How to Create Sales & Marketing Tools that Sales & Customers Will Actually Use

How to Create Effective Sales & Marketing Tools That Actually Get

Used By Sales and Prospects!

Tom Evans

CompellingPM

@compellingpm

Copyright 2013. The Lûcrum Group, Inc. 1

DFW Product Group

• DFW Product Group is the premier product management and marketing association in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex

• 300+ active members

• 2013 - 2015 roadmap includes webinar series, networking mixers, and ProductCamp DFW

• Website: http://dfwproductgroup.org/

• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=2796125

• Twitter: @DFWProductGroup

• Email: [email protected]

• Actively seeking new members, volunteers, and sponsors

Copyright 2013 - 2015. The Lûcrum Group, Inc. 2

Special offer from CompellingPM at the end of the webinar.


How to Create Effective Sales & Marketing Tools That Actually Get

Used By Sales and Prospects!

Tom Evans

CompellingPM

@compellingpm


PM2 Levers of Control™


Executional LeversProduct

•Define Whole Product

•Effective Requirements

Price

•Value-Based Pricing

Place (Channel)

•Sales Tools

•Sales Enablement

•Channel Programs

Promotions

•Product Marketing Tools & Content

•Product Marketing Programs

Go-to-Market Strategy

Target Markets PositioningCompetitive

StrategiesMessaging Platform

Alignment to Business Drivers

Market Analysis

VOC Competitive Analysis Ecosystem Analysis

Poll Question 1

How effective is your marketing collateral (that is sales people and customers like it and use it)?

a) < 25% effective

b) 25 to 50% effective

c) 50 to 75% effective

d) > 75% effective


How Bad Is Marketing Collateral?

• From 50 to 90% of marketing collateral does not get used by sales! (AMA)

• Salespeople (B2B) spend 30 hours/month searching for and creating their own selling materials (AMA)


Is It Really That Bad?

• “My marketing department produced some nice looking stuff but it mostly had nothing to do with what I needed to close deals.” (Anonymous)

• “Customers are familiar with the traditional collateral material that salespeople send out or leave behind after a visit. And guess what? Everyone hates it. Marketing people hate to bang it out, and salespeople hate to use it.” (Customer Centric Selling)


Why is Collateral So Bad?

• (Product) Marketing sits in ivory tower and “creates a promotional potpourri … of sweet smelling stuff” that is appealing to them.

• They never ask sales what they need.

• They don’t understand the buying process.

• Product Marketing is separated from the real sales discussions.

• We replicate what we did elsewhere.


Poll Question 2

Have you as a product marketer participated in sales calls?

a) Never

b) A few times

c) Regular practice

d) Why would I want to do that?


Improving Collateral


Starting Point to Improve Collateral

• Change from telling our story to telling our prospects/customer stories.

• Develop a deep understanding of our customers

• Ask sales team and channel partners what they need


Deep Understanding of Customers

• Who they are

– Personas

• Why they buy

– Problems they want to solve

• How they buy

– What is their buying process

– Where do they look


June 11 Webinar

http://compellingpm.com/developing-a-deep-understanding-of-your-target-markets-

the-starting-point-for-great-product-management-marketing/

How Do You Learn This Detail

• Speak to customers

• Discover as part of Win-loss analysis

• Participate in sales calls and observe the process (all phases)

• Discover as part of market validation process

• Insights from Executives, Sales Team, Customer Support, Professional Services


Determine What Sales Channel Needs

• What types of problems do you encounter during the sales process?

• What questions do prospects ask?

• What objections do you hear?

• What kinds of tools will make you more effective?


Poll Question 3

In my organization, the following role is the primary role that defines which marketing collateral/tools to develop?

a) CEO

b) Top marketing exec

c) Top sales exec

d) Product marketing

e) It just happens


Understanding Buying Process


Generic Buying Process

Recognize Problem/Need

Information Search

Evaluation of Alternatives

Purchase Decision

Post-purchase Behavior


Discovering the Buying Process

• What are the typical phases of the buying process?

• Who are the typical buyers & influencers?

• Who is involved at each phase?

• What are their main concerns at each phase?

• What are they doing at each phase?

• What are the typical barriers to moving ahead?


Help Buyers Through Buying Process

• Top of the funnel (lead generation & awareness)

– Move suspects to leads & leads to prospects.

• Bottom of funnel (sales).

– Helps sales convert prospects to sales.


How to Help Buyers?

• Buyers want content that helps:

– Educate them,

– Improves their decision-making capabilities,

– Increases their confidence level in their final purchase decision.


Basic Questions From Buyers

• Do I have a problem?

• How do I solve this problem?

• Who can help me solve this problem?

• How can I be sure your company is the right decision?


Do I Have a Problem?

• What are their competitors doing?

• How do I determine if I have a problem?

• What’s it costing me to have this problem?


How & Who to Solve My Problem

• What options exist to solve this problem?

• How do the options compare?

• What are good decision criteria?

• What is the total cost of ownership?


How Can I Be Sure?

• Are others successfully solving this problem?

• How can I be sure this works for me?

• How is your product better than your competitors and by how much will it impact my bottom line?


Shifting Buyer Concerns


Customer Centric Selling by Michael Bosworth, based on research by Neil Rackham

Successful Collateral


Develop Tools/Collateral

• Answers questions

• Specific to each buying persona

• For each phase of buying process

• Keep concise, relevant, focused and in buyers terms!


Train Sales to Use Collateral

• 41% of sales people don’t know which collateral to use, when to use and how to use it. (IDC)

• Teach them:

– The intended buyer persona

– Which stage of buying process to use it

– Key messages for each stage & buyer persona

• Demonstrate in actual sales process


Summary

• Deeply understand our customers

• Write to each target buyer persona

• Write collateral in the buyer’s terms that answers their questions

• Train sales how to use the tools


Poll Question 4

My next step to improve our collateral is?

a) Speak to the sales team/channel

b) Participate in sales calls

c) Speak to customers to discover buying process

d) I have no need to speak with customers or sales


Go-to-Market Webinar Serieshttp://compellingpm.com/go-to-market-webinar-series-with-dfw-product-group/

Webinar Title Date

The Strategic Role of Product Management & Product Marketing in Driving Product Revenue & Success

Apr 23

Developing a Deep Understanding of Your Target Markets – The Starting Point for Great Product Marketing

June 11

Define a Powerful Go-to-Market Strategy That Sets Your Product Apart June 25

Great Requirements Form the Foundation for Successful Products July 16

Profitable Products Sell Value: Why Value-Based Pricing Wins August 13

From Messaging Nightmare to Messaging Delight: How to Create a Powerful Messaging Platform

Sept 17

Create Effective Sales & Marketing Tools That Actually Get Used By Sales & Prospects Oct 15

Nothing Happens Until Someone Sells Something: Enabling Your Sales Channel to Success Nov

Driving the Marketing and Sales Funnel to Close Deals: What Product Marketers Must Know and Do

Dec


My Next Webinar

Nothing Happens Until Someone Sells Something: Enabling Your Sales Channel to Success!

Nov xx, 2015


Upcoming Austin PM2 Training

• Optimal Product Management & Product Marketing

– Dec 7- 9

• AIPMM Certifications – Certified Product Manager (CPM)

– Feb 16 – 17

More dates/locations - www.280group.com


Free 1 Hour PM/PMM Consult

• First ten to submit information on form

• http://compellingpm.com/freeonehour/

• Please include background on topic or issue

• Must include company info (no Gmail)


http://compellingpm.com/freeonehour/

Thank You!

Tom Evans

CompellingPM

[email protected]

@compellingpm

www.compellingpm.com


mailto:[email protected]