“Do I Know You?”: Marketing Tacts To Avoid
Posted by heatherrast on February 12th, 2009The plight of a salesperson is a tough one. There are physical barriers ranging from receptionists screening calls to Junk or Spam filters blocking emails, and direct mailings that are overlooked. I don’t purport to have deep insights on how to effectively penetrate the “no solicitations” bubble surrounding many purchase decision-makers, but I do believe that many messages and tactics are off target to say the best, and out of touch, to say the least.
What Did You Just Say To Me?
These are excerpts from three separate push-emails I received today.
1. “I wanted to send you a quick email to let you know I’ll be taking over your account…”
What account?
2. “The following article was published this week about (our Brand), here’s the link…”
Why do I care?
3. “In reviewing your site yesterday, we noticed you had Google Analytics in place…many times the installation is incorrect…call us if you’re interested in achieving better results…”
Are you trying to bait me?
The Real Deal
In the first instance, I have no knowledge of the company and definitely don’t have an account. Not sure what the sender is going to take over, exactly. In the second, I know the company but find their product overpriced and of no greater value than a free tool I use, so knowing about their industry write-up doesn’t interest me. Or impress me. And I’d think they’d come to realize that based on my exceptional ability to dodge their persistent calls. And in the third, well I thought it was just creepy as well as arrogant (yes, I know the site code view is easy to assess; that doesn’t mean that its acceptable to presume an intimate understanding of our business, motivations, or objectives. Stay outta my stuff unless I invite you!).
While I empathize with the challenges sales professionals routinely experience (more so in our country’s present economic state, and the ensuing competitive environment), I don’t think that warrants these guys a “pass” for poor form, unfamiliarity with our (lack of) prospect history, or adoption of false pretense.
Stop, Look, and Listen
I need these guys to stop, look, and listen.
Stop doing the same ‘ol, same ‘ol. What has it netted you in the past? What are some risks on persisting?
Look at your data. How many calls are returned or answered? How many emails clicked through?
Listen to the myriad of conversations around you. What does the guy responsible for the email campaigns think? What do the site surveys indicate?
Your Mission, Should You Choose To Accept It
I’ve said it before, consumers are driving the bus. They’re determining their paths, their destinations, the stop routes, their tschotzke’s . Sales and marketers have to do more than discover a way to skirt the gatekeeper. They have to use all measures of intelligence, insight, and (yes!) ingenuity to define messages that will matter and delivery channels that are authentic to their targets.
It’s not that I don’t ever open an unsolicited email. It’s just that at a glance it has to intrigue me, inform me, engage me. Without pressing me.
What do you do with sales calls? Blast emails? Brochureware direct mail? Whose has broken through for you recently, really struck you as a valuable read and worth your time?
Tags: Engagement, listening, Sales, Strategy
That nice man from Nigeria who emailed me the offer to help him out with his frozen bank account really struck me as sincere, and…
Seriously, though, most of the calls, emails, etc, such as you describe get tossed or ignored as fast as I can click. I think one problem is, that since such communications have become so persistent, I’ll occasionally miss an offer of genuine value because it’ll just get automatically lumped in with the chaff. If a marketer can’t design their piece to be immediately distinguishable to me personally, then I’m afraid it’s lost amid the mountains of junk.
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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 12th, 2009 at 9:25 pm
Speaking for us marketers, you might think that as we’re consumers {end users} ourselves and therefore frequently the object of such push messaging and solicitations, that we’d have a heightened sensitivity to what resonates and what doesn’t; to what inspires consideration and trial and then what feels overbearing or off-putting. I’m afraid those that do indeed “get it” are few and to your point, are often casualties of war because they’re unfortunately caught in the momentum–the junk folder that I delete without reviewing, the spam that’s stopped at the exchange server and never makes it to my mailbox, etc. I don’t think the only ways to mitigate it (being caught up in the trash, so to speak) involve brighter colors or bolder headlines; I think it requires nurturing a generous and gracious environment where consumers naturally gravitate because what’s offered to them is engaging, entertaining, and valuable.
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You’re so right – consumers ARE in the driver’s seat! They are driving the bus.
Businesses who get it – will thrive. Businesses that don’t get it – well, they’ll be left behind!
Great post Heather!
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heatherrast
Twitter: heatherrast
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February 20th, 2009 at 7:00 pm
Thanks for stopping by, Kathy. Always my pleasure to read your comments.
There’s definitely a veil of ’smarmy’ or at least disingenuity surrounding some of the tacts or approaches I’ve seen from possibly well-meaning but unfocused companies these days.And the element that too often also goes neglected is POST-sale or subscription…the element of continued customer cultivation, retention, delivery of promised experience. I wish some companies would realize that just trapping new customers doesn’t assure them of retention, affinity, nor certainly positive word-of-mouth.
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