Canvas Magazine | Bullseye | May 2014

Tweeting your way to the C-suite How to tell customers from prospects EMPOWERING MARKETING SERVICE PROVIDERS

MAY 2014

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If you peel back the hype and look at what lead scoring asks you to do, you quickly find that this is a classic case of a solution in search of a problem.

MAY 2014 PUBLISHER

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mark potter

Publisher’s Thoughts

CREATIVE DIRECTOR

Love conquers all

brandon clark MARKETING MANAGER taylor knowles

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Best of CANVAS Notes Something to talk about

MANAGING EDITOR michael j. pallerino ART DIRECTOR brent cashman

EDITORIAL BOARD chris petro GlobalSoft

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Marketing Insights P12

Bullseye Does lead scoring miss the point in B2B?

tom moe Daily Printing

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dean petrulakis Rider Dickerson

The irrefutable laws you must obey to forge power relationships

david bennett Bennett Graphics

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tony narducci O’Neil Printing

How you can meet the right need for each

You can’t tweet your way to the C-suite

Customers vs. Prospects

CANVAS, Volume 6, Issue 5. Published bi-monthly, copyright 2014 CANVAS, All rights reserved, 2180 Satellite Blvd., Suite 400, Duluth, GA 30097. Please note: The acceptance of advertising or products mentioned by contributing authors does not constitute endorsement by the publisher. Publisher cannot accept responsibility for the correctness of an opinion expressed by contributing authors.

CANVAS P1

PUBLISHER’S THOUGHTS

Love Conquers All

W

ith love in our lives, there is nothing that can hold us back. We can overcome great challenges and obstacles, and we reach the highest of heights. With love in our lives, we are more fulfilled and therefore better to everyone around us.

Love fills our hearts and nurtures our souls. It is what most of us want, and

yet it also can cut us pretty deep. In fact, when we lose something we love, it hurts us to the core.

Love produces butterflies in our stomachs and a roller coaster of emotions, but it is as essential to our existence as food and shelter. The funny thing is

If you’re concerned that your business or clients are not showing you the love you think you deserve, ask yourself this question – “Are you loving?”

that while we continue to covet love, we forget one very important thing – love is a verb.

When you actively love something or someone, you reach a higher sense of self. When you love, you demonstrate a deep level of caring and devotion to one another. If you’re concerned that your business or clients are not showing you the love you think you deserve, ask yourself this question, “Are you loving?”

Ask yourself why you love the people closest to you. My guess is that it has something to do with unconditional support, common interests, sense of humor and anything else that makes you realize they want you in their lives. So, why not clients? Why not show them unconditional support? It seems to work in other parts of your life, so maybe it’s time to flip the script.

We have an amazing issue for this month. In our cover story – “Bullseye – Does Lead Scoring Miss the Point in B2B?” – Jeff Josephson, CEO of JV/M, takes an in-depth look at what today’s marketers and salespeople should really expect from the strategy, and how it can make a difference for your company.

In our second feature, “You Can’t Tweet Your Way to the C-Suite,” authors Andrew Sobel and Jerold Panas provide a working guide of the irrefutable laws you must obey in order to forge power and meaningful relationships with today’s C-suite.

We hope you “love it.”

Warmest Regards,

Mark Potter, Publisher

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CANVAS MAY 2014

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out b a k l a t o t Something

his . When I left r in Chicago te n ri p le b ients. remarka ing for his cl o ure to visit a d as as le w p e e h th great things recently had elling folding s over all the p m u b se atings, comp o o co g g in ad h az I , am p f o sho ter example e example af m d e w o sh He e printing. and exquisit , g in tt cu ie his and d ld do under rint shop cou p is h s g in th f or the type o nts’ needs. me to his clie is capabilities h ca d it e n ss e h cu w is d d e he never nuity he show Interestingly, was the inge f o d u ro p st e was mo ething worth roof. What h must do som u yo , lf e rs u ain. for yo r and over ag ake a name ve m o it to r o e d rd n o e th that in tention, and t of it. iend knows t to be a par customers’ at r an u My printer fr w yo ill b w ra le g p ords, ona and peo t. In other w t of your pers ar talking abou p e m co e will b ings you do e process, he Soon, the th him about th d ke as I n e h at you W ntioned his front end strategy. I asked t th is y r to s e th me “fron , because the fic The moral to ci e sp re o him to be m mant are worth a th eginning of a s b e g th in e lik th d o e end” sound have to d ont end r u as not. The fr o w y It , . o ss d ce ro u p ufacturing mers.

