How can you derive an optimum distribution mix for your B2B marketing dollars? - Part 3

Optimum Mix - Almost there!

Here’s a quick rationale for my choice of content & channel mapping in my previous piece. For instance, C/V level decision makers in larger businesses would rarely, if ever start researching stuff on Google. They will ask somebody with more time to do it. They wouldn’t mind attending a webinar & if they miss out, they could be found though looking up social media – blogs, video & audio networks – in spare/research time just to catch up on what’s going on. This explains choices for 1 & 2.

Now about 3. Analyst white papers are typically, red hot lead generators for you. Picture this – a Veep asks his managers to look up some strategic content around data rationalization so that they can review what’s out there, what they can do, next steps, etc. in a team meeting next week. If I am targeting this scenario 50% of my time as a B2B marketer, my white paper will potentially get me almost every single lead there is to milk in my area.

The catch is, I have to get ‘found’ at any cost. Here’s where my paid search needs to be ultra aggressive & my organic search guy needs to think between his ears. If you notice too – I have kept just a month aside for my paid search & that’s because any piece of content has just about 30-40 days of shelf life on paid search for a particular region/geography. Beyond this, you will notice a sharp drop in both the quality & number of inbound leads from that particular content.

Finally 4. Press Releases are great tools to tell all who matter or care that ‘we have done something exceptional! Come visit us’. In the age of feeds & widgets, online PRs have just gone up several notches in importance. If nothing gets to your target audience, a well written & distributed PR always will. In many ways, PRs also drive people to 1, 2 & 3 & ensure your planning doesn’t go bust.

So what does an optimum mix look like from quarters 1 to 3?

• Analyst White Paper: 15%
• Content Syndication through social media: 10%
• Press Releases: 10%
• Pay-per-click: 15%
• Search Engine Optimization: 20%
• Webinars: 30%

What I have tried to achieve is a ready-to-go, B2B demand generation mix which will work on more days than not. If you notice, I have not spoken about things like Mobile, behavioral/contextual targeting, etc. That is because those are more elaborate, relatively risky options. They hold undeniable value, but we will think about them in Q4 or year 2!

by Abhiraj Banerjee (abhiraj.banerjee@edynamic.net)