By Ed Pierce, FMW Brand Acceleration
In this era of digital marketing, account-based marketing can deliver excellent branding and lead generation results. However, the value of this customer-centric approach eludes many B2B organizations, including many in the fleet industry. The problem stems from the typical marketing and sales (or sales and marketing) structure.
While B2B marketing has been traditionally focused on identifying and communicating with “target markets” through appropriate media, messaging is usually based on an understanding of common needs.
B2B Sales Approach
B2B sales begins with business relationship mapping that lays out a prospect’s stakeholders, organization, culture, industry, and strategic plan. Given these differences, there’s little chance of implementing a cohesive and effective strategy. This is truly an account-based look at relationship building.
In today’s effective integrated sales and marketing strategy, therefore, be sure to organize an integrated sales and marketing effort more tightly wound around a specific account.
Start the Planning Process
Once done, you can look at an account-based sales and marketing plan by answering the following questions:
• What/who are your target stakeholders within an account?
• What does each care about?
• What outcome is each seeking?
• What or who influences them?
• How do they want to engage and eventually approve a deal?
From a sales point of view, answers to the following marketing and sales information questions are important:
• Customer Acquisition: How many new customers are currently acquired; how many customers are expected to be acquired in the coming budgeting periods, and what sales volumes and values are obtained from current new customers and expected from new customers?
• Customer Retention: How many customers are currently retained, and how many are estimated to be lost, and what sales are expected from those retained?
• Customer Value Development: How has value been added to your old and regular customer accounts?
With answers to these questions, a supplier gains a better idea of developing a strategy. understanding about what needs to be done based on a customer flow perspective.
More Metrics
An account-based approach integrates key performance indicators (KPIs) to evaluate strategy and tactical effectiveness, providing insight into customer lifetime value (CLV) and Customer Equity, as well as retention-specific metrics like the Early Repeat Rate.
While performance indicators can help a company better understand the impact of its actions on customer behavior, the key to understanding opportunities is to uncover insights about the customer segments.
More Meaningful Customer Relationships
Ultimately, the promise of account-based marketing is the ability to establish more meaningful (and ultimately profitable) relationships with your customers. While it can seem daunting to shift away from established metrics and realign around customer-centric marketing principles, the five steps outlined above can help provide a roadmap for organizations that are ready to capitalize on this extraordinary opportunity.
Feel free to call me at 484-957-1246 or send an email to me at edpierce@fmwbrandacceleration.media to share your experiences, ideas, and other comments about fleet marketing.