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I’ve been kick indset. They m t n re fe press is evid if r d lo a o s -c a 8 h w p e u gro killing it. A n This printing say, they’re to ss le d e e n u do, And selves later. out. When yo ab g in lk ta h rt g strategy s that are wo is an enrichin e to do thing is av h h T u s. yo te at ca vo the story is th r greatest ad rward.

The moral to become you ill w y it n u ploy going fo m m e m ld co u r o u sh yo s d all businesse your clients an that I believe e n o – ls ve le on so many lking about. ing worth ta th e m so e b at will Hopefully, th gards, Warmest Re

Ma r k Pot te r Follow me @

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CANVAS MAY 2014

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MARKET INSIGHTS

A SNAPSHOT OF THE TRENDS DEFINING OUR INDUSTRY

Print or digital? Shoppers say print Think today’s shopping experience has gone totally digital? Think again. According to a U.S. consumer behavior study conducted by Synqera, 81 percent of consumers surveyed say they would not search for promotions and coupons on a retailer or grocer’s mobile app, while 73 percent would not want them sent directly to their mobile device. That’s right – 75 percent still prefer promotional content and coupons from traditional print media such as magazines, newspapers, inserts and flyers. The study also shows that 72 percent of consumers find savings online, while 62 percent use coupons they receive after making a purchase.

As it turns out, Facebook isn’t only the place where most people catch up with old school friends, it’s the place for news, too. According to a Pew Research Report, out of the 64 percent of U.S. adults who have Facebook accounts use the social network to follow news – that’s 30 percent of the U.S. adult population. The report also shows that 50 percent of overall social users post news-related content, and 46 percent discuss current events.

Did you know

6% The percent of organizations that admit to not having a content sharing strategy, according to

Chief Marketing Officer (CMO) Council’s

“The Content Connection to Vendor Selection” report.

Print using digital technology, such as for direct mail, is on the rise. No other media gets attention in the same way, and digital lets our industry add value. We have to realize that in five to 10 years from now, there may be less print, but what is left will be higher in value.

– EFI CEO Guy Gecht on print’s expansion into new and innovative directions such as variable data or high-margin industrial applications

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CANVAS MAY 2014

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MARKET INSIGHTS

A SNAPSHOT OF THE TRENDS DEFINING OUR INDUSTRY

3D Oreos – that just happened If you can print a cookie with a 3D printer, well, just watch out. During the South by Southwest Interactive Festival, vending machines used Twitter-styled trends to create Oreo cookies with a 3D printer. Thanks to a partnership between Mondelez International and Twitter, attendees received “deliciously hyper-personalized and customized snacks based on real-time data collection.” The 3D-printed Oreos – which were edible, by the way – were assembled within two minutes by the machines. The flavors depended on which ones were trending on the social platform.

Your future success depends on

S

cores of chief marketing officers say the answer to fill in the blank is understanding big data and social

media. According to IBM’s “Stepping up the challenge: How CMOs Can Start to Close the Aspirational Gap” study, 94 percent of CMOs surveyed believe big data analytics will be crucial to their companies’ performance, even though 82 percent admit they still don’t know how to analyze it. In addition, while social media continues to be all the rage, 66 percent say their companies are unprepared to handle it, citing a continual change rate as the primary reason.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

PAPER because Print Works!

