The Pedestal Group

Marketing and Sales are clearly different.  In marketing, you get your name out there, make prospects aware of you, and generate leads.  In sales, you close the deals.  But how can the two functions work more closely together?

I love to build marketing messages based on sales objections.  You already know what issues people bring to the table and how to answer it, so do so before they even get there! Leading with those objection-answers gives you a chance to show you do understand your customers and why they should make the call.  These can be done as a series of emails, a series of blog posts, testimonials that give the reader insight into why the customer was skeptical and how you overcame it, or voice mails that are left for prospects.  Here’s an example of how to work this:

I recently met with a client who’s prospects don’t trust them.  There are some unscrupulous people in their industry and they are always fighting an uphill battle to overcome those concerns.  We developed a list of what other companies have done wrong, and used it as our messages.  We did an email marketing series as well as used them in voice mails.  We pointed out that there are some companies who have experienced X.  We don’t do that – we do this.  It was extremely effective and yielded 40% more inbound contacts.

It was tough for this customer to come up with marketing messages in the past, but now that the sales team is giving them objections and answers, the possibilities have really opened up.  Try this technique and then let me know how it goes!

A friend called this week to see what I thought of adding the word process to his tag line.  He has a rock-solid process to help his clients and he is very proud of it.  But as we talked, he realized that there is no way to convey what his process really offers without a lot more words and in a tag line, that wasn’t practical.  The reality is if you check his competitor’s websites, they ALL have rockin’ processes that are going to solve the world’s problems so it was tough to stand out with just using the word process.

There was a time when people didn’t have processes.  Then, it was vital to mention you had one and clients wanted details.  How could you ensure you would be able to replicate your results if you didn’t have a process?  Today, most people talk about a process so it has lost the impact.  Today, you have to illustrate your process differently.

For some of my clients, we design a graphic to illustrate their process.  These pictures convey exactly how the process will repeat the success and are easy to follow.  In fact, I’ve had a couple of clients that when we tried to draw their process we couldn’t and they have gone back and simplified the whole thing!  Another option is to name the process.  Giving it a name gives it meaning as well and also an opportunity to discuss where the name came from, how it works, etc. A third option is to highlight a key step in the process – “we focus on the “XYZ” of our process to ensure world-changing results”.  Again, this changes the game and gives the client something to talk about instead of blowing off your process as just another process.

Generic words that are used by everyone shouldn’t be part of your brand unless you are using them in an unconventional way.  Instead, use pictures, names or call outs to really bring your message home.

In this series of posts, we are covering how I get started with a client. These questions help clients understand where they should target their marketing efforts.

Our second variable to look at is whether your company has a strong company brand. Strong company brands are obviously a help in marketing efforts because your clients know who you are. We consider a strong company brand one that is prevalent and correct.

For many clients, having a prevalent brand is vital. When you say the company you are calling from, a prevalent company brand means the customer already has a set of expectations and understanding of what you do. Typically a strong company brand is built through more traditional advertising as the message has to hit home often.

We say “correct” because there are times when a brand message is out in the market place but it isn’t the message the company wants. I once worked with a company that had a brand perception in the marketplace as “sleepy”. That was the word used to describe their over 50 year presence in their market space! Clearly this was not something they wanted their clients to say so we had to attack the brand message knowing we were counteracting “sleepy”.

If you aren’t sure if your company brand is strong, consider how people react when you tell them where you work. Do they immediately know what your company does, or do they look at you expectantly needing more information? From there, you need to determine what message you want with your brand. With that in mind, we are able to build a program to meet that objective!