Post by: Anna Brantley, Chief Revenue Officer of AnalyticsIQ
I’ve lived and breathed consumer marketing data the vast majority of my career, working with brands to deliver the personalized experiences that people expect – and even demand today. As a busy mom of two elementary school aged kids, I’m one of those consumers; I want and need relevant offers that will save me time and money. During this fall’s back to school season, many of the brands I love leveraged my data to deliver me coupons and deals that helped me save on everything from my kids’ school supplies to new sneakers.
So, when it comes to my business life as an employee at AnalyticsIQ, why does personalization come to a screeching halt?
Just like B2C marketers, B2B marketers have the opportunity to tap into the power of data in order to create meaningful connections – an ultimately sell more products and services. For example, when it comes to me – Anna, the employee –
- I am a decision maker within my organization.
- I prefer people not solicit me via a cold call.
- In fact, I really prefer LinkedIn for initial communication – even over email.
- I find videos to be the best way for me to understand the value of new offerings. Don’t send me a whitepaper. I simply don’t have the time to read it.
- I really enjoy working with and purchasing from vendors who invest time in building a personal connection with me and my team.
Now imagine if a business marketer went beyond basic firmographics and knew all of these personal elements about me as a professional? (Without having to read this blog post, of course!) Marketers and sales reps would send me much more relevant messages. Those who contact me via LinkedIn would have a greater chance of me responding. Those who send me videos would have an even better chance of me understanding the value of their solution. Those who make an effort to connect on a personal level because they understand who I am both at the office – and at home – would stand out above the rest of the many businesses vying for my attention.
This, my data friends, would be true personalization at a business level. The coolest part about this scenario is that data makes it completely possible. In fact, if this sounds like the level of personalization that you crave, contact me (preferably via LinkedIn) and I can share with you all of the really cool business and professional data we are creating over here!