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MARKET INSIGHTS

A SNAPSHOT OF THE TRENDS DEFINING OUR INDUSTRY

Dialing for dollars Survey shows who’s doing what with mobile Before planning your strategy for mobile marketing, you need to know what the terrain is like. According to a survey by WebDAM, some 1.4 billion smartphones were in use in 2013.

That translates into the average American spending almost two hours per day on his mobile device. In addition, 224 million people in the U.S. are monthly active mobile app users. With more than $400 billion expected to be generated by mobile marketing in 2015, here’s a look at the top smartphone apps based on today’s mobile audience:

FACEBOOK

74%

GOOGLE SEARCH

53%

GOOGLE PLAY

53%

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CANVAS MAY 2014

PANDORA RADIO

49% YOUTUBE

49%

LEAD SCORE MARKETING

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CANVAS MAY 2014

BY JEFF JOSEPHSON

If you peel back the hype and look at what lead scoring asks you to do, you quickly find that this is a classic case of a solution in search of a problem.

I

n case you haven’t heard, “lead scoring” is the new hot thing in B2B. Advocated by the contact management system (CMS) vendors and inbound marketing specialists alike,

lead scoring is promoted as a way to make sure that your salespeople focus on only the hottest prospects – so they can close the most sales in the least amount of time.

For example, one vendor emphasizes that

acteristics of a lead matter most. And every-

lead scoring is the key to improving the pro-

one seems to agree that lead scoring helps

ductivity of your sales team, while another

bring marketing and salespeople together.

stresses that it’s an essential component of

Kumbayah!

lead nurturing. Yet another group teaches us

But if you peel back the hype and look at

that lead scoring can tell you when your leads

what lead scoring asks you to do, you quickly

are “market ready,” while our friends at Wiki-

find that this is a classic case – in the busi-

pedia add that it can increase your marketing

ness-to-business (B2B) sector, at least – of a

effectiveness by helping to identify what char-

solution in search of a problem.

CANVAS P13

BULLSEYE

Where did lead scoring come from?

If you go back in time, you will find that lead scoring – as it’s practiced today – has two parents. The father of lead scoring, so to speak, is the tech industry that created and sells powerful CRM systems that can manage huge masses of data. Built on relational databases, these systems let you tag records with all sorts of attributes, and then let you sort, subtotal and report to your heart’s content.

So, when management wants a report showing from what industry the leads are coming or what flavor brochure your prospects like, out pops the answer at the click of a button – along with a $100,000 worth of development. And with knowledge being power, these reports often become the club with which to beat the incompetent, the lazy and the heretical.

The mothers of lead scoring – with apologies to mothers – are the marketing experts who, it turns out, find it to be a convenient tool for justifying their budgets while masking the ineffectiveness of their inbound marketing programs. While it’s easy to spend thousands, if not millions, of dollars producing clicks, visits, downloads, eyeballs, opens, inquiries, brochure requests, email addresses and attendees, if there’s not a qualified prospect in the bunch then lead scoring is nothing more than, to quote that infamous line, “like putting lipstick on a pig.”

To be clear, if you give a salesperson anything other than a qualified sales lead, you are, by definition, wasting his or her time.

For it doesn’t matter how many tags you put on it. If it isn’t an appointment with a decision maker who needs your products or services, and who wants to talk with you about how you can help, it isn’t a lead.

A historical perspective For many years – and perhaps still to this day – there was a sales training program that was promoted on the basis of its ability to take experienced salespeople and make them more efficient. The problem, though, was that many companies put their less experienced salespeople through the program, believing that their problem was inefficiency, not incompetence. As a result, these people got trained, and then proceeded to fail faster. But the program tapped into a basic misperception about professional B2B salespeople – that inefficiency is a major problem among salespeople.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

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BULLSEYE

In our experience of working with hundreds of

You could, if you want to dress it up a little, add

sales teams and thousands of salespeople, we’ve

a “temperature” like hot, warm or cool, to it. (For

never seen inefficiency as being a major prob-

most B2B sales, we recommend against requiring

lem. You may have a compensation program that

budget, or even timing, as criteria.) But if you give

rewards dithering. You may have a competence

a salesperson a qualified lead, I think you’ll find

problem that requires better training. Or you

that inefficiency isn’t going to be a problem.

