are 'perfect'. The problem is - they are never going to be perfect to everyone - they are too subjective.

[Quick aside - a professional I know chose not to quote on a logo design project for one of my clients. He cited the difficulties in getting the logo right and stated that even $10,000 was probably not enough to make logo design worth the effort. WHAT? I'm sorry - I don't want to minimize the difficulties in coming up with a new company logo, but really? This is what I mean - it is not THAT important. Make sure it is nice and a good representation of your company and/or your products... and off we go.]

Anyway, to continue - 'Branding' comes when you develop a name for yourself - a reputation. Take enough time to make sure that your products and information all look like they come from your company so that everything you do builds your brand. But, don't get too worked up with the logo, font and color choices, tag lines and all that. Pick something appropriate and nice and stick to it. If you have something old or dated looking or just plain ugly, change it.  If you do everything else right, you will build a brand whether your logo is blue or red or...
As far as strategy goes, let's rename it 'planning'. Marketing planning is an essential function. Marketing strategy is too often confused with Strategic planning for the business. Marketing plans should be part of your business strategy - not vice verse.
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I was at a business dinner a couple of weeks ago with a group from the New England Fiberoptic Council (NEFC). After a lot of chit chat around our table about the changes in our industry over the last 30 years, we listened to talk about FTTH (fiber to the home). It was a bit long, but interesting to most in the room. As we wrapped up and started saying our goodbyes, one of the gentlemen at my table approached me. I was ready to offer my hand to say "It was nice to meet you..." when he said "Tell me why my company needs to be involved in Social Meda. And how will we benefit?" Wow, I just wanted to say goodbye and go home!

Actually, anyone who knows me does not believe that last line! So, we engaged in a lively discussion about the importance of social media today. He was very stuck on the idea of Facebook and how a company like his (small company doing specialty optics stuff) could not possibly find Facebook to be anything but a waste of time. It struck me a bit odd that his whole view of social media centered around Facebook. He admitted that he really did not know much about it, but he just did not get it. Obviously!

So, I offered up a few thoughts about other things that may be more worthwhile for his type of business. Perhaps a blog to show expertise and develop a following, make a few videos showing some applications for his products, get involved with Linkedin, look at Twitter to see if some of his keywords are being discussed... He did not seem moved! So, it was late and we left it there. I offered to send him an email with a bit of data about B2B social media successes and a few more thoughts on what might be right for his business in particular.

Fast forward 2 weeks and we have now gone back and forth several times in an email conversation. I have made him think about this more and he has pushed back, citing the Target boycott ordeal on Facebook. I reminded him that people can post negative things on the internet whether or not you have a presence in Social Media, so you might want to engage and monitor - at least you will be able to respond. He has not been convinced that any of it is worthwhile to spend time doing, but he has engaged - even discussed it with his daughter in college who happens to be creating a FB page for a company as part of her part-time job. A little ironic, eh?! 

I have to say that he does have reason to doubt the effectiveness of social media for his business in particular. The fiberoptics industry has been slow to adopt social media as part of their marketing strategy. When you have an industry that, in general, is not on board, there are not many people to engage with online. So, I am joining the NEFC as a board member soon and I'm on a mission to change that. It's time for this high tech, fast moving industry to see the positive side of engagement. Every industry needs to have a good presence in social media (for B2B companies) otherwise, maybe it is a waste of time. Oh my! Did I really say that?!
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Product Management, Marketing Strategy, Social media