Staying Top of Mind is Not the Goal for Email Marketing

When B2B marketers first embraced email marketing, the idea was to populate a database and continuously send one-size-fits-all messages to supposed prospects. The idea being that by keeping these folks exposed to your company's name and logo, you'd stay "top of mind." That process is now referred to as "spray and pray" marketing. In a longer-term, B2B complex sales process, just knowing your company's name or recognizing your logo is not enough.

The one-size-fits-all email blast is a tactic, not a strategic marketing process. And, a lousy tactic at that when relevance and value are the admission fee for catching and keeping prospect attention.

Consider this from a personal perspective for a moment. You're aware of a lot of brands. Many of them probably send you stuff. How many of them do you pay attention to? When it comes time to buy a product, how do you decide which one?

Awareness doesn't require action.

I'm aware of Anheuser Busch. I love their Clydesdale ads. But I don't drink beer. I'm also aware of many other beers. If I had to pick one, it would probably boil down to a "close my eyes and point" exercise because I have no expertise in selecting beer. Or, I'd ask a friend I know who loves beer.

Moving back to the B2B side, consider selecting an email service provider (ESP). There are lots of options. In fact, there are so many options people don't know where to start. That's because they have limited expertise in selecting an ESP. 

So let's say that one buyer has been receiving emails from two vendors. Vendor A sends offers of special deals and incentives. They rave about how well their customers are doing by using their superior system.

Vendor B consistently sends educational content that helps the buyer learn about best practices for increasing the effectiveness of email campaigns. They share stories about their customers' ingenuity in deploying email campaigns that produce results, despite the down economy.

When it comes time for the buyer to select a new ESP, the buyer goes online to look at both options. Hey, they were both Top of Mind.

The services are comparable, although Vendor B is bit more expensive. But the buyer feels an affinity toward Vendor B. The buyer has more confidence that Vendor B will be able to provide him with the additional expertise and support he needs to get the best results from the email system. Vendor B just seems to care more. The buyer contacts Vendor B to take next steps in his purchasing process.

This doesn't mean Vendor A isn't all of those things. But staying Top of Mind wasn't enough to win them a customer when compared with all that Vendor B did to go beyond just staying Top of Mind. It won't be enough for your company either, given the likelihood that your competitors are also emailing your prospects.

The goal for B2B marketing has to move beyond the idea of staying Top of Mind to building relationships that accelerate pipeline momentum. Achieving that goal requires the establishment of a marketing content discipline based on relevance and value applied specifically to address target audience needs.

In essence, email marketing must become lead nurturing. Email marketing is tactical. Lead nurturing is strategic. It's a different mindset. The process of lead nurturing helps companies focus on prospects, instead of on themselves. And that's what matters to your buyers.

Comments

[Dianna Huff]

Ardath,

I agree with you -- and disagree with you. I believe using email to "stay top of mind" is a justifiable tactic.

The fault with email blasts, however, is that companies tend to send out a lot of dreck. Or to use your phrase, "spray and pray."

A good e-newsletter that's filled with the type of content you listed does help keep a company "top of mind" with prospects -- and it helps generate leads. I know, because my clients do get leads from an e-newsletter (as do I).

(The reason I am using e-newsletters is because I keep hearing that the lowly e-newsletter isn't a nurturing tactic. I completely disagree -- as long as the e-newsletter is done right.)

Great post, by the way!

[Ardath Albee]

Hi Dianna,

I think we're actually agreeing. Staying Top of Mind with efforts that result in generating leads means you've done more than put dreck in front of them.

As for eNewsletters, it's not the vehicle or format for the content that serves nurturing well, it's the content itself. I agree that eNewsletters can be a great nurturing tool when done well.

Thanks!
Ardath

[Elizabeth Sklaroff]

Ardath,

Great post and I appreciate your point of view. One way I've encouraged clients to get better results from their more generic communications (such as an eNewsletter) is to use marketing automation to add a customized, follow-up component. If the recipient shows interest in a specific topic in the eNewsletter, he/she is qualified to receive a more detailed follow-up email about that particular subject. Kind of the Twistaplot, choose your adventure model. Thanks!

[Martha Carnahan]

"Lead Nurturing" -- I love that! Thanks for the great post. I agree that "top of mind" is not the only ticket.

In fact, I have noticed a trend with my own behavior as an e-marketing recipient. I've been unsubscribing to a lot of things, opting to read RSS feeds instead (desperately trying to declutter my inbox!). But I have happily kept some ezine subscriptions. The ones who make the cut tend to be highly educational, share a personal side of the writer... AND, only send me something every few weeks (some only once a month). The weekly zines are gone -- too too too much for me.

That's just me... but I'm paying attention to that as I tweak my own email marketing strategy. And will definitly keep "lead nurturing" as a focus point! Thanks!

[Ardath Albee]

@Elizabeth - a specific follow-on based on interests is a good approach. That's one reason I love marketing automation!

@Martha - thanks very much for sharing your perspective. I agree that there's just too much information. We have to protect our time. That's why it's so important to provide content that our audiences find valuable.

Ardath

[Phil Bolton]

Great post Ardath and lots of value here for me.

One question about your site - there is not an obvious way to subscribe by RSS / email on this blog page. I've been searching for 15 seconds (about 12 seconds more than most people's attention span). Perhaps it is deliberate, but I'd really like to get more information from you!

Phil

[Phil Bolton]

Ah - just found it hidden away on the left! Keep up the great content!