Technology Marketing in the Digital Age: Using Content to Position Your Company’s Technology Expertise
Last month, we looked at how, through social media, expert content allows a technology company to use their expertise to position themselves as a powerful contender in the IT industry. Today, we’ll discuss three benefits of using value-added content as part of a powerful marketing strategy.
The ability of content to generate revenue opportunities for an organization promoted through social channels is evident in the statistics. This year alone, 73% of content marketing professionals in North America say that they have increased their content marketing activity by as much as 41% more than that of 2013, according to the Content Marketing Institute.
A good content strategy uses expert content on social platforms to facilitate a sales ready, competitive and opportunistic organization. Here are three reasons why:
1. Content serves as a “warm-call” to buyers
According to the CMO (Chief Marketing Officer) Council, B2B buyers are becoming more reliant on third party information to make educated decisions. In an effective strategy, delivering value added content through social media acts as a “warm call” to the buyer, hitting them just at the right time and place in their buying cycle.
Research conducted by Google and the CEB (Corporate Executive Board) Marketing Leadership Council says buyers go through approximately 57% of the purchasing process before ever talking to a sales rep. In other words, nearly 60% of the sales process has just disappeared.
2. Content positions a company to be competitive
When vying for market share in a highly competitive marketplace, organizations that deliver effective content created by staff experts—content that centers on customer’s needs—position themselves in a leadership role, helping them to stand out among their competition. When a technology firm highlights their expertise through value-added content, they demonstrate that they are a better choice, and facilitate a dialogue with the prospect or customer.
3. Content creates an optimal environment for business partnering opportunities
Many organizations’ sales strategies involve not just selling directly to the end user, but also uncovering partnering opportunities that bring complementary offerings into a sale. By socializing content that highlights each other’s products/offerings, it creates opportunities for both organizations to sell more to their respective buyers.
Social media can help a technology firm and its partners portray themselves as a valuable resource for thought leading information. The more a company and its business partners share content, the more their customers and prospects will respond positively, which ultimately lead to a more positive sales outcome.
[Leadarati helps IT firms drive value and increase opportunities through social, digital and online communications.]
