STEPS THAT YOU CAN TAKE TO ENSURE YOUR COMPANY’S NOT ON THE ‘OUTSIDELOOKING IN’

THE CHANGING STATE OF INDUSTRIALSALES AND MARKETING

DECISIONCRITICAL

CONTENTSTABLE OF

1. THE CHANGING SELLING PROCESS2. MANUFACTURES AND THEIR DISTRIBUTORS3. YOU AND YOUR WEB TRAFFIC4. CRITICAL POINT IN INDUSTRIAL MARKETING5. WHAT YOU NEED TO DO!

CHAPTERS

SELLING PROCESSTHE CHANGINGCHAPTER 1

Customers are choosing to delaycommercial conversation with suppliers

N = 1500

Source: CEB MLC CustomerPurchase Research Survey 2011

PurchaseCustomers FirstSerious Engagement

with Sales

Customers DueDiligence Begins

57% Complete

Customer Average

Degree of Progress Through the Purchase ProcessBefore Engaging Sales

Post SaleCloseProposalOpportunityQualification

OpportunityIdentification

www.industrialshift.com

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Traditional long-term relationship selling is being replaced by a different process, gone are the days of having a sales team go out and make calls attempting to generate demand and sell something. That process has sometimes been referred to as ‘selling by use of a blunt instrument’… Hitting by use of a blunt instrument’… Hitting prospects over the head with salesmessages and calls until you get their attention and they agree to buy.

is SELLING PROCESSLONG-TAILTHE

4

Once upon a time it was a salesman that drove the sale… They dispensed product information, educated the customer and ultimately closed the sale…

However In today's world, the buyer is nearly 60% through the sales cycle before they even contact the sales department of the companies contact the sales department of the companies they're evaluating that they will eventually buy from. 60% through the process? Things sure have changed.

A SHIFT WHERE CUSTOMERS ARE OVER HALFWAY THROUGH THE SALES PROCESS BEFORE ENGAGING A SALES REP...

THE SHIFT IN INDUSTRIAL MARKETING

SALES PROCESSTHROUGH THE60%

5

HOW IS IT POSSIBLE YOU ASK, THAT THE PROSPECT IS60% OF THE WAY TO MAKING UP THEIR MIND BEFORE

THEY CONTACT A SALESPERSON?

HOW CAN THIS POSSIBLY BE HAPPENING?

THAT?ACCOMPLISHINGHOW ARE THEY

6

Studies indicate that equipment purchasersdo no less than 3 to 5 hours of online research and ‘doing their homework’ prior to making a purchasing decision.

THESE NEW AGE PROSPECTS ARE READING, LISTENING AND WATCHING FREE DIGITAL CONTENT THAT’S AVAILABLE AT THE CLICK OFTHEIR MOUSE...

WATCHING...orLISTENING

READING

7

Their specific needs, the potential solutions

available and the qualified companies that

can provide them a solution. They are

seeking answers to the problems they face

any way they can… Are you equipped to

convince them that you can help? That you

can solve their problems? That your company can solve their problems? That your company

is the one?

THESE NEXT GENERATION CUSTOMERSTHAT WE SPEAK OF ARE ENGAGING PEERS IN SOCIAL MEDIA TO LEARN MORE ABOUT...BUYINGARE

NEW CUSTOMERSHOW THE

8

CHAPTER 2

DISTRIBUTORSAND THEIR

MANUFACTURERS

For decades manufacturers have hoped their distributors and their distributor/rep networks would spend more time selling their products. They put on contests, created incentive programs to cajole them into selling more and basically would do anything to entice them to sell more of their products. But changing a process that has been around nearly forever is difficult, if not impossible to accomplish.

However… now the process has changed on its own and manufact-However… now the process has changed on its own and manufact-urers have to respond to these changes. The rules are different and distributors cannot be relied on to make all the sales that a company needs to meet and exceed their sales objectives.

End users are playing a larger role in deciding who they buy from, the distributors no longer own the relationships they once thought they did… Now manufacturers can take control of the sales cycle like never before.like never before.

THINGS ARE CHANGING...

DISTRIBUTORSAND THEIRMANUFACTURERS

10

No longer does the prospect have to contact sales to

learn more, no longer does the prospect have to wait

for a salesperson (inside or out) to get back to them

with a price… Time has passed, things have changed…

the role of a salesperson can be very different from

what it once was.

THE SOLE SOURCE OR GATEKEEPER OF PRODUCT AND SERVICE INFORMATION...

SALES FORCE...NO LONGER IS THE

11

Getting comfortable with this new buying process (versus the selling process) must happen quickly. In many cases the trad-itional sales cycle/process is proving obsolete and sales departments have to transition from being product pushers to information and insight providers who to information and insight providers who add value to the buyer's business. Individ-uals do not want to be sold something, they want to have the ability to make educated buying decisions based on the information and research they have un-covered. Are you doing what you can to ensure they choose you? Are you a product ensure they choose you? Are you a product pusher or an insight provider? The answer to this question is critical to your success.

