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Across almost every industry, new customers cost more than old ones – so customer satisfaction, as a means to retention, is “job one” for most businesses. In recent years, the stakes have grown even higher as economic conditions and the growth of social media have given customer opinions more significance. Today, Facebook, Twitter and LinkedIn make it easy for a customer to share a positive or negative brand story with hundreds or thousands of people as quickly as one can hit the submit button. If customer retention is a goal, then customer advocacy – turning buyers into believers – is essential.

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It’s time to stop selling and start listening. This is a way of thinking that places buyers at the center of all marketing priorities. Understanding what buyers care about, how they make their decisions, and how they want to receive information, makes marketing about them, not about us. This isn't about doing more – or even about doing less. It's about doing what matters. And since most of us are being asked to stretch our resources ever further, focusing on what’s important is more important than ever.

For more on this movement, and to add your voice, visit arketi.com/stopselling.

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Arketi’s fifth annual Atlanta High-Tech CMO Roundtable and the first such Roundtable for the Raleigh-Durham area featured marketing and PR executives from leading technology companies throughout the Southeast. The collection of top marketing and PR minds gathered to discuss the current and future state of BtoB marketing, and five common themes emerged.

To learn more about the Roundtable’s proceedings, download the “The Outlook for Business to Business Technology Marketing in 2012” white paper here.

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The holiday season is full of family, friends, fun and food. If you’re like us, that homemade pie was just too tempting to resist a slice… or two. Now, as the new year starts, we notice our waistlines seem a little fuller, our motivation kicks in, and we make resolutions to drop the added weight. Instead of trying to lose your love handles, shed some pounds elsewhere – your writing. No sweating is required (we promise!) and this is a resolution that you can actually see through the end of the year.

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News release quotes are often the most underutilized communications tool at a PR professional’s disposal. Quotes in releases have determined company policies, influenced political decisions and inspired strategic vision. To craft powerful quotes that influence, engage and drive interest from both media and customers, follow these four tips:

• Write the way people speak
• Use your quotes to add information
• Incorporate your organization’s name into your quotes
• Avoid clichés like the plague

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A recent article on a BtoB Marketing website titled “Facebook user satisfaction dips; could face user exodus,” reports that the online service’s customer satisfaction has hit an all-time low. In fact, half of those questioned in an informal poll were prepared to abandon the social network in favor of Google+. Isn’t that one of our dreams as marketers? Have the switching costs be so high, that folks would rather stay with you than go through the pain of moving?

To learn more about increasing switching costs by adding more value, visit our September 2011 Core Newsletter

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The 2011 Arketi Web Watch Survey: Inside BtoB Media Usage of Social Media is hot off the press and reveals BtoB media continue to have a rich appetite for using social media tools. This year's survey found that 92 percent of journalists have a LinkedIn account, an increase from 85 percent from the 2009 survey. Find out where journalists are getting their story ideas and which channels you can utilize to engage with target audiences.

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As BtoB marketers, we know what follows flies in the face of all that’s instinctive. But the time has come for all of us to confront a tough reality – some of our prospect relationships just aren’t working anymore. And it may be time to turn these prospects loose.

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The email newsletter has become a mainstay of every BtoB marketing mix. But as the novelty of getting a newsletter in one’s inbox has worn off, open rates and clickthroughs have declined. Much of this can be remedied by making the enewsletter more relevant, targeted and just plain interesting. In parallel to content and segmentation efforts, enewsletter design can also be tweaked to yield better results by keeping 4 key points in mind:

• There’s more clutter to break through
• Think more about mobile
• Video is not vital
• Email newsletters have long lives

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Arketi interviewed Jim Novy, founder of IT Marketing World, to discuss the growing online community made up of the best and brightest information technology marketing and PR professionals.

The online community is committed to establishing and refining industry best practices for communications professionals working in technology organizations.

