Multi-Channel Marketing: A Fresher Way of Reaching IT Decision Makers

Multi-Channel Marketing: A Fresher Way of Reaching IT Decision Makers

Isn’t it funny that as more and more channels of communication become available, high-level decision-makers are getting harder than ever to reach? Well, it is if you are the decision-maker, and definitely not fun if you are the one trying to reach them. Now, if you’re looking to reach the most senior people in big IT companies, then consider not selling to them. These people know a sales pitch from afar like wildebeests know rain is coming even if they’re hundreds of miles away. The secret to doing the job is quite easy, actually: Connect with them.

To do that, you must be where your customers are. And they are everywhere. That makes the process easier said than done.

But that’s why you’re here. You want it done as easy as it being said. Enter Multi-Channel Marketing – a marketing program that runs through, well, multiple channels to be able to reach and penetrate your target market – delivering the right message to decision makers at their most available time. At the end of the day, it’s about giving the customers choices on how they want to get information.

Targeted Email

Unfortunately, not all your customers are interested in all your products or services. Depending on how complex your product is – it could take time and involve a process before a business or organization decides to make a purchase. However, you can initiate contact through targeted email – that is, having attention-grabbing subject lines, brief but precise body text, and compelling call to actions, which almost always guarantees better open and reply rates.

Targeted emails allow you to usher prospective customers through your sales cycle without being too expensive or you spending so much time on one prospect. You can then send follow-up emails equipped with open and click tracking, and KPI reporting to make sure you keep track of all relevant data.

Get some tips on our oldie but goodie last year’s article:

There’s so much negativity in this world already so why not make this your email marketing new year resolution, sound positive! Spread good vibes on your emails and you might as well as pull more customers in.

Voice

Telemarketing is still the quickest, cheapest, and most interactive way to make a contact and a sale. Consider this: many of you could pick up the phone right now, call someone you don’t know and who has never heard of you, and have an electronic payment transaction minutes later. Such is the magic of a telephone call. 

But in marketing, cold calling is somehow getting obsolete. That’s why, to generate conversations and responses from prospects, you should employ an intelligent way of calling prospects. To do this, it has to be in tandem with your targeted email system since the smart calling system facilitates outbound calls by analyzing email open and response times and other online activity.

Smart Calling System - Callbox
Predict the Best Time to Call your Business Contacts. Learn more..

An example is our very own SMART (Sales and Marketing At the Right Time) Calling system, which makes sure prospects that are most reachable at any given moment are moved to the top of the calling list, resulting in higher conversion rates for the campaign. If you don’t believe telemarketing can drive leads further down the sales funnel, then you should read this. Yes, click it. There you go.

Get your telemarketing plans layout perfectly with these guides:

  • Pages of Success for IT Telemarketing Part 1: The Best Laid Plans
  • Pages of Success for IT Telemarketing Part 2: The Naked Face

Web

To complement your outbound efforts through email and calling, you can employ inbound marketing by providing a dedicated landing page. Designed with marketing aesthetics in mind, it features your brand and highlights the main features of your product or service. You can add content, as long as you tailor content to the needs and requirements of the intended audience. It should be varied, informative, and engaging, while at the same time adhering to the essential core messages and values of your business. It can be one-way or more interactive but most of all must be relevant to the audience.

Also, make sure your landing page is equipped with a web form to allow prospects to send in a contact request and if you prefer, a 24/7 live chat feature that will allow your web visitors to talk to your team in real-time, allowing for quicker conversion.

Related: Believe it or not! You can get More Leads without Generating Web Traffic

Social

When we talk social, it is not enough to simply release a message into as many social platforms as possible. The idea is to reach the business’s target market effectively through the selective use of the most appropriate and proven social channels for that target market.

Knowing the differences between channels also helps build the right content. For example, Twitter needs to be direct to the point, within the 140-character limit. Tweets should use links to websites or other channels, directing the flow of traffic to your advantage. Facebook and Google+, on the other hand, can be much more visual through posting articles, links to blogs, pictures. The more interesting the content is, the more likely it will be “reposted”, “liked” or “shared”; therefore reaching more people. On top of this, your social media feature should also allow your team to systematically search the web for prospects whose profiles match those that are in your existing contact list as well as social influencers.

For Mike Alton, there are two important things that should be on your social marketing list:

“First, understanding audience’s needs and creating articles that fit that need. And then, when sharing to social, making sure that you do the best way possible for each network – use hashtags, formatting, etc.”

Influencer Interview Series: Mike Allton Wears The Social Media Hat

Read more: Influencer Interview Series: Mike Allton Wears The Social Media Hat

Mobile

Of course, all this wouldn’t be complete if you don’t have a decent mobile capability. May it be sending text alerts and reminders or making sure your digital format is mobile-friendly, decision-makers may be reached through the right channel at the right time, reducing costs and improving the efficiency and productivity of your marketing efforts.

Bonus:

As soon as you breach the gatekeepers and reach the decision-makers, the next challenge is convincing them to buy in. You can do that by:

  • Being Unique. Think outside the box. Offer something that the prospect may not have heard before.
  • Researching their Company. The head honchos are always impressed when you know more about the company than ordinary people do. That extra effort goes a long way.
  • Focusing more on Benefits than Details. Always, always sell the solution to the problem, not the product.
  • Looking for a Mutual Connection. It makes the person you are talking to feel secure and more comfortable knowing that you have common connections.

Related: Here’s How to Manage Google’s Mobile First Indexing for SMBs

Parting Shot

When it comes to multi-channel marketing, creating consistent customer experiences across all channels is as important as being able to implement the system seamlessly because your customers experience your brand as a whole, whether their interactions with you are online, over the phone, or even via a simple SMS. Believe me, your prospects would know. They wouldn’t be where they are if they didn’t.

Get some inspiration with this marketing campaign! Multi-Channel Marketing & Marketing Automation

Made a 33% Sales Increase for an Australian IT Company

Callbox’s Multi-Channel Marketing Program and Marketing Automation Platform: Partnering for 33% Sales Increase in Sydney IP Services [CASE STUDY]

Extend your Reach! Learn more about our Multi-Channel Marketing Approach

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Sample Cold Calling Scripts for Key Buyer Personas in Managed IT
Make your cold calls to MSP buyers more engaging and productive. Download these sample scripts and reach decision makers that impact managed IT purchases.