Live Webinar: Top 10 B2B Demand Gen Success Strategies for 2010

Learn the strategies and techniques you’ll need to ensure the success of your 2010 demand generation programs. Join me along with Jason Stewart, Head of Online Marketing for Demandbase, as we present “Top 10 B2B Demand Generation Success Strategies for 2010.”

The live, Web broadcast event takes place Wednesday, December 2 at 10 AM Pacific/1 PM Eastern. In just 45 minutes, you’ll learn:

* how to integrate social media into your email campaigns
* why you should dump your e-newsletter
* simple ways to improve landing page conversions
* the most cost-effective way to generate qualified leads
* the one line item that must be in your 2010 budget

All registered attendees will receive a free copy of CDI’s “High-Tech Direct Marketing Handbook.” Register now and set your 2010 demand gen strategies on the path to success!

Citrix Email Campaign Crashes on Takeoff

Granted, I’m already sold on the value of Web conferencing, but even then, the email below from Citrix (makers of GoToMeeting) leaves me thoroughly underwhelmed.

First, there’s the leading candidate for Most Frequently Used Email Opening of 2009: “In these challenging economic times …”

Then there’s a string of lukewarm benefits that really say nothing – or more precisely, nothing specific and compelling – about why online meetings and GoToMeeting in particular is worthy of my investment. “Increase productivity” is a throwaway – every software product ever developed can make the same claim. And sorry, but “provide customer or employee training” is not a benefit. I can do that today. Why do I need GoToMeeting?

Take a Sales Guy to Lunch: Bridging the Sales & Marketing Divide

It’s no secret that I am a fervent evangelist for marketing automation, and here at CDI we see the real-life benefits every day in the form of clients generating higher conversion rates, more qualified leads, and shorter sales cycles. But marketing automation can also have an impact on a more strategic level, addressing the frequent disconnect between marketing and sales, and also by helping to make marketing departments more accountable.

Recently I sat down with Barbara Angius Saxby, founder of Accelent Consulting, to discuss the role of new technologies in helping companies achieve what Barbara calls “process excellence.” Barbara’s firm helps clients achieve business growth through strategic marketing management, sales leadership, and business process alignment. She has nearly 25 years experience in strategic marketing, management, and international business development, the past ten as a consultant.

(HS) Barbara, what are the most common disconnects between marketing and sales that you see in your work with clients?

Are Social Links the Answer to Lagging Email Response?

Email marketing and marketing automation provider Silverpop just released a timely white paper (registration required) that gives new hope to B2B marketers looking for creative ways to increase response from email campaigns.

In “Emails Gone Viral: Measuring “Share to Social” Performance”, Silverpop provides compelling data that suggests adding social links to emails can have a significant effect on email reach (views), click-through, and response. The report is based on research that reviewed more than 500 email messages containing links to social networking sites.

Two important notes:

* 86 percent of the emails reviewed were from business-to-consumer companies, so B2B companies should be cautious about extrapolating the data as projections for their own markets

* conversely, and as Silverpop acknowledges, social sharing is a relatively new phenomenon. As social networks and social sharing take off, as they are and will, the impact that social links have on email performance should continue to increase.

Some of the key takeaways from the report:

How to Choose the Right Offer for your PPC Landing Page

Do search campaigns demand a different approach to offer strategy compared to other demand generation programs, say emails? Answer: yes. Remember, there are two fundamental truths about someone arriving at your landing page via a search ad:

1. He/she received very little information about your company in the ad (105 characters to be precise, including the URL) so it pays to consider the person uninformed and unconvinced. The reader who clicks on an email, by comparison, has received far more information and is therefore going to be much more inclined (and ready) to complete the registration process.