singtel connectplus ip vpn - b2b digital strategy

It’s not information overload.

CLAY SHIRKY

It’s filter failure.

ConnectPlus IP VPNDigital Marketing Presentation

Author: Kunal Robert | Date: 13th November 2014

Contents

Objective

Target Group

Landscape

Research

Strategy

Ideas

Annexures

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Objective

Increase brand awareness and top-of-mind recall for SingTel’s ConnectPlus IP VPN product within the target group

Position SingTel as a leading partner for connectivity in the APAC region

Target Group

Chief Information Officers (CIOs)

Network Managers

Decision makers in buying IT (Connectivity) related products in MNCs across the APAC region.

Landscape

SingTel Consumer Services

WEBSITE FACEBOOK LINKEDIN

TWITTER YOUTUBE GOOGLE+

SingTel Business Services

WEBSITE YOUTUBE LINKEDIN GROUP - HK

LINKEDIN GROUP - CHINAMYBUSINESS - FACEBOOKMYBUSINESS WEBSITE

AIRTEL - INDIA VODAFONE - INDIA TELSTRA - AUSTRALIA

AIS - THAILANDSTARHUB - SINGAPORENTT - JAPAN

Competition in APAC

OPTUS - AUSTRALIA VIRGIN - UK O2 - UK

VERIZON - USAAT&T - USALEVEL 3 - USA

Competition Globally

SINGAPORE SINGAPORE INDIA INDIA AUSTRALIA AUSTRALIA THAILAND JAPAN UK UK USA USA

Competition Evaluation – APAC & Global

ONLY TELECOM BUSINESS AND ENTERPRISE ASSETS WERE EVALUATED

Observations

• Facebook hasn’t found significance in any business/enterprise’s content strategy

• Twitter is being used extensively in the western markets but adoption in Asia is still nascent

• LinkedIn as a medium has wider acceptance across the board

• YouTube appears to be the platform of choice for most brands in this space but is highly underutilized

Research & Findings

Finding #1

“CIO’s are a heterogeneous group – diverse in characteristics and needs.”

“Treating the CIO buyer as a single, homogeneous demographic is a ridiculously ineffective and costly way to build relationships and drive revenue growth”

– Firebrick ConsultingWhitepaper: “Fortune 500 CIO” Is Not a Target Market (2012)

In their own words

“If a sales rep wants to connect with me, he needs to do his homework and know what business I am in, what problems I likely have, and uncover my needs and only then should he pitch a product that solves a specific problem for me.”

– Walt Thinfen, VP & CIO, Visoneer (California, USA)Source: www.aventigroup.com

“Please don’t try to sell restaurant point of sale software to me. I’m not the CIO for an Iron Chef.”

“…focus on your audience. Do your research on who we are, and what our companies do. If you help us see ‘what’s in it for us’ then I’m certain the results will show.”

– Guest CIOSource: www.sellingtothecio.com

Finding #2“86% of IT buyers are using social media networks and content in their purchase decision process”

“Social networks and communities are one of the first places that B2B buyers look to for general education as they make an IT investment.”

It is no longer enough for vendors to only be involved in one community or in one social network; they should have a social mix using Facebook, Twitter, Google+, and LinkedIn (the top four social networks that buyers look to for decision making).

– IDG ConnectResearch: Connecting Conversations to Content (2014)

The B2B Social Buyer

The B2B Social Buyers are young senior executives with clout, mostly under 40 decision makers in IT. They spend more time consuming content than their traditional counterparts.

“B2B Social Buyers and Traditional Buyers consume information differently.”

– ITSMASurvey: How Buyers Consume Information (2012-13)

Finding #3

The buying process may begin on Google, but it ends with a person

– ITSMASurvey: How Buyers Consume Information (2012-13)