Jim and Mike Neumeier, principal at Arketi Group, discuss:

• Growing trends in the industry
• How to utilize the community’s content
• The changing roles of BtoB tech and tech marketing professionals

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Did you know that 90 percent of BtoB organizations are now engaged in content marketing? In addition, more than a quarter of a BtoB organization’s marketing budget this year alone will be spent on content marketing. WOW!

For more on content curation, visit our April 2011 Core Newsletter.

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As the numbers of mobile device users continue to increase, so does the amount of people who rely on mobile apps on a regular basis. After reading an entertaining article in Lexus magazine on the top mobile apps for Lexus owners, it got us thinking, “What are the top apps for BtoB technology marketers?” After posing this question to the Arketi team, we discuss five of our Top 10 mobile apps.

For links and descriptions on our complete Top 10 list of mobile apps for BtoB tech marketers, visit our post.

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Arketi’s fourth annual Atlanta High-Tech CMO Roundtable featured marketing and PR executives from leading technology companies throughout the Southeast. The collection of top marketing and PR minds gathered to discuss the current and future state of BtoB marketing, and four common themes emerged.

To learn more about the Roundtable’s proceedings, download the “The Outlook for Business to Business Technology Marketing in 2011” white paper here.

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In today’s marketing world, “print collateral” is a deceptive term. To meet the demands of today’s digital world, collateral pieces must translate beyond print and into digital formats.

This new definition has resulted in marketers shifting design philosophy to remain effective in all media and accommodate the widest audience possible.

When developing web-friendly pieces, marketers should consider:

• Print quality
• File size and e-mail restrictions
• A single page format
• Content construction

For further details on creating effective collateral, visit our September 2010 Core Newsletter.

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Every executive wants to see the words “Industry Expert” in front of his or her name. In the quest for thought leadership, the speaker circuit can drive both brand awareness and lead generation—if executed strategically. Arketi believes there are five main elements to building a successful speakers bureau.

The 5 elements are:

• Know Your Target
• Timing Is Key
• Making Your Speaker Pitch Sing
• Preparation Is Never Overrated
• Leave Them Wanting More

For a detailed summary of each element, visit our August 2010 Core Newsletter.

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Over the past year, the use of video marketing has rapidly increased. Researchers have found that half of Internet users watch videos at least weekly and three-quarters watch professionally-produced online videos regularly. Arketi believes there are five main elements to effective BtoB videos.

The 5 elements are:

• A Meaningful Message
• Focusing on the Customer, not yourself
• Being authentic
• Brevity and Simplicity
• Getting the video online for SEO

For a detailed summary of each element, visit our July 2010 Core Newsletter.

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One of Arketi Group’s digital designers, Charles, shares his musings from the MODxpo 2010 in Dallas, a two-day conference to discuss the hottest and most advanced content management system (CMS). This is a quick dive into how the next-generation of CMS tools “helps even regular individuals manage content on their websites simply, quickly and intuitively.”

What makes MODx such a revolution?

• MODx is a framework you can use to build your website
• Templates and template variables rock
• The platform converts the proper elements on the page into snippets, chunks and wayfinder pieces
• Page titles and headings are created in a search-engine-friendly manner
• It’s very streamlined, highly customizable and boasts an open community of developers sharing new applications

To learn more about creating a CMS through MODx, visit our June 2010 issue of Core.

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At Arketi, we recommend applying the principals of nurture marketing to recapture unfulfilled sales through strategic communications and continual outreach. Before lead nurturing can occur for an unfulfilled lead, you must identify why it was “lost” in the first place. Recognizing when and why a lead moved on from your company is critical to knowing how to best reach out to them in the future.

We consider three phases – Awareness, Discovery and Validation – to describe the mindset of leads.

• Awareness: Prospects are interested in knowing the benefits of technologies but not actually shopping.
• Discovery: Prospects are starting to shop and are looking to determine their buying criteria.
• Validation: Prospects are ready to buy and want to know your differentiators.