GO FROM BEING A PRODUCT PUSHERTO AN INSIGHT PROVIDER

VERSUS THESALES PROCESSBUYER PROCESS

THE

12

The online marketplace has replaced the

traditional manufacturer to distributor to

end-user business and sales model. Many

manufacturers are seizing the control they

want and sometimes desperately need. No

longer are manufacturers waiting for their

distributors to control their sales cycle.distributors to control their sales cycle.

WHY SOME ARE TAKING IT BACK!

CONTROLAND

MANUFACTURERS

13

WEB TRAFFICYOU AND YOURCHAPTER 3

Do you have any idea how many potential customers are looking to purchase or learn more about the products and services that your company provides? Do you know how many per month are in the buying or learning more pool?

This is a very important number for companies This is a very important number for companies to know… There are thousands, maybe tens of thousands (or even hundreds of thousands) of potential customers looking, learning more and purchasing the products and services you sell each month…

Do you know who these people are? Are you getting your fair share of attention from them?getting your fair share of attention from them?

TENS OF THOUSANDSMAYBETHOUSANDS

15

Will your company be found when your products and services are searched for? Is your company's website equipped to attract enough potential customers for you to be competitive or meet your sales goals? Have you done the upfront work necessary to give your website a fighting chance to produce new business opportunities? It's Google's to produce new business opportunities? It's Google's job to serve-up the right companies when some-body searches for a particular term or search string. Google then serves-up sites that provide the right content and background information to satisfy the web visitors need.

Does your company website put you at the top of that list?you at the top of that list?

IS YOUR COMPANY EQUIPPED TO ATTRACT?

BE FOUND?COMPANYWILL YOUR

16

USER EXPERIENCEThe look, feel and intuitiveness of your website have never played a larger role in keeping visitors engagedand interested in your company’s products andservices. Today’s web visitor is seeking answers and solutions to the problems they face, they are looking at websites to learn more and gain confidence that at websites to learn more and gain confidence that your organization can solve their problems.

User experience is the new branding. Have you had your web properties analyzed from a user experience professional?

If they find your company and products while searching....

Will they be compelled to engage you.

Choose you? Or will they move on?

BOUNCE RATE... DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOURS IS?

WILL THEY STAY?IF THEY FIND YOUAND

17

INDUSTRIAL MARKETINGinCRITICAL POINTCHAPTER 4

Company principals find themselves in a position that in some cases is critical to their company's future, a spot where organizations are competing for the same piece of business like never before. A scenario exists where smaller companies who are aggressively marketing can usurp their larger once untouchable competition on available projects and sales opportunities in the marketplace.and sales opportunities in the marketplace.

The decisions that your company makes on how they will market, to whom they market to, and how exactly they intend to attract new business will be critical. The decision that you make will impact dramatically where your organization is headed… And where it will be in 18, 36, 60 months out… and for some companies, will they be there at all?will they be there at all?

ORGANIZATIONS LARGE AND SMALL FINDTHEMSELVES AT A CRITICAL POINT REGARDINGTHEIR BUSINESS FUTURE...

NOW!SOME COMPANIES ARE THERECRITICAL POINT...

19

Progressive companies that understand the changes that are well underway in the new marketplace are taking action and leveraging the digital opportunities that are helping companies grow...dramatically. Attracting new leads, nurturing sales prospects and securing new customers digitally is the key to growth new customers digitally is the key to growth through increased revenue.

This can be a great opportunity for small, smart and insightful companies who are responsive and make the decision to maximize these excit-ing new technologies or this could become a nightmare scenario for companies who ignore this shift and insist on doing things the ’way this shift and insist on doing things the ’way we’ve always done them’.

Which one of these two examples will describe your organization?

SMALLER, LESS CAPABLE COMPANIES NOW HAVE THE OPPORTUNITY TO OUT MARKET AND OUT SELL THEIR ONCE UNTOUCHABLE LARGER COMPETITORS...

COMPANIES...LESS CAPABLESMALLER

20

The main goal of businesses is to compete, sell more and grow the organization… Getting ahead and staying ahead of your competition is at the root of these core business objectives.

Out-marketing, out-communicating and ultimately beating your competition to new business opportunities has never become more attainable. The digital tools, e-marketing strategies and exciting new ways to attract business opportunities are here for the taking… opportunities are here for the taking…

Are you going to out-market your competitors… or are you going to be the one being out-marketed?

