According to SiriusDecisions; 67% of the buyer’s journey is done digitally. This puts buyers in the driver’s seat of their journey long before Vendors and Partners meet them. Fantastic news if you’re the buyer but what if you’re not?
Partner’s New Selling Journey
Today’s businesses are ‘virtually’ always open and connected with potential buyers making it impossible for Channel Vendors and Partners to simply just tell their story. It’s mission critical these days to teach and show their story too. And, the ‘digital canvas’ to do so, is comprised of social media platforms, review sites, forums, websites and any other online properties they own.
Help Channel Partners Woo Buyers They Haven’t Met
Channel Partners can improve demand generation efforts if they follow best practices to identify and communicate with buyers online.
1. Identify buyers in terms of job role. Describe their job title, experience level, and the influencers they confer with. Draw from knowledge of current or past customers and be very specific. Involve sales and marketing in the discussion and use their experiences to develop what’s called a ‘buyers persona’ or an ‘ideal client.’ Then, write all digital content to that persona.
2. Understand in detail which challenges you solve and make a list of 3-5 customer pain points you’re the best at solving. Make these the center of your content marketing strategy.
3. If your team is small, choose only one pain point to concentrate on.
4. Answer these questions to help narrow your focus:
1. How often do you solve this problem?
2. How much market share have you earned?
3. What is your unique selling proposition or point of view, and what differentiates you from your competition?
4. How great are you at solving this problem?
5. Does the market recognize you as a leader?
6. Does price factor when you are you compared to the competition?
7. Do you have existing testimonials that correspond to solving the problem?
Keep Up With The Trends:
Is your website easy to navigate and is the design consistent with current functionality trends? For example, is it mobile friendly? If not, you’re behind the curve. Are social icons at the top right of the page or in the footer? If not you’re making visitors hunt for them. Put website features where visitors are conditioned to find them.
Wondering where to start? Look at the websites of your top three competitors. Be critical and make a list of the features, layout and content that attracts you, then use it to improve user experience on your site.
Educate Visitors:
Your visitors arrive ready to research solutions. Make them feel they’re in the right place by using your website to educate. Tell them what you would want to know if you were in their shoes. Blog about solving their problems, offer advice and thought leadership, write case studies and white papers, make videos, and ask current clients for testimonials. The more information you provide, the more expertise you demonstrate, and the more trust you build.
It’s hard to know when someone visits your site and then leaves to buy from someone else. Hedge your bets by being the spot for answers related to the pain points your prospects are facing
The Social Media Magnet:
Social Media is often used as a broadcast tool but it’s so much more. When you share your thought leadership, add to conversations and post links to relevant content, social media transforms into a powerful trust building, networking and lead gen tool. Don’t just talk about yourself, interact. Two-way communication is key on social media.
Avoid The Biggest Pitfall:
Don’t try be the best at everything. Instead, align sales and marketing to focus on one or maybe two key pain points. Then, use marketing to tell a succinct story designed to help sales win the chance to speak with the buyer. Once in, let sales build rapport and find any other problems that need to be solved.
Happy Social Selling!
Photo Credit: Creavive Income, Conduit Communications