To learn more about Recapturing lost leads, visit May’s addition of Core.

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Recent industry studies have indicated that BtoB companies will invest as much as one-third of their total marketing budgets in developing lead nurturing content. While this may be a smart investment, many companies will not reap the rewards due to the absence of a comprehensive content strategy. Three-dimensional content mapping, as the name suggests, consists of three different strategic components:

• Segmentation – Map content to a prospect’s unique pain points
• Buying cycle – Develop content that addresses different stages of the buying cycle
• Content type – Leverage various mediums of delivery to increase consumption rates

To learn more about the emergence of three-dimensional content mapping, read our April Core.

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As more BtoB companies begin ramping up their content marketing efforts, the role of clear, well-structured writing has never been greater. While grammatically correct writing is a start, copy that is direct and compelling is just as important in today’s attention-challenged, time-sensitive marketing world. Arketi Group highlights three common mistakes in business writing that plague even the best of us:

• Develop an outline to help clearly organize your thoughts before writing
• Less is more. Focus on simplicity and steer clear of superfluous language
• Avoid technical or business jargon to ensure your message is clearly conveyed

To examine these mistakes in further detail and learn additional insights on effective business writing, click here.

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Arketi’s third annual Atlanta High-Tech CMO Roundtable featured marketing executives from leading technology companies throughout the Southeast. The collection of top marketing minds gathered to discuss the current and future state of BtoB marketing, and a handful of themes emerged:

• The newfound convergence of Sales and Marketing to generate leads
• Social media’s role as a strong supplementary communications channel
• The importance of relevant and compelling content to fuel lead nurturing initiatives

To learn more about the Roundtable’s proceedings, download the “The Outlook for Business to Business Technology Marketing in 2010” white paper here.

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The emergence of video as a viable and cost-friendly tool has many B2B marketers scrambling to adapt. Video’s ability to engage customers and prospects is a primary reason it’s being rapidly incorporated into the B2B marketing mix. Arketi Group examines the benefits of utilizing video, including its ability to:

• Convey personality and sentiment to elicit emotional reactions
• Serve as a new and interactive vehicle to drive content marketing strategies
• Diversify traditional thought leadership platforms
• Extend content through social media releases, e-marketing campaigns and more

For additional insight into how B2B marketers can successfully leverage video, click here.

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Arketi Group Principal Rory Carlton recently participated in the debate on the effectiveness of postal mail versus email in grabbing attention in today’s electronic-centric business environment. Among his arguments, Carlton highlights:

• The ubiquity of email has contributed to its decline in impact
• The opportunity for physical interaction with the contents of postal mail
• Postal mail delivers an anticipation and excitement devoid in email

To read the entire article in DMNews, click here.

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The massive shift of marketing to the digital realm has caused BtoB marketers to re-assess their engagement strategies. Arketi Group examines the viability of webinars as an effective and interactive tool for marketers and provides some best practices to consider:

• Ensure webinar content is relevant and timely; emerging industry trends, opportunities and challenges always prove compelling
• Modify the webinar content to appeal to the audience; address their needs directly
• Leverage social media platforms and public relations in the webinar promotional mix

For additional insight into the benefits of webinars for BtoB marketers, click here.

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Arketi Group highlights a few fundamental tenets to abide by when conducting outreach with the media. Some of the tactics and best practices to employ include:

• Perform due diligence; be cognizant of a journalists’ habits and preferences
• Avoid over-the-top jargon when corresponding with a reporter; simplicity is key
• Don’t over-promise; expect the reporter to assess the validity of your claim
• Leverage the appropriate social media platforms to engage the reporter

For more tips on how to build relationships with the media and deliver value, click here.

