B2B Marketing Blog
February 2010 Archives

Tarzan swings in to champion B2B

February 26, 2010 3:15 PM | By Joel Harrison
I couldn't resist a dig. Lord Heseltine (nicknamed Tarzan) spoke brilliantly and masterfully at the Gyro HSR 'Brand versus Demand' event on Tuesday 23rd, but for me there was a certain irony to his appearance.Here was a man whose company Haymarket Publishing is largely B2B in focus but through its individual publications (think Campaign and Marketing) had arguably done more to sideline and marginalise B2B Marketing than anyone else in the UK over the past 20 years.If you'd read those august titles (and fine publications they are, I genuinely believe) you'd think B2B did not exist. And despite the mass...
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Have you seen the Muffin Man?

February 25, 2010 10:09 AM | By Francesca Brosan
Spent Tuesday at a CBI Council meeting.  As always, fascinating to listen to how a wide variety of companies are dealing with the world as we know it.  The good news for agencies is that service businesses in the main came out well – perhaps because they are more agile and able to adapt their services to what’s needed in the current marketplace.  So law and accountancy firms are seeing a reduction in contract briefs but an increase in resolution or winding up orders.  All sounds a bit ambulance chasing but it means that they’re still in business, still employing people...
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Brand ahead of demand? Are you crazy?!

February 24, 2010 8:35 AM | By Joel Harrison
Brand or demand? That was the question posed by Gyro HSR at its half day conference on February 23rd, held in the gothic splendor of Manchester Town Hall. The global B2B agency had assembled an impressive range of speakers from its varied client portfolio, all focused around where marketers should be focusing their attention: building their brand or generating demand.Personally, I thought the premise for the event was excellent, and the speakers offered some genuine insight and elaboration on the theme. Gyro HSR even managed to get Lord Heseltine (B2B by association of his involvement with Haymarket Publishing) to do...
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Voltaire, Facebook and the Trouble with Walled Gardens

February 19, 2010 9:23 AM | By John Bottom
"Il faut cultiver son jardin"   Candide, Voltaire, 1759          It's not often this site gets to quote 18th century French philosophers, but a recent report brought this phrase to mind, and I will explain why – and why it matters to you in your work as a B2B marketer....
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B2B is cool - it's true: just ask Sir Richard Branson!

February 15, 2010 8:25 AM | By Joel Harrison
Is the word ‘business’ unsexy, or uncool? That’s the question I asked Sir Richard Branson, in a manner of speaking, at the relaunch of NTL Telewest Business as, unremarkably, Virgin Media Business. (Yes that is the most shameless bit of namedropping I’ve ever done in an article.) Was the fact that the word ‘business’ is uncool, and associated with lots of boring stuff, the reason why Virgin clung on to the NTL Telewest brand for its B2B operation for three years after it rebranded the consumer operation? “No,” said Sir Richard. “Business is fun – Virgin companies are certainly fun,”...
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Why Cloud Computing & SaaS really matter to marketers

February 12, 2010 1:56 PM | By Guest Blogger
By Graeme Foux, Knexus CEO Cloud computing and Software-as-a-service are two of the hottest topics of discussion in the technology community today. So if you’re a marketer, you may feel now is the moment to turn away and find something more interesting and relevant to read. Well don’t, because this is a topic that has the potential to be hugely liberating for marketers. The sooner you grasp the concepts, the quicker you can deploy this insight to create great digital experiences for your customers and enhanced revenues for your company. So what is ‘Cloud Computing’. Put simply, with Cloud Computing...
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Market research: Set sail, but take a map

February 12, 2010 10:12 AM | By Andrew Dalglish
International expansion is attractive as it compensates for the limited number of buyers in any one country. This is now the case more than ever. Caution is key though; the rewards may be great but so are the risks.At home, you’re aware of what matters most to buyers. Many international expansion strategies fail because there is an assumption that the same received wisdom holds true abroad. Before entering a new market thorough research is essential. The good news is that only a relatively small budget, an internet connection and some curiosity is needed. Economic, trade and population statistics can be...
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How can you tell if a survey is reliable?

February 12, 2010 10:09 AM | By Andrew Dalglish
We recently asked readers to pose their research questions on the B2B Marketing LinkedIn group. One question came back more than once. “In a B2B context how can I ensure a survey is reliable?” Reliability boils down to whether the right questions have been asked to enough of the right people. Survey questions need to be unambiguous, unbiased and asked in an objective format. Beware the following: • The ‘double barrelled’ question including two mutually exclusive items, e.g. ‘How satisfied are you with quality and speed of response?’• The leading question containing implicit assumptions, e.g. ‘How much do you expect...
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The pros and cons of DIY research

February 12, 2010 10:06 AM | By Andrew Dalglish
This month sees two milestones; a new year and the first anniversary of this column so what better time for a bit of re-invention. This column should be relevant to the issues you face and those you’re curious about. It should also ideally be a discussion, so here’s the idea. Each month I’ll create a thread on the B2B Marketing LinkedIn group where you can post a specific research dilemma, general question or any interesting observations. One or some of these comments will then form the focus for the column and hopefully subsequent discussion on the B2B Marketing Blog. To...
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Market research: The ‘three I’s’ of NPD: Insight, innovation and imagination

February 12, 2010 10:01 AM | By Andrew Dalglish
“If I’d asked people what they wanted they’d have said faster horses” declared father of the motor car, Henry Ford. Fast forward a century to another great innovator, co-founder of Apple, Steve Jobs. “A lot of times, people don't know what they want until you show it to them”. If we take these comments at face value they suggest that customer opinion can’t be the source of paradigm shifting NPD.  But I think their comments have been taken too superficially. What they’re really saying is “customers can guide innovation but only if you ask them the right questions”. Ask them...
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Data Q&A: Enhancing data through social media

February 11, 2010 5:27 PM | By Joel Harrison
Is social media an effective tool for data enhancement and cleansing? If so, how should it be conducted?...
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Out with the Old

February 10, 2010 12:08 PM | By Scot McKee
I admit I went to see Miley Cyrus at the O2. Whatever rumours exist to the contrary, it was my kids that wanted to go. They badgered me at least once to buy tickets. I spent the first few tracks ogling a blonde dancer with my daughter's binoculars, and then there was a pause. The music lowered and Hannah, I mean Miley, addressed her adoring fathers. I mean fans. "This Summer I had to, you know, get away from everything and everyone and do some growing up. So I made a movie called ‘The Last Song'," she husked. I...
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Practise what you preach

February 5, 2010 4:54 PM | By Richard Robinson
I’m not sure about you but I always try to push myself outside my comfort zone every once in a while. It makes me learn and it keeps work and life interesting. That said, there are limits. When I joined Google, I was asked in almost every interview, of which there were many, if I ran marathons. Now I’m not sure if this was asked because of the way I looked or because I needed to be a marathon runner to get the job. Those that know me, know that I am no runner.  But it did cross my mind to give it...
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Marketing automation: The rise of the machines?

February 5, 2010 8:53 AM | By Joel Harrison
‘Automation’ is a word that could strike fear into the minds of the average cinema-goer, back in the golden age of science fiction last century. It conjured up images of soulless robots, marching relentlessly to subjugate us under their tyrannous regime and enslave or kill us... It’s a theme that starts with Metropolis and runs right through to The Terminator and The Matrix – more recently revived by David Tennant in Doctor Who. So when we add the word ‘automation’ to marketing, should we be fearful? Are marketers about to be replaced by a wave of sinister robots hell bent...
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