COMPETITIONYOUROUT MARKETTHE ULTIMATE GOAL:

21

NEED TO DOWHAT YOUCHAPTER 5

Keyword Research, Identification and Optimization/Analysis

Meta Tags/ Robot Text Optimization

Navigation, Link and Image Tag Optimization

There’s no magic… The on-going identification and implementation of keyword search success strategies and activities can mean the difference between a company that’s going places and one that’s going nowhere. We like to say there’s no magic to increasing the total of indexed keywords found on your website, they indexed keywords found on your website, they come as a result of knowledge, experience, and performing the fine details necessary to bring your site to the top.

ALWAYS WORK ON IMPROVING YOUR COMPANY’S ORGANIC SEARCH PERFORMANCE...OPTIMIZATION

SEARCH ENGINE

23WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Does your company’s website say the right thingsabout your organization?

Does it contain relevant and important content that users are looking for?

Do you have deep site analytics and traffictracking tools?

The look, feel and intuitiveness of your website have never played a larger role in keeping visitors engagedand interested in your company’s products andservices. Today’s web visitor is seeking answers and solutions to the problems they face, they are looking at websites to learn more and gain confidence that your organization can solve their problems. Askyour organization can solve their problems. Askyourself these questions...

DOES YOUR COMPANY’S WEBSITE POSITIONYOU AS A LEADER IN YOUR MARKETPLACE?

USER EXPERIENCEDESIGNAND

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO24

OnlineMarketing

Lead Generation and Prospect Contact CaptureCampaigns

E-Book Creation and Lead Generation Distribution Programs

eCRM Integration and Ongoing Program Execution

Ongoing lead generation and distribution of gated content will help you build the pool of prospects that are interested and/or looking for your products and services. These individuals who have inquired, downloaded or otherwise raised their hands can then be targeted through informative, creative and sales driven campaigns and e-marketing strategies and programs.strategies and programs.

THE FUTURE SUCCESS OF COMPANIES WILL RESIDEIN THEIR SALES AND MARKETING DATABASES...

LEAD GENERATION

25WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Display/retargeting advertising campaigns

Search-oriented banner ad programs

Campaign concept, design and execution

Bid monitoring, budget management and campaign optimization

Companies are taking control of their sales and leveraging digital media to conceive, create and launch display advertising and retargeting campaigns aimed at generat-ing traffic and creating demand for their products and services. By placing creative advertising on sites viewed by potential customers and targeting search driven media, companies are successful in capturing the attention of companies are successful in capturing the attention of prospective new customers who are in-market NOW.

BE MORE AGGRESSIVE THROUGH BOLD AND EXCITING E-MARKETING CAMPAIGNS... TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR SALES!

CAMPAIGNSE-MARKETING

26

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Content editorial strategy concept through production

E-book concept, copywriting and production

Content creation, productionand execution

The production of original, new and fresh content will play an important role in how well your website performs when searched for as well as how long visitors will stay if they do find your site. Search engines are now monitoring company’s websites and scoring them based on their content quantity, scoring them based on their content quantity, quality, the number of updates and additional new copy/content added. You’ve heard the term ‘Content is King’… now is the time to understand what that is and then harness its power to perform.

ONGOING CREATION AND PUBLICATION OF RELEVANT AND VALUABLE PRODUCT/SERVICE CONTENT WILL BE KEY... STRATEGY

CONTENT

27WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Your eCRMSystem

LoyaltyPrograms

Reporting onthe CustomerExperience

Marketing& CustomerInsight

CustomerCommunications

CustomerSales

SocialMedia

IntegrationContent

Management

If your website is not equipped to lead generate and capture

vital prospect data in a proactive/systematic fashion, you

are missing out. eCRM is the electronic version of your

customer and prospect relationship management program

and is fed from online inquiries and e-prospects requesting

more information. This vital tool will dramatically separate

the companies who are leveraging this technology and the companies who are leveraging this technology and

strategy successfully from the companies who continue to

ignore this powerful, exciting new way of doing business.

SALES PIPELINEYOUR ELECTRONICeCRM...

28WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

Competitor organic keyword identify and analyze

Competitor pay-per-click keyword identify and analyze

Competitor banner advertising campaign research

You would be surprised to see what your competitors are spending to attract traffic and new business opportunities in the digital marketplace. We help our clients get a better understanding of the competitive environment by researching and analyzing the exact keywords being purchased, the the exact keywords being purchased, the topics and content of ads being placed and the indexed key words that exist on their competitor’s websites. We feel it’s better to know what’s going on EXACTLY… before we can properly help our clients.

DO YOU KNOW WHAT YOUR COMPETITORSARE SPENDING ON DIGITAL MARKETING...SPECIFICALLY?LANDSCAPE

COMPETITIVE

29WHAT YOU NEED TO DO

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Digital Marketing Solutions for Progressive Thinking Industrial and ManufacturingCompanies!

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