may have a motivation problem that requires psy-

So, why do we need lead scoring? As I implied

chotherapy, if not a spiff. But if you think that, by

above, if your marketing program is producing

tagging leads the salespeople can prioritize their

junk, then lead scoring is a way to obfuscate the

work, then you don’t understand sales.

problem. And what else are you going to do with

In the absence of forces to the contrary, salespeople generally focus on what will make them the most money, in the least amount of time, with the least amount of effort and risk. While this requires some basic information about a lead, five, 10 or 20 attributes are way too many to be of value.

all those fields on your CRM? And, of course, management does want its reports.

But if you want to make your sales team more efficient, get out of their way.

Oh, and marketing? Start producing qualified leads.

Lead scoring that doesn’t miss the point In order to provide salespeople with what they need, you must start by producing qualified sales leads – which is defined as: An appointment with a decision maker (or decision influencer) who needs your products or services, and who wants to talk with you about how you can help.

In order to provide salespeople with what they need, you must start by producing qualified sales leads.

To be clear, if you give a salesperson anything other than a qualified sales lead, you are, by definition, wasting his or her time. And so the only attributes that matter are: 1. Is there a need?

2. Is the person a decision maker or decision influencer?

3. Do they want to talk?

Jeff Josephson is the CEO of JV/M, Inc., in Moorestown, N.J. For more information on how you can improve the performance of your marketing and sales programs, visit www.LeadGen.com, or you can contact Josephson at 856-638-0399, ext.101, or by email at JLJ@LeadGen.com.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

C-SUITE TWEETING

Build relationship s with smart, motivated , interesting and ambitious p eople, even if they’re not in a n important job right now.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

BY ANDREW SOBEL & JEROLD PANAS

YOU CAN’T TWEET YOUR WAY TO THE C-SUITE

I

t seems like we’re all just a click away from communicating with the most influential people in our industries. We can get “Linked In” to potential contacts across the country. We can be Facebook friends with former colleagues we haven’t spoken to in years.

The degrees of separation between us and the movers and shakers have collapsed.

CANVAS P19

YOU CAN’T TWEET YOUR WAY TO THE C-SUITE

And yet, are any of these so-called relationships real?

Challenge No. 1 – How to connect with the super-busy

Will they get you to where you

Follow the person, not the position

want to go?

Probably not. The acquisi-

Here’s a story about a client who was promoted into the C-

tion of hundreds of social me-

suite at her Fortune-100 company after having been the deputy

dia contacts and endless, but

in her area for many years. During that time, the company’s advi-

superficial, networking are re-

sors and suppliers rarely had spent time with her or invited her

placing the cultivation of deep,

to their special events, preferring to focus on her boss, who con-

meaningful relationships with

trolled the budget. On the day her promotion was announced

clients, colleagues, and even

to the press, she suddenly received dozens of calls from these

with friends and family. Form-

suppliers – all wanting to do business with her.

ing such relationships comes

And do you know what she asked them? Where were you five

with four major challenges:

years ago? Truly important people often bring their advisors and

•

To connect with people

trusted suppliers along with them over the years. While it is not

who are crazy-busy and

impossible to break into someone’s inner circle after they have

have put up walls to pro-

achieved great success, it’s also not an easy task.

tect their time •

Build relationships with smart, motivated, interesting and am-

To become relevant to se-

bitious people, even if they’re not in an important job right now.

nior executives and other

Follow them throughout their careers.

influencers who won’t give you a second chance if the first conversation doesn’t •

Make them curious When you evoke curiosity, you create a gravitational pull that

light a spark

is irresistible. You create curiosity and reach by showing just a

To resonate with others

bit of the glitter of the gold you must offer your client. Say the

on an emotional level and

unexpected. Surprise the other person with your candid answer

create a deep, personal

to a tough question. Shake up their thinking by showing them a

connection

side to their problem they had not considered.

that

brings

you into their inner circle •

To make an impact and leave an indelible mark on those most important to you at work and at home Following are ways to over-

come two major challenges – to connect and to become relevant – we all face in building deep, trusted relationships with key influencers.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

When you can walk in your customers’ shoes in small ways, you can also do it in bigger ways.

