UNIQUE CODE: 06:04:22,23,24
p22,23,24_b2bAPR09 COVERSTORYv2.qxd:Layout 1 27/3/09 18:27 Page 24
B2BM
April 2009
24
Cover story
≤
Go to www.b2bm.biz/features
processes in B2B are much longer than
B2C – and they usually involve various
B2B email marketing:
stakeholders. You have to understand when
Ten trends
somebody is ready to buy,” explains Will
Schnabel, Silverpop’s vice president and 1. A move away from list rental to grow-
general manager. your-own databases, with a focus on
Having moved to the UK from the opted-in data
States, he’s seen a dramatic shift in terms 2. The use of ‘pull’ tactics, using content of
of uptake of these systems, which he genuine value and integrating social
believes is set to continue. networking
“With mid-market companies, as 3. Increased use of multimedia within
“In the B2B space, email
opposed to larger companies, lead emails, such as video and podcasts
management is still fairly new and they’ve 4. Personalised direct mail featuring URLs,
will grow in conjunction with
been struggling even with the basics. It has followed by an email communication to
SEO, PPC and social media”
changed a lot in the last six months and I boost response
think it will become de facto. It’s an 5. RSS feeds used as a complement to
enhancement of email marketing.” emails, and the use of microsites and
Andy Taylor, head of marketing and product
embedded web links
development, InfoUK 4. Multichannel works best 6. Growth of automated lead management
Such lead nurture and generation platforms
campaigns aren’t all focused on email. 7. The breakdown of traditional silos and a
takes an interest and agrees to be “The first step in the funnel may be focus on centrally-held databases
communicated with, thereby building getting someone to sign up for an email 8. Simplified reporting structures to allow
‘stickiness’ with brands they want to be newsletter, but it’s about tailoring your marketers to increase efficiency
involved with.” message and channel according to where 9. Companies choosing to operate on a fully-
they are in the mix,” says Skip Fidura, opt in basis to differentiate themselves
3. Automation for lead generation digital director of dotAgency and vice chair from the competition
Lead generation programmes have also of the DMA’s email marketing council. 10. Analytics: Beyond open and click-through
evolved in the past year. Eloqua and Channel integration is easier with a rates, and informed action as opposed to
Silverpop, for example, offer software and single customer view – which has long been information for the sake of analysis;
systems that allow clients to gauge the the holy grail for marketers. Since an increased focus on email as a
interest of a prospect or customer, and November, InfoUK has had a centralised retention – as well as acquisition – tool.
automate communications according to CRM system, so anyone who buys or
where they are in the customer journey. responds, whether via email, or any other
Eloqua describes the process as a form channel, is automatically logged in the The future of email marketing may
of ‘digital body language’ whilst Silverpop system. finally see a more sophisticated integration
prefers the term ‘engagement marketing’. “For all companies, responses should be of the channel with the rest of the
These systems are suited to high-level automatically linked to CRM. The link marketing mix. “I think, in the B2B space,
consideration items that will involve a between sales and marketing needs to be email will grow in conjunction with SEO,
number of interactions before a deal closes. clear, to improve efficiency and relevance,” PPC and social media,” adds Taylor.
“Look past opens, bounces, and clicks, and says InfoUKs head of marketing and
consider which metrics can be turned into product development, Andy Taylor. 5. Hand-in-hand with social media
actions,” says Wheldon. Effective data systems, and marketing But the question marketers are still
The purveyors of these systems also that respects the audience’s preferred grappling with is how social networking
claim that, by freeing marketers from channel, will no longer be a nice-to-have. tactics can be integrated within email
manually conducting such processes, According to Dolphin’s Stout: “The marketing. In the B2B space in particular,
efforts can be focused on planning and majority prefer email but only when they’ve marketers are still experimenting – and in
creative. opted in. You need a centrally-held data many cases lagging behind their B2C
They say this is helpful at a time when system and information about channel counterparts.
marketers are increasingly stretched. preferences. Look at models like Amazon, Discussion groups about products or
And by passing better quality leads on to that’s a similar concept, and that’s where services are an obvious starting point. “I
sales, efficiency increases. “The sales the future of email is going.” think B2B will start allowing ‘share to
social’ type activities, say if you have read a
relevant article, and you share it on
Why link emails to a microsite? LinkedIn,” says Schnabel.
Proprietary networks are also being
The use of email to drive traffic to a company of a particular campaign. created. According to Taylor, “With social
website is nothing new. But many brands are “Microsites hold a huge amount of power. media, the end goal does not have to be
going one step further, by harnessing the You only need one page of a newsletter in the direct sales. By asking people to share their
benefits of highly relevant microsites, where inbox, for example, and the end user can views and experiences, sales can emerge as
users can download tailored information or access the rest, with full functionality, and a result of that.”
offers, and be tracked more easily. displayed images on the web by clicking Again, innovation is being seen in the
Getting a change done to a corporate through from the email. Microsites can attract email channel. “I think the opportunity is to
website may be tricky, but a dedicated visitors through keywords too,” says leverage user-generated content in email
microsite – similar in look and feel to the Newsweaver’s newsletter specialist Denise marketing – say, to have a blog and to
trigger email – can be tailored to the needs Cox. “They will grow in importance.” encourage people to comment on your
website,” adds Fidura.
B2BM APRIL 09 – www.b2bm.biz
Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53