Industrials have been notoriously slow to move into the digital world and Customer Relations Management (CRM) software is an important piece of the puzzle that continues to puzzle most. In the U.S., 97% of the Fortune 500 B2Bs use a CRM system. But you don’t have to be a $500-million enterprise to use a CRM. Advances… Read more »
Whether you are exposed to business risk through exports or if growth has already been stymied due to the strong dollar (now even stronger), it takes a hardy constitution to stomach last month’s Chinese stock market meltdown, which started crashing mid June. Many industrial companies cut their marketing budgets when the economy hits a speed… Read more »
An outgrowth of the Inc. 500 list begun in 1982, the Inc. 5000 list, an “annual ranking of the fastest-growing private companies in America,” has become a litmus test for legitimizing up-and-coming private companies that exemplify the entrepreneurial spirit. To be eligible for the list, an entrant needs to be an independent, privately owned company based… Read more »
It’s almost football season and there’s an adage any pigskin fan is guaranteed to hear at least once this fall: defense wins championships. It might be true in sports, but when the legendary head coach Paul “Bear” Bryant uttered this phrase some 40-odd years ago, he surely didn’t have B2B sales and marketing in mind…. Read more »
From 1995–2000, I worked for a company that manufactured and distributed high-quality seals and components to OEMs. I’m not going to reveal my exact age, but suffice to say I was in college at the time. It was my first “real” job and also my first experience working in what I would soon learn was… Read more »
Faster than a speeding email! More powerful than a search engine! Able to leap the competition in a single inbound! Look up into the cloud! It’s a run of B2B marketing automation and sales intelligence platforms that are enabling industrial marketing and sales professionals to see more, know more, and convert more business than ever… Read more »
Imagine if grocery stores didn’t display pricing. You’d be outraged if Kroger forced you to request a quote on bread and milk. Likewise, it would leave a bad taste in your mouth if an electrician didn’t give you an estimate for rewiring your kitchen. You’d never hire him or her to do the work. That’s… Read more »
Throughout the last few years, I’ve heard a lot of “Why do I need to hire a marketing agency?” Not surprisingly, I hear this primarily from industrial companies. Traditionally, industrials are focused on old-school methods of sales and marketing such as trade shows and the occasional print ad. If it ain’t broke, why fix it… Read more »