Our book, “Power Relationships: 26 Irrefutable Laws for Building

that you “get” their needs on

Extraordinary Relationships,” offers other ways to help you con-

the most fundamental level.

nect. For example, “build your network before you need it,” and

You

“be unafraid to ask,” which we used to forge a lifelong, personal

they’re under, what they’re

relationship with one of the greatest retailers of the 20th Century,

feeling and, yes, how hungry

J.C. Penney himself.

and tired they are. When you

know

what

pressures

can walk in your customers’

Challenge No. 2 – How to light the spark that makes you relevant Walk in their shoes An investment banker arrives at his client’s office in the middle of a large deal. He is so oblivious to his clients’ state that he grabs the last remaining bacon sandwich on a tray, effectively stealing his client’s lunch. That executive became the chief financial officer of his company, and the banker was banned from doing business with them for more than a decade.

He could have avoided 10 years in the wilderness if he had done a very simple exercise – imagine what it’s like to walk in your client’s shoes. Being relevant isn’t always about the big, crucial, money-making ideas. Sometimes, it’s about showing people

shoes in small ways, you can also do it in bigger ways.

Being relevant isn’t always about the big, crucial, money-making ideas. Sometimes, it’s about showing people that you “get” their needs on the most fundamental level.

YOU CAN’T TWEET YOUR WAY TO THE C-SUITE

Become one with your clients Become part of your clients’ growth and profits, and they’ll never get enough of you. To be seen as part of growth and profits, you must show how your products and services are helping your client achieve his or her highest-level goals. A good starting point is a very simple question: How are you going to be evaluated at the end of the year? Then, you can ask a second, related question: How do your individual goals support the organization’s overall strategy and key priorities for this year? Once you understand their critical priorities, you can begin to demonstrate how you can help further them.

Incidentally, another point in “Power Relationships” leads you to understand exactly what these higher-level growth goals are. It states, simply: Know the other person’s agenda and help them accomplish it. Nothing makes you more relevant than showing how you are aligned with one or more of the other person’s personal priorities.

Relationships cannot be formed with the snap of your fingers or the click of a mouse. Building them takes time and effort. Once you’ve tackled the challenges of connecting and showing how you’re relevant, you can move on to the other two – resonating and making an impact. But not before. Try to put the cart before the horse, and no one will ever hear you.

Andrew Sobel and Jerold Panas are co-authors of “Power Relationships: 26 Irrefutable Laws for Building Extraordinary Relationships” and the accompanying workbook, “Power Relationships Personal Planning Guide,” which is free for anyone who buys the book at www.andrewsobel.com.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

BUSINESS INSIGHTS

CUSTOMERS VS. PROSPECTS • BY GREG COTICCHIA

Customers vs. Prospects How you can meet the right need for each

W

e call them customers, even when we’re in a sales process with them. “Hey, where are we with that customer?” often is a question we ask our salespeople or account managers when they’re in the middle of a sales process.

But we all know that customers – I will define them as an entity or person who already has purchased what we sell – truly is different than those who have yet to purchase from us. And to make it more confusing, a customer for one of our offerings can be a prospect for another. This may seem like a trivial terminology difference, but trust me, its not. The “hat” a buyer wears is very different as a prospect. As a business, you must understand that difference in order to be successful.

When is the last time you bought a washer and a dryer?

It probably was when your other set broke down. If you purchased them (and they mostly are bought together) over the last 10 years, you probably were in for a shock.