The Path to Purchase

Awareness Consideration Purchase Retention Advocacy

Digital Touch-points in the Path to Purchase

Search & DisplayE-mailers

Branded Content

Social Networks

WebsiteBlogs

ForumsGoogle Hangouts

Professional Communities

Content is at the heart of it all

Digital Strategy & Framework

Unique & Individually

Diverse

Content Hungry

Necessitating Human

Connection

INSIGHTS

Personalised/ Customised

Solutions

SME / Thought Leadership

Bridge Online-Offline

Hyper-targeting, Curated Content

Social Channels Content Strategy,

Whitepapers, Quora

E-trade shows, Webinars leading to offline events

SOLUTIONSCHALLENGESTA

RG

ET G

RO

UP

PAID

EARNED

SOCIAL

OWNED

EMBASSIESFacebookLinkedInTwitterYouTubeGoogle+

DIGITAL PROPERTIESWebsiteBlogThe Hub

OUTPOSTSBlogosphereForums

ADVERTISINGSearch & DisplayEmailers

INFLUENCER ENGAGEMENTSME InteractionThought LeadershipAdvocacy

CONTENTSocial EngagementQuora AnswersLinkedIn Custom Groups

The POEM Framework

Search Engine Optimization

Wk1 Wk2 Wk3 Wk4 Wk5 Wk6 Wk7 Wk8

CONTENT STRATEGY

MEDIA STRATEGY

INFLUENCER OUTREACH

CREATIVE DEVELOPMENT

COMPANY PAGESHOWCASE PAGECUSTOM GROUPS

Indicative Deployment Roadmap

SingTel Business – Social Channels

MEDIA ROLLOUT

Ideas

Idea 1: Inbound

THE HUB

A content marketing engine to keep the conversation and engagement going within CIOs and Network Managers through a sustainable model.

THE HUB

WHITEPAPERS

CASE STUDIES

CURATED CONTENT

WEBINARS

GOOGLE HANGOUT with SMEs

BRANDED CONTENT

THE HUB

A platform for CIOs and Network Managers to discuss and solve their biggest challenges in an interactive, engaging medium.

LinkedIn CUSTOM GROUP

LinkedIn SHOWCASE

PAGE

The community can be facilitated using LinkedIn B2B solutions like Custom Groups and Showcase Page

ibmbigdatahub.com

LinkedIn Features UsedCustom Group, Partner Messages, Join Group ads, Banners, Text Links, Video Units, Article Banners

HCL’s offline magazine called CIO Straight Talk created a highly engaged, invitation only, online community of senior IT professionals

The CIO ‘Straight Talk’ community

WEBSITE

LINKEDIN GROUP

CIO WEBINARS

Customers were recognized as practitioner thought leaders whose experience based insights have tremendous community value.

• 80% Director Level and above; 25% CXOs

• 70% from organisations with >10,000 employees

• 110+ Fortune 500 companies

• Warm leads generated from engagement activities

The CIO ‘Straight Talk’ community

Idea 2: Outbound

Hyper-Personalised Videos targeted to the top 500 CIOs and IT buyers across APAC

56% of Internet Users Have Searched for Themselves Online

– PEW Research, 2013Source: www.mashable.com

Step 1

We use this ‘Egosurfing’ characteristic of people and hyper-target the ‘First and Last Names’ of top 500 CIOs in APAC on Google, etc.

There will be virtually nil competition on these keywords.

Step 2

We develop customized videos of a SingTel Senior Executive inviting each individual CIO by name to a brunch/coffee

These are individually hyper-targeted to each CIO on Google, Facebook, LinkedIn and YouTube.

Step 3

Create detailed industry-wise case study packets with video narratives + PDF bundle and target these to enterprise buyers in that category

Final Thoughts

Define a core content strategy for SingTel Business Services1

234 Develop elements like On-Demand Webinars,

Video Case Studies and Presentations

Establish Social Media Channels for SingTel Business on Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn

Leverage unique tools such as LinkedIn Showcase Pages and Custom Groups to build and engage communities

If I had more time, I would have written a shorter letter presentation.

MARK TWAIN

AppendixCase Studies & Research

PHILIPS B2B LinkedIn Case Study

WEBSITE LINKEDIN COMPANY PAGE LINKEDIN SHOWCASE PAGE

LINKEDIN CUSTOM GROUPLINKEDIN CUSTOM GROUPLINKEDIN CUSTOM GROUP

PHILIPS B2B – LINKEDIN CASE STUDY

• Partnered with LinkedIn to create active communities that have become online destinations for medical and lighting professionals worldwide

• Helped establish Philips as a partner in these fields of expertise amongst their key target audiences

• Globally active 30,000+ member communities representing 121 counties and a wide range of specialist fields

PHILIPS B2B – LINKEDIN CASE STUDY

Content Sources used in making Technology Purchase Decisions

Source: IDG Connect (2014)

Search, Social Networks, Professional Networks and Video Sharing Platforms are the preferred sources of content when making IT investment decisions.

Source: IDG Connect (2014)

Relative Importance of Content Sources for IT Investment Decisions

Social Content will soon be the dominant source in making IT investment decisions – ahead of Vendor or Editorial Content

Source: IDG Connect (2014)

Preferred Engagement Activities on Social for IT Buyers

Virtual Events (Webinars, E-Trade Shows), Expert Blogs and Forums are the most preferred engagement activities on social media for IT Buyers.

Source: IDG Connect (2014)

Buying Stages When Social Media Networks and Content Are Used

B2B Social Buyers andTraditional Buyers prefer different sources to consume content.

Social Buyers prefer Social Media and Email Newsletters over In-person Events.

Traditional Buyers prefer In-person Seminars, Conferences and Trade Shows over Social.