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Arketi Group offers tactics and best practices for business-to-business companies to consider when implementing an effective loyalty marketing program. Some of the strategies that BtoB companies can utilize to employ and sustain a successful loyalty marketing program include:

• Actively mining your database to identify the proper targets
• Detailing applications and resources needed to support each program‘s infrastructure
• Frequently communicating with members for effective, meaningful engagement
• Determining a quantifiable standard by which to measure campaign success

For more tips on how to deliver value throughout each step of your loyalty marketing campaign, visit http://www.arketi.com/loyalty/.

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In this BtoB Marketing Minute exclusive, Arketi Principal Mike Neumeier, APR sits down with Jason Kintzler, founder and CEO of PitchEngine, to discuss the evolution of the social media news release. Learn how this progressive style of sharing news is paving the way for future press releases by:

• Facilitating the newest wave of PR by bridging influencers and highlighting relevant metrics
• Providing flexibility and a comprehensive means to incorporate multi-media components
• Streamlining the sharing process and engaging readers via various social media outlets

Want to see a social media news release in action? Check out one of Arketi‘s latest here.

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Arketi Group offers recommendations for business-to-business companies using marketing automation solutions to find, nurture and convert leads more effectively.

Some of the strategies that business-to-business companies can use to capitalize on their marketing automation solution include:

• Sort out qualified and less qualified leads by using targeted drip marketing campaigns
• Use the “Give to Get” model to exchange valuable content for visitor contact information
• Infuse lead nurturing tactics into a marketing automation system which allows for more efficient prospect scoring

Want specific tips on getting the most out of your marketing automation solution? Our latest white paper, Five Steps to Automate Your BtoB Marketing, provides just that.

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Arketi Group offers advice on how business-to-business companies are utilizing marketing automation solutions to help track and manage prospect outreach more efficiently.

BtoB companies can take advantage of marketing automation solutions as it allows marketers to better:

• Identify potential prospects
• Score the prospect based on level of qualification
• Nurture the lead with automatic, customizable follow-ups
• Measure the effectiveness of all lead generation and nurturing activities

Want to know more about Arketi‘s take on marketing automation solutions? Read our article, Automate or Die!.

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Although crises more frequently burden the consumer realm, it is wise for B2B professionals to be prepared in the case of an incident. In fact, a recent BtoB Magazine survey found that 57 percent of marketing executives report their company does not have a crisis response plan currently in place. Arketi Group examines the importance of having a BtoB Crisis Communications plan, as well as five components vital to any plan:

• Documented roles and protocols
• Operational materials
• Continuous improvement protocols
• Immediate response materials
• Supplemental materials

For more information about how to develop your company‘s crisis communications plan, read April‘s Core, Arketi‘s monthly newsletter on best practices of business-to-business marketing.

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In this interview, we speak with technology pioneer Ben Dyer, CEO of TechDrawl, an interactive video blog showcasing emerging technology businesses fresh from the South. Ben, who founded Peachtree Software (now owned by Sage Software which is an Arketi client) among other successful technology companies and is a member of Georgia‘s Technology Hall of Fame, shares with us what he sees in the latest crop of technology companies. In addition, he reminds BtoB marketers that now is the time to embrace what he calls the SNAKE strategy (Sell Now And Keep Eating).

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Some ways Web 2.0 sites distinguish themselves from those retroactively labeled Web 1.0 sites include:

• 2.0 sites look and behave more like desktop applications
• Visitors themselves are contributors to the site content
• 2.0 sites typically incorporate a mix of “cool” new technologies

To read more on this topic, check out our recent article "Web 2.0 – what is it and how much does it matter for a BtoB site?

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Arketi Group offers advice on how to effectively balance strong messaging with proper segmentation. Some tips for business-to-business technology companies to consider when exploring their messaging and positioning strategies are:

• Keep your organization‘s message simple and value-driven
• Segment according to the high-level message to promote consistency and visibility
• Unite messaging and segmentation as part of one organizational strategy

For more information about balancing messaging and positioning, click here to read January‘s “Core”, Arketi‘s monthly newsletter on best practices of business-to-business marketing.