Like many of us, you came home from work one night to find your current washer or dryer not working. Manufactures tell us these devices should last at least 10 years.

But how hard is it? You gather up your clothes, put them into the machine and press “wash” or “dry.” Easy. You’re a satisfied customer. What else could you possibly want or need from the machines except that they work?

And then they don’t.

It’s time for a new one, so you head to the nearest big box to see what’s out there. What did you find? Pretty amazing, right?

Laundry products, as they are referred to these days, have become more “intelligent.” Today, they can detect soil levels and water needs. Washers can remember your “favorite” cycle. They can treat stains with hot or cold water, depending on the need. They can even add a burst of steam when needed.

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CANVAS MAY 2014

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c r E at i v E

m i n d s

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SCHOLARSHIPS

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EduCAtIOn

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EdsF sponsors academic research grants and partners with major industry research firms to provide businesses with cutting-edge data on trends in the document management and graphic communications industry. since 2001, EdsF has provided 30 research grants, developed a grant/mentor program and published over 25 white papers.

Through recognition of leading educators and educational programs worldwide, EdsF continues to build awareness about career opportunities in the industry, while ensuring that businesses have a talented pool of applicants to recruit.

more than ever before, there is a critical need for individuals and companies to support the future of the document management and graphic communications industry.

EdsF’s scholarship program enables students to receive the education necessary to pursue careers in the industry, while providing much needed assistance in offsetting the ever increasing financial burden.

Please join us as we work together to provide our future business leaders with the skills and knowledge necessary to shape our industry for years to come.

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BUSINESS INSIGHTS

CUSTOMERS VS. PROSPECTS

Many new machines can reduce water and

Competitors rushed to copy it. Funny thing is

energy usage by 20 to 65 percent. These high-

that when we asked the customers a couple

efficiency, technological wonders have sensors

years later how they used it, they said they

that detect the volume of clothes and add just

barely did. Like that washing machine with the

enough water to clean them. They have spin

intergalactic set of buttons on top, they just

cycles that save on drying times. There are

pressed “wash.”

top-loading and front-loading machines, and

Henry Ford famously once said, “If I had

then there is the dilemma of trying to choose

asked people what they wanted, they would

between the two. Did I mention the inserts

have said faster horses.” While we find a lot of

that enable you to dry clean your clothes or

humor in that, we know that Ford understood

wash your sneakers?

the prospects for his cars were different than

When you consider all of these choices (and there are many), your role as a prospect is

customers who already had their transportation needs satisfied by horses.

much different. You have different needs than

Similarly, Steve Jobs once said, “You can’t

you did as a customer. Now you need all of

just ask customers what they want, and then

these great time savers and cost reducers. You

try to give that to them. By the time you get it

have to have them.

built, they’ll want something new.”

What’s really funny is what people say after

So, as you decide what to sell and how to

they purchase them. Anecdotally, when I ask

sell it, ask yourself who your customers are.

people who bought one of these newfangled

Are you selling existing products and services

devices, they typically tell me what you might

to your customers? Or, are you trying to reach

expect. They use them the same way. They hit

prospects who haven’t purchased from you be-

“wash” or “dry.” Isn’t that funny? Sure, they get

fore? They are different. And what they “need”

some of the other benefits, but essentially we

and “want” often is different as well.

are creatures of habit.

Prospects are different than customers. And if you treat them the same, it can hurt your business. There are lots of products that have lots of features that prospects must have. Some of these features are why they buy what they buy.

When I was a young product manager, I remember adding an “breakthrough” feature to one of my products that helped transform it from a loser to a winner in the market at the time. Other companies loved this new feature.

Greg Coticchia is an award-winning technology executive with more than 25 years experience in high-tech products and services. Recently, as CEO and co-founder of eBillingHub, he grew the company from inception to establishing it in a leading market position that led to its sale to Thomson Reuters. He currently teaches both business-to-business marketing and entrepreneurial leadership at the University of Pittsburgh’s Katz School of Business.

P26

CANVAS MAY 2014

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